SaskMusic will return to the Reeperbahn Festival and Conference (September 21-24) this year with four Saskatchewan artists performing at Canada House: Ellen Froese, Gunner & Smith, Nick Faye, and The Garrys.
Canadian delegation events kick off in Berlin on September 19 as participating Canadian companies will have the opportunity to take part in a pre-Reeperbahn business initiative organized by the Canadian Independent Music Association (CIMA) and the Canadian Embassy in Berlin. This full afternoon of business events will take place at the Embassy and will include roundtable discussions and networking opportunities for the Canadian and German delegates.
In Hamburg, Canadian companies will get the chance to participate in a Meet the Canadians matchmaking session, organized by Reeperbahn, with Germany industry.
The Canada House showcases will then take place on September 22 and 23 at UWE (Spielbudenplatz 21-22, 20359 Hamburg) with performances by 28 Canadian artists. Showcases run from 11am through to 1am.
Canada House artists are: Alysha Brilla – Andrew Waite – Blue Hawaii – Braden Lam – Choses Sauvages – Declan O’Donovan – Diaphanie – Ellen Froese – Featurette - Gunner + Smith – Gus Englehorn – JayWood – Jordan Klassen – Les Hay Babies – Les Hôtesses D’Hilaire – Little Destroyer – Mauvey – Motherhood – Nick Faye – Nuela Charles – Pillow Fite - Skinny Dyck – Softcult - Tanika Charles - Terra Spencer – The Brandy Alexanders - The Garrys – XL the Band.
Canada House is presented by CIMA, with co-presenters Alberta Music, Manitoba Music, M for Montreal, Music BC, MusicOntario/Ontario Creates, Music New Brunswick, Music Nova Scotia, Music Yukon, SaskMusic and Quebec Creates/SODEC.
Artists for this initiative were selected by CIMA through their own intake process.
SaskMusic’s participation in this initiative is made possible through the support of Creative Saskatchewan’s Market & Export Development Program.
Artist Showcase Times
Ellen Froese
Thur Sept 22, 11am
It's in her father’s truck that the young Ellen Froese first discovers her passion for music and makes the decision that she would create music herself, too. She cancels her piano classes in order to teach herself the guitar – with icons like Neil Young, Willie Nelson or Bob Dylan in mind. Americana and bluegrass, folk and the sound of the hippie era influence her not only musically but also in terms of her attitude to life. Because the singer and songwriter has always stayed down to earth, loves playing the small bars of her Saskatchewan home or just shooting the breeze with her friends – and this is quite evident in her music which always stays very personal and approachable, but is characterised by constant development at the same time for that very reason. After highly acclaimed publications like “Fightin’ Words” from 2019, this autumn will see the release of her fourth studio album, on which she once again not only reinvents herself, but rock’n’roll, honkytonk and the psychedelic pop of the ‘70s as well. How might that sound, you ask? The answers are to be found in Hamburg.
Gunner & Smith
Fri Sept 23, 3pm
As a self-confessed history nerd, Geoff Smith is ever-ready to travel the darker places of human comedy and come back with songs that are guaranteed to give his audience goosebumps. As much storyteller as he is songwriter, the Canadian has been drawing attention for years with his ability to infuse alt-country with a subtle gothic aesthetic and psychedelic Americana aspects, which define his musical mysticism. Thus far, he seems to be the only one on this broad, cloudy field, but he’s enjoying the view. His clear baritone towers above all, maintaining a strange balance between resignation and the urge to continue no matter what. Disambiguation is the least of Gunner & Smith’s concerns. Like life itself, the music on his third album “Hear You in My Head” (2022) undergoes highs and lows, indulges in brilliant guitar playing, grinningly tattoos apocalyptic lyrics onto its body of sound, and still manages to find some hazy relief in the end. Impressive for someone whose view of the world seems so beautifully unadorned.
Nick Faye
Fri Sept 23, 7pm
During the 2010s, Nick Faye made a name for himself around the globe as a solo artist as well as part of the band The Deputies. The quirky all-round nice guy from snowy Saskatchewan got his musical education in the hardcore scene of his hometown, which during the late 2000s produced names like Andy Shauf, Foxwarren or Northcote. But influenced by all that just as much as by the pop-rock of the deep ‘90s, Faye crafts pretty timeless songs that combine songwriter charm, country leanings and hopeful harmonies into an organic whole. Across large parts of Europe and on the North American continent, he has already assembled a large fan base, for whom the enterprising songwriter is akin to a new Tom Petty of the Canadian prairies. Not too highly exaggerated, in our opinion. So Faye’s return to the Reeperbahn Festival this year is certainly a good thing.
The Garrys
Fri Sept 23, 10pm
With a hand for swooning harmonies of guitar, bass and drums, The Garrys have played their way deep into the hearts of their fanbase over the last six years. A fanbase which was found mainly in Saskatoon, having recently expanded all across Canada and the US, however. Since the wonderfully dreamy “Surf Manitou” (2017), the three sisters Erica, Julie and Lenore Maier have found an individual sound that, between surf rock, psychedelic folk and doo wop, provides the perfect soundtrack for a relaxed summer day at a secluded forest lake. The band jokingly describes their own sound as “garage surf doom-wop”, because a very subtle darkness can often be seen shimmering in sepia tones through their songwriting. After releasing their own score to the 1922 silent film classic "Häxan: Witchcraft Through the Ages" in 2020 and their third studio album "Get Thee to a Nunnery" a year later, they’re finally back on tour this year – with an extra stop in Hamburg.
About Reeperbahn
Reeperbahn Festival combines a diverse line-up of new, international talents with a programme comprising of a wide range of themes in a progressive music marketplace. Many individual events await fans, journalists and trade visitors in numerous venues, promising both excitement and inspiration. Since its debut in 2006, Reeperbahn Festival has become one of the most important meeting places for the world of music and demonstrates how an exuberant music programme can be combined with music industry interests and social initiatives.
In addition to around 600 concerts by international artists, the programme also includes formats of visual art and virtual reality as well as a thematically diverse range of films and literature. The Discourse section also provides a platform for social and cultural debates, as well as information about entering the music industry. The Festival Village on Heiligengeistfeld forms the central hub for such themes and many more. Within the framework of sessions, showcases, networking events and award shows, industry visitors to Reeperbahn Festival can listen to, rethink and experience music.
