Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
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On the opening night of Rock the River, presented by Rock 102, that featured both a lengthy downpour and performances from three extremely popular bands on Friday, it was no surprise when Sloan’s Chris Murphy had the line of the night. The charismatic singer has long been known for both his music and humour.
“I wonder if it will Everclear … up,” Murphy said from the stage, referencing both the weather and the evening’s headlining band.
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Jay Ferguson from Sloan performs before rain briefly halted the show at Rock the River on Aug. 14, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
The skies did indeed open up, briefly stopping Sloan’s performance for the safety of everyone in attendance.
But those accustomed to outdoor festival performances in Saskatoon seemed to take the weather in stride.
“We’ve rocked in the rain before and I’m sure we’ll do it again. As long as you come prepared with your umbrellas and ponchos, it’s good,” said Cheri Hamilton, SaskTel Centre’s vice-president of business development and communications. Sasktel Centre was one of the event’s sponsors.
An estimated crowd of 3,000 attended the opening night of Rock the River in Saskatoon on Aug. 15, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
Hamilton said the first night of the annual concert series, now in its 12th year, attracted about 3,000 fans to Rotary Park. It is the first year in the new location for the event, which was previously held at the Bessborough Gardens.
“It is so gorgeous, the bands are so excited about it. We have a ton of space, we’ve got the food trucks. It’s just a totally different experience than what we had before,” Hamilton said.
Hamilton said the larger festival space also allowed the event to attract bigger bands. Friday evening’s show opened with Limblifter, featuring former members of Age of Electric and Our Lady Peace.
Ryan Dahle of Limblifter performs at Rock the River on Aug. 14, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
Lead singer Ryan Dahle also generated some laughs when he joked about his upbringing to the crowd.
“I grew up in Regina, thinking maybe I could live in Saskatoon someday. That’s what you do when you grow up in Regina,” Dahle quipped from the stage.
But the evening was more about the songs than one-liners. Limblifter performed popular numbers like Screwed it Up and Vicious, as well as the Age of Electric hit Remote Control, which Dahle wrote.
The rain arrived shortly before Sloan took the stage but they also performed several crowd favourites like Money City Maniacs, The Other Man and The Good in Everyone.
Chris Murphy from Sloan performs at Rock the River on Aug. 14, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
Murphy, originally from Halifax, also showed his patriotism during the song The Rest of My Life, encouraging the crowd to scream along to the line “I know that I’ll be living it in Canada”.
The weather cleared up by the time Everclear took to the stage to close the show. Lead singer Art Alexakis, the lone original member remaining in the band, opened up on stage about some of the struggles he has faced.
Everclear, led by Art Alexakis, closed the first night of Rock the River on Aug. 14, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
He spoke about his efforts to remain sober after describing himself as a former drug addict as well as being diagnosed with multiple sclerosis and his wife’s battle with cancer.
But he also joked about saving money on hair dye, because his once platinum blonde locks are now naturally silver.
Art Alexakis sings “Father of Mine” at Rock the River on Aug. 14, 2026. (Simon Hiatt/650 CKOM)
The band performed several hits from the 1990s like Father of Mine”, Heartspark Dollarsign and So Much for the Afterglow before closing the show with the song that launched their career, Santa Monica.
Rock the River continues through the weekend with Saturday performances by Saskatoon’s The Northern Pikes, Default, Tea Party and Collective Soul.
It wraps up Sunday with Black Tea, Haywire, Starship featuring Mickey Thomas and Colin James.
— with files from CKOM News. Rock 102 is a sister station of 650 CKOM.
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