Murray Wood: Who's hot... and who's not
Every Friday, Murray Wood takes a look back at the week's news and decides who's hot... and who's not. This week's list ...
It’s Metal Week in Saskatchewan and it’s got nothing to do with gold or platinum –unless you’re talking about the music charts.
The official week, granted by the Government of Saskatchewan, recognizes the “province’s heavy music community,” according to SaskMusic marketing and communications manager Andrew Bay.
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It lasts from Feb. 23 to March 1 and showcases, “some of the cultural and economic contributions of metal music here in Saskatchewan,” Bay said, adding how the metal industry is frequently underrepresented.
“They’re often unable to perform at venues or get their music in local radio stations,” he said.
That’s despite Saskatchewan having a “huge metal scene,” according to Bay.
As part of the metal celebration, SaskMusic is hosting the province’s first festival and conference focused on metal music in Saskatoon.
The three-day event, named the Metal Summit, began on Feb. 27 and runs until March 1, and features two elements: a festival and a conference.
It’s bringing in a lot of, “the heavy hitters from the province,” Bay said.
Three Saskatchewan bands — Into Eternity, Dead S— Earth, and Augurium — played Friday.
Another seven — Adolyne, Kelevra, Krash, Man Meat, Reject, Slutty Waist, and Untimely Demise — are taking the stage Saturday in two neighbouring venues, the Coors Event Centre and the Green Room.
Bay said the doors between the spaces will be opened up.
“We’ll have one band playing on the Coors Event side, and then the next band will be playing in Green Room, and so it’s going to kind of alternate throughout the night,” he said.
Saturday evening’s festival is a ticketed all-ages event, with Bay anticipating the shows may be sold-out at the doors. There we still tickets available for Saturday’s show on Friday night.
For the conference portion, there will be 15 music professionals working in the metal scene, including artists and industry leaders, hosting workshops and panels.
They will, “help inform some of the local talent, give them directions, give them guidance, give them advice, but also just … connect them with people who are in the industry and who have made success, both here in Canada and internationally,” Bay said.
It’ll also allow local artists the chance to ask questions, like how to get grants, access funding and even gain tips on performing.
While conference registration closed ahead of the event, people still have the ability to register and attend by walk-in on Saturday and Sunday.
The hope for this weekend’s event, according to Bay, is to further open doors for metal artists.
“They deserve to have some of the same opportunities as other artists and opportunities that they’re often not able to find,” he said.
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