Tonight, July 28, at the Glenbow Museum, we're happy to host the opening of the Wil Murray curated Painting: Thick & Thin from 5:30 to 8:30 pm. Come down to see the show, even if you caught the sneak preview at the Illingworth Kerr Gallery during the four days of Sled Island - it looks even more amazing in the space at the Glenbow, and the artists and curator will be in attendance. You can check out the description of the show, and art blogger Courtney Thompson's thoughts on the sneak preview in the Special Events - Art page on our website. The show features works by Miriam Bankey, Kyle Beal, Dave & Jenn, Chris Millar, Kim Neudorf, Patrick Lundeen, and Ryan Sluggett, and runs until September 28 - if you can't get down for the opening tonight, be sure to drop in and check out the installation sometime in the next few weeks!

SOME SERIOUSLY TALENTED ARTISTS ARE CALLING...

In the madness of 180 bands, maybe you didn't have a chance to take in some of the spectacular visual art programming Sled Island has brought to the city. The good news is, you can still catch a lot of the works. Check out the special events art page, and if it seems a little overwhelming, take a minute to read the incredible overview of all the installations that has been provided by our friend Courtney Thompson, an art lover and a damn fine blogger. Her impressions and thoughts on all the SI Visual Art + Design 08 programming, as well as artist statements and galleries can be found on the same page - just click "Special Events" and then "Art".

One highlight that you're running out of time to catch is Matt Masters and Terence Houle's Don Coyote, an amazing cabaret for an all-ages audience. Don Coyote brings the Cowboy Code to life in the context of Calgary by way of an original narrative and live music. The 75-minute production stars both Masters and Houle as well as a great five piece band (including Pineapple Frank, the legendary pedal steel guitarist from Prairie Oyster band!!). It's performed nightly from July 4-12 at 7:30PM in the ConocoPhillips auditorium at The Glenbow Museum. Admission is only $7.00 including service fees!

Just in case you weren't sure, sledisland.com doesn't stop just because the festival is over! We'll be updating the website throughout the year to let you know about Sled Island events, promotions we're going to be running in conjunction with sponsors, shows and installations at our partner venues, when submissions will be open for next year's fest (soon!) and just keeping you in the loop as Sled Island 2009 starts to take shape. Make sure to check back often!

AHHHH - REFRESHED!

After taking a little over a week to let the dust settle, getting caught up on sleep and maybe going on one of those cleanses we've've heard so much about, we here at Sled Island HQ wanted to extend a huge THANK YOU to all of the sledders that made Sled Island 2008 a roaring success! We hope you enjoyed your experience as much as we did, and have started organizing all your photos, hung the set lists you recovered from stages on your fridge, and still aren't tired of sharing stories with friends about your highlights of the festival. Maybe you witnessed the craziness of the Legion after parties, maybe it's having been there to see Cloaca No 5, um, shit, or maybe it was the riotous Horatio Sanz improv - whatever the case, be sure to share your favourite memories on our Facebook page! We'll be posting the staff highlights on this site in a couple of days for your perusal as well. So yes - thanks to each and every one of you who attended a show, performed for the appreciative crowds, wrote about the festival in print or online (and there's a ton of you!), volunteered for the festival or helped organize things and our AMAZING sponsors - without all of you Sled Island wouldn't have been the fantastic experience it's become. Be sure to check out our photos page for a staggering amount of shots from the fest courtesy our incredible photo team!

TONIGHTS SPECIAL GUESTS ARE HUMAN MILK

Hey all -- feel free to head on down to the Legion one more time tonight.  Last night reached capacity well before expected, so the earlier you come, the smoother it will all go.  Sorry so much to anyone who was turned away last night!  But thank you all for your patience with us at the door!...An extra special sorry to one of Calgary's finest bands, The Neckers.  We love you guys so much!

DON'T FORGET...

...to head to the outdoor stage!  It's an absolutely charming atmosphere w/ some fantastic bands playing!  Check the schedule to see when everyone from Drive-by Truckers to Mogwai, from Of Montreal to Wire (again!). 

HIGHLIGHTS FROM LAST NIGHT 

So Wire at the Legion -- was I hallucinating, or did that actually really happen?  Wait, yup, I'm being told right now that it did and holy fuck, was it incredible!  Other highlights?  The crowd at the main site -- the calmest, friendliest, most receptive festival crowd I've ever seen!  Great, great sets from everyone from Broken Social Scene, Tegan & Sara and Yo La Tengo to the Summerlad, The Wet Secrets, and Elliott Brood.  Not to mention the best hip hop show to ever roll through Calgary -- RZA w/ Stone Mecca and not to mention fuckin' Blist! 

TONIGHT'S SPECIAL GUESTS ARE WIRE (!!!!!!!)

Okkervil River and, well, frankly every single band that played the Legion last night were jaw-dropping!  DO NOT make the mistake of missing out on tonight.  Every single band playing Sled Island owes a debt to the music of Wire, whether they know it or not.  People all over the world are in shock that Wire are playing Calgary, but also absolutely shitting themselves that they're playing The Legion.  The best band in the world is playing the best venue in the world.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM LAST NIGHT

Seriously -- thank you to every band, venue, volunteer and, well, thank YOU for supporting these shows!  Last night was overwhelming to say the least.  From Chad VanGaalen's awe-worthy animations and show at the Science Centre to Yo La Tengo's very rare Q&A, from a packed house Okkervil River church show to their late night, packed-to-the-gills Legion show, from the humbling musicianship of Extra Golden (GO BUY THEIR ALBUMS!) to the 17 piece party rock of Still Flyin', from the ear-shattering Cryptomaniacs to the all-day awesome band fest at Sloth, from Jonathan Richman's incredibly intimate performance to Twyla's favourite band The Paperbacks!  Again, you can check out photos from last night by clicking right here.  Seriously, thank you and please keep supporting the festival.  We're 1/2 way there!

FOR THOSE ABOUT TO (AND WHO ALREADY DID) ROCK, WE SALUTE YOU!

Wow!  It's pretty late and we've all been working hard and so I'll be quick.  This is really amazing.  Tonight I saw some amazing comedy at the Plaza.  I was at the Vice party for a bit (sadly I missed BBQ, but he's playing again).  I saw Extra Golden (they came here from Kenya!) play some beautiful music.  Chad VanGallen's show was mind melting by all accounts.  Yo La Tengo's Q&A was perfect.  I saw a packed church of people enjoy Okkervill River - all clapping and standing.  Then the legion and Broken City.  I'm sure the HiFi was great for Crookers and I wish I could have stopped in.  Random Task Collective at Sloth!  Jonathan Richman at the Martha Cohen.  Vern's...god, Cryptomaniacs and the Cops destroyed the place, but Vern's have done such an incredible job this week helping out the festival!

See you all tomorrow!
Zak

TONIGHT'S SPECIAL GUESTS ARE OKKERVIL RIVER!

Make sure to head on down to the Royal Canadian Legion #1 (aka the best venue in the world) after whichever awesome show you go see tonight (Okkervil River at Central United Church, Blitzen Trapper destroying Broken City, the intimate Jonathan Richman show!, Chad VanGaalen at the Science Centre (w/ animations!), Random Task Collective blowing the roof off of Sloth, etc.) to keep the party going until closing time...

HIGHLIGHTS FROM LAST NIGHT  

Last night was mind-blowingly good.  Thank you SOOO much for hopping from venue to venue to catch everything from Grizzly Bear's church show to No Posers funny as fuck set (playing again at Vern's later in the week!), from The Mae Shi's mind-melting hyperactivity to Dan Deacon's audience participation dance party. Check out some photos from the festival!

CJSW-PRODUCED PODCASTS UP NOW!

The most important campus radio station in Canada, and really, the reason this festival exists at all, has kindly produced 3 Sled Island-specific podcasts for your listening pleasure!  One of 'em is all about the bigger international acts, another is all about the best of the locals playing the fest, and another'll help you discover some of the hidden gems of the fest.  Listen to 'em all by clicking RIGHT HERE! Thanks CJSW!   

FESTIVAL DIRECTOR SCHFESTIVAL DIRECTOR!

(photo by: Jasmin Dosanj

Wow! Last years kick off was a great show by Cat Power and this year, by fate, No Age gave us something completely different and completely amazing. Grizzly Bear, the initially planned kick off show, is slated for tomorrow at the Central United Church and promises to be amazing. Some of the members made it in to town tonight, as did their lovely and gracious manager. They are ready to play what will be one of, if not, the best shows of this years festival. Thank you everyone for coming out and supporting the festival this year, especially everyone at CJSW. The involvement of CJSW in this year's festival has been crucial to us and we are all really thankful for all they do year round, and for their support of Sled Island. Holy balls- this is going to a wild week!
-- Zak

SOMETIMES THE FUMES MAKE ME FEEL FUNNY

Yes that's right - it the Second Annual Sled Island Poster Art Show presented by our friends at C1RCA. Last year, we asked some local poster artists to create oversized, limited edition silk screened prints and it was a huge success, so when '08 rolled around, we thought "Why not?"! As the festival grows, however, so does the poster show and this year the C1RCA Showroom (736 17 Ave S.W. Backlane Entrance) is full to bursting with artwork from 13 artists, all working in unique styles to capture the spirit of 13 different bands. Once again, this year's posters are extremely limited, oversized 2 and 3 colour prints, and are fantastic keepsakes of your Sled Island experience. This year, though, we'll be selling the posters on opening night! Get there early and with your poster money in hand! As if the art wasn't enough, there's going to be performances  by four Sled Island bands, including Kris Ellestad, Indiensoci, Honeybear and Knots. It all starts at 8 pm. This isn't something you want to sleep on, so get there early! 

THE QUIXOTIC COMES UP AGAINST THE COWBOY CODE

One of the events we're proudest to be presenting at Sled Island is Matt Masters and Terrance Houle's brand new collaborative musical masterpiece: Don Coyote.  If you'd asked us twelve months ago if we'd have a western cabaret mixed media musical chronicling an imagined cowboy figure appearing at Sled Island, we'd have laughed. In fact, we did.  We laughed in glee and asked simply "when will it be ready and how many shows can we do?"  Well folks, it is ready, and you can catch it from June 25th-28th at the Glenbow.  Click here for more info!

THE TOP SIX HIGH SCHOOL POSTER DESIGNS REVEALED (IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER)! 

Click for larger images!)


(Clockwise from top left: Chris Pitt-Taylor (17) (Canmore Collegiate High School), Allison Seto (16) (William Aberhart High School), Parker Bloom (18) (Canmore Collegiate High School), Syd Peacock (15) (Bowness High School), Tyler Goin (18) (Canmore Collegiate High School), Carolyn Rowan (17) (Western Canada High School).

Holy wow -- we're still in disbelief over the quality of submissions we received for the Sled Island High School Poster Contest!  These young artists (15-18 years old!) must come from an alternate universe in which English, Math and Chemistry are replaced by art & design classes run by Art Chantry, Frank Kozik and Jay Ryan.  They put the 'cool' in 'school' but would also probably punch us in the gut for using such a lame sentence.  We can't even imagine how great they're going to be a year, two years, or ten years down the road! The winners receive a weekend pass to Sled Island -- congratulations to all!

CHANGES TO THE SCHEDULE -- PLEASE NOTE!

Since our festival guide went to print, we've made a few hot-some announcements, as well as had to make some unfortunate changes to our schedule.  Please note the following changes in your festival guide schedules (hitting FFWD tomorrow and the following Thursday)!  As if you weren't going to doodle all over it anyway...

1) SLED ISLAND KICK-OFF PARTY W/ NO AGE (LOS ANGELES)
The Wednesday No Age show has been moved to Tuesday -- join us for the official Sled Island launch party!
Broken City - Sled Island Kick-Off Party w/ No Age (11:30pm), DD/MM/YYYY (10:30pm), Dirty Dirty North (9:30pm) 

2) SXSW BUZZ BAND AND SLED ISLAND FAVOURITES THE MAE SHI (LOS ANGELES) ADDED!
Our new favourite band, the Mae Shi (who absolutely destroy live), are filling the No Age slot on the Wednesday at Broken City -- don't miss this one!!
Wednesday, June 25th @ Broken City - The Mae Shi (11:30pm), DD/MM/YYYY (10:30pm), No Posers (9:30pm), The Shagbots (9:00pm)

3) AMSTERDAM RHINO SHOWS MOVED TO VERN'S
The Wednesday and Thursday Amsterdam Rhino shows have been moved to Vern's, and Fake Shark Real Zombie! has cancelled due to personal reasons.  The updated line-ups are:
Wednesday, June 25th @ Vern's - snic (12am), Japandroids (11pm), Sub-linguals (10pm)
Thursday, June 26th @ Vern's - Pine Tarts (1am), Elizabeth (12am), The Funfuns (11:30pm), SSP The Cops (10:15pm), The Cryptomaniacs (9:30pm)

4) SATURDAY LEGION SPECIAL GUEST ANNOUNCED - HUMAN MILK (BROKEN SOCIAL SCENE & SPIRAL STAIRS)
We've announced one of our many special guest shows during the festival -- it should give you an idea of the quality of show  

A VERY SPECIAL SHOW AT THE ROYAL CANADIAN LEGION #1



We are thrilled to announce that the Saturday special guests at the Royal Canadian Legion #1 are 'Human Milk' - a special collaboration between Broken Social Scene and Spiral Stairs (Scott Kannberg of Pavement, Preston School of Industry and Sled Island guest music curator fame!).  This event will take place at the Legion after the main site show that day is done (Main Site Saturday includes: Mogwai, Drive-By Truckers, Jonathan Richman, Wire, Of Montreal, Gutter Twins, Jose Gonzalez, Secret Machines, etc, etc".  For tickets to both the main site and the legion show please visit www.ticketmaster.ca.

Hi Friends, Lovers, 

Sled Island was pleased to be voted first place for music out of 10 local festivals in the Herald today with an 8.4 music rating compared to, among others, a 6.2 rating for Virgin Festival and a 7.5 rating for the Calgary Folk Festival (our pick for second best festival!).

(for the full listing, click the image above!)

To vote for Sled Island in the Calgary Herald's poll, please vote here! 
For the related story please check here.

NEWS UPDATES

Hi everyone! Excitment is building for this year's Sled Island, and we're happy to let you know that as of today - and everyday up to and during the festival - our website is going to be the place to start and end your day, with news updates going live all the time. There will be some new additions in the coming days with content to help you discover the amazing art, comedy and film that we're bringing to you, more information about the bands, staff picks, maybe even a blog or two

Maybe most important this is your official source for announcements of changes to the schedule and line-up, last minute updates and surprises! Make your wayto the site everyday and hit refresh often!

CONTESTS 

With Sled Island's official kick off less than two weeks away the festival is getting close! If you haven't bought your tickets yet, well, that just doesn't make any sense. But maybe you want to surprise a couple of friends with passes but don't want to pay for them - good news! Our friends at 24/The Calgary Sun are giving away a pair of tickets! Just click here and go to their contest section for details and the entry form.

There's a few other contests going on as well - you can poke around our sponsor's websites and you might find a couple! Also, make sure you're listening to your favourite radio stations - lots of chances to win there too!

LINE UP ADDITION

 

Oh damn! Maybe You heard about the little schedule change regarding No Age (who are now going to be playing an incredible festival kick off show at Broken City on Tuesday, June 24 with The Dirty Dirty North and DD/MM/YYYY) - well, we're happy to announce their replacement - THE MAE SHI! As if the festival line-up wasn't incredible already, the addition of one of the best live bands playing today (according to at least a couple of us in the Sled Island office) in a room like Broken City? Magic.
Shit Hot MP3: The Mae Shi's "Lamb and Lion" 

Sled Island weekend passes are now available for purchase at Ticketmaster. Located at Mewata Field on Friday June 27th with gates opening at 3:00 pm and Saturday June 28th with gates opening at 11:00 am, Sled Island’s main site will include merchandise and food vendors, a beer garden and performances by 25 of the over 160 notable bands the festival will be hosting! 

 

We're happy to announce the following band additions to the 2008 Sled Island line up: Tegan and Sara, Broken Social Scene, Grizzly Bear, Secret Machines, Chixdiggit, Dan Deacon, F'd Up, The Unwanted, BBQ, The Cops, Enablers, Qui, Yo La Tengo, Okkervil River, and Blitzen Trapper.

The Sled Island team is excited to make our initial lineup announcement of performers and artists. In keeping with the festival’s mandate of bringing the best of the world’s music and art to Calgary, and taking the best of Calgary to the world, we’re happy to release a diverse line-up of some of the best music and art being created today. The festival is taking place June 25 – 28 in a variety of locations around Calgary.

Sled Island 2008 will feature performances by: Wire, Of Montreal, Jonathan Richman, The Gutter Twins (Greg Dulli and Mark Lanegan), Jose Gonzales, RZA (Bobby Digital), Mogwai, Scott Kannberg aka Spiral Stairs, No Age, Deerhunter, Dodos, Drive By Truckers, Extra Golden, Miss Murgatroid and Petra Hayden, Woodpigeon, Beans, Hot Little Rocket, The Broken West, Cave Singers, Wet Secrets, Pride Tiger, Portastatic, Headlights, Ramblin’ Ambassadors, Bison, Mother Mother, Elizabeth, Modern Man, Luther Wright, Whitsundays, Elliot Brood, Carolyn Mark and many more. Full line up to be announced MAY 1st.

We are happy to announce the addition of Shaw Millenium Park (13 St. S.W. and 9 Ave. S.W.) as our central outdoor venue that will host performances on the evening of Friday, June 27 and all day and night on Saturday June 28.

Sled Island and our 2008 Art Curator Wayne Baerweldt are pleased to unveil the initial line-up of internationally renowned artists for the SI 08 Visual Art and Design component of the festival. In partnership with the Glenbow Museum and Calgary Arts Development Association, SI 08 Visual Arts and Design will feature such world class shows as Wildflowers of Manitoba:  Noam Gonick & Luis Jacob, Peaches’ Pit (Fan Base), Don Coyote: Matt Masters, Terrance Houle, Rebecca Northan; Wil Murray showing recent works; Shary Boyle showing large scale mixed media drawings, objects and light projections and Paulo Whitaker presenting four large scale paintings.

Sled Island Festival is happy to announce a Create-a-Poster contest for students during the last month of school. The object for high school students is to design a Sled Island poster that can include Sled Island performers and/or artists on the poster, and whatever images or ideas they have about the festival. The creators are encouraged to print out and put up their posters around schools, neighborhoods, favourite coffee shop - wherever they want, within all applicable rules (school regulations, bylaws, etc). Participants will be asked to take a picture of their poster hanging up and email it to drew@sledisland.com - the top 10 entries win a weekend pass, and we'll be posting the photos on the web as well.

Participants will need to make sure their photo(s) clearly show the poster, and include their name, school, age and a contact number in an email to be sent in to Sled Island. Photos should be web ready and friendly.

The rules - Like we say, participants will have to play by the rules to win! They will need to get permission from the owner or manager of the businesses they approach before hanging the poster up, they should check to see what school guidelines are, and if they're going to post it on the street, should make sure it's on a public notice/poster board - no lampposts or private property. Sled Island is not responsible for the content of any of the posters, and will disqualify any entries deemed offensive by our staff. Ten (10) weekend passes will be awarded to the top 10 entries as judged by the Sled Island staff, so participants are encouraged to be creative! Contest closes June 6, 2008. Winners will be notified by email by June 13, 2008.

Required content - Posters needs to include the following information to qualify:
- Sled Island Festival
- June 25-28, 2008
- Calgary, Alberta
- www.sledisland.com

Sled Island submissions are closed for 08, but will re-open for 09 in July.

Thanks for your interest in the Sled Island Festival '08! Sled Island Festival is a 4-day long, multi venue festival that showcases a wide variety of emerging and established talent. The fest's auspicious debut in 2007 won plaudits from international press, artists and festival-goers alike. Last year, Sled Island hosted 96 acclaimed artists including Cat Power, Boredoms, The Walkmen, Spoon, Les Savy Fav, and Eric Bachmann alongside local and national independent acts, many of which are poised on the verge: Woodpigeon, Mother Mother, CPC Gangbangs, Hot Little Rocket, to name a few.

Sled Island is looking for a wide range of bands that stray outside the boundaries of commercial rock - whether you've been around for 6 months or 6 years.

Click the here for Sonicbids to submit and for more information.

 

Thanks for your interest again!

Zak, Derek and Craig and The Sled Island Team