thePULSEAugust 3 – 5 on Montreal’s Parc Jean-Drapeau on Île Sainte-Hélène
By Elise French
Begun in 2006, Osheaga Music and Arts Festival stands as the largest festival of its kind in Canada. An exciting celebration dedicated to showcasing music and visual arts, Osheaga offers a world-class European-style event across its many outside venues. The outdoor events of the festival are staged in the breath-taking environs of Montreal’s Parc Jean-Drapeau on Île Sainte-Hélène, an island of tranquility and lush greenery set in the middle of one of North America’s most stimulating cities. Ile Ste-Hélène is located just off the island of Montréal. This beautiful site is a mixture of rolling pasture and forested areas accented by flowerbeds and open-air artwork brought to the island for Montreal’s Expo ’67, and the Festival’s 4 stages are spread out against this unique and beautiful back-drop.
Bringing together tens of thousands of music lovers from North America and Europe alike, the Festival showcases emerging local and national artists and give them the opportunity to share the stage with some of the industry’s biggest names. Thus, over several days, more than 90 bands will take the stage across the city, fostering an unparalleled party feel that Montreal alone can create under the summer sun. From its inception, the festival has featured some of music’s biggest stars, including Coldplay, The Killers, Iggy & The Stooges, Sonic Youth, The Roots, Rufus Wainwright, Arcade Fire, Weezer and Eminem, as well as important emerging artists like The Stills, Coeur de pirate, Hey Rosetta!, The Barr Brothers and Elie Goulding. Osheaga also prides itself on its visual arts segment as it offers shows and exhibits in many venues across the city in the weeks prior to the event. For its seventh edition, Osheaga ~ presented by Virgin Mobile ~ promises fans an unforgettable festival experience.
THE PERFORMERS
Andrew Bird (Osheaga Arts Presents)
DJ Food (Osheaga Arts Presents)
Qualité Motel (Osheaga Presents)
RadioRadio
Yeasayer
A full schedule of artist set times will be available on Osheaga.com in the weeks prior to the festival. Please join the mailing list in order to be the first to know when the schedule is made public. Festival headliners are the last to play on each given day, and hit the stage between 9:00pm and 9:30pm (subject to change). Artists perform anywhere from 30 minute sets for emerging artists to 90 minute-plus sets for the festival headliners.
NON-MUSIC ACTIVITIES
There are too many to list, but here are a few that might be of interest!
Music On Paper returns!
Designers once again were assembled by curator and graphic design artist Pat Hamou, with returning favorites like Jason Munn, Methane Studios and Burlesque of North America ~ who are this time showcasing their unique collaboration with Arcade Fire with a stunning set of ten different designs. New designers joining the exhibit this year include DKNG Studios, Doe Eyed Designs, Dan Stiles and more.
The Festival is also excited to showcase some of the finest examples in the ongoing Polaris Prize Poster design series from 2006 – 2011 finalists, which will be the first time these posters will be exhibited in Montreal. Much of the posters on display will be available for sale as well.
Lounge at the Bacardi Oasis: The Bacardi Oasis is the Osheaga destination for relaxation, games, and giveaways ~
lounge with friends in the shade and sip on the latest and most popular Bacardi products.
Take in the art: Osheaga features art on-site from local and international artists. Parc Jean-Drapeau is also home to permanent installations from Expo 67 including Andrew Calder’s “Man” and Buckminster Fuller’s geodesic dome (Biosphere).
Say hello to a groundhog (but don’t get too close): The Osheaga site is inhabited by a friendly colony of groundhogs – they were once even the unofficial mascot of the festival! These hearty little creatures can be found grazing on grasses and shrubs accross the festival site, and while they are definitely cute, please remember that they are wild animals, so say hello from a distance and please don’t feed them.
Let the STM’s Funambus carry you in the Audiosphere: discover soundtracks inspired by Montreal’s neighborhoods.
Visit the Diesel Booth: Diesel shows off its newest fragrance launch: Only The Brave Tattoo – Come see us to live the tattoo parlour experience and get your free sample.
TICKETS (www.osheaga.com/tickets)
3-Day Festival Passes (Friday, Saturday, Sunday)
General Admission $217.50
General Admission Ticket Edition $222.50
General Admission Reserved Seating Access, Special Edition Ticket Included $318
2-Day Weekend Passes (Saturday, Sunday)
General Admission $155
1-Day Pass (for Friday, Saturday, or Sunday)
$85
For much more information, including where to stay, weather, getting to the Festival, rules and regulations, and updates, please visit www.osheaga.com.
Snoop Dog photo courtesy of gossip.whyfame.com
Fun. photo courtesy mtiv.com
Amadou & Mariam photo courtesy of Benoit Peverelli
Common photo courtesy of Jill Augusto
MGMT photo courtesy of guia.actitudfem.com/mgmt-mexico
Special thanks to Larissa Souline
