Sled Island

Thank you to everyone who came out to the annual “…But I Don’t Know Any of the Bands!” trivia night at Home & Away, and took part in our unique Google-the-answer Sled Island trivia! For anyone who missed it and wants to see what the challenge looked like, check it out! For those who participated and are dying to know the answers, see below! 

Congratulations to Jessica Ross for being the big winner of the night and scoring two Discovery Passes to Sled Island 2023! It was a close one that came down to our tiebreaker.

1. We are extremely proud to welcome Bartees Strange to curate Sled Island 2023. List all of his hand-selected picks performing this year! (No part marks!)

Gulfer, Helado Negro, JWords, KAINA, Maassai, Maneka, Pom Pom Squad, Sen Morimoto

2. Besides Bartees Strange, who playing at Sled Island this year has filled the role of guest curator?

John Dwyer (Osees)

3. Which band has someone who previously was a part of the Blue Man Group?

The Body

4. SUMAC is a supergroup that is no stranger to Sled Island, having previously played in 2015. However, they have played Sled with their regular bands as well before! What other bands have the members of SUMAC played at Sled with?

Russian Circles, These Arms Are Snakes, Mamiffer, Old Man Gloom

5. What is the name of the electronic hip-hop duo that was formed by two of the guest curator selections?

HE1R (Maassai + JWords)

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The wait is finally over! The full Sled Island 2023 schedule is here, including all the details for film, art, special events, conference programming and the return of the Ramsay Block Party! Check it all out on our online schedule, which features new improvements and once again includes the ability to build your own personalized schedule!

Sled Island's Ramsay Block Party is back! Just like last year, the free, family-friendly extravaganza will take place in Ramsay at the Lilydale Parking Lot, running from 12-9pm on Saturday, June 24! The all-day party will feature live music from Cola, Pom Pom Squad, and many more! PLUS free skateboarding from The Compound, food trucks from The Curryer, and Arepas Ranch, an art battle at nvrlnd. Arts Foundation, beer from Eighty-Eight and Dandy, cocktails from Tumbler and Rocks, ice cream from Lukes Drug Mart, Dance Dance Revolution courtesy of CBC Calgary, and face-painting, bubbles and tasty treats from our presenting sponsor connectFirst Credit Union!

Some of this year's art programming can also be found at the location of our Ramsay Block Party, including the AUArts Students’ Association Exhibit, featuring work by emerging artists from the Alberta University of Arts at nvrlnd. boutique. Also, be sure to check out our annual Sled Island Poster Show, running June 20-25 at I Love You Coffee Shop.

Sled Island Film is back with the Canadian premiere of Even Hell Has its Heroes, the story of the slowest metal band on the planet, Earth, kicking off the festival on Tuesday night at the Globe Cinema! As a bonus, the documentary will be preceded by four short films shot and composed by local filmmakers with disabilities at the National accessArt Centre.

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Since 2007, Sled Island’s thoughtful, eclectic programming and independent spirit has produced a one-of-a-kind festival experience. As presenting sponsor of Sled Island, connectFirst is proud to help bring five-days’ worth of music and arts to the community. We’re also thrilled that our contribution goes towards supporting equitable compensation for emerging artists through the Artist Equity Program. We recently sat down with Maud Salvi, Executive Director of Sled Island, to get her thoughts on the Artist Equity Program and how financial institutions can do more to support working artists.

According to Maud, the Artist Equity Program, at its core, is an acknowledgement that emerging artists need to be paid more – it’s as simple as that.

The great thing about festivals like Sled Island, that are multi-venue and multi-day, is that they draw some big-name artists who also play alongside early-career artists, giving festivalgoers an excellent variety of experiences.  There’s a misconception, however, that these emerging artists should just be thankful to have people hear their music and see them perform – that the benefit of the exposure alone should be enough compensation.

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