Ilesoniq's 2024 lineup includes Tiesto, special B2B's and much more!

This week has been a huge week for festival unveilings as Ilesoniq, Quebec’s premier EDM festival held in Montreal from August 10th to 11th at the always beautiful Parc Jean Drapeau location.

This year’s lineup includes the legendary Tiesto who always brings a banging set to Ilesoniq, and a diverse lineup including an excellent B2B set between Green Velvet and Patrick Topping, and the usual solid bass combo of NGHTMRE B2B Jauz. We also get a celebrity set from Idris Elba who has shown his stripes as a DJ of the more underground vibes. Joining him will be Seth Troxler, Paul Kakbrenner, Ben Bohmer, who will no doubt know how to kick a side stage to another level.

This year’s mainstage will be joined by the ever popular Canadian duo Loud Luxury, the wild stage presence of Timmy Trumpet, the mainstage mainstay Zedd, and more.

Tickets are now on sale as 2 day GA passes can be bought for as little as $210. You can buy them here.

The Escapade Music Festival in Ottawa is almost sold out!

The Escapade Music Festival, which is set for June 21st to 23rd at the beautifully located Lansdowne Park, is almost sold out! With 93% of all of the tickets sold, there are only a few left and will for sure sell out by the time summer rolls around.

Escapade will be one of the most popular festivals on the EDM circuit and one can see why all of the hype is generated as the lineup represents a little for everyone. Whether you like bass, trance, house, or the biggest headlining acts, Escapade has it for you.

This year’s crop of artists include the legend Armin Van Buuren, Illenium, and includes a special Gouryella performance by Ferry Corsten, and the ever popular B2B with Tchami and Malaa. This is an EDM lovers festival as you are guaranteed to be electrified for all 3 days.

Don’t wait, get the last remaining tickets here.

FVDED IN THE PARK returns this year and the lineup is HUGE!

FVDED in the Park makes a huge comeback after taking some time off with a massive lineup which will no doubt get the EDM fans into a frenzy. Swedish House Mafia rarely ventures into the festival circuit so it’s a real treat that they’re coming to FVDED. KX5, which is a union between Deadmau5 and Kaskade, and they give their Vancouver festival debut.

Combine this with the likes of John Summit, who has been on an absolute tear in the last few years, and the likes of Chris Lake, Diplo, Zeds, Dead, Slander and more - I believe FVDED has done this lineup right with a renewed focus on EDM which will hopefully be recognized by the fans once it’s ready to buy tickets.

There are currently no tickets available but you can sign up for presale access here.

EDM Canada is updated weekly!

Wanted to give a quick update just in case people who visit this blog and wonder if this site isn’t being kept up to date. Well it is! EDM Canada is continually updated on a weekly basis covering 6 cities across Canada, giving visitors an up to date calendar on upcoming EDM shows.

To visit these calendars, which are all updated by a human, each and every week, please go to the city where you live in below:

EDM Canada has been a passion project of mine going back to 2011-2012 and have been honoured that millions of people have visited this site over the years. The work continues, the passion remains high, and hope you find continued value in this site.

Foundation 2.0 & John Summit prove you can come home again

All photos by Ryan Hayes

Last November Blueprint Events celebrated its 25th anniversary with a weekend of genre specific festival nights. The closing event was for house music lovers and headlined by Fisher. While it was an all-ages event the audience noticeably skewed older. There was a buzz in the air, something was different, and whether Blueprint was aware of it going into the event or not, it was the start of a new foray for the company. That night Foundation Series was born.

Foundation was meant to represent a haven for house music fans, a series thoughtfully curated to explore sub-genres and draw upon the fandom of long-time dance music lovers. The result was a full circle return to the early pre-boom days of EDM. Foundation feels both big in stature and deeply personal. An energy has returned to the scene, and it is easy for fans to get caught up in the notion that they are on the cusp of something larger.

The entire event revived an atmosphere that has largely been dormant in Vancouver for over a decade. A spark not felt since the days of massive 19+ spectacles at Vancouver Convention Centre. To return to the significance of that era is both a testament to the current state of dance music and Blueprint’s acumen as a promoter.

Although the 19+ designation may not seem like a defining characteristic of the event—the lineup curation remained the dominating factor—it markedly pushed the median age above those in attendance at Fisher and helped establish the kind of positive-inclusive energy the dance music scene has always attempted to advocate for.

While volume one was rightly headlined by Chris Lake, Easter long weekend was helmed by John Summit. As an auteur, Summit perfectly embodies the new wave of dance music currently breathing life back into the scene. House music with a smattering of dark driving techno dominated Summit’s set and his hold over the audience was palpable. Unlike Chris Lake who had to work within a standard festival runtime Summit was given a two-hour set, a needed alteration by Blueprint. The extra hour allowed Summit time to stretch his legs; a necessity for an artist like Summit who doesn’t adhere to traditional genre barriers.

The visuals were restrained, they popped at the right moments, and let the music lead the way for most of the night. For one night the PNE Forum transformed into an oversized club.

While all the acts were all phenomenal, Summit was the standout. He capped off the night with his newest release ‘Where You Are.’ It’s rare that both the audience and the performer are aware that they are experiencing a seminal moment in a song’s upward trajectory. Seconds into the track Summit’s grin said it all, he knows what he has, and the audience’s elation reinforced his resolve. ‘Were You Are’ is on the verge of tapping into the very ethos of dance music. The track is a testament to Summit’s artistry and a leading indication that 2023 may be kicking off a second—more restrained—golden age for the scene.

Blueprint nailed the entire experience of Foundation Series, and it should leave fans hopeful for whatever they have in store for us next.

By Ryan Hayes (@VanCityDanceNrd)