It’s official: festival season in Canada’s National Capital is upon us! The time of year that many of us look forward to is finally here and it’s definitely an exciting time to be in and around Ottawa-Gatineau if you’re into music, arts and culture because there’s plenty to take in. Check out Eventful Capital’s weekly picks to plan ahead and make the most of the coming days.
Progressive metal heads unite: Guelph progressive-metal band Mandroid Echostar will be performing live at Ritual this Monday night. This time around, they’ll be playing alongside Waterloo progressive-metal group AURAS, Boston progressive-metal project Native Construct, Ottawa progressive-metal formation Trentia and Ottawa progressive-metal outfit Isometric.
This June 2nd, the One World Film Festival invites you to attend a special night at the ByTowne Cinema for a one-time-only screening of SONITA, a moving documentary that focuses on the struggle of a young woman – Afghan refugee Sonita Alizadeh – who escapes forced marriage and follows her dream of becoming a famous hip hop star. A talk with special guests Nipa Banerjee and Jamaal Jackson Rogers exploring select themes and issues highlighted by the film, will follow the screening.
There’s a new experimental music night kicking off this Thursday night at Pressed Cafe. Dubbed Not Normal, the series will launch with a live set by Ottawa multi-instrumentalist Mark Molnar as well as DJs Jason Skilz and Pierre Richardson of Bruised Tongue Recs.
Live on Elgin is celebrating its one-year anniversary this weekend with a mini-festival featuring a nice and stacked lineup of local acts. Starting Friday night and going until Sunday, June 5, the festivities will include performances by The Cardboard Crowns, The Stringers, Blve Hills, Dynamite Motel and several others. Happy birthday Live on Elgin!
If you’re into indie rock and rock n’roll, chance are you’ll want to head over to House of Targ on Friday night to check out Seattle indie rockers The Cave Singers live. The band will be performing live with Nashville rock n’rollers Blank Range.
Canadian Legend Marcus Visionary will be giving a live set inside Overkill this Friday, June 3. The Toronto-based DJ/Producer, who’s be in the game for over two decades representing Jungle drum and bass as well as a variety of british bass culture music, will be joined on the decks by supporting DJs Threesixty and Rob Saxon.
Westfest, Westboro Village’s festival of music, art and life is celebrating its 13th edition this year from June 3-5. This family-friendly community festival brings you free concerts and activities in Ottawa’s Westboro neighbourhood and this year the events will be held at a brand new location in Laroche Park.The 2016 festivities, dubbed Homemade Jam, will bring you live performances by a bunch of talented local artists and bands including the Souljazz Orchestra, The Split, Missing Linx, Lucky Ron and Luther Wright and The Wrongs among others. To view the full program, click on the festival poster below.
Toronto DJ/Producer duo MSTRKRFT will be making a return to the nation’s capital this Friday night. This time around, the party rockers will be giving a live set at Ritual alongside Ottawa’s own Frayd and Maro, who’ll take care of warming things up.
Montreal-based blues/soul singer-songwriter Cecile Doo-Kingue will be performing live at the Rainbo Bistro in the Market this Saturday night in an effort to promote her recently-released new album “Anybody Listening Part 2 Dialogues”.
The Canada Dance Festival is being held from June 4 to June 11 this year. This annual festival, which celebrates the many facets of dance and movement, is a great way to experience this art form at an affordable price. The performances, taking place at various locations, will feature choreographies by emerging Canadian choreographers and dancers, short works and other innovative and original projects among others. You can grab the entire program by clicking below.
City of Om is the ultimate yoga event in the heart of Canada’s national capital. Happening On June 4, City of Om is a fresh new festival featuring a full day of yoga classes for the newbies to the experienced yogi and it’s taking place at Lansdowne Park. It’ll also include live music, local artisans and food vendors, ending off with an after party.
The 2016 edition of the Ottawa Zine Fair will be happening this Saturday at the Bronson Centre. With over 4 tablers and zine-makers, it’s sure to be a fun-filled event featuring a bunch of cool and interesting zines presenting a variety of marginalized stories and experiences.
Legendary UK black thrash metal band Venom will be giving a show at Mavericks this Saturday night as part of their North American tour. The group will be playing a full Classic Venom set and for the occasion they’ll be sharing the stage with American old school death metal band Necrophagia, American heavy metal formation Sunlord, Ottawa death metal project Accursed Spawn and Ottawa black heavy metal group Barrow Wight.
If you’ve never heard of Les Deuxluxes, then you’ve certainly been missing out. The Montreal-based boy/girl rock r’roll duo will be back in the region this weekend to perform at the Petit Chicago in the Hull sector of Gatineau. The talented and energetic band, who gives an awesome live show, will be sharing the stage with Gatineau/Montreal newcomers MUMU this time.
Ottawa’s The Night Watch invites you to join them for an intimate evening celebrating the release of their second album happening at Pressed this Saturday. Two years in the making, “Boundaries” is a 36 minute instrumental epic exploring a wide dynamic range of emotion through sound. The evening will be divided into two sets. The first will consist of a performance of “Boundaries” in its entirety, while the second set will focus on selections of the band’s other material.
Attention Ottawa-Gatineau air heads: the Ottawa Air Guitar Championships are going down at House of Targ this Saturday, June 4. The competition will feature a headlining performance by Ottawa rockers Suns of Stone and thamp will receive prizes, mad street cred and then go on to the National Championships in Toronto for their chance to be crowned the Canadian Champ. For more info and to sign-up to compete, just click below. 
If you’re a fan of Slo’ Tom and the Handsome Devils, this Saturday will be your last chance to catch them live in action until the fall. The Ottawa-based country/rock band will be performing live at the legendary Blacksheep Inn alongside local power folk band Steamers.
Montreal experimental electronic pop trio BRAIDS will be returning to Canada’s national capital this Saturday, June 4. This time around, the trio, who just released the Companion EP as a follow-up to their acclaimed Deep in the Iris album, will be giving a live performance with Toronto experimental project ginla, who’ll take care of the opening set.
Happy birthday Blunt Lifestyle! The Gatineau-based event production company, which is celebrating 3 years, is throwing a party this Saturday at Les Brasseurs Du Temps in the Hull sector of Gatineau to mark the occasion. The party will feature an outdoor scene with electronic music as well as an indoor space for the hip-hop heads. Sounds like good times all around!
This Sunday, June 5, come have mimosas & margaritas at Mercury Lounge while you browse through 3 floors of great clothing, shoes, accessories, dresses, hats and much more as part of the Pop Up Market Bazaar. Newly, gently used and vintage unique pieces will available and Phil Motion will be there to provide the tunes while you shop around. Cool concept right?!
Looking for the best summer vibes in the city on a Sunday? Look no further than Pozativ Vibrations By Da Beach, a family-friendly outdoor event happening every sunny Sunday starting June 5 at Petrie Island. What more could you want than a free jam by the beach featuring top notch DJs, tasty eats & refreshing beverages provided by Banana’s Beach Grill & Rum Shack and positive vibes all around?
