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Northern Lights Festival Boréal releases more of its lineup

Indie band Alvvays will be the festival's Saturday night headliner 
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NLFB’s Saturday night will be Canada’s fastest rising indie band Alvvays. (Supplied)

Northern Lights Festival Boréal is sharing more of the lineup for this year's festival, which runs July 5-8 in Sudbury's Bell Park.

In January, the festival announced Lisa Leblanc, Jane’s Party, Mama’s Broke and Sheesham and Lotus and Son will be playing the 2018 edition of the festival. 

Here's a few more announcements. 

Saturday night headliner:

Headlining NLFB’s Saturday night will be Canada’s fastest rising indie band Alvvays. 

Its dreamy-pop melodies and introspective lyrics detail a world of ice cream truck jingles and radiophonic workshop noise. But even with their darker content, Alvvays remains a summer essential, continuing to amass fans, wow critics, and play major festivals across the globe. 

Thursday evening lineup:

Why have only three days of festival when you can have four? “Last year clearly demonstrated that people want more festival, so we are bringing Thursday back,” said festival executive director Max Merrifield.

Iskwé Coming To NLFB:

Named ‘Top 10 Canadian Musicians You Need to Know’ by CBC Music, Iskwé (meaning ‘woman’ in Cree) is bringing her empowering music to the festival stage.

The Cree/Dene and Irish singer’s artistry knows no bounds as she honours her diverse heritage while standing strongly in her viewpoints.

From Iconic Canadiana to Emerging Canadian Artists:

Northern Lights Festival Boréal prides itself on presenting the best of Canada’s musical makeup each year. Its 2018 lineup is filling up with notable Canadian acts including one of Canada's leading contemporary folk artists, Connie Kaldor. Kaldor’s unique gift for songwriting and performing will lead NLFB audiences through laughter, nostalgia, and at times, deep emotion. 

In the same folk vein, Northern Lights is also excited to present Russell deCarle, former lead vocalist and bassist of Canada’s iconic roots country band, Prairie Oyster. DeCarle’s new songwriting journey combines skillful songwriting, southern soul and restrained balladry, with obvious influences of jazz, blues, old-school country, and western swing. 

After her electrifying performance at Northern Lights 2013, Cécile Doo-Kingué is back for another festival appearance. A first generation Cameroonian, born and raised in New York City, Doo-Kingué is now settled in Montreal. She is considered one of Canada’s leading blues artists and most versatile guitarists blending blues, afro-roots and soul. Watching her impeccable fretwork paired with socio-political lyrics is sure to be a cathartic experience—or perhaps something even more powerful. 

For festival goers craving some hazy, summer day indie rock, Aron d'Alesio, is set to sway audiences with his washout guitar and ethereal melodies. The Young Rival singer and guitarist is inspired by early rock’n’roll and his self-titled debut album has been described as a modern David Lynch film soundtrack. 

The Hamilton-based artist isn’t the only one scheduled to rock audiences, festival favourite and Sudbury heroes, Murder Murder will be back on the NLFB stage, armed with acoustic weaponry and a suitcase drum. Just arriving back from a European tour, this outlaw country and bluegrass band has been gaining worldwide recognition for their latest album, Wicked Lines and Veins.  

African music styles to float through festival air: 

Northern Lights is a place where sounds, styles, and cultures mix to make a brew of truly unique content. Although NLFB isn’t subscribed to one central theme this year, its lineup explores a vast variety of genres, including music from Africa.  

With that in mind, NLFB 2018 presents Laetitia Zonzambé, an undeniable leader of African Music in Canada.

Afrikana Soul Sister is expected to be the dance party of the summer with their earthshaking, electro-afro-house beats. 
 
The rest of the lineup will be announced soon. 

Make sure to get your tickets now, as prices are going up to $90 Monday, March 26 at 11:59 p.m. ($15 difference). Get them while they are still $75. 

Visit here for tickets.


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