Calgarians will get one last chance to dance the summer way, local style, as the first ever Eastern Slopes Music and Arts Festival kicks off in Bridgeland at the end of August.
The festival, which celebrates some of the best local bands and musicians currently creating music in Calgary and in Alberta, was the brainchild of a quartet of artists and communicators in the music community: Tory Rosso, Hannah Unterschultz, Meghan McMaster, and Ian St. Arnaud.
“The conception for this was primarily fronted by Hannah. She’s the executive director of the festival, and I know this is something she’s been wanting to do for a long time. We just had a little pocket of time—this would have been late fall 2023—where she was like, ‘why don’t we just do this? You know, we have the skills,” said Rosso, who is also the artistic director for the festival.
As for the name of the festival, he said that it came from his love of fishing. ES1, or Eastern Slopes, is the designated region stretching from Calgary to the continental divide, and down along the Rocky Mountains to near the border with the United States.
A fitting area given the lineup set for the inaugural year, which includes bands like St. Arnaud (which both Rosso and Ian St. Arnaud perform in), The Rifle County Players, Window Lamp, and Pancake.
Although Edmonton staples like K-Riz and Good Information are also set to play the festival.
“I’m really excited on the curation. As the artistic director, I had a big hand in that. And honestly… these are pretty much my friends from around the scene. I was really happy that a lot of them were stoked on the idea of Eastern Slopes and wanted to be part of the inaugural events,” said Rosso.
“They’re people I’ve either played with throughout the years, or I’ve been to their shows. They’ve been to my shows. I think it’s just kind of an aspect of community helping community.”
Friends or not, Eastern Slopes managed to get top up-and-coming artists performing in Alberta. K-Riz just played the Calgary Folk Music Festival, St. Arnaud played in Edmonton, Pancake at Sled Island, and Window Lamp along with The Rifle County Players on a tour in B.C.
That said, the goal was still to create something eclectic for festival goers with genres running from folk to indie rock and pop, to hip hop and country, said Rosso.
“I guess in terms of the vibe, we’re just trying to create a fun, inclusive environment,” he said.
It’s one that evolves throughout the day, from a lighter indie vibe at the start of the festival to some rock and harder-hitting country later in the day, to dance and hip hop to close out the night.
“You can make it as much of a party as you want to, or you can make it as chill of a time as you want,” said Rosso.
Like all good festivals, there will be plenty of food and entertainment off the stages as well, said Rosso.
Pilipilis, Ukrainian Fine Foods, and Waffles N Chix will be providing food from their food trucks, while White Peaks Tea and Last Best will have beverages on hand—both alcohol and non-alcohol options.
“There’s going to be yard games… and we have local artists setting up installations as well. It’s family-friendly. Kids under 12 get in for free.”
Tickets are $39.50, and can be purchased at easternslopesfest.com.
Inaugural Eastern Slopes Festival lineup
- 11:15 a.m. to 12 p.m.: Daughter Dentist (outdoor stage)
- 12 p.m. to 12:45 p.m.: Kate Stevens (indoor stage)
- 12:45 p.m. to 1:30 p.m.: Tea Fannie (outdoor stage)
- 1:30 p.m. to 2:15 p.m.: Ashley Ghostkeeper (indoor stage)
- 2:15 p.m. to 3 p.m.: St. Arnaud (outdoor stage)
- 3 p.m. to 3:45 p.m.: Zenon (indoor stage)
- 3:45 p.m. to 4:30 p.m.: Pancake (outdoor stage)
- 4:30 p.m. to 5:15 p.m.: Good Information (indoor stage)
- 5:15 p.m. to 6 p.m.: K-Riz (outdoor stage)
- 6 p.m. to 6:45 p.m.: Window Lamp (indoor stage)
- 6:45 p.m. to 7:30 p.m.: The Varmoors (outdoor stage)
- 7:45 p.m. to 8:30 p.m.: Rifle County Players (outdoor stage)
- 9 p.m. to 9:45 p.m.: Kayla Williams (outdoor stage)
- 10 p.m. to 11 p.m.: The Ashley Hundred (indoor stage)
