The Starbelly Jam Music Festival is ready to runs for its 12th year from July 15-17. This is a wonderfully eclectic celebration of community spirit and artistic expression, featuring diverse genres of music (from folk to hip-hop), as well as many workshops, kids activites and entertainment, ground performances, extensive food and craft vendors, and fascinating people interaction.
The traditional Friday evening rev up will be enhanced this year with the offering of three examples of innovative, successful homegrown talent. We Are The City is a trio originally from Kelowna whose atmospheric progressive pop sound has been getting much attention, both from fans and the critics (winning a $150,000 battle of the bands contest in Vancouver). Then, local electronica wizards Kashoo will engage with their innovative dub effects and beats, leading up to an Adham Shaikh extravaganza in the form of the new Outworld Orkestra, featuring brilliant world fusion and treatments supporting a variety of live local talent, including Ben Johnson, Slava Doval, Boris Sichon and Shine.
Saturday and Sunday feature the usual Starbelly eclecticism, starting with the deep groove zones of Reggae headliner Midnite, all the way from St. Croix, Virgin Islands, master songsmith Ron Sexsmith (and band), funky hip hoppers the Coup from San Francisco, and those hip hucksters of French gypsy hot jazz, the Lost Fingers.
For soulful heart ballads of love, loss and life, Frazey Ford (from the Be Good Tanyas) and American Nathaniel Rateliff will reveal their mighty inner selves within truly great songwriting. The engaging lyrical and instrumental artistry of veteran performers Rick Scott and Tippy Agogo will captivate the parents as much as the kids. Rounding out the roster, deep-talent, rootsy jam banders Cast of Clowns, and both the Russian/Chinese quintet Namgar and the South Saharan Tuareg artist Bombino will totally rock out while maintaining very conspicuous roots in their ethnic inspirational sources. Of course, on Saturday night, the improv dub step duo EOTO will remind all to keep on dancing.
Full details can be found at www.starbellyjam.org
— STARBELLY JAM