1 Jul

Bud Light Concert Series At Crankworx Whistler

Crankworx Whistler returns August 9-18, 2013 to celebrate its 10th Anniversary. This year’s concert lineup will be running over three nights and the free shows will take place at Whistler Olympic Plaza between 7:45pm and 10:00pm on Friday, August 9; Saturday, August 10; and Sunday, August 11. These concerts in Whistler Olympic Plaza are partially funded by the Resort Municipality of Whistler (RMOW) through the Province of British Columbia’s Resort Municipality Initiative grant.

Rich Hope brings his Evil Doers to kick off the events on Friday, August 9 at 7:45pm. Likened to the sounds of Dan Auerbach and Gary Clark Jr, Rich Hope clearly shares influences from essential American blues guitarists like Junior Kimbrough and Muddy Waters. He’s crossed over into punk rock territory and shared the stage with legendary Greg Graffin and Bad Religion, as well as Mike Ness of Social Distortion. Now, with partner Adrian Mack, this Vancouver duo gets back to the roots of blues and rock n’ roll in the best way possible.

Following Rich Hope will be Hamilton-born indie rocker Matt Mays. Matt released his self-titled debut in 2005 which earned him a JUNO nomination for New Artist of the Year and Adult Alternative Album of the Year. His sound blends hazy East Coast rock with laid back, beach-bonfire jams. Five studio albums later, he’s been nominated for four JUNO awards to date and has won several ECMAs.

Saturday’s festivities start up at 7:45pm with the White Rock native and much loved Daniel Wesley, who brings us his own blend of reggae, folk, and rock. Daniel worked with Tragically Hip producer Gavin Brown on two of the tracks on his newest record Ocean Wide, which dropped April 9, 2013.

Mother Mother, courtesy of mothermothersite.com

Night two of the Bud Light Concert Series will feature a much anticipated set by Mother Mother. “We are very excited to join Crankworx this year in celebrating its first decennial, it is a tremendous honour to be a part of the festivities for such a milestone”, says frontman Ryan Guldemond. Hailing originally from Quadra Island and now based out of Vancouver, these local favorites have been on a steady rise since forming in 2005. While the crowds at their shows keep getting bigger, the entire group seems to truly appreciate their local fan base and has remained adamantly accessible to their fans. When they’re not on stage, it is likely to see them wandering through the village and chatting with the masses during Crankworx this year.

The Bud Light Concert Series will come to an electronic finish with dance-punk band Nightbox at 7:45pm. Formed in Wicklow, Ireland, and now based out of Toronto, the group has worked with members of MSTRKRFT and Death From Above 1979, and has also remixed songs for Canadian electro artist Lights and Finnish indie group Satellite Stories. The dance-hyphen crossover category happens a lot as soon as groups decide to utilize a synthesizer, and although dance-punk is not a term heard all that often, it is descriptive of the unique sound that is Nightbox.

Indie-electronic pop duo HUMANS will have the honour of finishing off the musical side of this year’s Crankworx following Nightbox’s set. Consisting of Robbie Slade and Peter Ricq, the duo now resides in East Vancouver and came out with the critically acclaimed EP Traps in 2012. HUMANS has a number of side projects including Gang Signs and Sabota.

Whistler Olympic Plaza will also host the GoPro Dirt Diaries on Tuesday, August 14, the Deep Summer Photo Challenge on Wednesday, August 15, and the premiere of SecondBase Films’ ARRIVAL on Friday, August 16. Priority seating close to the HD screens will be on offer for these three events with a number of ticketed seats available. The area beyond the ticketed seating will be available for spectators to take in the event free of charge.