A lot can disappear over the course of a multi-day festival, from your sunglasses to your sanity. However, those who manage to spend all their waking hours on site will find some unexpected music highlights. But what’s in store for those who have jobs and less time to dedicate to the cause? They always need last-minute assistance. And that’s where this handy shortlist of can’t-miss acts playing through the opening weekend of Electric Avenue at Rifflandia can be of value.
An anticipated DJ set by former reality TV star Paris Hilton will be buzz-worthy, and well attended, and U.K. dancefloor filler Chris Lake is receiving a big push from organizers, but they are surrounded by too much Main Stage talent to best this competition. This year, Electric Avenue is located at what is now termed the Arts & Innovation District, located across from Phillips Brewing on Pembroke Street, between Government and Store streets. The site is huge, and capable of hosting 8,000 fans. Explore and engage — that’s the best way to make this weekend of dance music work for you.
DR. FRESCH
Shambhala, the annual Salmo, B.C., electronic music festival, is a destination event for hordes of dance-happy Victorians, which is where many in attendance Thursday will have seen Los Angeles party-rocker Tony Fresch perform previously. Not unlike The Funk Hunters and Neon Steve, two Victoria standouts, he blends hip-hop, house and stadium-sized beats, but with a darker edge than his aforementioned associates. Dr. Fresch is electric on stage, with the ability to look like he’s having as much fun as the audience while he’s performing. (Electric Avenue Main Stage, Thursday, 9:30 p.m.)
A-TRAK
Alain Macklovitch first performed in Victoria in 2000, when he was just 17. At the time, the Montreal turntable prodigy seemed primed for world domination, having been the only DJ to have won all three worldwide turntablist competitions. When the public’s fondness for scratching was eventually usurped by sampling and remixing, A-Trak — brother of Chromeo’s Dave Macklovitch, who is performing Saturday — switched gears and promptly mastered electronic dance music. His set last week at Seattle’s Bumbershoot festival was excellent, so expectations are high for this one. (Electric Avenue Main Stage, Friday, 9:30 p.m.)
BANX & RANX
The Montreal duo of Soké and KNY Factory had quite a year in 2022, with a Top 10 hit in Canada (Flowers Need Rain, featuring fellow Rifflandia 2023 performer Preston Pablo) and three Juno Award nominations (they won for breakthrough group of the year). They unabashedly lean pop, but the results are impressive, from production work on Dua Lipa’s Kiss and Make Up, Rêve’s Ctrl + Alt + Del, and Alessia Cara’s Lie to Me to their own Answerphone. With a cluster of key remixes rounding out their sound, Banx & Ranx could be sneaky good on Saturday. (Electric Avenue Main Stage, Saturday, 7 p.m.).
BLU DETIGER
Questions surround this DJ set from New York musician Blue DeTiger (her real name), but that’s a good thing. With a résumé that includes tours with Jack Antonoff, The Knocks, and Olivia Rodrigo, her profile is on the rise. Armed with a strong musical foundation — DeTiger was a student at the real-life School of Rock academy as a child — she blends house music and slippery funk, over top of which she adds live accents from her bass guitar. Keep a close eye on DeTiger, who was named to Forbes’ 30 Under 30 list in 2023. Her local debut offers a world of possibilities. (Electric Avenue Main Stage, Saturday, 8 p.m.)
RUN THE JEWELS
As one of only two notable hip-hop acts at Rifflandia this year — Salt-N-Pepa being the other — Killer Mike and El-P have everything working in their favour. Headliners on Saturday night, the Grammy Award nominees are celebrating their 10th anniversary as a unit, with a fifth album on the horizon. If their new music picks up where that which preceded it left off, fans are in for a hard-hitting, politically minded pastiche. Live sets by the duo are more light-hearted, though the terrorizing cadence of Killer Mike ensures that fans in the first few rows will run for cover if his booming baritone gets up close and personal. (Electric Avenue Main Stage, Saturday, 11 p.m.).
