Guelph’s Hillside Festival Sells Out After 14 Years

This year marks a milestone as Guelph’s Hillside Festival has sold out for the first time in 14 years.

The beloved three-day music festival, located just north of Guelph at the Guelph Lake Conservation Area, features both well-known artists and emerging talent performing on its three stages and participating in workshops alongside more established musicians.

Artistic director Sam Baijal secured a booking months ago for a little-known Quebec math rock duo called Angine de Poitrine, long before they gained significant attention online.

“I don’t think any of us anticipated to what level they have reached,” he shared with CBC K-W’s The Morning Edition guest host Josette Lafleur.

“Now they’re closing the festival’s main stage, which was not the original plan, and we’re really happy because I think everybody will be able to see it and it’ll be a great, great scene out in front of the main stage on Sunday night.”

The last sell-out for Hillside Festival occurred back in 2012 when acts like Kathleen Edwards, Joel Plaskett, Bahamas, Great Lake Swimmers, Arkells and others took the stage.

After that year, attendance began to decline as festival officials acknowledged increased competition from other summer music festivals across southern Ontario.

Concert goers prepare to watch a musical act at the main stage at Hillside Festival in Guelph in this file photo. (Joe Pavia/CBC )

Then came the COVID-19 pandemic which forced them to cancel events or shift to online virtual concerts. Music festivals throughout the province faced challenges upon their return.

A neighboring event, Riverfest Elora, decided to end its run after their 2025 festival due to financial issues despite last year’s festival being quite successful.

Jon Ralston, an organizer for Riverfest Elora, mentioned to in November that costs had surged by 60 to 65 percent post-pandemic for running their festival including significant increases for insurance.

“There was no way we could match that rate of increase with our revenue and we tried for four runs at it after COVID and those four runs resulted in some pretty heavy losses,” Ralston said.

‘A good little Hillside lineup’

This year’s lineup at Hillside Festival includes familiar names such as Cowboy Junkies, Donovan Woods, Charlotte Cornfield, comedian Mae Martin along with several rising stars.

“It’s a good little Hillside lineup and people like it; there just happens to be this band that’s turning a bunch of heads,” Baijal told back in May.

The band that’s getting all this attention is none other than Angine de Poitrine.

This group from Saguenay, Que., has seen their popularity soar this year. They’ve opened for Jack White in Toronto, attracted one of the largest crowds at Montréal Jazz Fest since Stevie Wonder performed back in 2009 and have sold out shows globally.

WATCH | Angine de Poitrine at Montréal Jazz Fest:a

In an interview with The Canadian Press, guitarist Khn and drummer Klek attribute their success to simply enjoying what they do while connecting with people through their music at just the right moment.

“We just have been doing this for a very long time; it just happened that this one thing speaks to a lot of people but we are not masterminds,” Klek said.

“We’re just two random people who enjoy playing together; I feel like we just rode a wave that came along at exactly the right moment. That’s pretty much it; we didn’t think it through.”

Khn added , “The goal was always about sharing our fun while playing music and answering that personal urge to create something worth sharing. At some point , this seemed to spark people’s curiosity more than ever before.”

Whatever it is that’s happening is definitely working for them-and it’s also benefiting those festivals fortunate enough to book them early on.

Baijal believes some folks may attend specifically for Angine de Poitrine but many aren’t planning on attending just one day.

“It’s very reassuring that there’s that much confidence from people wanting to come , especially for an entire weekend ; I mean , that’s where we really saw ticket sales jump-people want the whole experience ,” he explained. “It’s such a great feeling.”

Source link