The Hootstock Festival will make its return to Forest Grove and will be running from July 27 to July 29. This will be the first time the festival will be played at the Forest Grove Community Hall, returning to its origin when it was once called the Hootennany Cafe by the event’s creators, Momentum Productions.
“We would also like to mention how excited we are to have Hootstock Festival right in the community of Forest Grove,” said Astrid Hensey of Momentum Productions.
Roughly 30 acts will take the stage showcasing various genres from punk to electric-art-folk and indie to singer-songwriters.
The Shit Talkers, an all-girl punk rock’ band from Vancouver, have toured with some of the genre’s better-known acts, such as CJ Ramone (formally of the Ramones), The Real McKenzies and Agent Orange.
Made up of Liz Mantle, Nadja Feutlinske, Michelle Duff and Brooke Fujiyama, the four-piece try to make their craft as entertaining as possible, covering topics such as politics and sex.
They released a record entitled I Scream, a collection of eight tracks in February. It is their debut release and available on theshittalkers.com.
Based in Prince George, Britt A.M. is one of the singer-songwriters who will grace the stage at the festival.
She has toured the country multiple times since becoming a solo artist in 2012.
Britt A.M. (real name Britt Meierhofer) has two releases available, 2014’s Goodnightmare and 2015’s Songs From the Spider Den, Volume One.
The talented artist has also written four articles for BC Musician Magazine on topics such as a guide for touring during the winter and creating more space for women in the music industry.
Hailing from Saskatchewan, The Grid Pickers are a husband and wife duo breaking into the Canadian folk scene, mixing old-time country, bluegrass and Celtic influences into their 2014 debut album, Shack Wacky.
Their follow-up release, Cheap Kazoos and Bad Tattoo, was released just a year later.
Wax Mannequin, the stage moniker for Christopher Adeney of Hamilton, Ont., is probably one of the more known artists in this year’s festival.
Drawing inspiration from Frank Zappa, Bruce Springsteen, and Tom Waits, the indie-folk rocker has a large catalogue of music starting in 2000, when he released a self-titled record. Since then he has released seven more records including 2018’s Have a New Name.
His third album, The Price, showed his poppier side and landed in the ninth spot on the Canadian national college radio charts in 2004.
Wax Mannequin has also been endorsed by one of Canada’s hottest band, The Arcade Fire.
The Kwerks are a married couple who play folk-pop and have an interesting story to tell with their dance-able tunes and heartfelt lyrics.
Laura Koch left her career in 2015, unpacked her guitar and decided to get into the music business without looking back along with her husband, Ryan.
They have since released three EPs, with Jonathon Anderson and Protection Island in Maple Ridge. Anderson has worked with some top-notch artists such as Andy Shauf, Said the Whale and Zachary Lucky, which speaks volumes of the Kwerks potential in the scene.
The rest of the line-up is featured on www.hootstock.com/lineup.
Ticket prices are also available on the website and Nuthatch Books on Birch Avenue.
“Our festival is not for profit, all funds generated from tickets sales pay the artists and any other festival expenses,” said Hensey. “We do this because it is our mission to bring more culture to our community. It’s very exciting to have an amazing festival right in our own community and we sure hope folks come out and take advantage of what we are bringing.”
brendan.jure@100milefreepress.net
