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Vancouver Sun
31-07-2025
- Entertainment
- Vancouver Sun
Here are Vancouver's best concerts in August: Tate McCrae, Cyndi Lauper, Deftones and more
Reviews and recommendations are unbiased and products are independently selected. Postmedia may earn an affiliate commission from purchases made through links on this page. July often seems to be the busiest month of the year for festivals and large-scale outdoor gigs in and around Vancouver. But August can more than hold its own. The sheer volume of artists on tour making stops in town demands advance planning to pace yourself. Here are 10 Vancouver concerts to catch this month: Get top headlines and gossip from the world of celebrity and entertainment. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sun Spots will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. When : Aug. 2, 7:30 p.m. Where : Rickshaw Theatre, 254 E. Hastings Tickets and info : From $30 at Zambian-Canadian Montreal rapper Backxwash won the 2020 Polaris Prize for her album God Has Nothing To Do With This Leave Him Out Of It. The first of a trilogy of releases that delved into issues of identity, spirituality and survival. Now with 2025's Only Dust Remains, this enigmatic hip-hopper has emerged with different sounds and subject matter to explore. When : Aug. 3, 8 p.m. Where : Great Canadian Casino, 2080 United Blvd., Coquitlam Tickets and info : Jefferson Starship are sure to rock hard when they land in the Lower Mainland. The group formed from the remains of psychedelic hippie crew Jefferson Airplane, conquering the charts and stadiums in the 1970s and beyond. With original member and multi-instrumentalist David Freiberg and longtime singer Cathy Richardson, expect to hear Miracles and much more. When : Aug. 4, 5, 7:30 p.m. Where : Rogers Arena Tickets and info : First coming into the public eye as the first Canadian finalist on So You Think You Can Dance in 2016, Calgary artist Tate McRae has been on an upward career arc that sees her touring the world playing hits such as You Broke Me First, Run for the Hills and Exes. Her shows are known for high-energy choreography and powerful acrobatics. She is certainly the hot Canuck singer of the moment. When : Aug. 9, 3:30 p.m. to 10 p.m. Where : Deer Lake Park, 6450 Deer Lake Ave., Burnaby Tickets and info : free at One of the most popular free gigs of the year, this daylong event packs in the talent. This year's artists include Ani DiFranco, Aysanabee, Judith Hill, Jackson Hollow and Antonio Larosa. Remember that the temperature can drop a lot in the evening and pack a light extra layer. When : Aug. 10, 7:30 p.m. Where : Rogers Arena Tickets and info : It's been four years since there has been any new music from Nine Inch Nails. That isn't to say band leader Trent Reznor and frequent production partner Atticus Ross haven't been busy. The duo's latest release is the soundtrack to the new Vancouver-filmed action flick Tron: Ares. Fortunately, Reznor is putting the band that made his name back on the road this year for a hit-laden set sure to please fans. His live shows are the stuff of legend in town. When : Aug. 16, 7 p.m. Where : Rogers Arena Tickets and info : If you listened to rock radio in 1999, you heard Higher. The first single from Creed 's second album Human Clay spent 17 weeks in the top 10 only to be followed by the Grammy-winning With Arms Wide Open. The band would implode only five years later when creative differences pushed members apart, reforming again briefly before going on hiatus until last year. On tour with Big Wreck and Mammoth WVH, this is bound to be a night of big guitars. When : Aug. 21, 7:30 p. m. Where : Roges Arena Tickets and info : As the Boomer generation fades away, so do its artists. The latest hit maker to decide that it's time to stop touring is quirky pop tunesmith Cyndi Lauper . While she says the tour isn't the end of the line for the Tony-winning composer of Kinky Boots, it is not planning on doing another world tour. The sets for this one are loaded with her biggest songs, including the Goonies 'R' Good Enough. When : Aug. 22, 7 p.m. Where : Rogers Arena Tickets and info : Sacramento alt-metal crew Deftones released its 10th album Private Music on July 10, 2025, with the release of the tune My Mind Is a Mountain. The new material is right in line with the mix of vintage nü metal, alt-rock and shoegaze that are the bands trademarks. An added bonus is that U.K. punks Idles are one of the opening acts. Don't come late, you want to catch this group in concert. When : Aug. 29, 8 p.m. Where : The Fox Cabaret, 2321 Main St. Tickets and Info : For a band that only came together two years ago, local group Honeybear, the Band sounds like it has been around for decades perfecting its vintage rock 'n' soul sound. Of course, all the members are veterans of the local scene, with keyboardist Mike Kenney holding down organ duties at Rogers Arena for the Vancouver Canucks for decades. The group's debut, I Was Wrong, has nearing three million Spotify streams and they will be at the Harmony Arts Festival on Aug. 5. Blues rock belter Colleen Rennison will open the Fox Cabaret show. When : Aug. 30, 8 p.m. Where : Doug Mitchell Thunderbird Sports Centre, UBC Tickets and info : Along with equally heavily-tattooed artists Post Malone and Jellyroll, Teddy Swims is another genre-blending musical act whose mix of soul, country and pop elements has propelled him into the arena ranks. His debut album, I've Tried Everything But Therapy has taken off with the single Lose Control which was produced by the late Swedish DJ and producer Avicii. sderdeyn@ Love concerts, but can't make it to the venue? Stream live shows and events from your couch with VEEPS, a music-first streaming service now operating in Canada. Click here for an introductory offer of 30% off. Explore upcoming concerts and the extensive archive of past performances.
Vancouver Sun
10-06-2025
- Entertainment
- Vancouver Sun
Three B.C. bands make the 2025 Polaris Music Prize long list
Three B.C. bands have been named to the 2025 Polaris Music Prize long list. Juno-winning Haisla rappers Snotty Nose Rez Kids' Red Future, Victoria's dapper Art d'Ecco's Serene Demon, indie rock fixture Destroyer's Dan's Boogie are all albums nominated on the list. A total of 189 albums were considered for the Long List this year. Artists include 16 first-time nominees, two past winners in Backxwash and Caribou, and one past recipient of the Polaris Heritage Prize in Rich White, a member of Eric's Trip. Established in 2006, the Polaris Music Prize awards $50,000 to the winner, with runners-up each receiving $3,000. Get top headlines and gossip from the world of celebrity and entertainment. By signing up you consent to receive the above newsletter from Postmedia Network Inc. A welcome email is on its way. If you don't see it, please check your junk folder. The next issue of Sun Spots will soon be in your inbox. Please try again Interested in more newsletters? Browse here. The assemblage of 40 Canadian artists will be narrowed down by the 205-member Polaris Prize jury to 10 finalists on July 10, when the Polaris Prize short list is set to be revealed. Along with the long list, the new SOCAN Polaris Song Prize category was announced. The first expansion to the prize since the hall of fame Heritage Prize was launched in 2015, the song prize will be adjudicated by the members of the Polaris jury to determine the Canadian song of the year. Criteria considered is similar to the main award, based only on artistic merit, without any regard given to genre or commercial success. The Song Prize will feature a 20-nominee Long List to be revealed on July 29. Winners of the inaugural SOCAN Polaris Song Prize will receive $10,000 split between the song's Canadian performers and credited Canadian songwriter or songwriters. The prize money is courtesy of SOCAN. The Slaight Family Polaris Heritage Prize will reveal its 12 nominated heritage recordings in July. The winners of that award are to be announced in October. An 11-member grand jury selected from the greater juror pool will make the final vote for the 2025 Polaris Music Prize winner to be announced on Sept. 16 at Toronto's Massey Hall. Tickets to the Polaris concert and awards ceremony are on sale at . A 15 per cent Long List discount is available using the code POLARIS15. Here is the complete list of 40 Canadian artists selected by the 205 member jury: • Art d'Ecco — Serene Demon • Backxwash — Only Dust Remains • Quinton Barnes — CODE NOIR • Bibi Club — Feu de garde • Basia Bulat — Basia's Palace • Caribou — Honey • Lou-Adriane Cassidy — Journal d'un Loup-Garou • Choses Sauvages — Choses Sauvages III • Cold Specks — Light For The Midnight • Antoine Corriveau — Oiseau de Nuit • Marie Davidson — City of Clowns • Destroyer — Dan's Boogie • Myriam Gendron — Mayday • Gloin — All of your anger is actually shame (and I bet that makes you angry) • Saya Gray — SAYA • Hildegard — Jour 1596 • Yves Jarvis — All Cylinders • Kaia Kater — Strange Medicine • Bells Larsen — Blurring Time • Richard Laviolette — All Wild Things Are Shy • Wyatt C. Louis — Chandler • Kelly McMichael — After The Sting Of It Men I Trust – Equus Asinus • Mustafa — Dunya • N NAO — Nouveau language • Nemahsis — Verbathim • Eliza Niemi — Progress Bakery • The OBGMs — SORRY, IT'S OVER • Dorothea Paas — Think Of Mist • Klô Pelgag — Abracadabra • Population II — Maintenant Jamais • Ribbon Skirt — Bite Down • Ariane Roy — Dogue • Mike Shabb — Sewaside III • Sister Ray — Believer • Snotty Nose Rez Kids — RED FUTURE • The Weather Station — Humanhood • Rick White and The Sadies — Rick White and The Sadies • Donovan Woods — Things Were Never Good If They're Not Good Now • Yoo Doo Right — From the Heights of Our Pastureland sderdeyn@
CBC
11-03-2025
- Entertainment
- CBC
Does it make sense to revoke Buffy Sainte-Marie's Juno Awards and Polaris Prizes?
Social Sharing The Juno Awards and the Polaris Music Prize have announced that they are rescinding the honours Buffy Sainte-Marie won from their organizations over her career. The decisions were made in light of her recent acknowledgement that she is an American citizen. The Fifth Estate called into question whether the music icon's claims of Indigenous ancestry are true. Marek Tyler is a nêhiyaw and Scottish musician, educator and entrepreneur. Kim Wheeler is an Anishinabe/Mohawk writer and producer. Today on Commotion, Tyler and Wheeler join host Elamin Abdelmahmoud to share their reaction to the award news, and whether it signals a greater hope for systemic change in the Canadian entertainment industry. We've included some highlights below, edited for length and clarity. For the full discussion, listen and follow Commotion with Elamin Abdelmahmoud on your favourite podcast player. WATCH | Today's episode on YouTube: Elamin: Marek, what was your reaction when you heard the news about Buffy being stripped of the Junos and the Polaris Prize? Marek: My reaction? It was shrapnel. And what I mean by "shrapnel" is, for more than 100 years our identity has been systematically attacked…. I think about those families whose identities are constantly being questioned when they walk into a Walmart, when they go to the dentist, and when they go through security wherever they're at. And so for every newly-outed Indigenous person, I think there's shrapnel in the community, a feeling of betrayal at this level, because those scars of identity that we're still living with? They're new. That's where it leaves me. So when I think about that piece, then I go, okay, well, let's think about systemic change, not symbolic actions. The trophies and awards that we receive for these accomplishments, they're symbols of success. But what is required, in my opinion, is systemic change. So yes, someone's symbol has been removed from them. But really what I'm thinking about now is to protect future generations so that they don't endure this shrapnel that we see in [our] community. That we right now require systemic change, and that, for me, is Indigenous-led conversations so that these organizations, who have antiquated policy, can make better, more informed decisions…. So yes, shrapnel, absolutely. But these symbolic actions need to be grounded in systemic change. Elamin: Marek, I appreciate the image of shrapnel and the ways that it evokes a radiating hurt. I think you're trying to get at two different ideas: the idea of the story about Buffy being a story about ancestry coming into question, and the story of what that does to identity. Ancestry and identity are related, but they are two different things. And I think the idea of the questioning of Buffy's ancestry ending up introducing a whole terrain of doubt for people who are sort of trying to figure out their identity, I'm very sensitive to that. Kim, you're a Polaris Prize jury member, but you were not on the jury when Buffy's album Power in the Blood won in 2015. How are you feeling about that decision from Polaris to rescind Buffy's prize? Kim: Well, I understand why they're doing it. The rules are you have to be Canadian, and she isn't. I don't know if she ever actually claimed to be Canadian, or if anybody ever asked if she was, if anybody ever asked to see her passport. We all just, when Buffy said that she was from Piapot, those were her people, we all just took it at face value. I think it's the right thing to do, to rescind it based on her being an American citizen. I think that they've sidestepped the issue that she is being accused of being a "pretendian." And I say "accused" because I think I'm still on the fence. I'm still confused. I mean, you have to go through the seven stages of grief, right? And people are still dealing with that. There are people who are still angry. There are people who are still in denial. There are people who have totally come to accept it. So when we talk about should we take the prize away based on her citizenship? Yes. I really like what Marek said, that these are new conversations. These are conversations that we haven't had to have before, because our people have not been in the position to win these major awards. So when we have to have these conversations — and yes, they have to be Indigenous-led — we are all still doing this for the first time.
