All the PWYC shows in Up Here Square
Photo by Wade Montpellier
Town squares have, historically, been public spaces in which the cityfolk gather to socialize, shop, and even just relax. Up Here Square is sort of a 21st-century town square for Sudburians, so in the spirit of accessible public gathering spaces, all the shows happening here over the weekend will be “pay what you can.”
Here’s the full weekend schedule for all the shows happening in our very own piazza!
Friday
Exmiranda 9 p.m.
Hey, it's Exmiranda! Rapper, advocate, entrepreneur, curator, cultural connector, and everything in between. She’s been making waves throughout Toronto and beyond for her unique sound, creative insight, and eclectic rap style. Once described as what would happen if: “Rick James, Janelle Monae, [and] Prince all teamed up to make a hip-hop album.”
DijahSB 10 p.m.
Toronto-based rapper DijahSB makes navigating synth loops, booming bass claps, and smoothed out production look easy. They are as earnest and personal as they are agile and quick-witted—inspirational without being preachy. Their music is a raw look into the mind of a Black non-binary artist rapping their way through hope, heartbreak, and breakthroughs.
Saturday
Peach Pact 1 p.m.
Born in a North Bay basement, doused in champagne and vegan birthday cake, this trio is Riot Grrrl meets Palm Springs sunset. Wedged somewhere between psych and garage rock with a healthy dose of fuzz, category is: queer femme fun.
Thea May and Troy Junker 2 p.m.
Thea May is an Ojibway, Canadian pop singer/songwriter from Atikameksheng Anishnawbek. She revives the vintage sounds of singers from before her time, while also embodying the sound of future pop music, with hip hop vibes, electronic dance feels, ’90s pop dance inspiration, and at times, tropical waves. Thea's writing comes from real life experience, hardship, and passion.
Wolf Saga 3 p.m.
Electropop polymath Johnny Saga spent his twenties tenderly building a stockpile of sounds that would manifest as Wolf Saga: a one-man ensemble with a pack mentality, named to honour the spirit of the wolf—loyal protector of loved ones, which holds special meaning in his Ojibwe culture. In timbre, Wolf Saga’s dreamlike synths dynamize as they soothe, offering a matured take on the affable bangers of the 2010s.
The Ape-ettes 8 p.m.
The Ape-ettes are the garage-psych-pop-punk trio from Sudbury. Charming the crowd with their spirited less-is-more approach and odes to loving, losing, and living, the Ape-ettes will have you rocking out in both official languages.
Hippie Hourrah 9 p.m.
In many ways, Hippie Hourrah’s music is what you’d hear after bumping your head. The hazy sound of a mandala, gliding voices, a psychotropic version of Jacques Dutronc’s vibe. Like trying to read in a dream, something is missing, certainty shatters in shards of doubts. Guitar or sitar, modern or ancient, work of a goldsmith or matter of chance? Worthy heir of the sun itself, Hippie Hourrah—a trio including Cédric Marinelli, from Les Marinellis, who set the Townehouse stage on fire at the inaugural edition of Up Here—promises mesmerising songs, a breakaway from linear time.
La Luz 10 p.m.
When La Luz burst onto the garage-rock scene in 2012, it was immediately clear their take on surf-inspired, noir-leaning songs was here to stay. The band’s snappy rhythm section, chunky organ melodies, guitar rave-ups and AM gold-harmonies felt fresh and vital even when among their similarly influenced peers. With their newest work, La Luz has launched themselves into a new realm of emotional intimacy with a collection that is the most naturalistic and psychedelic of their career. All the elements of classic surf-noir, garage-rock La Luz are there—lush harmonies, impeccable musicianship, gorgeous melodies—but it’s a richer, earthier iteration, replete with inorganic sounds that mimic the surreality of nature—the humming of invisible bugs, the atmospheric sizzle of a hot day.
Sunday
Jane Inc. 7 p.m.
CEO and pencil pusher, blank and unknowable Jane Doe, singular solo project of Carlyn Bezic. One half of weird-pop duo Ice Cream, one fifth of rock-and-roll fever dream Darlene Shrugg, touring member of US Girls, Bezic’s tunes merge a pop sensibility with off-kilter influences. Thoughtful production and lush layering of futuristic synths push the quick satisfaction of pop structure into a hypnotizing work.
Jasmyn 8 p.m.
When we look at the patterns of our lives, what do we see? This is what Weaves front-person Jasmyn asks on her debut solo album, where the art of reshaping, shifting, and grounding is encouraged with an open-hearted vigour. By diving far into ourselves and ruminating on the reflection we see in the mirror, we can unearth a new kind of clarity, where the balance we’ve been searching for slowly begins to reveal itself.
Pierre Kwenders 9 p.m.
Singing and rapping in Lingala, French, English, Tshiluba, and Kikongo, Pierre Kwenders is a storyteller at his core. Motivated by the intricacies of love, his songs weave together narratives from memories of the past, sketches of his hometown, and reflections on the future. He’s established himself as an architect of modern African music, and his entrancing, Polaris short-listed beats incorporate Congolese rumba and Afro-inflected electronic dance.
