With a major venue change from Toronto Island to the East End of the city in Woodbine Park, many festivalgoers didn’t know what to expect (other than a ferry-free commute). The festival grounds had three major stages: Main Stage, which delivered big acts like Odesza, Tame Impala, Grimes, and The Cure; Bollywood Stage was a tribute to the arts and culture of India and hosted Tom Trago, Lee Foss, and Art Department; and lastly, for all hard-core electronic fans there was The Big Top stage, which was located in a tent and hosted the likes of Thugli, Shaun Frank, and Thomas Jack. The festival also set up an intimate party tucked away on a hill called Sunday Best Balearic Bar, which embodied the spirit of an ‘Ibizan’ summer providing specialty drinks and DJs, like Martin Davies and Mojo Filter, spinning tropical-themed tracks.

One of the daytime highlights for Saturday was Caligornia’s Giraffage (Charlie Yin) whos pop-infused electronic beats immediately shook up the Big Top. Yin not too long ago came through Toronto with Small Magic which clearly created a positive residue of a fan base in the city. Yin’s set was fun, energizing and entertaining with dashes of surprising throwbacks like “Who Let the Dogs Out” between the usual remixes of Miley Cyrus.

The evening line up at the Main Stage was perfectly executed, starting with Jamie XX, the producer, and at times vocal, half of The XX. Since breaking out into the music scene on his own in 2009, Jamie XX has been nothing but a beacon of success among the niche electronic music groups. His 2015 album, In Colour, brought him up to the mainstream and consequently to the main stages of mass festivals. His set was diverse, upbeat, and as always featured a combination of his original tracks and some unique remixes.

Next on the program were Odesza, one of the most anticipated acts of the weekend. The duo, made up of Harrison Mills and Clayton Knight, created an extremely devoted fan base since their inception in 2012 by releasing a bulk of their music for free and well, just being insanely talented all around. Mills and Knight took the stage just as the sun was setting and put on a performance showcasing their usual live drum set duo. It was undoubtedly a highlight of the weekend.

Wrapping up the first day Tampe Impala lit up the Toronto’s East Side with a performance people will not want to forget. Without a doubt this was the most attended set this weekend from the beginning to end. Between last year’s Currents and 2012’s Lonerism Tame Impala have an incredibly strong following. Whether or not Impala are on your repeat playlist or you’ve just heard (seen) “The Less I Know the Better” you too will feel the band’s all-encompassing live set, it’s the kind of sound you will randomly wake up with on a Tuesday morning and skip to work to.

One of the most awaited acts on day two was tropical house DJ Thomas Jack known for his island-like vibe mixing in live instruments like the sax and the flute. Performing in the Big Top, which created a more intimate, a bit sweaty vibe, Jack appropriately played some of his most popular remixes like “You Were Right,” and “Is This Love,” as well sharing some of his new work with the excited crowd. Always a pleasure to watch, he was a perfection addition to Bestival and epitomized the true relaxed and positive spirit of the weekend.

Canadian songwriter and producer Grimes preformed Sunday evening as one of the closing acts of the festival. Those familiar with Grimes knew what they were in for, those who were not were surprised, shocked, and entertained. Joined by dancers and additional singers on stage Grimes played a variety of her old and new tracks while fighting through a gnarly cold. Needless to say being a bit under the weather effected the set but her limitless energy compensated where the voice was lacking.

Sunday being an overall lighter day was mostly spent relaxing on the grass and dancing to electronic beats of Catz and Dogz, Unlike Pluto, Lee Foss, Classixx and Tchami. While the more mature crowd were singing along to The Cure, Dubfire closed out the weekend at the Bollywood stage with the fire flares shooting out of elephant tracks bidding the crowd goodnight.

More image from Bestival Toronto can be found on Facebook. 

photos by Erik Shaw

The post Bestival brought music, peace, and lasting memories to Toronto appeared first on Quip Magazine.

Davies is originally from Manchester and is currently residing on the Isle of Wight, where he started his own label, Wight Label Records. Today he hosts the Wight Label Records Radio Show and tours Europe, DJing parties. With Bestival originating in the UK, it made perfect sense to have Martin Davies as a special guest. While his usual repertoire consists of melodic, deep, house, his beach-side set was built on disco undertones, with tracks like Faze Action’s “I Wanna Dancer” causing waves on the sand.

By the time Rob Da Bank entered the DJ hut, the path to the beach turned into a line quickly regulated by flanking security guards. The main stage was host to Born Ruffians, with a tight crowd of people singing along to “Needle,” “same as everyone spinning underneath the sun.”

On the other side of the park, the Big Top stage was beginning to fill up for Cashmere Cat and what would turn into an exploding party in a few hours. Magnus August Høiberg, a Norwegian DJ/producer who goes by the name Cashmere Cat (not to be confused with Cajmere) is one of those performers with a humble attitude. Similarly to Jamie xx, Høiberg didn’t interact with the crowd at all, but his set of skills is nothing to be shy about. With a solid bunch of appearances at the DMC World DJ Championships, Cashmere Cat was masterfully going through the Mirror Maru and Wedding Bells EPs.

Immediately following Høiberg was Lodewijk Fluttert, a Dutch producer known as Bakermat. Over the last couple years almost everything Bakermat released became a summer hit, so much so that he had his own stage at Tomorrowland in 2014. Joined on stage by his usual saxophone player, Fluttert went through his hits from “Teach Me” to “Another Man,” with an ear to ear smile on his face from the beginning to the end.

The next artist crew to take the stage was local success story, Keys N Krates. Having exploded onto the mainstream dance music scene with the track “Dum Dee Dum,” Keys N Krates have recently dropped an equally successful Every Nite EP. The main track from the EP, “Are We Faded,” has already been remixed by a variety of people, on multiple stages and was a sure way to pack in the tent with shouting, jumping fans reaching for the sky. Having a gift for crossing genres from various decades, Keys N Krates are also regular guests at the Red Bull Thre3style, so these guys really know how to get the crowd going. This set was alive.

A newcomer to the music scene, ZHU, was second last on the Saturday night bill. No one knew who Steven Zhu was until sometime last year when “Faded,” (and subsequently it’s remix by ODESZA) exploded on the internet. ZHU is one of those artists who prefers to be seen for his music alone, he doesn’t do many interviews and performed behind a veil which stretched across the entire Big Top stage, serving as a screen through which you could occasionally get a peak at Steven Zhu.

In less than a year, ZHU has acquired a massive fan base. The mosh pit for ZHU’s set ended a few meters outside of the Big Top tent and those who could not get close were scattered, dancing in the nearby area on the grass.

With photos still flooding, one by one, onto Instagram and people reminiscing about the weekend, it is clear that Bestival has made an epic entrance into Canada. We hope to see you back next year U.K., let’s make Toronto Island your second home.

photos by Erik Shaw

The post Bestival Saturday: you’re home now appeared first on Quip Magazine.

Jackie Willson: Let’s start with something basic – where did your love for music come from?

Lodewijk Fluttert: I listen to a lot of different genres. I started doing this thing where I listen to dance records and jazz records at the same time and I combined them. I couldn’t find any jazz or blues elements in dance music, so I started doing it on my own.

JW: How old were you when you started doing that?

LF: I think twenty.

JW: Did your parents influence you at all? 

LF: My mom is an opera singer, and she taught me classical music. So I have that in my collection, like every piece of opera music.

JW: Would you say that’s where it all started?

LF: I guess, when I was young I didn’t appreciate opera music at all. I hated it, but now I love it. My dad was a big fan of soul music, like James Brown. James Brown was the first record that he showed me.

JW: Do you still have it?

LF: No, I don’t. I am going to go buy his record.

JW: You tend to sample a lot, where do the samples come from – live musicians, records…?

LF: YouTube. I browse through YouTube and go to, like, page thirteen where nobody goes. I type in, like “rare gospel”, and you will find something, like, with three views, and that’s it. I try to find the original record, buy it, and then sample it.

JW: You’ve said before your dream is to tour with a full orchestra… 

LF: Yes, I did this in Europe already, in Paris and London. For the U.S. it’s complex for me because it is such a distance. If I am going to be playing here, it takes a lot of organzing because it is a seven man band. I am working on it, and I really want to do it. I have to select the right festivals for it, I really want to.

JW: How is the tour going so far? 

LF: So far so good. The travel was good, the plane ride took me about eight hours.

JW: Where are you going next?

LF: California, to Palm Springs.

JW: Have you ever been to Coachella? 

LF: Never. I do really want to go.

JW: It would be great to play there.

LF: Yeah, it would be awesome. A dream come true.

JW: Are you excited for your upcoming set, back here in Canada?

LF: Yes, I’m so excited. I love the crowd in Canada, especially in Toronto and Montreal, which are bit like Europe. I am really familiar with playing in Europe, I love it, it feels like home.

JW: I was having a conversation recently with an artist about how much Toronto loves music and really supports their artists.

LF: Yes, they come for the music. That is what I love. It is exactly the same in Amsterdam, they come for the music and they know all the tracks.

JW: Do you remember having a moment, if you had one, when you were like “Damn, I guess I’m famous now”?

LF: Umm, that’s a good question. I guess for me, I was like fourteen and I already watched a video of Laidback Luke, you know, he was already doing this stuff back then, and dance music was not that big. He was touring the world, and I saw that and said, I want that.

JW: So was there a point where you thought that you made it, or are you still working towards something more?

LF: Yeah, I think I had those moments. These are pretty good questions, I was just going to go on autopilot. But yeah, I have definitely had those moments, I’ve done a tour in Europe with all the big cities like Paris and London and all the capitals. It was huge venues and I was really nervous about selling out. I was like “I can’t do this yet, I’m just internet famous.” But it sold out, like big time. In Paris there was even a line, the police had to come and swipe people off the streets. That was when I was like, “All right, this is pretty good.”

JW:  Are you working on anything new right now?

LF: I am coming out with an album in September, I have some singles and remixes coming up for the summer. Basically, I learned in life, and it’s very deep, but it’s true, you have to do whatever you want. You have to do something, I don’t have a grand plan for life, I make the tracks that I like and that’s it. I will see how it goes.

JW: You really need to believe in your music, and a lot of people hesitate and don’t do that.

LF: Yeah, exactly. I had those moments. Now I’m like “Fuck it, I’m going to release whatever I want.”

JW: When did those moments where you were unsure happen?

LF: Right after Vandaag, the IT record. It was number one in Europe. I thought, “Okay, people want that, they want another Vandaag.” I got that a lot and I didn’t release anything because of that. But now, I don’t care.

JW: Do you find that your music suffered because of that? Because you didn’t believe in it as much?

LF: Maybe, I don’t think so. I would never release something that I don’t agree with. At the moment, I think I am really free in what I do. I really don’t care. I am confident about what I like. If people don’t like it, I don’t really give a shit, because this is what I want.

JW: Out of curiosity, what do you plan to do with a degree in psychology, is that a backup plan? 

LF: Yeah, I didn’t have any plans for my life. I just started studying psychology. It was never my idea to become a full time musician and in my third year of studying I was bored. I took a semester off, went into stand-up comedy. That went pretty well, but not as good as I thought. So then I thought, “Okay, what’s going to be the next challenge? Let’s make some music.” I downloaded software, made music that week, put it on YouTube and it kind of became a hit.

JW: Ok, so no psychology then?

LF: Well, I am still studying psychology officially, I am just not attending. I want to finish it, but I’m not going to do anything with it. This is the best job ever, I would not want to be a psychologist.

photos by Erik Shaw

The post Early afternoon one-on-one with Bakermat appeared first on Quip Magazine.

Jackie Willson: How are you feeling about your set?

Shaun Frank: I had a wicked time! It’s always fun to play in my home town, especially when it’s a festival this cool. I think everyone involved did a great job for bringing Bestival to Canada for its first time.

JW:  I’ve read that electronic music is something that found you in Bali, during a tour. Looking past that though, when did you first get into music? 

SF: I mean, I’ve been playing music since I was 5. My parents had me on piano at a really young age, and it’s something that’s always been the main focus of my life. I played in bands for a few years and one of my tours took me to Asia, where I experienced my first full moon party…that’s kinda where I fell in love with dance music and decided I wanted to start producing it.

JW:  You joined Dim Mak last year, how has it been working with them?

SF: The Dim Mak team is awesome, and so supportive. Aoki is such a homie, and has had my back every step of the way.

JW: How has working with Keys N Krates been? Do you know the guys well?

SF: I’ve always been a fan, what they do is really cool and different from what you normally see. When I was young, it was cool to see how bands perform like that, and their fans are crazy. I did one show with those guys a few months ago. I’m a big fan…coming from playing in bands, I obviously really respect their take on dance music, and how they perform everything live.

JW:  You have done quite a few remixes, is your focus shifting to mostly original productions or is it a bit of both?

SF: A little bit of both. I am kind of switching to what I really love, I want to do these songs justice. I don’t love remixing songs that I love, definitely my focus is collaborating. I’ve got a song with Cashmere coming up, very exciting.

JW: What do you think of the collaboration with Cashmere, are you a fan?

SF: Definitely my favourite song that I have ever done. That guy is SO talented. We just really connected, I was in L.A. for like five minutes, I went to his house, I got like 20 minutes, and he said come over, and we chatted about music. I came in, we got this idea, I quickly sang it, it’s actually a track by Billy Jayne.

JW: Did you have the idea before you went in?

SF: Yeah, I had the vocal and the chords, and I went in and he had this cool idea for the drop and I did my thing. It was sick.

JW: When is that coming out?

SF: I have no idea, but it shouldn’t be too long. I hope really soon.

JW: Will you eventually move somewhere like L.A. or NYC, closer to the heavy hitters in the industry? 

SF: I want to spend time in L.A. There’s a lot of producers I want to work with. I do love this city though; the music scene here is one of the best music scenes that I’ve experienced.

JW: Why is that? What do you really like about the music scene in Toronto? 

SF: I don’t know, I’ve done L.A. and I’ve been to Miami and Boston. The music here is great. I don’t know if they are so supportive because I am from Canada or the music is just better. I think it is a very educated crowd. You can veer off and play some more obscure stuff and they respect you for it and actually enjoy it more, which I love because it gives you a chance to be more creative. I think a lot of it has to do with the government support as well.

JW: What would you say a highlight of your career as a producer has been so far? 

SF: The highlight of my career was probably watching a video of Oliver Heldens dropping “Shades of Grey” on the stage at Coachella, and being like “Wow, I made that song,” you know, I recorded that vocal in my studio here in Toronto and now I’m hearing it at Coachella. Watching the crowd sing it back even though it’s not even out yet, that was phenomenal, that was huge. The label called and was like “We’re getting this song out,” and now it’s coming out on June 22^nd.

We can’t wait to touch base with Shaun again and hear what is next for him. Stay tuned fans.

photos by Erik Shaw

The post A few moments with Shaun Frank appeared first on Quip Magazine.

Jackie Willson: We just saw you guys perform live at CMW and it was awesome! How did you feel about that night?

HUMANS: Thank you, we felt that it turned out great. We were fairly nervous as it was the first show with our new visuals designed by Tangible Interaction. We’ve been working with them for over a year and it turned out that it was going to be its premiere at CMW. We only had 15 minutes to set it all up on stage and plug it into the laptop (we now have a computer on stage to trigger the visuals). Besides the new addition to the set, everything else went and turned out great too, meaning the sound, crowd and our performance, thank you Toronto.

JW: Production and overall aesthetics seem pretty big for you guys, is that something we can consistently expect from now on? 

H: Yes, we’ve been working on a new set and have added new equipment in the last year, it’s made our sound bigger and at the same time dirtier (in a good, positive way). It’s more fun that way, although adding more equipment does mean we need to be focused on stage and that results in taking less beer breaks.

JW: Do you feel, as an electronic band, that you have to keep up with all the “big sets and intense lighting” that some artists use? 

H: I don’t think you do, no, but it does help and it is fun. I think if you can do it, then by all means, go ahead, but the most important asset is the music, if you write good music then you’re golden, you can play on a dark stage using your laptop. One more thing, a good sound system with a sound guy who isn’t afraid to have you loud is another key component.

JW: Are you getting a lot of recognition from Canadian fans? Do you feel you’re becoming more well-known elsewhere?  

H: It’s definitely good to build a history in a town, it shows. I feel like our music isn’t necessarily getting more recognition in Canada, but more so in cities where we’ve performed several times like Victoria, Vancouver, New York, Toronto, San Francisco.

JW: What has the reaction from your fans been like with NOONTIDE?

H: Pretty positive, we hear from people that they can play the record while at a dinner party, at a house party, while driving or chilling at the beach. It can be played in any setting. That wasn’t the intention, but happy to hear it works. When releasing TRAPS, our second EP, it took a while for fans to get into it because Avec Mes Mecs had a different vibe and fans were expecting something more along those lines. NOONTIDE sits in between both those records; I think that’s why it’s been pretty well received.

JW: If you could describe that album in one sentence what would it be?

H: Like taking off all your clothes on a beautiful sunny day on a remote island that you’ve discovered.

JW:  Is it hard to come up with new concepts for a song or does it happen naturally? 

H: When you listen to a great song, it can easily inspire you to write, but when you don’t hear anything new that you love, it can get difficult. We definitely write tracks that get thrown into a pit of “who cares about this shit,” but if we both love a song, it might make it on a record – but that doesn’t mean we’ll play it on the stage.

JW: What do you guys like to do with your free time?

H: Draw, write stories, party, bike, skate, work, see friends, support friends with their shows, eat tacos, eat ramen, cook, sleep, watch movies, make movies, spend time with a special someone, climb, take showers, sweat, smell nice, discover new things, dance, yell.

JW: What are you looking forward to the most this summer? 

H: Discovering new things and playing shows at all the festivals. Actually, we are really looking forward to seeing Jamie XX and Caribou at Bestival.

The post HUMANS discovering sound – interview appeared first on Quip Magazine.

UK’s most awarded festival took over a large area near the Hanlan Point beach on the Toronto Island with five stages and a multitude of play and food areas. The island was transformed into a Bollywood-inspired carnival lacking only a Ferris Wheel but I highly doubt anyone missed it. The amount of decor, attention to detail and overall festivities came has out-staged even the Corona’s Sunset party in 2014, that alone has already made the weekend a memorable one.

The musical line up was broken up into stages by genre similarities with the biggest acts  performing on the Main Stage and the rest thematically divided across the park. The big hit with Toronto was undoubtedly the Big Top tent tucked away at the far end of the grounds.

Shaun Frank was one of the early performers in the Big Top. Though it seemed a little early in the day for fast pace EDM Frank found a way to make the slim crowd dance and even do handstands. Dropping his heavy hitter remixes like Zeds Dead and Twin Shadow “Lost You” and recent originals Frank played an energetic set embellished by his strong showmanship, undoubtedly something he brings from his days in The Envy.

By the time Jamie XX hit the stage small rays of sunshine begun to come through the dark clouds. Jamie Smith, London-based music producer and some would argue the better half of The XX played an hour-and-a-half-long DJ set on vinyl. Situated deep into the Bollywood stage Smith opened up with  “I Know There’s Gonna Be (Good Times)” which seemed like a great way to get people moving. Continually mixing in some 90s classics like Ol’ Dirty Bastard feat. Kelis “Got Your Money” with other tracks from In Colour  Smith kept on expertly flipping records, there may have even been a remanence of a smile on his face halfway through during “Girl.”

On the other side of the park Robert DeLong was lighting up the Main Stage crowd with “Long Way Down” while Big Top was beginning to fill up to the sounds of Grandtheft. A skilled DJ and turntablist Aaron Waisglass is pretty much a regular at Red Bull Thre3Style. With a wealth of celebrity collaborations behind his belt Grandtheft as always delivered a trap heavy EDM set. The tent was starting to become the warmest place on the island.

A selection of local originals were performing in the Perrier Greenhouse. An area opened only to a portion of attendees the Greenhouse hosted local talent and on Friday we had a chance to see a small crew from The Kount (trumpet and a turntable), who opened for Bonobo a couple weeks ago, and a lively performance by Smalltown DJs. For the day Pete Emes was representing the Smalltown duo. Inspired by old school hip hop beats the duo begun their career on the wavelength similar to Grandtheft and have recently evolved into more dancy area of the genre with tracks like “See Thru” which made Emes a great fit for the chill and well lubricated crowd at the Greenhouse.

After a smooth performance by SBTRKT the crowd begun to divide between the Main stage for Clean Bandit in preparation for Florence and The Machine and Big Top tent for Flosstradamus and Flume.

Flosstradamus delivered a high energy interactive show to a full room, to say it was energetic though would be a large understatement. The tent walls were shaking while J2K and Autobot in matching white outfits with white snow masks and what looked like bulletproof vests were hyping up the crowd with remixes and tracks from Soundclash EP jumping on and off the turntables with a mic.

The highlight of the evening was a highly anticipated Flume set. Born Harley Edward Streten, this Australian DJ has taken the world by storm since the release of his debut self-titled album. This wasn’t Streten’s first visit to Canada so many knew what they were in for first hand. Not many people left after Flosstradamus and even more flooded into the tent for Flume’s hour-long set. He seemed tired, but who wouldn’t with the two years he’s been having. Despite the possible exhaustion Streten delivered a strong live set smoothly transitioning between his solo tracks and some of the more famous remixes like Lorde’s “Tennis Court” and Disclosure’s “You & Me.”

No one was going to leave a Flume set early, not after waiting a year for his return. While the main stage half of the park cleared out after an epic Florence and the Machine set the crowd leaving the Big Top was wondering around looking for an exit. An epic conclusion of that night was a two-plus hour wait for the ferry but we’re working on forgetting that part.

photos by Erik Shaw

The post Bestival Friday: raving in the rain appeared first on Quip Magazine.

This year Bestival is going to invade Canada’s Hanlan’s Point Beach, Toronto Island on June 12 and 13, 2015. Featuring performers from across the globe the line up announcement undoubtedly made waves across the province and beyond.

The festival has proven to be an “undisputed leader when it comes to off-the-wall production” in the UK and for the Canadian edition the organizers are promising more than just a festival, in their own words this is going to be “a creative wonderland.”  In the introduction Bank said they were beyond excited to take the festival outside of UK: “We’ve spent 12 years working up to this moment and are so proud to be teaming up with Toronto to launch the good ship that is Bestival overseas.”

The headliners are Florence and The Machine and NAS, who are both touring throughout the festival season with their return productions. What we are most excited for here at Quip is the subsequently following leftfield acts: Flume, Caribou, SBTRKT, ZHU, and Jamie XX, just to name a few.

Bestival has a potential of becoming Toronto’s counterparts to major festivals like Osheaga and Lollapalooza. We cannot wait to see what the UK crew has brought for us and to keep the excitement going we are giving away a pair of Bestival passes to one lucky fan. It is easy. It could be you.

You can enter to win a pair of passed to Besitval Toronto using one of the methods listed below:

1. Tell us you want to go to Bestival Toronto by tweeting at @QuipMag using hashtag #WinBestivalTO and following @QuipMag on Twitter.

2. Follow @QuipMag on Instagram and like + comment on our Bestival photo expressing your interest in winning the passes.

3. If you are not on either platform you can simply comment on this post. Make sure to use your real email address as we will use it to contact the winner.

We will pick one random winner from all the submissions and contact them via direct message or email shortly after the contest closes on April 19, 2015.

Other important stuff: Contest starts Monday, April 13th, 2015 at 10am and ends on Sunday, April 19th, 2015 at 10pm EST. Winners will need to be able to show photo ID. One entry per person. The contest is open to all residents of the Canada excluding Quebec. Must be 19 years of age or older at the time of entry. Members of Quip Magazine or it’s affiliates are not eligible.

The post Introducing Bestival Toronto! Here’s your chance to win tickets to the festival appeared first on Quip Magazine.