If — as they say — a fully functioning music festival resembles a city, with food, shelter and the like, the first full day of activity at Rifflandia on Saturday was akin to New York City.
Times Square, to be exact.
Rifflandia 2024 is a blur of lights, sound and patrons, with a sizeable footprint. A feast for the senses doesn’t describe it. This was sensory overload, in the best way possible.
Rifflandia’s new site at the Matullia Lands in Rock Bay was introduced Friday with sets from Rezz, Ja Rule and C+C MusicFactory. Organizers said a crowd of 6,500 turned up for the debut, which was affected somewhat by intermittent rain.
Sunshine was the order of the day on Saturday, which drew about 8,000 music fans, with shows getting underway at 2:30 p.m., several hours earlier than Friday’s festivities. More acts, more sun — everything felt incrementally better on Day Two. Not having rain helped. But the acts were far better, with some magic thrown in for good measure.
Feist, who headlines Sunday, and is arguably the festival’s most decorated and well-known artist, jumped on stage with her old bandmates in Broken Social Scene. It gave the early evening some buzz, as did the Canadian debut of electronic act AVE, who flew here from Milan, Italy.
The new site at Rock Bay (it was at Royal Athletic Park in the past) presented a range of possibilities, chief of which was the relocation of its three music stages (the festival also has a comedy stage). Sound concerns likely factored into the decision, and the move paid off. There was little sound bleed when the stages were running concurrently, and the sound appeared to not travel far outside of the venue as it had in previous years.
There were several music highlights that made all the hype seem warranted. Late Friday, hip-hop turntablist Skratch Bastid and disco favourite Sophie Ellis-Bextor were standouts. And in the festival’s electronic-leaning dome stage, what is sure to be a perennial favourite going forward, Lazy Syrup Orchestra was impressive.
“I’m playing on this stage tomorrow,” Feist said at the close of her performance with Broken Social Scene. “Be here.”
Sage advice.
Rifflandia continues Sunday from 2:30 p.m. until 11 p.m., with appearances by The Beaches, De La Soul, L7, and others.
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