Sled Island

Get ready for the fifth annual, free, outdoor, all-ages Sled Island Block Party! This year, it will take place on Saturday, June 24 from 2:00pm - 10:00pm.

The Sled Island Block Party is the biggest dance party at the festival! We’re back in Inglewood and have lined up dance kingpin Jimmy Edgar, Flying Lotus curator picks Seven Davis Jr (DJing ahead of his live set at the Hifi Club) and IGLOOGHOST, live electronic act I M U R, funk-inflected rapper Lou Phelps, dark synth band Melted Mirror, energetic goofballs Physical Copies and dynamic duo sitstill. Big ups to our friends at the Hifi Club for curating this special lineup.

All that dancing calls for a little refreshment. Thankfully, Steam Whistle will be on hand with a beer garden to help keep you going. Look out for food trucks, too! You can also expect Sled Island and performer merch, plus the lovely Market Collective crew, who will be offering a special vintage clothing market for your shopping pleasure. Big thanks to the Inglewood BRZ and the Ward Event Community Fund for their attentive assistance and sponsorship of this event.

This is a rain or shine event. Let’s party!

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Sled Island regrets to announce that due to circumstances beyond the festival's control, Mrs. Magician will no longer be appearing at Sled Island 2017. Calgary's own Morgan Greenwood (Azeda Booth, Baths) will be replacing them on Tuesday, June 20 at Commonwealth. A special guest will be announced later to replace Mrs. Magician at the Ship & Anchor on Wednesday, June 21. Please direct any questions or concerns to info@sledisland.com.

Today we announce a brand new perk for Sled Island passholders: a special pre-fest week of discounts with our awesome community partners! You may already know that Sled Island passholders receive discounts on some of our favourite goods and services during the festival, but now, we've set up an additional savings event for those who have already pulled the trigger on a Sled Island 2017 pass.

This Friday, May 26 through Thursday, June 1, show a proof of purchase for your Sled Island 2017 pass and save at over 25 businesses in Calgary! Whether you're looking for food and beverage, health and wellness or retail, we've got a discount for you.

Read the full list of participating partners and make sure to grab that pass to save some cash! Our complete list of 2017 community partners (more than 60 businesses!) will be revealed soon.

You might want to sit down for this. The full Sled Island 2017 lineup and schedule are here!

Newly-announced acts include titanic indie rock band Wavves (playing a special all-ages show at The Palace Theatre on June 22), garage-punk poets Tyvek (joining us for three shows), high energy prog-pop project Once and Future Band*, hyperactive, neon-hued producer IGLOOGHOST* (who will be direct support for Flying Lotus on June 24 and will play the Sled Island Block Party earlier that day), the newly reformed Bash & Pop (featuring Tommy Stinson of The Replacements, playing both on June 22 at Dickens and opening for Mike Watt + The Missingmen on June 24 at the #1 Legion), two of footwork's most daring innovators, DJ Paypal* & DJ Orange Julius (performing together on June 22 with fellow Flying Lotus picks Yves Tumor and Ash Koosha), UK avant-club auteur Actress* (playing June 21 at Commonwealth), LA bass scene rapper Busdriver* (supporting DJ Quik on June 23) and more.

With over 190 new bands announced, it's time to get to know more than just our headliners. If you'd like a taste of the emerging bands at Sled Island, you could start with the dynamic prog of Anunnaki (featuring members of Wolf Parade and Moths & Locusts), grunge-pop stage sensations Borscht, unhinged industrial punks HSY, Halifax indie up-and-comers Not You (featuring members of Dog Day), sizzling rapper Pierre, stoner legends Shooting Guns (also providing a live score for a screening of Nosferatu), lush indie-folk act Tispur, the shred-tastic Wares, black metal purveyors Wilt or the experimental pop stylings of Yao Guai Cave.

Don't forget—Sled Island is also about showcasing the amazing talent we have right here at home. Some choice Calgary artists include synth weirdos Aiwass, battering electro-punks DRI HIEV, garage-pop band Glaux, internationally celebrated bass music champ HomeSick, international traditionalists HYMN, perhaps Calgary's finest songwriter Kris Ellestad, wily young rapper Louis CZA The Black Greek God, freshmen rock n' roll renegades Sellout, haunting composer Valiska and zesty stoner rockers Woodhawk. That's just the beginning! We can't wait to see each and every one of our hometown faves this June.

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Do you like bikes and needlessly competing with your friends? For the fifth year in a row, Sled Island is happy to present the Sled Island Bike Scavenger Hunt on Saturday, May 27. Sponsored by Steam Whistle, the event aims to promote bike culture in the city, support green initiatives and help get you familiar with a bunch of awesome Sled Island venues.

Create a team of four (suggested number) and complete a list of challenges in the city's core for a chance to win a host of prizes from our community partners. If you don't have a squad, register as an individual and we will make one for you! Registration is $40 per four-person team or $10 per individual. Advance registration ends on Friday, May 26, but walk-up participants are also welcome. Register here.

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Sled Island’s 2017 film lineup announcement is here! We're excited to feature experimental works, a twist on a horror classic, shorts from emerging artists and several Canadian premieres at this year's festival.

On Tuesday, June 20, the Hifi Club will host a very special screening: the first Canadian presentation of Videokills - The Explorer Series: Invisible City Symphonies. It pairs international experimental films with live scores from Sled Island 2017 performers! Stay tuned to find out which filmmakers and bands are participating.

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