The countdown to Coldsnap 2012 is on! In just week, fantastic out-of-town and local artists descend on the city for eight days of amazing music.

We’re counting down the days by running a little contest, and it’s easy to enter. All you have to do is let your friends know why you’re excited for Coldsnap. You can do this is three ways:

1. Tweet about us! Mention @coldsnapfest or just retweet one of our statuses, along with a show you’re going to or a past memory!
2. Tag us on Facebook. It’s simple. Head over to our Facebook page, and if you haven’t already– “like” us. Then start typing a status update about Coldsnap, only start typing “@Coldsnap Music Festival”. Our name should pop up– click on it, and we’re tagged. Again– extra points if you have share which shows you’re excited for or other reasons people should go out.
3. RSVP. We’ve made this Facebook event page. If you click on “going”, you will be entered to win.

And hey, there’s no reason you can’t do all three of these things, or Tweet about us every day the contest runs! Every day that you enter in one of these three ways, your name will be added into a draw for two tickets to our fantastic closing night show with some of the hottest guitarists in the country, plus a pass to the after-party and some Coldsnap swag. So like, Tweet, and RSVP to help spread the word and get into the music!

Coldsnap has always been about more than just music, it’s about community. That’s why we’re pleased to partner with Magneta Mare Consulting and community groups throughout the city to create family-friendly workshops aimed at building understanding, self-esteem, and a love of music. This year’s workshop series theme is multiculturalism, and is divided into the following:

Family Fiddlin’ Fiesta

Saturday, January 21, 11:00am – 1:00pm

A family fun multicultural event for kids and adults with lots of lively dance music. Searson will be on hand to teach step dancing,  and there will be Latino DJ music and Latino dance steps. A French Round dance will end this session. There will also be food served (bannock and fruit).

Connaught Youth Centre
1491 17th Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 3Z2
Phone:
(250) 561-1467

Fiddlin’ at the Fire Pit

Saturday, January 21, 2:00pm – 4:00pm

With an Aboriginal focus, this Metis fiddling event will be a great opportunity for young and old. Join FiddleStix and local fiddlers as you  listen, swing, dance and tell stories about the history of the fiddle and how it has been woven into the fabric of so many different cultures. There will be food (Sarah’s pies).

Fire Pit
1114/1120 3rd Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 3E5
Phone:
(250) 563-6113

Share Your Spirit

Sunday, January 22, 11:00am – 5:00pm

This Street Spirits Forum Theatre Workshop is open to everyone, all ages (12 and up), to a maximum of 25 participants. Those involved will gain forum theatre skills and will have the opportunity to perform during the public wrap up event, on January 28th, if they wish.

Connaught Youth Centre
1491 17th Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 3Z2
Phone:
(250) 561-1467

Open Mic: Different Paths

Sunday, January 22, 12:00pm – 2:00pm

Featuring Ana Bon-Bon, Linda McRae, and Whitehourse, this is a youth-focused event offering youth the opportunity to express themselves through their own various talents, to their peers and to the general public. This is an all ages, family fun event where youth can share the mic with their stories and talents.

Youth Around Prince (YAP)
1160 7th Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 5G6
(250) 565-6298 or 565-4127

Warm Up With Northern Folk

Thursday, January 26, 10:00am – 12:00pm

An opportunity to be entertained by western based musicians with flare for unique instruments with a unique perspective on living in the north.

Musicians: Gordie Tentrees from Yukon and John Wort Hannam from Calgary. Come also for the food and northern dialogue.

Connaught Youth Centre
1491 17th Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 3Z2
Phone:
(250) 561-1467

Spoken Word Café

Friday, January 27, 11:00am – 2:00pm

This is an all ages event. Speak your mind on topics of inclusion, diversity, multiculturalism, share your thoughts, poetry and/or writings created on the spot. Workshop event participants will have the option to present their inspired creations at Books and Co. at a later date.

Youth Around Prince (YAP)
1160 7th Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 5G6
Phone:
(250) 565-6298 or 565-4127

Come in from the Cold

Saturday, January 28, 1:00pm – 4:00pm

The final wrap up event culminates all of which has been experienced. Artists will showcase their collective art pieces created at each of the six events. Also on hand will be Sherman Downey and the Silver Lining, Nathan Rogers, and the Street Spirits Group.

Prince George Native Friendship Centre
1600 3rd Ave
Prince George, BC V2L 3G6
Phone:
(250) 564-3568

While Coldsnap prides itself on bringing the best in national and international performers to the stages of Prince George, we also recognize the talent and importance of artists closer to home.

That’s why each and every Coldsnap festival has always featured local artists in some capacity. This year, we are pleased to present two nights of curated music live at the Art Space.

All local shows are by donation ($10 suggested) and begin at 7 pm.

Monday, January 23 will showcase a talented set of guitar based bands.

Isaac Smeele is a talented young singer-songwriter who doesn’t stick with the traditional acoustic guitar and voice (though he does that ably). Instead, he creates textured sounds using his haunting vocals alongside drumbeats and electronic sounds. Find him on YouTube and Soundcloud.

Darby Yule has many fans through his band Lost Cause 34. But he’s not limited to that sound, exploring the full landscape of rock through projects like The Tear Has Dropped and Anywhere Road.

Jamie Bell is known for his work in the post-punk band Cera, but his own work lets him explore the more melodic side of things. With “The Cutest Band Ever” he puts on crowd-pleasing shows that are sure to have you singing along. MySpace and Bandcamp.

<a href=”http://jamiescottbell.bandcamp.com/album/girl-of-my-dreams-ep” mce_href=”http://jamiescottbell.bandcamp.com/album/girl-of-my-dreams-ep”>Girl of My Dreams EP by Jamie Bell</a>

The Bricks are an eclectic group of musicians well-suited to the live audience, having played in farmer’s markets and stages around town.

The perfect way to finish off the night before heading home to rest up for….

Tuesday, January 24, a more eclectic night of musicians pushing the boundaries of music but still guaranteed to get you going.

Doug Koyama is a Quesnel-based musician exploring the world of improvised, self-accompanied vocals. Using a looper, he lays down a music bed using his own voice, then keeps adding and adding until there’s a swirling sound of melody feeling the room. Creativity at its finest. koyama.bc.ca.

Chatterbox by Doug Koyama

Mother Tareka is new to the PG scene, having previously made his name in Ontario and Victoria. He’s an MC, saxophonist, and flutist, creating conscious hip-hop rooted in global struggles around the world. Find him here.

<a href=”http://music.peoplewhomakethings.ca/album/he-found-brick-inedible” mce_href=”http://music.peoplewhomakethings.ca/album/he-found-brick-inedible”>He Found Brick Inedible by Mother Tareka</a>

Avid are also new, though their members are not. They’ve been diligently rocking out in the Prince George scene for a while on the heavier side of things, though this new project mellows things out… a little bit.

Dead Street comes from the talented musical mind of Jeremy Stewart, blending psychedelia with grunge. You can hear a live, reel-to-reel recording on Bandcamp.

<a href=”http://deadstreet.bandcamp.com/album/easy-threader-ep” mce_href=”http://deadstreet.bandcamp.com/album/easy-threader-ep”>Easy Threader EP by Dead Street</a>
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Tickets to these shows are $10.

Click the play button to hear songs from this year’s mainstage performers.

The following is a list of shows and artists plaything this year’s festival. All tickets available at Books and Company and Studio 2880.

Mainstage shows begin at 8 pm. The local showcases begin at 7 pm.

Kickoff Celtic Kitchen Party – Friday January 20 at the Ramada Hotel

Catch step-dancing and champion fiddle playing with a modern twist with Fiddlestix and Searson.

Learn more: Searson | FiddleStix

Girls Night Out – Saturday January 21 at ArtSpace

The night starts with 2011 Prince George Idol winner Sheena Burgess. This is followed by accordion burlesque from Ana Bon-Bon and the powerful music of ex-Spirit of the West bassist turned solo performer Linda McRae.

Learn more: Sheena Burgess | Ana Bon-Bon | Linda McRae

Watch Out for the Frostbite! – Sunday January 22 at PG Playhouse

Quesnel-based brother-sister duo reeves just might be the next big thing. Fresh out of high school, this past summer saw them take a cross-Canada tour that was capped off with a performance on CityTV’s Breakfast Television. 2012 will only get better– not only are they playing Coldsnap, they’ll be on the upcoming series “Canada’s Got Talent.”

Whitehorse wowed Prince George audiences when they opened for Sarah McLachlan earlier this year– now the sizzling duo return to heat up the night with their cool tunes. Opening act TBA.

Learn more: reeves | Whitehorse

Local Music Nights – January 23 and 24 at ArtSpace

Two nights showcasing the wide range of sounds and talents right here in northern B.C. Tickets $10. Listen to tracks and get more information about the artists on the local artist page.

January 23 – Isaac Smeele, Darby Yule, Jamie Bell, the Bricks

January 24 – Doug Koyama, Mother Tareka, Avid, Deadstreet

FolkFest Reunion – Wednesday January 25 at ArtSpace

Two singer-songwriters who won over the crowd back when Coldsnap was a summer Folk Festival, Gordie Tentrees and John Wort Hannam have been touring the world and honing their craft to win your hearts once again.

Learn more: Gordie Tentrees | Josh Wort Hannam

Poets and Tunesmiths – Thursday January 26 at Ramada Ballroom

The hip indie portion of our festival, C.R. Avery is beatboxing bluesman with some spoken word and punk piano thrown in, and Hey Ocean are an infectiously catchy group often described as one of the best young live acts in the country. Not to be missed. Not that any of these shows are.

Learn more: C.R. Avery | Hey Ocean

Past, Present and Future – Friday, January 27 at the Prince George Playhouse

Sherman Downey and the Silver Lining are being touted as Newfoundland’s next great musical export, with pop-inflected, full-of-fun folk music and an energetic live show. As for Nathan Rogers, hatever “it” is, he has it– he rarely gets off stage without at least two encores. Come out and find out why.

Learn more: Sherman Downey and the Silver Lining |  Nathan Rogers

Tribute to the Mississippi Sheiks – Saturday January 28 at the Prince George Playhouse

One of the most powerful nights of music you can experience by some of Canada’s most accomplished musicians. Get ready for shivers.

Learn more: Tribute to the Mississippi Sheiks

Workshops

Coldsnap will once again be presenting workshops with artists and events around town. For a list of workshops, see our 2012 Workshop page.

Honey in my tea by tjReeves

With just weeks left until Coldsnap 2012, we are pleased to begin announcing the rest of our artists this week.

First up: reeves.

You may have seen this talented brother-sister duo at one of their live shows around their hometown of Quesnel. Or maybe it was when they took to the road for a cross-Canada tour this summer. Or maybe it was when they appeared on CityTV to promote the upcoming Canada’s Got Talent TV show.

Yes, big things are ahead for this young group, not least of which is sharing the stage of the Prince George Playhouse with veteran performers Whitehorse on Sunday January 22.

Learn more on our website or at reevesmusic.ca.

Make A New Dance Up – Hey Ocean

This is one of those bad news, GREAT news stories. First the bad news: Current Swell, who were supposed to play January 26 alongside C.R. Avery, have had to cancel due to unforeseen good reasons. That’s the bad news.

Now the GREAT news. The absolutely fantastic Hey Ocean have stepped up to the plate. Easily one of Canada’s most exciting young live acts, Hey Ocean have an extraordinary talent for blending various musical styles into a brand of infectious pop that is uniquely their own. They go from pop to hip-hop but are always upbeat, infectious, and danceable.

That show is January 26. If you already had tickets to the show with Current Swell, they are still good, but our partners are kindly honouring returns if you need them. That said, check out Hey Ocean and C.R. Avery before making up your mind, because this is going to be a great night of music!

The Prince George Folkfest Society is very pleased to announce the performer line up for the upcoming Coldsnap – the Prince George Winter Music Festival which will be held between January 20 and 28 of 2012. The line-up was released on Sunday night at Artspace during a fabulous concert by Colin Linden. “I was very excited to have Colin play at this event in particular”, said Sue Judge, Artistic Director for the PGFFS. “He represents a wide variety of musical genres from folk to blues to rock and roll, which is exactly the goal of this festival. If I may, I would like to take this opportunity to thank the Board of Directors, all our volunteers and all our wonderful, wonderful sponsors, past and present, that have made this festival the nationally recognised, critically acclaimed and successful event that it is today!”

The festival will kick-off Friday night, January 20, with a Celtic Kitchen Party. Vancouver duo Fiddlestix will warm up the audience with amazing fiddle and percussion arrangements. And dancing will be the name of the game when Searson hits the stage. They are a dynamite Celtic band from Ontario that plays internationally, and will bring incredible energy and fancy footwork to their performance.

Saturday, January 21 will be a showcase for talent with ties to BC. Ana BonBon is an international artist originally from Alberta but has called both Vancouver and Prince George home, although she now makes her home in London, UK. She is a chanteuse, accordianista and general all around fun gal and will wow the audience with kickin’ accordion licks and smooth, sultry vocals. Joining her that night will be Canadian singer/songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Linda McCrea. This gifted musician plays clawhammer banjo, acoustic guitar, accordion and porchboard bass, combining old-time sounds with universal themes of heartbreak & redemption offering an intriguing sepia postcard from the past that is vibrant and alive in the present.

To start the evening, the Prince George Folkfest Society is very pleased to present Sheena Burgess, winner of 2011 Prince George Idol. Burgess, who hails from Quesnel, will bring her own love of jazz and blues to the stage to open the night for what will be a powerful show of girl power!

Sunday, January 22 will welcome newly formed duo called Whitehorse, although most folks will recognize them as Melissa McLellend and Luke Doucet. The husband and wife team, longtime touring musicians with Sarah McLaughlin, have finally started touring together and recently released a new CD. Marrying powerful guitar riffs and perfect vocal harmony will make this a night to remember.

Wednesday, January 25 will bring a Folkfest reunion of sorts. Both these artists were at the summer festival in 2005. International Yukon artist Gordie Tentrees is fully armed with his dynamic show featuring Ken Hermanson on guitar, banjo and lapsteel. Rounding out the evening will be International folk/roots/country singer songwriter and local favourite John Wort Hannam. John thrives on live performance, and is truly happy when he is on the road playing and connecting personally with an audience.

Thursday, January 26, will see two cutting edge performers in the Indie world. Current Swell is one of Canada’s most exciting emerging bands and will bring their version of folky-groove rock & roll to the stage. (Current Swell have had to cancel, but have been replaced by one of Canada’s most exciting dance-pop-hip-hop acts, Hey Ocean). C.R. Avery is a unique, raw and dynamic performer with genius in many genres – blues, hip-hop, spoken word and rock & roll. He is a one-man band with the rare ability to sing poetic verse while beatboxing simultaneously while pounding the piano and  adding harmonica like a plot twist. This guy will knock your socks off!!

On Friday, January 27, the Playhouse will host a member of Canada’s folk royalty. With a beautiful baritone voice and powerful songs, Nathan Rogers is a tremendously successful and much sought-after musician on the festival scene. With one foot planted firmly in folk music’s traditional roots and the other reaching into its dynamic future, Nathan has the ability to turn the folk world on its ears. A second performer for that night will be announced soon.

As a grand finale, on Saturday Jan 28, Steve Dawson and Friends will present their tribute to the Mississippi Sheiks. Between 1930 and 1935, Sam, Lonnie and Armenter Chatman, the three sons of slaves who along with Walter Vinson made up the core of the Mississippi Sheiks created some of the most memorable blues rants and square dance hollers ever conjured up. Their sound was indefinable, part country and part apocalyptic blues filtered through yearning fiddle and gut bucket guitar. By the time their race was run, The Mississippi Sheiks had redefined what a string band could do. Over the course of nearly a hundred singles, their scratchy howling at the moon tales of life at the crossroads captured the hearts of a temporarily colour blind America as they toured the country, selling millions of records along the way. Though they only were together for five years, by the time they called it quits the Mississippi Sheiks had left a body of work behind that still resonates in today’s world. This is music that sounds as ancient as a Dead Sea Scroll and like it could have been written yesterday.

Vancouver songwriter, musician and producer extraordinaire Steve Dawson will present his tribute to Mississippi Sheiks in Prince George accompanied by his band, multi-talented guitar queen Del Rey and blues legend Jim Byrnes.

In addition to the above evenings, Coldsnap will host local and youth bands on Monday Jan 23 and Tuesday Jan 24, and will also present the “Come in from the Cold” workshop series. This free workshop series, presented in conjunction with Magenta Mare Consulting, will bring the mainstage performers together with local musicians and audience members to discuss the use music and arts to explore topics of diversity, inclusion, racism and multiculturism.

Tickets for all mainstage evenings are $30 (which includes HST), and are on sale at Books and Co., and at Studio 2880.

Volunteer: Coldsnap is an entirely volunteer-run event. If you can help out with anything, from ticket sales to security, please get in touch with us using the volunteer form found at coldsnapfestival.com/volunteer.

Sponsors are an integral part of making Coldsnap a success. Your organization can get involved in one of the biggest events in northern British Columbia, one that regularly attracts national attention and showcases great music and reaches out to all economic and social groups through partnerships with key community organizations. More information can be found at coldsnapfestival.com/sponsorship.

Artists: We are now looking for local artists to perform at our downtown showcases and as opening acts. If you would like to showcase your music at one of BC’s premier music festivals, visit coldsnapfestival.com/artists.

Coldsnap AGM: The Coldsnap AGM will be held Sunday, September 18. A time is still being finalized, but if you would like to take part, please contact us our volunteer co-coordinators at folkfestvc [at] gmail.com.

For further updates, stay tuned to this site, or follow us on Facebook and Twitter!

We have finalized the dates for Coldsnap 2012. Once again, it will be the last week of January, this time from the 20 until the 28. We’ll be making an announcement about the artists soon, but in the meantime please think about volunteering.