Earlier this week, Festival de musique émergente en Abitibit-Témiscamingue (FME), along with its official presenter SiriusXM announced the lineup and offerings for the 22nd edition of a unique event that has a long-held reputation for showcasing a curated selection of artists and bands, including emerging and established Canadian acts, as well as some inspired international programming across an eclectic array of genres and styles. 2024’s FME will feature rap, pop, neo-soul and R&B, Afro rock, post-punk and much more.
Taking place between August 29, 2024 – September 1, 2024, the 22nd edition of FME will feature close to 100 different sets taking place in Rouyn-Noranda, Québec‘s best concert venues and some truly unique locations in the small, Québecois mining town, roughly 315 miles or so from Montréal.
“It is with great pride that SiriusXM will again be Festival de musique émergente en Abitibi-Témiscamingue’s official presenter in 2024. Year after year, this festival offers programming flush with young emerging musicians, thus resonating with our mandate to showcase new Canadian talent,” SiriusXM’s manager of strategic development for Canadian content, Jean-Phillipe Lavoie says. “At SiriusXM, we aim to provide these artists with great visibility, whether via our North American online platform or by supporting events celebrating our culture. In light of this, we are delighted to renew our long-established partnership with FME.”
La Scéne Extérieure
Thursday, August 29, 2024:
The Événements Sirius XM Concert Series will kick off with Hawa B, Orchestra Gold, BODEGA and Karkwa.
- Initially known for her collaborations with Hubert Lenoir, Charlotte Cardin, Clay and Friends and a lengthy list of others, Hawa B as a solo artist has developed a reputation for crafting iconoclastic work that touches on soul, jazz and alt-rock among others.
- Orchestra Gold is an Oakland, CA-based outfit that crafts a mind-bending synthesis of psych rock, metal and Malian folk traditions.
- Brooklyn-based post-punk outfit BODEGA, whose latest effort Our Brand Could Be Yr Life was released to critical praise earlier this year. The band, who opened for acclaimed Spanish indie rockers HINDS earlier this year, will be making their Abitibi-Témiscamingue debut.
- Montréal-based outfit Karkwa will be closing out their first tour in over 12 years with a stop at FME.
Friday, August 30, 2024
The outdoor stage will feature a night of hip-hop from La Belle Province: GreenWoodz, Rymz and Souldia.
- GreenWoodz is an emerging and rising emcee, who specializes in a distinct emo rap brew.
- Joy Ride Records‘ protégé Rymz specializes in spiky hook-infused bangers.
- Souldia is a beloved, Francophone hip-hop legend, who has released 10 full-length albums, including 2022’s Dixque d’art, which won Rap Album of the Year at that year’s Gala de l’ADISQ. Souldia is widely known across La Belle Province for willingly and candidly sharing his story with an unvarnished honesty.
Saturday, August 31, 2024
The outdoor stage will continue to feature both Francophone and Anglophone hip-hop: Montréal’s LaF, Toronto-based, Polaris Music Prize Winning artist Haviah Mighty and Loud Lary Ajust.
- LaF’s recent album, last year’s Chrome saw the hybrid hip-hop collective seamlessly meshing UK garage with elements of soul, jazz and pop
- Toronto-based singer/songwriter, emcee and producer Haviah Mighty is the first-ever hip-hop artist to win the prestigious Polaris Music Prize for her acclaimed, stand-out 2019 effort, 13th Floor.
- Montréal trio Loud Lary Ajust are promising “to make it rain” on their highly-anticipated return to Rouyn Noranda in over a decade. Their FME set follows up on the critical success of their Blue Volvo reunion tour.
La Scéne Fizz
During the bulk of the festival’s run, Scéne Fizz, also on 7e Rue — will host Événements Sirius XM concert after parties from Thursday at Saturday that will feature Francophone alt rock outfit Élégie, rapper and R&B artist Érika Zaria and turntablist outfit Turbine.
“Fizz is delighted to be sponsoring Festival de musique émergente en Abitibi-Témiscamingue for the first time, an event that gathers communities from the region as well as from the rest of Québec around their mutual love for music,” Fizz’s general director Martin Gendron says. “Having been a part of Quebecers’ everyday life for 5 years now, it only felt natural for Fizz to support a far-reaching event such as FME, granting us a unique opportunity to invest in the area, while also contributing to its cultural development.”
Guinguette chez Edmund, Hydro-Québec
Saturday, August 31
This scenic stage, which oversees Osisko Lake will feature an afternoon showcase of artists, who fuse a myriad of styles, including:
- Miel Azevedo, who crafts a jazz and soul-informed futurist pop
- Dream pop outfit Grand Eugéne
- Acclaimed, 2022 Francouvertes winners Rau_ze, who specializes in a boundary-defying sound that meshes elements of jazz, R&B and hip-hop
Paramount
Rouyn-Noranda’s Paramount along with l’Agora des Arts and Petit Théâtre du Vieux-Noranda will host a carefully curated collection of emerging and established trailblazers across rock, avant-garde electronic music and more.
Friday, August 29, 2024
Paramount will be host to the following:
- Tours, France-based psych outfit Mossaï Mossaï
- Alix Fernz who will be playing material off their recently released proto-pop effort Bizou
- Galaxie, who will perform a muscular mix of fan favorites and new rippers off their recently released album, À demain peut-être
Saturday, August 30, 2024
Saturday will feature:
- Douance, who specialize in a pop sound that flirts with grunge
- The Wesleys, who specialize in art rock
- Gab Bouchard, whose sophomore album 2022’s Grafignes saw him crafting material that meshed elements of country folk, pop rock and soul
Sunday, August 31, 2024
Sunday will feature:
- Montréal country folk artist Joe Grass will play a stripped down set of his extensive material
- Mexico City-based psych pop outfit and JOVM mainstays Petite Aime
- Chicago-based soul outfit The Brooks, who are set to release their newest album, Soon As I Can through Big in the Garden
Petit Théâtre du Vieux-Noranda
The curators for shows at Petit Théâtre du Vieux-Noranda have ensured that the venue will host some of the most eclectic offerings of the entire festival.
Thursday August 29, 2024
Thursday will feature:
- Brooklyn’s TVOD, who will bang out violent yet benevolent post-punk
- Montréal feminist punks NOBRO, who impressed crowds at this year’s New Colossus Festival
Friday, August 30, 2024
Friday night will feature
- Lost, a.k.a. Lost Gang, will perform songs from his extensive catalog, ranging from tracks off 2006’s Bonhomme Pendu through last year’s Héritage
Saturday, August 31, 2024
MUTEK will co-host the Soirée Électro, which will feature
- Kaya Hoax will play a mischievous brand of hip-hop with elements of experimental pop, influenced by UK grime, dancehall and punk
- Marie Davidson, who recently released an EP Y.A.M.M. through Soulwax‘s DEEWEE, will close out the night
7e Rue
As has been the festival’s long-running traditional, 7e Rue will be hosting metal on the sabbath. In collaboration with Productions Ça Bûche, FME will present the following:
- Rouyn-Noranda, Quebec grind core outfit I, Apokalypse
- Deathcore outfit Fracturus
- Martyr, a genre-bending outfit lead by Québec heavy music pioneers François and Dan Mongrain
l’Agora des Arts
August 30, 2024 will feature
- Thus Owls‘ Eryka Angell, who will play a set of awe-inducing experimental work
- Étienne Coppee will play material that has been described by Le Devoir as “patchouli-scented poetry, empathetic melodies [and] folk songs punctuated by soul and gospel.”
FME will also present two shows from Avec pas d’casque, an outfit, which over the course of its two-decade long career has sculpted intimate, no-frills folk — both in studio and on stage.
Opening for the prolific quartet will be singer/songwriter Myriam Gendron on Saturday, August 31. Ambient music duo Demain Déluge, which features Tire le Coyote‘s Benoît Pinette will open on Sunday, September 1.
Cabaret de la Derniére Chance
Cabaret de la Derniére Chance will host a handful of shows and showcases throughout the festival’s run.
Thursday August, 29, 2024 will feature:
- Montréal purveyors of fuzz Zouz will be playing material from their soon-to-be-announced full-length, slated for release through Simone Records
- Art punk quartet Last Waltzon will also play an eardrum shattering set
Friday, August 30, 2024
Bonbonbon Records will celebrate their fifth anniversary with a a showcase that will feature:
- Félix Dyotte, who recently shared his fourth album, the Félix Bélisle co-produced Aérosol
- Allô Fantôme, a psych rock and glam rock septet
- Brussels-based Ada Oda, which meshes 80s rock, post-punk and Italopop
Saturday, August 31, 2024
Saturday’s programming may be amongst the most subversive of the entire festival and features:
- Shunk, whose sound rangers from shimmering French love songs to cataclysmic rock
- Montréal via Berlin garage rock outfit Lemongrab
- Pypy, a supergroup featuring members Duchess Says and CPC Gangbangs, who will be releasing a new album through renowned Memphis-based purveyors of punk Goner Records
The festival’s headquarters or QG will feature sets from
- Jangle pop outfit Grand Public and lo-fi power pop outfit Feeling Figures on Friday, August 30, 2024
- Rouyn-Noranda, Québec-based nose rock band Radiology, power violence trio Jetsam and post-hardcore outfit Birds in a Row will play a bill co-presented by Keep Hope Productions on Saturday, August 31, 2024
Sous-Sol du Petit Théâtre du Vieux-Noranda is the spot for your late night, with music striking the balance between experimental sounds and groovy rhythms.
Throughout the length of the festival, adventurous music lovers can shake their asses to disco outfit Aus!Funkt; listen to the deep low-ends and melodic flows from hip-hop duo Dope.gng; Toronto-based techno-meets-electronica-meets-punk duo Slash Need; and krautrock outfit Patche, which features members of Zouz, Mon Doux Sagineur and Duu, who released their sophomore album Document through Popop Records
Bar Pazzo
Rouyn-Noranda’s Bar Pazzo is the place to be when the clock strikes midnight.
Friday, August 30, 2024
Bar Pazzo will host
- Arachno punks Chou and Acadian newcomer Peanut Butter Sunday
Saturday, August 31, 2024
Bar Pazzo will host:
- Bobo Ono and his Robeur Band, which features members of Les Deuxluxes, BPR, Les Hay Babies, and outfit pairs psych rock and funk
- Angine de Poitrine, an act that specializes in unshakeable rock mantras with costumes and stage decor
Afternoon showcases and special events
Friday August 30, 2024
There will be a listening session for Marie-Pierre Arthur‘s new album at 3:30pm at an location that will disclosed during the festival
Six Shooter Records and Disques Dure Vie will present a showcases at FME headquarters that will feature
- Peter Dreams, a July Talk side project
- Nyssa, a weirdo pop artist whose work is rooted in paganism
Saturday, August 31, 2024
Sunday, September 1
Festival headquarters will host the record launch of local artist Alix Pic. Then there’s a late matinee that kicks off with pop folk artist Makenzie at 5:00pm
Hub Desjardins
Saturday, August 31, 2024
Télé Québec and the creators of Les racines du hip-hop au Québec, a docuseries that celebrates hip-hop culture and history in the province will present an old-school hip-hop Block party that will feature emcees, breakers and DJ Félix B. Desfossés at 5:00pm.
L’Abstracto
Friday, August 30, 2024
L’Abstracto will host a set from Goodbye Karelle, the indie pop project of Québecois actor, singer/songwriter and poet Karelle Tremblay, best known for her roles in Our Loved Ones, Amsterdam, and Corbo.
Saturday August 31, 2024 and Sunday, September 1, 2024
Safia Nolin, will be play two sets alongside guitarist Marc-Andre Labelle.
Le Polonais
Le Polonais will feature three shows during the run of the festival at 5:00pm
Friday, August 30, 2024
- Queer pop artist Maryze
Saturday, August 31, 2024
- Alternative folk ensemble Marontate
Sunday, September 1, 2024
- Alternative hip-hop collective Strange Froots
Les Mooses
Les Mooses will be another stop that will feature sets at happy hour — the best goddamn hour on Earth, I think.
Friday, August 30, 2024
De Flore, a hazy pop outfit that’s currently split between France and Ontario will play the first happy hour set
Amery, a new project from Born at Midnite‘s lead vocalist
Saturday, August 31, 2024
American-Canadian artist Paige Barlow will play a set of Francophone material that sits at the junction of folk and shoegaze
Sunday, September 1, 2024
Country folk singer/songwriter Erik Fines will be play a set
The Complete Recordings of Hezekiah Procter, a conceptual live concert around Li’l Andy‘s alter-ego, a fictional character, who specializes in old-time country material.
Much like in previous years FME invites festival goers to stop at Hub Desjardins, a centralized venue, where not only ticket and festival passes can be purchased, but where CMFE 100.5FM‘s kiosk and the Jardin numérique are located.
CMFE, a mainstay at the festival, lets you further immerse yourself into the festivals programming, while entertaining festival goers with DJs, hosts and guests.
Jardin numérique, presented by Newmont Éléonore will host events and multimedia installations showcasing augmented reality and digital arts.
Festival Passes and More
FME will sell the same tiered festival passes as they did last year:
Passeport extérieur – 7e Rue/Outdoor Festival Pass – 7e Rue, which offers access to all outdoor shows taking place on 7e Rue throughout the festival’s run for $55 CAD or roughly $40.36 USD.
Passeport à la carte/À la carte Festival pass, which offers access to a selection of venue shows, along with the outdoor shows for $150CAD or roughly $110.07 USD.
Festival passes went on sale earlier this week at the festival’s site: https://www.fmeat.org
Passe à la carte/À la carte festival pass holders will have until Friday, July 16, 2024 11:59pm to choose the venue shows they want to attend.
Individual concert tickets will go on sale Tuesday, July 19, 2024 at 4:00pm.
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