Sled Island Kick-Off Party with Sunglaciers, NETRVNNR, Gloin, Squids, and more

Sunglaciers
Now a four-piece with the addition of Helen Young on synth, Sunglaciers have managed to polish their psych-pop gems to an even brighter sparkle. With added atmosphere and a knack for performance, the rising Calgary band are poised for a breakthrough.

NETRVNNR
It’s the third act of the slasher movie. The two remaining teens think they can dodge the maniacal killer by running into a hazy discotheque. Everyone is wearing white leisure suits with shoulder pads. As the synths and dull thudding drums reach a fever pitch, a chainsaw screams and decapitates the DJ. His head lands at the protagonists’ feet. They aren’t going to make it out of this club alive.

Gloin
Recent Exclaim! Class of 2019 alums Gloin are the answer to the question, “What if Toronto’s noise rock scene was more fun?” Consisting of members of Toronto bands like Brenda and Witchrot, this four-piece have blown out pop music to its weirdest and noisiest extremes. It’s about time the rest of the country caught on.

Squids
Squids create slippery psychedelic grooves that transform songs into layered novels, impossible to fully grasp the first few times around. Each chapter of a song conveys a different emotion through ghostly vocals, interstellar samples and tectonic riffs and bass lines. The sound is accessibly intricate, making it easy for crowds to float alongside each groove with the band.

Carbolizer
Existential and dark, yet profoundly inviting industrial synth-pop for the intrepid psychonaut. Architect-wizard L. Adam Fox crafts immersive environments for his investigations of mortality, human versus artificial intelligence and other existential musings, realizing electronic-outsider brilliance that pulls you helplessly into its irresistible lo-fi pulse. Mind-melting synth-wave for thinkers and feelers.

Crystal Eyes
Blending the best bits of ‘60s pop, ‘90s shoegaze and 2000s bedroom pop, Crystal Eyes quickly established themselves as Calgary’s dreamiest dream-poppers. Having honed her voice on two LPs and a recent split EP with Marlaena Moore, singer-guitarist Erin Jenkins’ hooks are sharper than ever, carving up swoon-worthy ballads and jangly rockers with equal ease.

hundredmillionthousand
When you hear the dense, beat-driven music of hundredmillionthousand, hallowed grounds like Mutek and MoMa PS1 come to mind long before a nightclub ever would. HMT has made music for film, installation and dance performance, and will release a follow-up to the high drama beatscapes of lp1 shortly following an audio-visual set at Sled Island.

Thom & the Thomcats
New to town from the far east coast, Thom Coombes has been a prolific basement recorder for the past 15 years. Armed with a keyboard and a bouncy country twang, Thom (with his Thomcats) comes out of the basement and onto the stage with songs that brim with both laughs and honesty.