Diary of an FME Virgin Day One (Thursday)

Attending FME (Festival de Musique Émergentes) for the first time feels like finding the secret doorway to a cool speakeasy.  As you enter, you notice a camaraderie between those present, like long lost friends reuniting, yet you are now part of the inner circle who made the effort to get to this special place.

The journey for us, began at 4h30 AM getting ready to head for the bus that would take our group on the seven-and-a-half-hour journey to Rouyin-Narada.  As we headed deeper into Quebec, we can’t help but notice the natural beauty this province has to offer.  

After a fantastic welcome Gin & Tonic crafted from Ciel! Camerise Mandarine (Val D’Or), we headed to the hotel to unpack, freshen up and head to the FME main festival area for a classic Méchoui.  Hundreds were fed as Thierry Larose took the stage for some Francophone Indie Rock. 

Thierry Larose (Photo: Domenic McGraw)

The main festival takes place on a main street with residential apartments above businesses.  Some had their windows open, soaking in the music, while others watched from the rooftop.  The residents of this street would not sleep for the next few days, unless they had industrial noise cancelling headphones, or simply stayed up with the rest of us to listen to some great music.

FME Main Stage (Photo: William B Daigle)

The festival is spread out across multiple venue, all within reasonable walking distance of each other.

N NAO

N NAO (Photo: Louis Jalbert)

N NAO performed in a small theatre across the street from the main festival.  Ethereal Folk meets Dream Pop on a smoke-filled stage that felt like we were peering into someone’s misty dream.  It was enjoyable to listen to, except for the third song, where the autotune effect really took me out of the dream.  Regardless, the next song got the dream going again, but we wanted to catch another artist on the main stage.

I would soon learn that sometimes hard choices must be made.  You might want to stick around and catch a full set, but adventure is just around the corner of this Tapas like musical experience.

Bon Enfant 

Bon Enfant (Photo: Dominic McGraw)

The streets were packed for Bon Enfant, who zig-zag through genres like Folk, Pop, Psychedelic and Rock during their energetic set.

Daphné Brissette did a great job, along with founding member Guillaume Chiasson and the rest of the band to get the crowd going.

Emma Beko

Emma Beko (Photo: Thomas Dufresne)

Some of most interesting events at FME are secret shows that pop up at various locations around town.  You get a 1-hour notice, be there or miss out.

11PM in the parking lot of the late-night Poutine hang-out Chez Morasse was a performance by Emma Beko, who replaced dope.gng.

Emma flows consciousness rhymes deal with overcoming struggles and self-betterment.  Mesmerizing to watch, Emma is like the Poutine being served inside…ingredients that work to bring you comfort food for the ears.  

Québec Redneck Bluegrass Project

Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project (Photo: Dominic McGraw)

We returned to the main stage for the last of the Québec Redneck Bluegrass Project to find the crowd in full ON festive mode.  Instead of the Irish jigs about Whiskey, these are songs about booze, diesel fuel, snowmobiles…particularly the Artic Cat and other local particularities in a thick French Joual.  

Quebec Redneck Bluegrass Project Arctic Cat (Photo: Domenic McGraw)

This was a party, complete with the snowmobile hanging in the background.  That’s so Redneck!

Legend has it that this band will sell more beer during their performance that two full days of other bands.  

Population II

Population II (Photo: William Daigle)

Polulation II, from Montreal, are a Psychedelic Rock power trio consisting of singer/drummer Pierre-Luc Gratton, guitarist/keyboardist Tristan Lacombe and bassist Sébastien Provençal.

While Pierre-Luc kept a ferocious beat, Sébastien played complex bass lines, as Tristan created every sound imaginable from his guitar and assortment of electrical gear on top of his vintage looking keyboard.

Intense was the vibe as the band gave it their all for the very packed venue.

Pressure Pin

Pressure Pin (Photo: William B Daigle)

Pressure Pin is the project of multi-instrumentalist Kenny Smith, resurrecting early punk energy from a Flying V guitar.  

The bassist shed as much sweat as energy, sometimes on the brink of falling over as he skillfully teetered on one leg.  

NOTE:  Stay tuned for our interview with Kenny Smith and Éliane Viens-Synnott about the La Sécurité collective.

The songs came at us fast and hard.

Unfortunately, as I would soon learn, day one of FME is brutal.  It was nearing 2AM, which meant I had been awake for close to 22 hours straight.

Yocto

Yocto (Photo: Leduc)

I began the 15-minute walk back to the hotel, but somehow managed to have enough energy to catch a few songs from Yocto in a nearby venue.

Yuki Berthiaume has an intense gaze as 90s Alternative meets Shoe-Gaze fill the room.  At times, the band was almost experimental and heavy, truly creating an enjoyable soundscape.

No matter how good the music was, my body felt like an iPhone 6 with 2% battery life…just enough to make it to bed on this long day 1 of FME.

Conclusion

A grueling first day, but I was beginning to understand the DNA of FME.  The number of bands you get to see, that you’ve never heard of, it outstanding.  You even get to mingle with many of them throughout the weekend, as they stick around to enjoy the festivities.

In fact, quite a few artists performed their solo project, along with one or more band projects!

If I had any doubts about the efforts required to make it here, day two would completely wipe these away.


Writer: Randal Wark is a Professional Speaker and MasterMind Facilitator with a passion for live music.  You can follow him on InstagramTwitter and YouTube. His Podcast RockStar Today helps musicians quit their day jobs with out-of-the-box advice from Ted Talk Speakers, Best Selling Authors and other interesting Entrepreneurs and Creatives. He created the Rock Star Today Music Business Jam Session for musicians. Randal is a collector of signed vinyl, cassettes and CDs.

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