Mihirangi (New Zealand)

Once you experience Mihirangi's empowering live loop show, you'll be hooked into her organic earthy vibe and captivated by her stunning vocal performance. It's easy to see why they call her, 'The Queen of Loops'. Mihirangi has had an expansive journey, having toured for 7 years, 5 times around the globe and performing at more than 50 international festivals. She is a dynamic musician as much of her live acts are in freestyle form, as in, made up on the spot. She has captured her favorite songs from these experiences in the studio and now, Mihirangi is about to release these on her much-anticipated 2nd album – "Somebody Shake The Tree". She then moved to Australia where she made her mark as a musician. Mihirangi has had mind-blowing moments as a musician such as singing to the Mayan people from pyramid's in Mexico, a midnight session under the sun in the Arctic while filming in Antarctica and to 65,000 people in San Francisco at 'Power To The Peaceful' festival. She's entertained Hollywood A-listers, performed with groups such as Arrested Development and supported acts such as Public Enemy and Sheikhs of Bahrain. She's played along side fellow socially-conscious artists such as The Red Hot Chilli Peppers, The Dixie Chicks, Pierce Brosnan and Martin Sheen to name a few.

www.mihirangi.com

Mihirangi - World Citizen video

Rachelle van Zanten (BC) 

"Canadian songstress and slide guitarist Rachelle Van Zanten, whose raw mélange of blues, folk, Americana and serious guitar shredding is currently shaking up an audience of its own. She has come a long wat from her bluegrass upbringing in the foothills of Northern B.C., recently recording an album with producer Joby Baker (Cowboy Junkies, Alex Cuba, Weakerthans, Mae Moore), and world renowned sound engineer, Tchad Blake (Sheryl Crow, Tom Waits, Paul Simon). "Where Your Garden Grows" features an eclectic batch of personal, straight from the heart lyrics highlighted by intricate string and rhythm arrangements that should find a home in the ears of rock and roll junkies everywhere." (Relix Magazine NY, USA 20090

www.rachellevanzanten.com

The Boom Booms (BC) 

The Boom Booms are a Vancouver-­‐based six-­‐piece indie band whose music is a mash-­‐up of pop, hip hop, reggae, soul and funk. Since their 2007 launch, The Boom Booms have built a loyal fanbase that stretches across generations.

The video for their feel-­‐good party anthem, "When the Night", reached #6 on the Much More Music chart in 2008 and was optioned for an episode of 90210. "Delivered", a surreal banjo ballad that conjures up images of a jungle river baptism, garnered an award for Best Roots Song at the Just Plain Folks Music Awards in Nashville.

In 2011, The Boom Booms released their debut album ¡Hot Rum! This album, along with their strong live performance and incredible stage presence, earned the sextet a spot in the 2011 Peak Performance Project, BC's most prestigious contest for emerging musicians. They went on to win second place and picked up a cash prize of $75,000.

Since then, The Boom Booms have wrapped up a successful tour of Brazil, which included sold out performances in both Rio de Janeiro and Manaus, playing for one thousand people in the heart of the Amazon. While on tour, the band fell in love with the Brazilian culture, music and people. They created a series of videos to raise awareness for the Belo Monte Dam in the Amazon Rainforest that is destroying and displacing a huge number of locals and causing an ecological disaster.

The Boom Booms recently performed in front of thousands of fans at the 2012 TD Vancouver International Jazz Festival and took part in Sarah McLachlan's Voices in the Park concert in September 2012. The Boom Booms are currently on a 50 -­‐date North American tour.

www.theboombooms.com

Ash Grunwald (Australia)

Ash Grunwald, surrounded naturally by the hip hop of his generation but deeply embedded in the blues as those far beyond his years.

Blistering live sets on the festival circuit throughout Australia, Japan, Canada, America, Europe and the UK, have had critics and fans raving about his unique blend of roots, blues, beats and a whole lotta groove for now, more than a decade. Nominated five times for Australia's ARIA Awards, and a swag of award wins including MBAS Blues Performer of the Year and the AIR Best Independent Blues and Roots Album, and a prestigious APRA songwriting award for Blues & Roots Song of the Year.

www.ashgrunwald.com

Punch Drunk Cabaret (Alberta)

Roots-rockers Punch Drunk Cabaret take the sound of rockabilly, outlaw country and steampunk swing and deliver it with all the energy of AC/DC. Sharply dressed like early century snake oil salesmen, complete with stovepipe pants and bowler hats, the trio is a living, breathing testament that every single show they play is an "event". From punk rockin' teens to their grandparents who witnessed the dawn of rock and roll first hand, Punch Drunk Cabaret has been packing dance floors with an incredibly diverse audience that very few bands can attest to. Despite their rockabilly/swing/country traditions, Punch Drunk Cabaret is far from being a quaint nostalgia act. Singer/guitarist Randy Bailer fronts the trio like a home-brewed concoction of equal parts Brian Setzer and Tom Waits, while Terry Sawbones Grant is one of the few 12 string bassists on the planet (yes you read that right…twelve string bass!) The locomotive-like rhythm section is powered by drummer Reverend Robin Eklund with such propulsive energy that it's impossible for any audience to sit still.

www.punchdrunkcabaret.com

Oliver Swain (BC) with Jaron Freeman Fox (Ontario)

Hailing from Victoria, BC, nearly the farthest west (or left) one can be, Oliver Swain is Canada's quintessential folk and traditional musician. He eats, sleeps and breathes music, and his prolific career evidences this in many ways. With his pure, finely tuned vocals that have an astonishing range, and his undeniable skill behind a banjo or upright bass, Oliver grabs the attention of all who hear him, and holds it with his enormous sound and stature. From the most vulnerable and innocent sounding banjo ditties to the brave and imposing bowed bass, Oliver delivers his own brand of alternative folk and traditional music to the masses with a smile and a twinkle in his eye. He's a two time Prairie Music Award recipient (The Bills) and shared a 2008 WCMA nomination for Outstanding Roots Group with Outlaw Social.

"The hyper-kinetic Jaron Freeman-Fox is the Jimi Hendrix of the violin. With the chops of a classical virtuoso and the soul of a wild-eyed punk, he plays world music in the truest sense of the word, leaping from Gypsy to Klezmer to Celtic to Country without skipping a beat." -Ottawa International Jazz Festival

www.oliverswainmusic.com

theoppositeofeverything.com

Dirty Grace (BC)

With one member from Eastern Canada, one from Western Canada, and one from somewhere in the middle, Dirty Grace covers a lot of ground, but not just geographically.

The trio of songwriters produce a playful mix of music ranging from the provocatively cheeky to the intimately introspective, all driven by a curiosity in music's ability to expose, shake-down, tickle and heal the human spirit. ey were inspired to reform in 2012 after singing together at the bedside of a friend with terminal cancer.

Blending elements of folk, hip hop, rock, swing, gypsy-jazz and electronic beneath a swell of three-part harmonies and contagious melodies, the collaboration has always left the band and its listeners eagerly guessing what will come next.

www.dirtygracemusic.com

Samson's Delilah (BC)

Seth Macdonald and Shara Gustafson, better known as the front line of the funk/rock/reggae/world groove high energy dance band "Mamaguroove", born and raised in Dunster, B.C. "Mamaguroove" has been playing its infectious , all original music at festivals and venues all across British Columbia and Alberta for over 10 years. As "Samson's Delilah", Seth and Shara have ventured into new musical territory. With an acoustic twist, and heavily influenced by latin guitar, reggae, and other world music, they create powerful and passionate performances as a duo. The thread of the "guroove" runs deep in the "Samson's Delilah", and you will not be dissapointed by the fusion and spell that they weave…. Seth and Shara have shared the stage and performed with Donne Roberts, OKA, Linda McRae, Rachelle Van Zanten, Sarah Noni Metzner, Maria in the Shower, Mihirangi, Delhi to Dublin, Lester Quitzau, Don Alder, Mr.Something Something, Brian Macmillan, Coco Love Alcorn to name a few. Seth and Shara are also the head organizers of the "Robson Valley Music Festival" that happens in their front yard in Dunster every August. They are seasoned music makers and music lovers….

www.samsonsdelilah.com

Hollow Wood (USA)

Indie Folk band, Idaho dwellers, Music that makes you want to live in a simpler time.

www.hollowwoodband.com

Bulat Gafarov (Russia)

Bulat Gafarov - professional composer, unique musician and singer / collector of musical instruments and ethnographer from Russia. Bulat plays more than 300 musical instruments of the world, such as: violin, flutes, mouth harps, percussions, didgeridoo, kalimba, koto, drums, keyboards, brass and string instruments. On about thirty of them Bulat plays his one-man band performances. Bulat is recognized as the owner of extremely unique vocals, as he professionally sings throat, Oriental, Russian singing and beatbox. Bulat performs in United States, Canada, Russia, Europe and Asia. His compositions are in many films, theaters, commercials, animated films and performances.

www.bulatgafarov.com

Ventanas (Ontario)

Ventanas is the fruit of lead singer Tamar Ilana's life of traveling and performing. Tamar grew up traveling with her mother, ethnomusicologist Dr. Judith R. Cohen, performing Sephardic, Balkan and Medieval music throughout North America and the Mediterranean. Tamar has also studied Flamenco since the age of 8, in Toronto with Esmeralda Enrique, in Barcelona with La Tani, and in Seville, at the Cristina Heeren Flamenco Art Foundation. This group out of Toronto features a unique mixture of Flamenco, Balkan and Sephardic music, as Ventanas weaves in and out of upbeat Bulgarian dance tunes, Greek and Turkish Ladino love songs, and heart wrenching Flamenco verses bringing the listeners on a beautiful journey across the Mediterranean.

www.ventanasmusic.com

A Tribe Called Red (Ontario)

In 2008, DJ's NDN and Bear Witness founded A Tribe Called Red. In 2010, they added two-time Canadian DMC champ, DJ Shub to the crew. Electric Pow Wow is a monthly club night dedicated to showcasing Aboriginal DJ talent and Native urban culture and is aimed at creating a space for Aboriginal people. ATCR creates an eclectic sound made up of a wide variety of musical styles ranging from Hip-Hop, Dance Hall, Electronic, and their own mash-up of club and Pow Wow music, known as Pow Wow Step. You can catch Electric Pow Wow every month on the second Saturday at Babylon nightclub in Ottawa, Canada.

www.atribecalledred.com

Linda McRae (BC & USA)

Performing on clawhammer banjo, acoustic guitar, accordion and porchboard stompbox, Linda Mcrae combines 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. Rough Edges & Ragged Hearts, Linda McRae's highly anticipated fourth solo release doesn't describe the gold and platinum polish enhancing a musical career spanning 25 years. A Canadian Folk Music Award nomination in 2012, confirms Linda's maturing distinction as a quality songwriter and recording artist. Her newest album went to #1 on CKUA, #4 on Folk DJ's list of top Canadian albums, and #1 & 2 Top Canadian Songs too!

www.lindamcrae.com

Shred Kelly (BC)

Shred Kelly is a formulation of friends and foot stomping good times born in the East Kootenay's of British Columbia. Hailing from the town of Fernie, the five piece band is best known for mixing clawhammer banjo riffs that tear the fabric of space and time with ambient synth, high voltage guitar, fierce drums, and hauntingly sweet vocal harmonies to produce a sound that has been properly coined "Stoke Folk".

Having recently been awarded 2012 Artist of the Year at the Kooteney Music Awards and winning a spot on the Green Couch Sessions/CBC Radio 3 'Tracks on Tracks' train adventure from Vancouver to Toronto, Shred Kelly is turning banjo doubters into sweaty indie folk rock believers on the dance floor, one town at a time.

www.shredkelly.com

Wax Mannequin (Ontario)

Wax Mannequin was born in the smoke and industry of Hamilton; a damaged, underdog town; a perfect breeding ground for strange, variant things. Incorporating folk, scrappy prog-metal and a tireless creative ethic, Wax infused his local influences with road-broken experience to forge something unsettlingly new. Solo (accompanied by heavy devices and an angry, nylon-string guitar) or band-backed (with Mark Raymond on bass and Aidan Campbell on percussion), Wax Mannequin has toured incessantly within Canada over the past six years, with more recent forays into Europe and Australia.

www.waxmannequin.com

Benny Walker (Australia)

Inheriting his passion for music from his father and grandfathers, all talented musicians in their own right, Walker formed his first band at the tender age of 12. He cut his teeth on classic blues, surf and folk before finding his own voice in the raw honesty of acoustic roots music.

Walker recorded his first EP, 'No Cares', in 2007, and then took nine months out to travel around Eastern and Central Australia. He came home with a pocket full of songs and a determination to share his music with the world.

His self-titled debut album, 'Benny Walker', was produced by Kalju Tonuma and released in 2008, and was soon followed by the 2010 EP, 'Summer Sun', which embraced the bigger, lusher sound that characterises Walker's live full-band shows. 'Sinners And Saints' takes it to another level again, with Walker's intuitive, heartfelt songwriting and soulful voice leaving no doubt that he means every word that he sings.

www.bennywalkermusic.com

Jessica Stuart Few (Ontario)

The Jessica Stuart Few is one of the hottest groups to emerge from the Toronto eclectic indie folk scene. Inspiring the term "folk-jazz power trio", Stuart brings the lyrical playfulness and vocal facility of Joni Mitchell to the unique sound of the traditional Japanese koto (13-string zither) alongside double bass (Dan Fortin), drums (Tony Nesbitt-Larking) and guitar. The combination is unconventional, but clearly works, having earned the trio main stage performances at some of Canada's top festivals (North By NorthEast, Canadian Music Week, Islands Folk Festival, TD Toronto Jazz Festival, Vancouver Chutzpah! Festival, Opus Mundi World Music Festival etc.), two 2012 Toronto Independent Music Award nominations (Best Live Performance, Best Recording), and landing their music in regular rotation on CBC Radio One and Two.

www.jessicastuartmusic.com

Mamaguroove (BC)

One of Northern B.C.'s favorite Rock/World Fusion bands ever! Touring for over 10 years and 4 albums later, they are a force to be reckoned with when they hit the stage with their full frontal assault and irresistible grooves! Go Happily…You will have no choice but to be assimilated into the Mamaguroove cult…..

www.mamaguroove.com

Shane Philip (BC)

Swelling in primordial pulses and wholloping whoops, the tacit tones of Shane Philip's didgeridoo hold the power to still listeners into silence or encourage audiences to rise up in a tribal swell of intoxicating spirit. Meanwhile his hands will be skillfully juggling between shaking up rhythms with his aslatua, driving the dance floor with his djembe and sliding out grooves on his Weissenborn-style guitar while his foot taps in earthshaking electronic kicks wherever they might fit. Shane Philip is a full-time touring musician with four albums under his belt. He charts on national independent and campus radio stations and is a regular on CBC radio shows across Canada.

www.shanephilip.com

Charlie Mgee (Australia)

A combined electroswing dancefloor set and pernnaculture workshop, The Permaculture Ukulele Show is a unique new experiment in 'ecological edutainment' with the aim of pounding the principles of permaculture deep into your consciousness in the form of a serious dose of electro-swing-ukulele-awesomesauce.

Using the format of a live main-stage performance followed by a workshop/musical presentation on the pernnaculture principles,The Permaculture Ukulele Show was a raging success at the Australian Eclipse 2012 Festival and Woodford Folk Festival.

Music is one of the best tools for learning and, armed with a ukulele, some interesting facial expressions and the FormidableVegetable Electroswing SoundSystem, permaculture troubadour, Charlie Mgee has dedicated the last couple of years to composing a repertoire of wonderfully indelible ditties addressing the 12 principles of permaculture in various musical styles ranging from 'climate-change reggae' to 'peak-oil polka', making for an eccentrically entertaining, if not unforgettable educational experience.

www.permaculturesongs.com

Hannah Epperson (BC)

With loop pedal, fiddle & voice, Hannah creates intricate and moving musical landscapes. As a talented collaborative artist, she has been on the road and recorded with an eclectic array of Canada's folk, indie and electro-pop artists, including Miss Emily Brown & Aidan Knight. The quiet release of her 1st EP is the beginning of hannah's emergence into the sonic world... stay tuned for more treats!

www.hannahepperson.bandcamp.com

Joey Only (BC)

Joey Only has played 1000 shows in 10 provinces and some territories in Canada, and is destined to be a Canadiana Country classic. He's a social outlaw and a political radical, a mountain man, a goldminer, a father, a husband and always has his wife Ms.Leah Martin on stage. He can play you hours of songs about life in the north, including the Canadiana Classics. He's released 5 recordings including the album Transgression Trail which topped the Canadian College and Independent radio charts in 2010, the same album with the song Greyhoundin Guitar Man which CBC Radio 3 voted one of the most Canadian songs of the year.

www.joeyonly.wordpress.com

Mikkal Waters (BC)

Okanagan based Acoustic & Electronic Singer Songwriter.

www.reverbnation.com/mikkalwaters

Tom Richardson (Australia)

Tom uses the latest in loop pedal technology to create a wall of sound, overdubbing four part vocal harmonies, complicated percussion grooves and lead and rhythm guitar parts, all live on stage. Since releasing his debut double album 'Guide Your Ship', recorded with his full band, the Tom Richardson Project, Tom now jumps aboard a smaller craft, returning to his solo roots. Renowned for his infectious and interactive onstage presence, Tom takes off on a new wave, armed with nothing but a couple of guitars, a microphone and loop pedal.

www.tomrichardsonproject.com

Mal Webb (Australia)

Around the world and into your brain, vocal adventurer, multi-instrumentist and looping beatboxing songwriter Mal Webb sings his songs about all manner of stuff, using all sorts of vocal techniques, guitar, mbira, slide trumpet, trombone, chromatic harmonica and a loop recording pedal called Derek. It's a lip to lung journey through the physics, physiology and phrivolity of all the sounds a face can make. Sideways yodelling, beatbox, harmonics, throat singing, uvular fluttering, advanced clapping. He's like Bobby McFerrin, Aphex Twin and Cole Porter playing scrabble. Ebulliently eclectic. Nefariously varied. Family fun free from facile frippery.

www.malwebb.com

Doug Koyama (BC)

Singer, actor, motivator, and innovator Doug Koyama comes from an artistic family. He sang in the junior community choir as a soprano and has performed as a bass in musical theatre productions. Since 2009 Doug has been working passionately at building community through music, specifically Improvised A Capella. "When we let go of judgement and the need to know and control what the next note or sound is, we become open to endless possibilities. Music reverts to its purest form, the form that your heart remembers."

koyama.bc.ca

Green Fools Theatre (Alberta)

Established in 1991, Green Fools Theatre created, performs, and teaches physical theatre arts focusing on masks, puppets and stilts for diverse audiences locally and internationally. Utilizing multiple artistic disciplines, they tell stories out of the box, inspired by our wondrous and mysterious world. Green Fools reach tens of thousands of audience members each year through performances, community events, festivals and extensive local touring, as well as some National and International Touring.

www.greenfools.com

Lost and Found Puppet Company (BC)

Director of Lost & Found Puppet Co., Maggie's directed projects explore puppetry in all its aspects, discover stories of objects and our human relationships to them, and promote puppetry as a unique and valued art everyone can experience. Whimsical and inspiring.

www.lostandfoundpuppetco.com

Go Go Bonkers (BC)

The Go Go Bonkers performance is a wild musical ride full of Ogres, fairies, ravens, bears and trees. Several of these characters try to make the world a better place everyday. catch, have \The most important aspect of a Go Go Bonkers Show is that it is presented with a desire to inspire children with a healthy and positive perspective of the wonderful and perplexing world around us. Go Go Bonkers also believes that the more children hear about how they can create a healthy future for their communities, the more they will be inspired to act.

www.gogobonkers.com

Mosaics with Bridget Uhl

Come and be part of a mosaicing project, large or small, learning the basics of collection, creating a design, and putting it down into functionable and beautiful art!

Mixed Media Art Journaling with Paula Scott

This will be ongoing all weekend with its base in the Art Tent, with access to all kinds of materials and inspiration to create a page in the "RVMF" journal. Anything goes here and we encourage all attendees, performers, volunteers, to take part in this little bit of RVMF history!

www.paulascott.ca

Kids Mixed Media Nature Journaling with Paula Scott

Children aged 7 - 12 can take part in this interactive art workshop with Paula Scott for Creative Journaling with Nature as the inspiration. Space is limited to 12.

www.paulascott.ca

LIVE PAINTING with Crystal Charlotte Easton

Visual artist Crystal Charlotte, from Victoria, will be creating a painting from a blank canvas to completion over the weekend, and attendees are welcome to visit, & watch the process . There will be chances to bid on her work with 50% of proceeds going to the RVMF. Crystal is also offering a painting workshop on the weekend. Space will be limited.

www.crystalcharlotte.com

Timeless Voices: A journey into improvised A Capella

with: Doug Koyama

Timeless Voices is a workshop in which I guide the participants through a course of perception altering exercises and sonic adventures into vocal improvisation. There is no right, there is no wrong. Take a breath, make a sound, do it again . . . that's all you need to remember.

After a warm-up for your body and your voice we will experience Long Tones, where each breath is a note created by you. When your creation joins together with the group's creations the result can be breath-taking. Learn what your body and your mind already know about invented language.

koyama.bc.ca/TimelessVoices.html

Satori Yoga

We live in increasingly over-wired world; our use of technology is changing how our brains and bodies work. I choose to purposefully unplug and practice wired wellness each day to regain clarity and focus. I invite you to examine the physical, cognitive and emotional toll this wired world is taking on you, and start making mindful adjustments to leverage technology with more awareness.

www.satoriyoga.ca

Making Bio Diesel

Learn the basics of what is involved in producing Bio diesel ready to fuel, with Seth Macdonald of Robson Valley Bio Diesel

www.robsonvalleybiodiesel.com

Alternative Building Workshop

TBA