Brenda Hansen, with her brother Dwayne and Kenny Hanuse, greeted the audience of Love Fest 2024 with the ‘Klahoose Welcome Song.’ (You can listen to it, sung in the ʔayʔaǰuθəm language, in the podcast version of this story.)
Close to 700 people purchased tickets, performed, or were at the event on Saturday August 10. Cortes Currents went backstage to interview some of the performers and record clips of their music.
Continue reading Stories from Lovefest 2024A crew of seven volunteers was just starting to put up the stage, when Cortes Currents arrived at Linnaea Farm on Wednesday. The doors to Love Fest 2024 will open at 11 AM on Saturday, August 10.
“This is the fifth year. We took two years off during COVID, so it’s seven years since we started in 2017,” said Rex Weyler, one of the founding organizers of Love Fest,
His co-producer, Benji Coey, added, “Things are going really well. We’re about three days out and things are moving very smoothly, so fingers crossed touch wood it continues. It’s going to be a beautiful day. The grass on the lawn in front of the stage is lush and green, which for this time of year is a miracle. The lake looks calm and I think the whole vibe is going to be really beautiful.”
Continue reading Love Fest 2024: Final touches Before the Day
Ben Coey is co-producing this year’s Lovefest, which returns to Linnaea Farm on Saturday August 10th.
“Rex, Amy and Rick have been running and producing the festival for a number of years. They’ve decided that they need to have a bit of a break from doing it. I’ve worked with Rex on a number of projects previously. He asked me if I liked to get involved and help out with co-producing and I said, ‘yeah, sure,’” Coey explained.
“I’m good friends with Rex. I’ve toured for many years as a drummer in a band with Rex’s son, Jack. I’ve always loved coming to Lovefest, and played in it a couple of times. I’m spending more time up in Cortes and gradually moving up here. This is a nice way to just get involved with the community.”
Continue reading Getting Ready For Love Fest 2024
According to local musician Jemma Hicken, when the Gorge Harbour Marina partially shut down for renovations this summer, they also closed one of the most popular music venues on Cortes Island.
“Me and a lot of my musician friends have been playing at the Gorge and have been paid to play at the Gorge – which is amazing on Cortes. You don’t often find paying gigs here. Then the Gorge shut down most of its operations this year, and I think a lot of the community felt like there was a big hole left by the lack of live music. There’s been a couple of attempts at organizing live music around the island. I know that there’s live music happening at the Co-op on Saturday nights, which is awesome. We’re going to have live music for the Friday Markets as well.”
Continue reading Friday Afternoon Concerts in the Village Commons: Sean and Catriona
Tickets for Lovefest 2022 go on sale this week. Rex Weyler is distributing them to stores throughout Cortes Island and will be selling tickets at Mansons Friday Market.
“The whole purpose of Lovefest, right from the beginning, is just a fun community day of people being together. Great music and giving a venue for the artists to sell their wares and have a good day in the sun,” he said.
Continue reading Tickets for Lovefest 2022
