Canada House is set to reclaim its position as one of The Great Escape’s most compelling showcases, transforming Brighton’s Green Door Store into a maple leaf-draped musical embassy from 15th-17th May 2025.
The three-day showcase emerges from a coalition of Canadian music organisations, with CIMA joining forces with regional heavyweights like Alberta Music, M for Montreal, Manitoba Music, Music BC, Music Yukon, MusicOntario, SaskMusic and SODEC to present 17 boundary-pushing artists.
For those seeking an advance glimpse, London’s Strongroom Bar & Kitchen hosts a preview event on 13th May, featuring a handful of intimate sets from select performers. You can also check out Dork’s handy guide, right here.
Thursday 15th May
12:15 Dump Babes
The opening day’s lineup launches with Saskatchewan’s Dump Babes – a collective built on the unlikely trinity of garbage, glitter, and friendship since 2019. Their psych-pop confections manage to be both dance-floor-ready and surprisingly muscular.
12:55 Field Guide
Manitoba’s Field Guide (Dylan MacDonald) brings his kitchen-tested, cabin-refined folk-pop to the stage. With 35 million streams and extensive touring across two continents, his collaboration with Kris Ulrich has proven particularly fruitful.
1:35 GeminiCrab
The next slot belongs to Montreal’s GeminiCrab, where Felix award-winning keyboardist Caulder Nash joins forces with Grammy nominee Malika Tirolien. Their HighSoul fusion – born from Montreal’s Kalmunity Vibe Collective – weaves R&B, soul and jazz-hip-hop into one distinct tapestry.
2:15 DoFlame
DoFlame – the brainchild of 21-year-old Mateo Naranjo – embodies a rare breed of solo artist, one whose vision extends far beyond individual expression. His latest album, ‘BENT’, reads like a hardcore punk reimagining of a bildungsroman, threading hip-hop’s confident stride through walls of aggressive sound. The record captures that electric moment of youthful uncertainty while building bridges between Toronto’s suburbs and the wider world.
2:55 The Jins
Meanwhile, The Jins have spent the better part of a decade perfecting their particular alchemy. What began in 2014 as three friends – Ben Larsen, Hudson Partridge, and Jamie Warnock – jamming in a shared living room has evolved into something far more formidable. Their trajectory from Vancouver’s local haunts to national stages mirrors their sonic evolution, culminating in 2023’s ‘It’s a Life’ LP.
3:35 Bria Salmena
Bria Salmena’s ‘Big Dog’ emerges as a striking declaration of artistic metamorphosis. The former FRIGS frontwoman and Orville Peck collaborator has crafted a debut that feels both deeply intimate and cinematically vast, a record where personal evolution crashes against waves of krautrock hypnosis and shimmering shoegaze dreams.
Friday 16th May
12:15 Sam Tudor
Sam Tudor represents both singular vision and collective expression – a Canadian musical project that orbits around its namesake’s distinctive vocal presence. That sandy, melancholic delivery serves as narrator through Tudor’s expanding catalogue, which now includes three full-length albums and the newly released ‘Hidden Minute’ EP.
12:55 Billianne
Milton, Ontario’s Billianne stands at the vanguard of Canada’s emerging voices, and the 22-year-old songwriter has already caught the attention of artists from Taylor Swift to Michael Bublé. Her trajectory points firmly upward with ‘Daydream’ – premiered on NBC’s Today Show, no less – while ‘Crush’ climbs Canadian Top 40 charts with characteristic determination.
1:35 CJ Wiley
CJ Wiley crafts a distinctly Canadian brand of guitar-driven introspection. Their work weaves between country-tinged ballads and grunge-adjacent anthems, emploring identity, economic anxiety, and personal transformation.
2:15 ZOUZ
Montreal’s ZOUZ embody the spirit of musical experimentation. Since 2016, this power trio have built a formidable live presence, with over 130 performances. Their second album, ‘Jours de cendre’, is out now.
2:55 Glion
Toronto’s Glion meshes post-punk fundamentals with an industrial edge, crafting narratives of resilience wrapped in sardonic wit. Their latest release, ‘All of your anger is actually shame (and I bet that makes you angry)’, arrived in March via Mothland.
3:35 Rich Aucoin
Rich Aucoin continues to defy creative boundaries. The multi-Juno nominated Halifax artist has spent 15 years building an eclectic discography that reflects his perpetual artistic evolution.
Saturday 17th May
12:15 Declan O’Donovan
Yukon-bred composer Declan O’Donovan deals in the currency of genuine emotion, crafting pieces that feel less like songs and more like intimate conversations held in hushed tones. His approach to the piano bears the weight of classical training while maintaining the immediacy of a confessional, each chord progression building emotional architecture note by note.
12:55 Geneviève Racette
Montreal’s Geneviève Racette crafts the kind of folk-pop that feels like a late-night conversation with your wisest friend – the one who somehow makes vulnerability sound like a superpower. Her ethereal vocals float through stories that cut straight to the marrow of modern existence, examining life’s complexities through a delicate and unflinching lens.
1:35 Grimelda
Saskatchewan’s Grimelda redefines punk parameters with gleeful abandon. Their 2023 release ‘It’s So Feeling When You Rock’ demonstrates the duo’s commitment to dismantling musical conventions in pursuit of pure creative joy.
2:15 Bad Buddy
Bad Buddy emerges from Edmonton’s music scene like a perfectly calibrated chaos machine – their three-part harmonies detonate with mathematical precision while maintaining the raw, primal energy of a punk show at its peak. This is what happens when exceptional songwriting collides with Motown-meets-surf-punk aesthetics, creating feminist anthems that feel both vintage and visceral.
2:55 STORRY
STORRY commands attention like few others, wielding a voice that could shake foundations while telling stories that actually do. Fresh off two JUNO nominations and turning heads on The Voice UK 2024, she’s crafting a sonic trilogy that dares to transform trauma into triumph. Her blend of R&B, soul, pop, and rap doesn’t just cross genres – it erases their boundaries entirely.
3:35 NADUH
NADUH isn’t just rewriting the girl group playbook – they’re setting it ablaze and scattering the ashes across continents. This five-piece hip-hop/R&B collective has turned their ‘Homiesexual’ EP into a rallying cry, racking up streaming numbers that prove their message resonates far beyond Vancouver’s city limits. Their recent UK/EU tour conquest feels less like a debut and more like a victory lap for a revolution already in progress.
The Great Escape takes place in Brighton from 15th-17th May.
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