It’s time for a quick trip in the Wayback Machine. The year was 2012… OK, not it’s not that long ago, but stick with me. The year was 2012 and I heard through the grapevine (i.e. Facebook) about a grassroots music festival happening right here in my town. I did a little digging and turned up some info on the bands performing at the show. I hadn’t heard of any of them before, except Ken Tizzard (I am a huge fan of The Watchmen, and he’s fellow Newfie), but I liked what I was hearing. Around this time I was also developing an interest in concert photography, so I sent the organisers a message and got the OK to shoot some photos.

One Night In September

That first year, the festival took place on a cold September night to a small but dedicated group of music fans. It had a bit of everything from country to punk, from big band to hip-hop, and everything in between. I still remember coming home and thinking “wow, this town has a ton of talented musicians”. Seeing them play live and having the opportunity to photograph them that night got me interested in seeing them again and again over the months and years to follow.

Bigger and Better

From 2013 – 2015, the Indie Music Festival partnered with Belleville’s Waterfront and Ethnic Festival and continued to showcase some amazing local and independent musicians. The partnership also meant better sound and lights, and bigger names. Names like The Reason, The Dead Sparrows, The Road Heavy, Riding Shotgun, Rye and Silence, Gob, Ken Tizzard, and Treble Charger (just to name a few that I’m reading from the posters on my wall). Each year, the show got bigger and better and was a highlight of the Waterfront Festival for me.

Taking a Break

Earlier this year I started looking for Facebook posts or any sign of what was to come for this year’s festival but couldn’t find any details. Then I ran into one of the organisers and he confirmed that this year the festival wouldn’t be included in the Waterfront Festival and  wasn’t happening. It’s sad news, but it sounds like there are plans underway to get things back up and running for next year.

So with the Waterfront Festival just around the corner, all of this got me looking back at some of the photos I took at the Indie Music Fest over the years and I thought it would be cool to share some of them here again. I won’t name names, but I’d like to thank all the organisers of Indie Fest who put in a ton of hard work to bring some original independent music to our town. These shows gave me my start in concert photography and really opened my eyes (and ears) to some of the amazing talent that we have to offer. I really hope to see this festival back up and running again next year!

Here’s a gallery of photos from Indie Music Fest in no particular order. Although looking back I can certainly tell how things progressed (including, my photography skills, gear, and stage lighting)!