by Rebecca Hollman
updated Jan 9, 2018

The 15 Canadian EDM Festivals You Need to Attend in 2018

Its January and that means that festival season is quickly approaching. I've put together a list of the best 15 EDM festivals in Canada that I think everyone should attend in 2018 and why. Check out the 15 below and tell me which ones you've been to already!

If you want a list of the 30 American EDM festivals you need to attend in 2018, check it out HERE

1. Shambhala

When: August 10-13
Where: Nelson, British Columbia
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA (will be announced spring 2018) but check out the 2017 lineup below

Website: https://shambhalamusicfestival.com/
Why You Should Go: Shambhala is one of those festivals you just have to go to. Originally, I had a combined post of the best festivals in all of North America and I put Shambhala as number 2 out of all festivals in the US, Canada and Mexico. Shambhala has the best of everything- stacked lineups, beautiful scenery and extremely good vibes. The lineup has a wide range of genres from deep house (Chris Lake, Chris Lorenzo, Justin Martin), to drum n' bass (Pendulum, Delta Heavy), to funky (Beats Antique, the Polish Ambassador) and tons of bass music (Datsik, Ekali, Ephwurd, Excision, Ganja White Night, Rezz, NGHTMRE, Bleep Bloop, CharlestheFirst, Holly, ill.gates, kLL sMTH, Space Jesus, um..., Whipped Cream, Yheti, and many more....). If the lineup alone isn't enough to sell you, the known production value and location in the woods of British Columbia should.

"Best people, best stage design, beautiful mountain scenery and a river you can float down and watch shows at different stages as you do!"
-Ben Morris

"Properly named after the mythical kingdom where Buddha's teachings are said to be preserved, Shambhala is like opening a vault of human decency, peace, tranquility aaand fire music all the time. All day leading up to the night headliners there are classes and seminars on spiritual topics galore; authors giving talks over tea; happy Canadian sharing cherries from their gardens (I guess there are a lot of cherries in Canada?); nudists proudly strutting the grounds; and amazing food at every vendor! When I went it was capped at 10,000 people, but last year they upped the capacity to 15,000 to satisfy demand so GO NOW before it gets too big."
-Gabe Pippas

2. Dreams

When: June 23-24
Where: Toronto, Ontario
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://dreamsfestival.ca/
Why You Should Go: Dreams is in the heart of Canada- downtown Toronto. With a view of the Toronto skyline behind the stage, this festival has an ideal venue location. On top of the location in the awesome city of Toronto, Dreams also boasts an amazing lineup from 2016 and 2017, featuring house, techno, trance and bass artists. Although the lineup may not be super long, the big name artists on the lineup are more than enough to fill the two days with great music. Some highlights from last years lineup include Above & Beyond, Malaa, Shiba San, MK, Thomas Jack, Green Velvet, Loco Dice, What So Not, Baauer, Ekali, Feed Me, Dillstradamus, Doctor P, Infected Mushroom, Orjan Nilsen, Markus Schulz and many others.

3. Valhalla Sound Circus

When: July 19-23
Where: Saint-André-Avellin, Quebec
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: https://www.valhallasoundcircus.com/
Why You Should Go: Dark, grungy vibes and ALL THE BASS. If you like bass music, then this is the festival for you. With a lineup featuring 100% bass artists like Must Die!, Sikdope, Downlink, Eptic, Truth, Black Sun Empire, Dion Timmer, the Widdler, Tsuruda, Yheti and many more, your neck is sure to hurt the week afterwards.

4. Ever After

When: June 8-10
Where: Kitchener, Ontario
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://www.everafterfest.com/
Why You Should Go: Another one to not miss if you're a fan of bass music. Three days of straight bass across two stages with lots of interactive areas to sit, play games, etc. Boasting artists like Excision, Bassnectar, Zeds Dead, Zomboy, Eptic, Must Die!, Trampa, Downlink, Dion Timmer, Snails, Troyboi, Herobust, NGHTMRE, Ghastly, 12th Planet and more, this is one bass festival you do not want to miss. There's also a decent amount of house artists included on the lineup as well like Sydney Blu, Daniel Portman, Destructo and Weiss.

5. Escapade

When: June 23-24
Where: Ottawa, Ontario
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://www.escapademf.com/
Why You Should Go: This festival really has something for everyone. Escapade has the most diverse lineup featuring main stage house, deep house, trance, techno and bass stages. If you like deep house- MK, Claude vonStroke, Shiba San, Sonny Fodera, etc. If you like trance- Above & Beyond, Mat Zo, Ilan Bluestone, Andrew Bayer, Jason Ross, etc. If you like techno- Maya Jane Coles, Richie Hawtin, etc. If you like bass- Zeds Dead, Slushii, Snails, BTSM, Herobust, etc. And if you like main stage house, don't worry, theres artists like Dada Life, Tiesto and Steve Aoki for you too. It's also in a cool location- Ottawa, the capital city of Canada.

6. Snowbombing

When: April 5-9
Where: Sun Peaks, British Columbia
Lineup: 

Website: http://snowbombingcanada.com/
Why You Should Go: Music festival and ski trip all in one. Enough said. If you weren't enticed by the skiing, then you should be by the amazing house on this lineup. Gorgon City, Justin Martin, Nora en Pure, Billy Kenny, Christian Martin, Felix da Housecat, Fisher... Again, enough said.

7. Veld

When: Dates TBA but last year it was held on August 5-6
Where: Toronto, Ontario
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://www.veldmusicfestival.com/
Why You Should Go: Another festival in the heart of Toronto, Veld is a 2 day city fest that regularly brings main stream big name artists like Future, Major Lazer, Tiesto, Zedd and Migos. But the smaller print artists are what should really sell you on this festival: claptone, Gareth Emery, Dense & Pika, Getter, Nicole Moudaber, Sasha & John Digweed, Slushii, Slander, Tchami, Victor Calderone, etc.

8. ÎLESONIQ

When: Dates TBA but last year was August 11-12
Where: Montreal, Quebec
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: https://www.ilesoniq.com/en
Why You Should Go: ÎLESONIQ has the location and the diverse lineup. A 2 day city festival in Montreal, ÎLESONIQ's 2017 lineup features big names like Tiesto, Louis the Child, Getter, Rezz, Claude vonStroke, Porter Robinson, Jauz, Infected Mushroom, Excision and Malaa.

9. AIM

When: July 6-8
Where: Saint-André-d'Argenteuil, Quebec
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://aimexperience.com/en/home/
Why You Should Go: Do you like underground house, trance or techno? Do you like partying with French Canadians? AIM boasts a wide selection of trance- Kyau & Albert, Jaytech, Jordan Suckley, Mark Sixma, Sean Tyas, Simon Patterson, Sunny Lax, etc.; a wide selection of deep house- Weiss, Riva Starr, Prok & Fitch, etc.; and a wide selection of techno- Guy J, Âme, Behrouz, Lee Foss, etc.

10. Chasing Summer

When: August 4-5
Where: Calgary, Alberta
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://www.chasingsummerfestival.com/
Why You Should Go: A 2 day city festival in Calgary, Chasing Summer is a solid festival with a short but stacked lineup. Last years lineup featured Tiesto, W&W, What So Not, Infected Mushroom, Illenium, Kill the Noise, Grandtheft, Zedd, Jauz, NGHTMRE, Slushii, Rezz and Delta Heavy.

11. Center of Gravity

When: July 27-29
Where: Kelowna, British Columbia
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://centerofgravity.ca/kelowna/
Why You Should Go: Although it only has a small lineup, the artists more than make up for it. Center of Gravity also happens to be an extreme sports festival sponsored by Monster and located on a beach in Kelowna, BC. This festival features extreme sports by day and music by night. Center of Gravity features EDM artists like Marshmello, Cash Cash, Excision, Dr. Fresch, Mija, Ephwurd and Grum. 

12. FVDED in the Park

When: July 6-7
Where: Surrey, British Columbia
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://fvdedinthepark.com/
Why You Should Go: Another 2 day city fest featuring rap headliners but some solid house and bass artists in the lineup. Last years lineup featured artists like Nora en Pure, Lane 8, Claptone, Jai Wolf, Louis the Child, Getter, What So Not, NGHTMRE and others.

13. Motion Notion

When: August 23-27
Where: Golden, British Columbia
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: http://motionnotion.com/
Why You Should Go: The vibes! Motion Notion is a camping festival located in a beautiful part of BC. Featuring some bass headliners like Datsik, Dirtyphonics, KOAN Sound, The M Machine and Minnesota, and tons of local and Canadian artists. Motion Notion has a decent lineup, friendly and welcoming people, extremely good hippie vibes and an absolutely stunning location.

14. Bass Coast

When: July 6-9
Where: Merritt, British Columbia
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: https://basscoast.ca/
Why You Should Go: Dark, spooky vibes, underground music, lots of local artists and camping in a beautiful location. Bass Coast has it all to offer, especially good vibes from other festival goers. This is one of those festivals where it really seems like the whole festival is a family and meeting other people there is a big percentage of the festival's magic.

"1. Bass Coast is an extremely small festival. I think in 2017 there was about 4500 people there so it was super intimate. I ran into the same people multiple times, and as a result, ended up creating lasting friendships and shared many moments with the same people purely by coincidence.
2. In bass music, there are many subgenres. If I could describe the type of music played at Bass Coast, I would say it was a "survey of bass music." I was able to see old school dubstep, bass house, drum and bass, jungle and whatever the hell "Bassos Rancheros" is. Bass Coast gave me the opportunity to see music that I never would have in America.
3. It's run entirely by a woman with an all woman staff. Her and her staff put together an amazing festival and I loved all the creative decisions they decided to make."
-Brandon Jacobs

15. Osheaga

When: August 3-5
Where: Montreal, Quebec
Lineup: 2018 lineup TBA. Check out 2017's lineup below.

Website: https://www.osheaga.com/en
Why You Should Go: Although not really an EDM festival, I had to put Osheaga on the list because of the quality of artists on the lineup every year. This is like the Bonnaroo of Canada, stacked with amazing artists (including a few EDM artists like Nicolas Jaar) that everyone needs to go to at least once in their life.

Honorable Mentions

WayHome: http://wayhome.com/splash/
Solaris: http://solarismusicfestival.com/
Kamp: http://www.kampfestival.com/
Future Forest: https://futureforest.ca/