For a long time, the Sled Island Music & Arts Festival maintained a mostly rock- and punk-inspired aesthetic. Its first decade offered a breadth of musicians, but with guest curators such as members of Wire and members of Pavement, it was clear that the mandate still revolved firmly around guitar-based rock and punk. It wasn’t until 2017, when Flying Lotus was tapped to help consciously expand its parameters from a rock/punk-specific festival to something more akin to a celebration of musical discovery.
Every year now, it seems like Sled is constantly trying to discover itself, as it should, and has become quite fearless in that search for self-enlightenment. It’s looser and less defined than it ever has been, and for that reason, it’s maybe the best it’s ever been. Look at the lineup this year; experimental Los Angeles rap group clipping. is the guest curator, and they have been given the autonomy to loop in peers that, before 2017, probably wouldn’t have sniffed Sled’s curatorial limits.
Percussionist and sculptor Thor Harris, who is probably best known for his work in the revived era of Swans will be gracing the Central United Church; Nigerien Pan-African blues-wizards Etran de L'Aïr will be making an appearance; billy woods, the New York rapper who has kept himself at the forefront of hip hops underground for an unprecedented decade of dominance will be appearing, which even a few years ago would have sounded like a fever dream.
Sure, the marquee act, Black Country, New Road, is still nominally a rock band, and the lineup is padded by acts that fall under that admittedly broad umbrella. But around the edges are experimental acts that would stand out at even the most esoteric gathering of musicians. Three notable names on Sled Island 2026’s roster are Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe, Laraaji and Calgary’s own Jairus Sharif, each on the farthest peripheries of popular music.
The closest Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe has come to straight-ahead rock music is arguably during his stint as a member of 90 Day Men, a St. Louis prog-rock band in which he provided, in addition to the trumpet and bass, early stylings of his unique vocals. Upon striking ground as a solo artist — sometimes under his name, sometimes under the Lichens moniker — his output has become increasingly abstract, defined by random, spontaneous vocalizations that make use of every inch of his seemingly endless diaphragm to explore how sound can be a physical experience as much as an emotional one. These days, the closest he approaches to traditional rock music is his work with Om and Twilight, a trudging stoner metal outfit and a progressive black metal band, respectively.
Laraaji is as close to a superstar as there is in the world of alternative music. A genuine legend and pioneering giant in the world of ambient and new age music, his career has spanned almost six decades, each filled prolifically with his masterful work on the zither and keys. Laraaji (born Edward Larry Gordon) hails from Philadelphia, which may not strike the reader as the most spiritual of cities, and yet at 82 he holds a rightful place beside luminaries such as Pharoah Sanders, Alice Coltrane and Don Cherry as links to the spiritual world. His work, especially with Brian Eno (who gave Laraaji his big break after hearing him busking improvised compositions in Manhattan’s Washington Square Park), has fundamentally shaped the entire universe of ambient music making.
And finally, Jairus Sharif, one of the most exciting artists to ever come out of the city, and the closest thing we have to an alternative wunderkind like Robert Aiki and Laraaji. Calgary, despite brimming with talent of all genres, still maintains a mostly punk/metal/rock aesthetic — or at least that’s how we are perceived. It’s a mold in which Jairus does not neatly fit. His music would most easily be categorized as jazz, but involves elements of ambient, industrial and — like the former two mentioned above — oozes spirituality at the seams.
Rock will always have a place in Calgary music venues, let alone be heard echoing through our streets. And punk very well may be the city’s incumbent aesthetic. But it should be a point of pride for a music festival to explore beyond its comfort zone, and Sled Island’s curatorial crew should be applauded for their concerted efforts to grow the scope of its programming. That we should be privileged enough to have the option to experience alternative shows from touring artists like Robert Aiki and Laraaji, or homegrown talents like Jairus, without relinquishing the creature comforts of a good ‘ol rock and roll show is part of what makes Sled Island such a compelling experience, and ultimately, one of the better music festivals around.
Header photo by Matt Wallace