IPO Vancouver 2023

 
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Artists From Vancouver

 
Monique Angele – A Canadian/Australian operatic piano pop singer-songwriter with a unique blend of classical and pop music that is captivating audiences around the world. Her music is sophisticated, emotive, and innovative, showcasing her virtuosic piano playing and soaring vocals that create a sound that is truly her own. Her recent EP, Time Will Fall, is the perfect example of her talent and innovation. The album showcases her unique blend of classical and pop elements, resulting in compositions that are both timeless and contemporary.
 
Dawn Boudreau – A folk musician who writes with a jazzy twist, sometimes with hints of musical theatre. Having achieved a comfortable state of middle-aged happiness, she loves to share stories from the journey she’s traveled to get here. Fans of artists such as Judee Sill, Carly Simon, or Joni Mitchell will dig her 2020 album, Flings & Things, and her recent single, “Every Winding Mile”, which chronicles a road trip from Prince George to Vancouver.
 
Cherry Maraschino – The latest incarnation of the “current” band lead by the psychedelic pop stylings of that dynamic duo: Shelley Preston and Scott Fletcher. They share a penchant for hooky melodies, insightful lyrics and British sports cars, and their songs have as many twists and turns as a Rallye Monte Carlo where the drivers are Bacharach, Lennon and McCartney, Aimee Mann and Jon Brion. As consummate perfectionists in both their recorded media and live performances, they’ve spent the last few years putting the finishing flourishes on what promises to be an extraordinary debut album, and their IPO appearance promises to be the icing on your cake, the cream in your coffee, and the whipped cream on your sundae…with a cherry on top, of course!
 
Danny Echo – He’s been featured in Wail Magazine and draws influences from the greats like The Rolling Stones, The Who, The Beatles, Radiohead, Oasis, and U2; Danny Echo reverberates with all that is melodic, all that is catchy, and all that is rock n’ roll on their latest full-length release, Rock Bottoms Up, or their more recent single, “Zeros and Ones”, and barely tones it down for their acoustic EP, Unplugged and Unglued. Smoke machines, projectors, smoking guitars, and fire extinguishers (?!!) have become a part of the visual assault of Danny Echo gigs, making the live show an experience not to be missed!
 
The Get Arounds – If you like in-your-face girl-fronted power-punk-pop, then look no further than The Get Arounds. Fronted by Lana Ryma, The Get Arounds music is a cross between the classic power pop of bands like Nikki and The Corvettes and the ‘90s punk/riot girl angst of artists such as Bikini Kill, Garbage or No Doubt, while drawing on influences of classic early punk artists such as The Sex Pistols and Blondie. The songs on their recently released I Wanna Live album are insanely catchy, and we can’t wait to see them do their thing live at IPO!
 
Tyler Graham – High school French teacher by day, musician by later the same day, Graham crafts catchy pop songs inspired by a wide array of artists, such as Sloan, Weezer, Joel Plaskett, Sam Roberts, Blue Rodeo, Fountains of Wayne, Wilco and others. His new album, appropriately named Finally, is an homage to everything we all love about catchy hook and harmony filled guitar pop. C’est Magnifique!
 
Happy Graves – A Vancouver trio who put their own delightful twist on quirky power pop. A mashup of angular indie pop, Britpop, new wave, power pop and punk pop, the songs on their self-titled debut EP meander through the garden of your mind to confuse and captivate you in equal measure, leaving you breathlessly waiting for more! Check them out…now!
 
IPO All Stars – As their name suggests, this band features an all-star cast of Vancouver music scene luminaries from The Orchid Highway, The Walk-Ins, and other special guests (many of whom you may recognize from some of the other bands playing the festival this year), doing something completely different: a selection of cover tunes, some well-known, but also a few obscure and challenging numbers that we can’t wait to see them pull off live!
 
Cass King & The Cassettes – With a lineup comprised of Vancouver music scene veterans (lead singer Cass King and guitarist John Woods have previously performed together in The Wet Spots, drummer Adrian Buckley has appeared – including several times at IPO – with The Orchid Highway, The Tomorrows and Star Collector, and bassist Brendan Mooney with The Paperboys and Edmonton Block Heater), Cass King & The Cassettes are sultry rock n’ soul that will make you want to shake it till you break it! Their recently released album, Naked On The Dance Floor, channels the sounds of R&B – informed British post punk legends like early Elvis Costello and Joe Jackson, as well as American garage rock stalwarts like the Mooney Suzuki and the Detroit Cobras, and is chock-a-block with edgy, danceable Motown-inspired shakers, with a couple of smooth ballads thrown in for make-out purposes. Their live performance is an energetic floor-stomper not to be missed…so don’t miss it!
 
Legret – Led by Kevan Ellis, who some at IPO may recall as the leader of SK Robot and Cinderpop, Legret explores life’s little moments on their debut digital album, Seedlings, in catchy, sometimes quirky pop ditties and instrumental interludes…each under 2-minutes long. We can’t wait to see and hear what they do at their first IPO Showcase!
 
NOT Mentally Prepared – A Vancouver quintet who love nothing more than rocking hard and getting the audience to dance their booties off, so who could not love that!? In their original songs, featured on their brand-new Low Roller album, they specialize in writing about a wide range of topics – the reality of life, love, funny things, weird things, obsessions, emotions, people, etc., but they are also known to throw down a few well-chosen covers. Fans of artists from The Rolling Stones to AC/DC to The Cure should check them out! The band features several who have played IPO Vancouver right from the very beginning, and we’re glad to welcome them back!
 
Scott Perry & The EastVangelicals – A veteran of Vancouver’s music scene, Perry is known to many an IPO-er for his versatile guitar work and harmony vocals as a member of The Orchid Highway, The Winlaws, and The Top Drawers, but he’s also an accomplished singer/songwriter in his own right! Inspired by classic seventies singer-songwriters such as John Denver, George Harrison, Gram Parsons, but also drawing on the melodic power-pop of the Beatles and all who they influenced, the acoustic guitar remains at the heart of his songs, with more electric guitar and leads found throughout some of them, but still resounding everywhere is a love of vocal harmony, with many lush arrangements building simple songs into a rewarding listening experience. Their latest album, Folks Songs, which was long-planned, even before the band was formed, as a tribute to Perry’s parents who passed in 2015/16, adds a particularly poignant, yet uplifting, experience with each listen, so we can’t wait to see and hear Perry and his band share the love again at IPO!.
 
Star Collector – IPO is always thrilled to welcome these stalwarts of the Vancouver scene back to IPO, whether it’s been several years since they last played, or only one year! Their patented blend of decadent hooky Americana, British power pop and glam influences and powerhouse vocals will knock you off your feet! If you don’t already own them, their Flash Arrows & The Money Shot and Hundred-Bullet-Proof CDs are a must have for any true power pop fan, and well-worth seeking out. Their 2021 triumphant return album, Game Day, plus their latest, Attack, Sustain, Decay…Repeat, prove they’re just as good as ever…if not even better! Their IPO show is a rare live performance, which you will not want to miss!
 
Aaron Trory – A fixture on the Vancouver scene from his standing gig fronting the house band at The Blarney Stone in Vancouver, to penning indie gems like “Gastown Girl” and “How Dare You (Do What’s Best for You),” Trory delivers a crowd pleasing set of covers and alt rock originals. His original music is characterized by syrupy and sinewy guitars, deep-fried in a batter of coming-of-age heartache, served up with a side of ‘80s and ‘90s alternative rock influences. His latest EP, DIY Dentistry, and many of his prior releases are available on Bandcamp.
 
The Vanrays – There’s “classic”, Northern, Mississippi Delta, Chicago, Philadelphia and Blue-Eyed Soul…well, The Vanrays are here to introduce you to your favorite new sub-genre…East Van Soul! It’s a Motown beat down in a shark skin suit. It’s wailing like its gospel while they’re laying in the boots. It’s a curb stomping rhythm on the corner of control. It’s a nod in the direction, when all the shoes had leather souls. And to when those shoes were twisting, to Otis and to James, and now will too on their recently released Pull It Out album and at their IPO showcase!
 
 

International Artists

 
Pikal Band – The blend of classic power pop and bubblegum styles with ‘90s influenced indie pop and engaging boy-girl harmonies on their Music For Girls album is sure to strike a chord in the hearts and minds of many a pop fan! They’re The Mamas & The Papas of Anchorage, Alaska! (but fans of REM and The Pixies will also dig ‘em!) They’ve also been working on some new material that we can hardly wait to see and hear!
 
Vanilla – This band made up of Seattle-Tacoma music veterans features Jayson Jarmon and Scott McPherson (also the principal songwriters of Liar’s Club), Sean Gaffney, and Dana Sims (The Jet City Fix), along with a combination of players who make up the “Tiny-Vanillacano Club” family of Tacoma pop bands — members of Vanilla, Tiny Volcano, and Liar’s Club! Their debut self-titled CD has been compared to a variety of pop legends, such as The Association, Wings, and Jellyfish, while their recently released Sideshow adds some cool experimental and angular pop flourishes without losing one bit of the melodicism! Following the same formula of one song per month until, lo and behold, they have an album, that they used to assemble Sideshow, they’ve turned their considerable talents to paying homage to the year ’77 with some fab new disco-soul inflected pop confections for their brand-new album, 77! We eagerly look forward to seeing and hearing them do their thing live at IPO!