12 impressions from WayHome Music & Arts 2017

The WayHome festival grounds was impeccable

From the pristine lawns, the stage setup, the food options, the VIP layout, and more - the festival grounds at Burl's Creek for WayHome was almost perfect. The stage sound systems were ideal for the allotted areas with limited sound bleed between stages. There was plenty of room to dance and never once did I feel claustrophobic. The areas behind the main stage were perfect for sitting down with friends and relaxing, while hearing the music without any noticeable degradation. The food options were diverse, there were plenty of water stations, and thanks to Perrier, we even had a stylish air conditioned space to relax in with a full schedule of DJs playing a wide range of music. Overall you couldn't ask for a better layout than what was found at WayHome. 

Porter Robinson

The last EDM act of WayHome came from none other than Porter Robinson, who recently graced the mainstage of Coachella with Madeon. His atmospheric tracks from his now classic album Worlds filled the WayHome stage which was accompanied with vivid anime graphics and abstract computer generated art. Porter's set up is elaborate for a single artist as he had a mic for singing, 2 keyboards, a mixer, and a drum pad. At times he would be busy manipulating two stations at the same time, which was captured on the big screen in all of its glory. The simplicity of his set was magical. Listening to his big tracks like Shelter and Sad Machine was an emotional experience for everyone there, as the crowd did not hesitate to show their appreciation every chance they got. This was an intense Porter performance, and the best set I've personally seen him play out of the 4-5 times prior. His set at WayHome will not be soon forgotten. 

Justice

Justice possibly played the best individual set at WayHome this year. Seeing this French duo live with their full stage setup takes their music and overall atmosphere to a whole new level. The stage lightning would morph multiple times throughout the performance to suit the mood, and even though the lights were awe-inspiring, Justice's famous minimalism came through as the colour schemes did not surpass 1 colour at a time out of 5-6 total. While Gaspard was mostly busy at the controls, rarely looking down at he crowd, it was Xavier that took the time to interact and get the crowd even further into their performance. Both of them have such good chemistry that it was a treat to watch them riff off another during the set. 

Flume

Flume closed out the mainstage on day 1 with a goosebump filled showcase of his tracks. The electricity of the crowd was palpable as they sung loudly to the Australian's many vocal hits including "Never Be Like You". The music was backed up by his impressively crisp graphics and simple yet beautiful cubed DJ booth. As much as Flume's originals soar, listening to his remixes and edits are equally as pleasing as he dropped his remix of Lorde's "Tennis Court", the remix of Hermitude's "Hyperparadise", and his edit of Rustie's "Slasherr" track. A lot of fans got to see what an exceptional artist from the electronic dance music world can offer as Flume put on a master class of a show to end the night on the right footing. 

Illenium

Once the day turned into night on day 1, the crowd was pining for a higher tempo performance in which newcomer Illenium provided in full. By 9:40 pm on day 1, Illenium was the first EDM act to play at WayHome, and put on a show filled with melodic bass music. He previewed a brand new track that fit in right into his emotional wheelhouse with soaring female vocals paired with future bass. His set up was ambitious as he made room for live elements into his setup including drum pads that he used frequently. His set was short, only 50 minutes, but provided the landscape to set up the rest of the evening with Flume and Justice.

Louis The Child

Unlike some future bass producers that will remain unnamed, Louis the Child did not succumb to the idea that they need to play harder stuff to woo the crowd. They stuck to their guns and showcased the sound that got them to WayHome in the first place. I give credit to this Chicago duo as they brought their feel good tracks and remixes, including their remix with SteLouse for "Inside Out" by the Chiefs, or the re-imagining of "Genghis Khan" by Miike Snow. Saving their best for last, Louis The Child wound down their afternoon set with "Love Is Alive", their hit with another upcoming artist Elohim. 

Marshmello

Quick cuts into the meat of the track that got the crowd hyped. Day 2 was a more relaxing day but after a day of acts on the relaxed side, fans were ready to rock the WayBright stage once Marshmello took the stage. The "mystery" DJ brought it heavy with quick cuts filled with bass ("Throwing Elbows" by Excision/Space Laces) and hip hop anthems ("Humble" by Kendrick Lamar). The focus of Marshmello is to make his fans happy and dancing, which he successfully accomplished through his set. 

Jagwar Ma

This Australian band gave the intimate crowd at WayBright a special surprise - a flawless performance showing the full capacity and range of their tunes. Gabriel Winterfield was in top form as his voice lifted despite the sweltering 30 degree Toronto heat as the crowd enjoyed the show despite being baked. The electronic beats may not match the big room rhythm of a Martin Garrix, but Jagwar Ma cleverly incorporates electronic aspects into their live show that complements their sound. At times it turned into a rave as the beats took over in an amazing display of energy by the band. The set was only 30 minutes long but their impact on the festival was felt.

NON-EDM IMPRESSIONS

Schoolboy Q

Credit: Kara Ramos

Schoolboy Q played his show infront of the biggest midday crowd on the mainstage of the entire WayHome experience. The huge crowds underlined the shift among music tastemakers as the ascendancy of hip hop has arrived. The L.A. rapper dressed for winter with his tuque and a windbreaker, despite the near 30 degree heat. To his credit, Schoolboy Q stuck to his style and did not remove his original outfit. With multiple moshpits happening at once, WayHome fans went wild for his unique hip hop sound. 

Jazz Cartier

Out of all of the JUNO winners this year, none have used the platform better than Jazz Cartier, the winner of the best rap album of the year. Where Schoolboy Q left off, Jazz Cartier took it to the next level with his more in your face aggressive hip hop. At one point he invited the crowd to follow him to the food trucks near the stage where he got up on the roof of the poutine truck and rapped. Overall a memorable show.

Tanya Tagaq

Watching Tanya Tagaq is an experience that no one should miss. The vocal range and the multitude of sounds that she can create is out of this world. The more extreme the sound, Tanya's body motion becomes even more intense. Her songs leave plenty of room for experimentation as her band follows her lead. For those that want to hear something more experimental from a talented Canadian artist, then Tanya Tagaq is for you. Once it was over, the intimate crowd gave her an effusive applause which elicited an ear to ear smile by Tanya.

Frank Ocean

Ambitious, intense, and perfect - it's hard to put into words what the crowd had the honour to see on the final day of WayHome but Frank Ocean put on a performance for the ages. Having only played a handful of shows in the last few years, Frank Ocean was stoic yet vulnerable on the big stage and was not afraid to re-start songs that felt short of his lofty expectations. He did not use the mainstage like the other acts from the past 3 days as he created his own stage island out in the crowd filled with movie quality cameras, a full band, and more. The love for Frank Ocean was real as the Toronto crowd happily sang every word to his songs, which he fed off of, even removing his headset at times to feed off the energy. 

Win 2 tickets to WayHome Music & Arts!

WayHome is getting ready for its biggest year yet when it returns to Oro-Mendonte (north of Toronto) for 3-days in late July. Known for their diverse lineup, WayHome has stepped up their love for electronic dance music by booking major acts like Flume, Porter Robinson, Justice, and Marshmello. They also invited a few key up and coming acts that EDM afficiandos will enjoy like Mura Masa, Louis The Child, and Illenium. Having won the prize for best major festival at Canadian Music Week, the buzz around WayHome keeps on growing.  

EDM Canada is giving away 2 GA passes to WayHome happening from Friday, July 28th until Sunday, July 30th at the Burl's Creek Event Grounds at Oro-Mendonte. To enter, simply log in using the widget above (counts as an entry), and use the various other ways to gain more entries if you wish to do so. The contest starts now and ends on June 30th. Enter now and good luck!

10 questions about WayHome Music & Arts Festival

In 2015 WayHome festival redefined the eastern Canadian festival landscape by offering up a 3-day multi-genre camping festival at Oro-Mendonte, just outside of Toronto. It was a success as 90% of festival goers had chosen to camp and overall attendance numbers have jumped a healthy 15% each year since its inception. Having recently won the "Best Major Music Festival" of the year award at Canadian Music Week, the buzz around WayHome is continually growing. With 35,000 fans expected to show up per day this summer, the 2017 edition of WayHome is shaping up to be its biggest year yet. 

Ryan Howes - Creative Director of Wayhome

EDM Canada had the chance to sit down with Ryan Howes, creative director of WayHome, during Canadian Music Week to discuss what makes WayHome special, its lineup, location, and much more. Enjoy. 

Can you give me a brief history of WayHome?

Ryan Howes: We're entering our third year of WayHome. The intention of when we launched WayHome was to offer a multi-genre camping festival in the Toronto market, which is top 3 in live music markets in North America. A proper multi-genre camping festival never existed in Toronto and we thought it was the right timing to launch. 

We had huge success in year 1, and it was a surprise that over 90% of the crowd actually camped. We've seen healthy growth year and year since. 

Can you reveal a bit more about the number of attendees, the growth, and how many do you expect to show up for the 2017 edition of WayHome?

We have 15% growth from 2015 to 2016, and we expect to see 35,000 fans a day in 2017.  

As the audience grows we also offer more genres. So we added more EDM and hip hop this year. WayHome is no longer strictly an indie rock focus like it was in year one. But if you're a real music fan, you're a fan of a number of genres and different artists. 

What makes WayHome special and different than other festivals?

I think one of the main differences is the setting that it takes place. The owner of WayHome also owns Burl's Creek so we got a lot of flexibility on what we can and can't do on the ground. It's a beautiful piece of property, a custom built festival site with internal roadways, fibre in the ground, and the cell + wifi coverage that is better than what you see at a stadium or hockey arena.

Having the location just off the highway, a kilometer off of Lake Simcoe, a few minutes away from cottage country, is special. Also the sunsets are absolutely amazing. We're surrounded by forests and trees everywhere. I think the setting is what makes WayHome what it is. 

This year you have invited a lot of electronic acts like Marshmello, Porter Robinson, Justice, Flume, and more. Would you agree that WayHome has embraced more electronic dance music in 2017 vs in previous years? Is it due to the growth or more to do with the future direction of WayHome?

Full lineup (Click to zoom)

It's definitely due to the growth. We want to offer more to a wider audience. It's also the way to industry is heading, like with Coachella you'd usually see a lot of indie rock acts headlining a lot of stages but this year you see Marshmello, Porter Robinson get some huge set times over the course of the weekend.

Adding electronic dance elements adds another layer of partying and enjoying the actual festival with friends. Louis the Child has a new EP out and they're going to be really big this summer and I think they are going to have an amazing set over that weekend. 

How did indie rock fans react to Bassnectar on the lineup from year one of the festival? 

At WayHome we have late night sets, and when we had Bassnectar on, we noticed that the vast majority of the crowd gravitated towards the electronic acts. 

With more electronic acts added to WayHome - will these acts get their own stage or will it be mixed?

Mixed. We always took the approach of putting various genres on each stage. We've done a really good job to make sure indie rock acts don't compete amongst each other, same goes for electronic acts. 

Is the lineup complete, or can we expect to hear more names?

Yes. 

On a personal level, name the act that you are most excited to see and why? 

There's a lot of amazing acts that you don't generally see in a festival environment. Pup is an amazing punk rock act from Ontario, and to see them perform at the Floor stage infront of 7,000 - 8,000 people will be pretty impressive. 

Justice hasn't really toured with a full on global touring package with sound and light in the past 5-6 years, so seeing them for the first time will be amazing. 

With the announcement of the cancellation of Mysteryland in the U.S. - What is your opinion on the overall health of the festival space in 2017 and beyond? Does the demand remain strong? 

WayHome wins best major music festival award at Canadian Music Week

There's definitely demand for festivals but festival producers must be strategic and smart on what they offer. Even with Insomniac, they canceled EDC New York last year, and are now concentrating more on the west coast. So now they're more regionally based vs. wanting to be in New York, Chicago, Orlando, and possibly somewhere in Canada. 

Festivals will be more regionally based and more about the boutique and niche. There's hundreds of electronic dance festivals in Europe but they're all geared towards a certain demographic and a certain sub-genre. I think that's what we'll start to see in North America. I don't thinks we'll be seeing 70,000 - 80,000 capacity festivals anymore, but more 15,000 - 30,000 capacity ones. 

For those that are interested in getting into the industry - what is your role as creative director? 

It takes 10-11 months to build a festival. As soon as WayHome 2016 was done, we started working on the 2017 edition 3-4 weeks later. I'm responsible for working with all of the departments, tying all of the pieces together. I make sure that the stage design, video content is all on brand. I have to make sure it ties into all of our sponsorship activations. I help design the site, food and beverage, VIP areas, curating the visual art stations, etc. I piece it all together to make sure it all belongs there once the fans show up at the festival. 

We have talent buyers that deal with booking the talent directly and I do work closely with them, and that takes a lot of time because there's a lot of back and forth negotiations. There are very long days, even working long hours in January/February.


WayHome Music & Arts festival takes place from July 28th until July 30th at Oro-Mendonte, just outside of Toronto. Tickets are still available - click here for more information