Summer 2019 is winding down. The final sun-soaked barbecues and ice-cold beers of our ever too brief season of the warm and wonderful are taking place in every town across The Rock. It’s the dog days, as they say, and for some, a feeling of ‘winter is coming’ goes hand in hand with back-to-school bargains and summer everything-must-go sales.

UNDER THE TOP 

But there is hope, friends, hope for those who wish to live it up as if the hot summer nights lasted 24/7, 365. 

The Iceberg Alley Performance Tent returns for 11 days of epic music under the grandest big top Newfoundland and Labrador has ever seen. 

Returning for a third straight year of unprecedented entertainment tailor-made with patron experience in mind, the Iceberg Alley Performance Tent was created to showcase the unique culture, traditions and heritage of Newfoundland and Labrador alongside some of the best entertainers in the game both internationally and nationally. 

It all takes place under the “big top,” a 36,000 square foot tent that would put Ringling Brothers to shame in the culturally historic area within the City of St. John’s known as Pleasantville, on the banks of Quidi Vidi Lake.

Complete with food trucks, fast and efficient beverage areas, a dedicated VIP area and all the amenities one would expect from a world-class concert venue, the eye-popping stage setup gives way to unforgettable concert experiences, with production to rival the very best this island has seen past or present. 

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HIT-MAKERS & LOCALS

From 2017-18, Iceberg attendees flocked to the tent to take in a who’s who of music heavyweights, from chart-toppers with platinum hits to local favourites and rising stars.

Billy Talent, Steve Earle and The Dukes, Burton Cummings, Arkells, Serena Ryder, The Strumbellas, Big Wreck, Dean Brody, Dallas Smith, The Beaches, Shawn Hook and July Talk are among the phenomenal acts that have packed the tent for the first two installments of the rapidly growing festival. And while those names read as an impressive list of some of our very best both nationally and internationally, 2019’s lineup raises the game once more.

The 2019 Iceberg Alley Performance Tent lineup is a varied and eclectic mix of genres and stars both new and established. From country to indie pop, hard rock and traditional, there is something for everyone under the bright lights of the big top. 

A ROCKIN’ FIRST NIGHT

It all kicks off on Wednesday, September 11th, as Juno-winning rockers The Glorious Sons return to Iceberg Alley with Hamilton southern rockers Monster Truck (more on them on p. 22) and beloved local trailblazers The Novaks. 

On September 12th Iceberg Alley hosts the long-awaited return of one of Canada’s premier indie-pop attractions. Led by the enigmatic Emily Haines, Metric returns to the island with special guests Weaves. A winner of five Juno awards, Metric is a coast-to-coast fan favourite with a pair of platinum-selling albums here in the great white north.

Friday, September 13th features a double bill between some of the finest songwriting forces in North America as Los Angeles folk-rock four-piece Dawes headlines with the maritime legend Matt Mays and local singer-songwriter Chris LeDrew. 

Saturday night is alright for scuffin’ as the biggest kitchen party under any big top worldwide makes a triumphant return to Iceberg Alley. It’s a triple threat of local favourites as Great Big Sea’s Alan Doyle will be joined by trad icons Shanneyganock and the impossibly uplifting Celtic Connection. 

Last year the same combination of local flavour sold out well ahead of showtime, providing a packed and enthusiastic environment of rantin’ and roarin’ patrons. 

On Sunday, September 15th, Scottish folk-rock pioneers The Waterboys make their long-awaited island return, bringing with them three decades of hits like Fisherman’s Blues, And a Bang on the Ear, The Whole of the Moon and Glastonbury Song. 

Fans of ’90s rock can rejoice, because platinum-selling Californians Everclear make their Newfoundland debut on Monday, September 16th, with special guest Sister Hazel and a rare performance by ECMA winning Atlantic Canadian duo Crush. Stay tuned next week for a candid one-on-one interview with Everclear frontman Art Alexakis.

Patrons may be singing the blues on Tuesday, September 17th, but not in the way you think! Canadian blues-rock legend Colin James returns to Newfoundland and Labrador with his world-class smoky and soulful guitar. Special guests include the phenomenal Matt Andersen and The Mellotones and Willie Nile. 

We’d expect Nothing But A Good Time on September 18th as hair metal and classic rock titan Bret Michaels headlines the Iceberg stage, alongside guests Haywire. Michaels is a global brand and superstar frontman of ’80s staple Poison, known for the mega-hits Every Rose Has Its Thorn, Unskinny Bop and Talk Dirty to Me. You won’t want to miss a living legend of rock under the big top. 

KICKIN’ IT COUNTRY

Thursday, September 19th, goes country, as chart-topping genre king Tim Hicks headlines a triple bill alongside Blackjack Billy and local powerhouse Damhnait Doyle, fresh off her acclaimed return album no less. 

Just announced on August 13th, the final slot on the Iceberg Alley lineup will play host to one of the biggest bands in the history of Canadian rock music. No strangers to music fans across The Rock, Our Lady Peace will headline Friday September 20th at the Iceberg Alley, for a night of undisputed classic hits like Somewhere Out There, Naveed, Clumsy, Superman’s Dead and many more. 

Transport back to the radio rock days of the ’70s and ’80s for a night of retro nostalgia unlike no other to close out the third annual Iceberg Alley on Saturday, September 21st. Loverboy, Kim Mitchell and David Wilcox will close out 11 nights of can’t miss entertainment in style! Grab a soda and go b’y!

So shake off the summertime blues. There are 11 nights of world-class music coming your way at the Iceberg Alley Performance Tent this September. 

For venue information, a detailed lineup and general or VIP ticket details visit icebergalleyconcerts.com. Tickets are available online at Orange Store eTixNow kiosks island-wide.

“I could not believe what an incredible concert venue they made,” Doyle said after first viewing the setup last September. “I played in tents around the world at festivals, but not like that. They do it up real, with the real floor and bleachers. It’s a real incredible concert experience You get the full vibe of the tent and the circus nature of it, but then you get all the modern conveniences. It’s really amazing.”

That Doyle and his Beautiful Band have been tirelessly touring throughout 2018 should come as no shock. Doyle, as ever, is the consummate troubadour artist, who, if not busy acting, producing, writing or dabbling in entrepreneurial or philanthropic endeavours, has well earned his status as a road warrior.

“It’s been great fun,” he admits. “The first five or six months of this year were kind of cracked because we really went hard to come out with a new tour. We started in Seattle and rolled down through the southwest and across the bottom of the United States. We came home for about a week and then went back and started in Ontario, in Peterborough I think and went west as far as Vancouver. We went back for another block and started in New York and Boston and came into Atlantic Canada. Now the summer stuff, the leg of the tour took us back to Ontario, Victoria, east of St. John’s. We start up again in November and do a bunch of Ontario places we haven’t played yet like London and Sarnia and Belleville. We cross over and do Phili, Pittsburgh and a bunch of places we haven’t done so far.”

In finding a foothold in the United States, which Doyle has seemingly accomplished in recent years, the seasoned artist shares that, despite a band reaching peak status in Canada or abroad, the red white and blue is an entirely different animal.

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“The United States is a huge population, so by definition, it’s a huge market,” he shares. “That means there’s a lot of audiences there, but a lot of bands there too. Every English-speaking band in the world wants the U.S. If you’re wondering why some Canadian band didn’t make it on The Rolling Stone in the U.S., for every one of them there’s 450 from the U.S. that didn’t either. There’s 200 from England, and so on. It’s so big that it’s tough to just eventually end up at the top. The big media opportunities, like in Canada for example, eventually Q radio will play you. There’s not that many of us. Eventually, you can possibly earn your way onto the national show in Canada. You can’t earn your way onto The Tonight Show. It has to be given to you or gotten for you. It’s just a different scale altogether.”

Asking Alan Doyle ‘what’s next?’ usually results in thread-splitting sidebars on numerous ventures. He has many hats on many rungs in many avenues, as ever.

“I took a gig producing a kids record for a group called Splash’N Boots. They’re like a Canadian kind of Wiggles, quite successful. They wanted me to produce a record, and I went to them and kind of confessed right up front that I didn’t know how to do it, but I’d love to give it a go. We’re working on that now. I’m also recording new songs for a new project for me, and then I’m starting a new book, while still touring.”

Never failing to raise fan expectations, and pulses, Doyle and Great Big Sea members Bob Hallett and Sean McCann sent folks into a fine frenzy in recent months by posting photos together, leading to rumour and innuendo of reunions and the like. We’d be negligent not to at least ask the status of the iconic trad trio.

“Nothing new, really, other than we had a couple of gatherings in the last few months,” Doyle admits. We’re musing about what we’ll be able to get up to in the coming years. Nothing more than that. We’ve talked about under what scenarios we’d be able to mount a reunion or anniversary gig or short-run or something that fits in everybody’s lives. Luckily, everyone is quite happy doing what they’re doing.

“My notion, since Sean left the band, is I don’t want to fight about it,” he adds. “When everybody wants to do it again, let’s do it. I didn’t want the last thing that me and Sean and Bob did together be a fight over the spoils of it. I got so much respect for those two guys. I literally owe my career to those two guys and Daryl Power. In truth, it was mostly their idea. They were doing it before I joined. My notion is that if we can find a happy way that we can do it and happily great, but if not that’s fine.

“I’m not one bit surprised about Sean and Bob,” he says of the continued individual success of the trio. “They’re two of the smartest, most hard-working people I’ve ever met in my life. Not to mention, incredibly talented. They both have skill sets that were so enormous outside the band that we benefited from. It’s good times, is the short answer, and I’m grateful for it.”

As for what fans can expect under the big top this Saturday? A kitchen party in a circus setting, says Doyle.

“We’ll be doing songs from the most recent record, a few of my records and a bunch of Great Big Sea songs and a bunch of Newfoundland traditional songs. All of the things we always do to make a great kitchen party night out.”

For tickets to the Iceberg Alley visit the official website and for more on Alan Doyle, click here!