Rifflandia challenged music festival norms by featuring two separate event spaces. Headliners took over Royal Athletic Park for the afternoons and early evenings, and as the night grew dark, the crowd would drift on down towards Phillips Brewpub, where as many as six stages could be occupied at one time.
Early in the festival, Electric Avenue had some of the most relaxed security of any festival I’d ever entered (some of them do pat downs; these folks barely checked my bag). By Saturday, the final night, security was running thin. They asked if we had brought drugs or equipment to hurt others, exclaiming that they were tired of finding contraband items. Inside, a quiet street with a few food trucks and a small stage awaited me. The atmosphere was relaxed and dimly lit. The distant thump from the main stage beckoned me down an alley and into mayhem.
At Royal Athletic Park, Aryze had provided planning for vendors to make it easy to get around the park and access all available services. Looking back, I think their skills would be better put to use at Electric Avenue. To access the four small stages, patrons had to pass between the main stage — constantly crowded (and admittedly fun) — and the winding lineup for drink tickets. Fences prevented entry from all but one point opposite the main stage. The result? A bit of a claustrophobic bottleneck.
The struggle through that crowd at busy times could feel like trying to climb the Athabasca Falls, but once through you could find respite from the rush. To the left, was the iconic Phillips beer truck. Even if you don’t like beer, the flashy display makes you wish you did.
Past the truck and around the corner was a merch tent (which was often quiet, and an ideal place to pick up an adorable Riff tote bag). Further down were my favourite stages. On the ground floor, local comics like UVic’s very own Julya Van Der Sloot took the Lafflandia Stage by storm. Upstairs was Rifflandia’s best-kept secret, the Kwench Stage. I’m not afraid to admit that I escaped there several times over the weekend to lounge, take in some music, and get a drink that I didn’t need to wait in line for. I was impressed by how quickly the energy at Electric Avenue shifted from stage to stage.
The final two stages were tucked away around a dark corner that felt somewhat underdeveloped, only featuring a few portapotties, a designated smoking area, and a drink ticket lineup.
All in all, Electric Avenue is conceptually genius and was but could have had stronger execution. In future iterations, the space could be better-taken advantage of to create a more intentional and coherent event space.