Boonstock ready to rock

Godsmack, Headstones and hipster DJ Eric Prydz lead a cast of 49 bands at the ninth annual Boonstock Arts and Music Festival.

An estimated 50,000 people are expected to turn out Thursday to Sunday for this open-air festival on Highway 28 near Gibbons.

Despite some of the logistical nightmares associated with festivals, such as Limp Bizkit reneging on their contract in favour of a gig in Russia, Boonstock producer Colin Kobza is in his element.

“I love putting on this show and Boonstock’s numbers keep growing because they can come camping, and it’s dusty, dirty and a great place to have fun,” he chuckles.

On some days, Kobza still finds it hard to believe that his first festival was a campfire invitation to 50 family and friends. And instead of a stage, musicians performed on a flatbed truck.

In less than a decade the five-stage, multi-million dollar festival has exploded 1,000 per cent, and he can’t say enough about Saturday headliners Godsmack.

“They’re a different, in-your-face kind of band. They’re awesome. They really know how to give Boonstockers a show with fireworks, pyrotechnics and cannons.”

Although Boonstock was born with a rock mandate, the flood of electronic music on commercial airwaves has opened up the way for DJs such as Prydz.

“He’s one of the best DJs in the world and I usually like to showcase electronic music and international acts on Friday.”

Kobza explains that not only are electronic music DJs uniquely talented, but since they travel alone they are cost efficient.

“These guys are blown up so big because they can tour easily. A band with five or six guys and the roadies have more to juggle. Here comes a DJ, one guy, and he can book an airplane ticket and be in London one night and the next in New York. They can expose themselves to the max.”

In addition to the high-voltage national and international groups, Boonstock also features three bands with St. Albert players – Tupelo Honey and SIIINES, both Edmonton Music Award winners, and The Bear radio celebrity band Teenage Gentleman.

With estimated traffic in excess of 12,000 people per day, Kobza has programmed a variety of activities and events such juggling, fire shows, dodgeball and hypnotist Wayne Lee.

And vendors are cooking a veritable international abundance of cuisine from German, Italian and Canadian-American to a large-scale variety of Asian foods.

The only blip on the radar may be the rainy weather. Kobza rents 250 acres to host the various stages and accommodate campers. Last year, the concert bowl was held at the property’s north end. However, the soil was soft and stages sank into the ground.

“We ended up trucking in $10,000 in gravel,” Kobza explains.

This year, with a potential for soggier ground, the concert area has been moved to the south end of the farm.

“The ground is a little harder and it doesn’t affect it as much. It drains well and if we need to, we’ll bring in wood chips.”

What makes the headaches worthwhile are stories of people who have faced a tough time, attended the festival and received a renewed perspective on life.

“To hear the stories is enough to give you motivation to keep going. When I hear things like this, I believe we will become a profitable company. When people ask to buy tickets without an announcement and they trust you to provide a good lineup and safe environment, it gives you such a good boost.”

A full lineup is available at www.boonstock.ca.