Lethbridge Electronic Music Festival (LEMF) returns to Galt Gardens this weekend

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After a year -long hiatus due to Covid 19, the ninth annual LEMF (Lethbridge Electronic Music Festival) is set to get you dancing all day long in Galt Gardens, Saturday, Sept. 25.

 

The free, family, friendly event features a Kidzone with a bouncy castle, beer gardens and a “chill tent” called the T Bird Lounge which is a tribute to Tanner Dietrich, who passed away last year, featuring her artwork. The Lethbridge Handmade Market will provide vendors.

 

David Fritz aka Marty Funkhauser is excited to bring LEMF back to Galt Gardens, Sept. 25. Photo by Richard Amery

 LEMF, which began with one stage back in 2012 and expanded to three stages, before they were forced to cancel last year’s event, is back to two stages this year featuring 26 DJs, mostly from Alberta.

 

Toronto Skratch Bastid and Saskatoon’s The Gaff headlines the Zodiac Stage at 9:30 p.m. to 11 p.m. and 7 p.m.- 8:30 p.m. respectively. Calgary’s Woofax headlines the Luminosity stage in between those two from 8:30 to 9:30 p.m.. The rest of the line-up is from Alberta. J DJ Funkhauser will be on at 1 p.m.

 The other performers are on stage for an hour. 

 

“The Zodiac stage is more house music and the Luminosity stage is more bass,” noted Lethbridge Electronic Music Festival president David Fritz, who is also on the bill as his alter-ego Marty Funkhauser.

He is excited to have watched the festival grow, and, more importantly, to have the festival back this year.

 

“Usually we’re in August, but we had to cancel last year. This year it‘s been moved up to September, which we may continue to do because the students are back at university,” Fritz said, noting most of the line-up originally scheduled to perform last year, will be performing this year.

 

“We kept all the contracts,” he said, adding he is also excited that the festival has a local flavour.

 

“We wanted to keep travel down plus, there is so much talent here that deserves to be supported,” he said. 

He is excited to welcome Skratch Bastid  back to Lethbridge.

“Skratch Bastid and The Gaff are scratch DJs. They  use a lot of R and B and hip hop music so they should appeal to a variety of different people,” he said.

“I’m looking forward to seeing a variety of ages at the event,” he continued, adding he has enjoyed watching LEMF grow.

 

“The first year, in 2012 we had one stage and 500 people, this year we’re expecting more,” he said.

 

He has seen all the performers, mostly at festivals like Shambhala.

“And there is an application process,” he said.

LEMF is always a lot of fun. Photo by Richard Amery

“Skratch Bastid has never performed at one of our events before, but he headlined Love and Records a few years ago,” he said, noting Skratch Bastid also DJs for the Toronto Raptors.

The KidZone will run from 11 a.m- 6 p.m..

 

 The beer garden will also feature craft beer selections from local brewery Theoretically Brewing.

 Because there is no after party, the event has been extended to 11:30 p.m..

 

 “Scratch Bastid and the Gaff will play a set together at 11 p.m. ,” he said, adding  Saskatoon DJ, DJ Rumpus, who was supposed to be hosting the afterparty, will join Scratch Bastid and The Gaff for the extra set.

 

 Proof of vaccination will not be required.

 

“We can’t enforce that because it is an outdoor event. But there will be social distancing and sanitization stations at the KidZone, at each of the stages and in the beer gardens. Staff will also be sanitizing seats and tables as soon as people leave their seats,” he continued adding there will be extra security on duty for the evening.

“Festivals like this have a bad reputation. We’re excited to counter that stereotype,” he said.

 

A Heart of the City grant helps fund LEMF. 

 

“ We’re blessed to be able to do this again,” he said.

— By Richard Amery, L.A. Beat Editor

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Last Updated ( Wednesday, 22 September 2021 16:44 )