Amnesia Rockfest
| Amnesia Rockfest | |
|---|---|
| Genre | Music festival |
| Dates | June |
| Location(s) | Montebello, Quebec, Canada |
| Years active | 2005, 2007–present |
| Founded by | Alex Martel |
| Website | |
| www |
|
Amnesia Rockfest is an annual outdoor rock, punk, metal, alternative, ska and hardcore music festival, that takes place each June in Montebello, Quebec, Canada. Founded in 2005 by then 17-year-old local resident Alex Martel, it has become the largest rock music festival in Canada and one of the largest in North America.
With a local population of 978 residents, the small town of Montebello attracts over 200,000 festival-goers during Rockfest. The event proposes a diverse lineup with mainstream acts, as well as cult bands, reunions, rarities and emerging talent. Aside from its lineup, Amnesia Rockfest is popular for its countryside setting, camping areas, carnival vibe and nonstop parties in the village throughout the weekend.
Amnesia Rockfest was founded in 2005 by then 17-year-old local resident Alex Martel. Tired of having to travel to bigger cities to attend concerts and events, he decided to start his own event in his hometown of Montebello, which he called Petite-Nation Rockfest. The first edition was almost canceled due to a tornado destroying most of the site a few hours before the start of the event. Three bands played the inaugural edition, which attracted 500 attendees: Martel's former band Deadly Apples opened, followed by local punk band UKKO and headliner GrimSkunk.
After a break in 2006, Rockfest came back in 2007 with the same format as the first edition. In 2008, the event expanded to a full day of music with two stages and was the first edition to attract attendees from outside the area, garnering press for its lineup which featured every single major Quebec band in the punk, rock and metal scenes, including GrimSkunk, Anonymus, Mononc' Serge, The Sainte Catherines and many more.
Rockfest 2009 continued in the same format, with a third stage added. The 2010 edition expanded to two days and featured more international acts such as Anti-Flag, Misfits and Alexisonfire. In 2011, the event was renamed D-TOX Rockfest with the D-TOX clothing retailer chain becoming the title sponsor. This edition was the first major year for the event, featuring bands such as NOFX, Lamb of God playing their sole 2011 show, Pennywise, Hatebreed and many more.
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