It was a sweeter Saturday than usual at the Harvest Festival with highlights including the parade, StrongMan provincial finals, and of course local groups The M’Ladies and Link and the Moustaches opening for headliner Big Sugar on the mainstage.
Heavy rain in the early evening did little to dampen the spirits of festivalgoers, with people taking shelter in the Meridian Exhibition Center during the showers. However, the StrongManitoba Provincial finals took place outdoors, rain or shine, with competitors contending against the downpour.
For many, the rides are the highlight of the weekend. Mikaela interviewed diehard Spin Out enjoyers while in line. The ride is a favourite of 13-year-old Grayson, even though he’s “always scared of it”. As for why he’s still in line, and how he overcomes his fear, the answer is simple: “Just scream the whole time!”
Reese might not enjoy the Spin Out, but he enjoys the bumper cars and “...looking for people that I know and just having a good time.”
Al Sideen has been travelling with WonderShows for the past four years drawing caricatures. While it’s his job to look closely at faces, his favourite part is “...meeting the people. They come from everywhere, and all the towns that we go into are all different fairs. Just beautiful.”
It’s not Link Neufeld’s first time gracing the Harvest Fest mainstage, but it’s still a special experience— “It’s great to see all the local people come out and support us, that they actually enjoy what we do.” Neufeld, of Link and the Moustaches, opened for Big Sugar on Saturday evening, a band that has impacted Neufeld: “A highlight has been... we get to meet Gordie Johnson and Big Sugar. [Johnson] was a hero of mine, growing up in the nineties.” Neufeld added, “I went to go see Big Sugar all the time. I think I’m maybe a little bit deaf because of it.”
Headliners Big Sugar took the stage in the evening, featuring a lineup of Gordie Johnson, Anders Drerup, and Root Valach. Johnson and Valach hail from Winnipeg, and returning to the prairies was a welcome sight for Johnson— “I’ve done a lot of drives across the prairie... to me, it’s a great comfort seeing fields, they’re growing, just all the way to the horizon... the nature and the size of the sky.”
Big Sugar has served as a cornerstone in the Canadian music scene, and included a nod to another great Canadian in music— with the a cappella of Stan Rogers’ “Northwest Passage” leading into Big Sugar’s “All Hell for a Basement”. As for their role as a proudly Canadian band, Johnson shared that their influences mix and merge to create a wholly unique sound. “Between the three of us, there are definitely some crossover points... everyone in the group plays more than one instrument. It’s like the building blocks of our sound.”
As for how the road has taken them throughout Canada, all the way to Winkler’s own Harvest Festival stage, Johnson shared that it’s not about the venue— it’s about the energy. “Once we flip the switch, it’s on.” Johnson continued: “We’re stoked to be doing this with each other and playing these songs, and there’s music, so, as long as people can read that on our faces, I think it’ll always work out.”
There’s more Big Sugar on the horizon, after wrapping up a tour of their album 500 Pounds along with a vinyl release backed by Jack White’s Third Man Records. There’s a fresh Big Sugar record on the way, “We’ve done mixing and mastering it...it’s kind of done now, so I just need to go home for a few weeks.” Johnson added.
Highlights for Sunday at the Harvest Festival include the morning’s worship services beginning at 9:45 AM, with the annual Car Show from 1-4 PM. Tomorrow’s mainstage performances are the Quonset Brothers at 6, The Color at 7:15, and headliner Tenth Avenue North taking the stage at 8:45 leading into fireworks at 10:00 PM.
Stay tuned for festival happenings on our social media pages.
With files from Connie Bailey and Jayme Giesbrecht.
