Barcelona’s prestigious festival undertakes its eight-city debut tour of North America with a Montreal stopover at Metropolis on November 3rd.

It is the first time Sónar has undertaken a full tour anywhere in the world. Sónar On Tour will be led by some of the most cutting edge artists in electronic music, blending live performance and DJ sets. Joining Sónar On Tour will be Die Antwoord, Azari & III, Seth Troxler, Paul Kalkbrenner, Tiga, Gesaffelstein and Nic Fanciulli.

Sónar was established as an annual festival in Barcelona in June 1994. Its founding principle was to blend artistry with entertainment, celebrate the avant-garde and experimentation, and to explore the boundaries of electronic music and its cultural iterations. 2012 Sonar headliners included Fatboy Slim, Deadmau5, Hot Chip, Luciano, The Roots, James Murphy, Richie Hawtin, Lana Del Rey, Nicolas Jaar, Laurent Garnier and many more.

Sónar On Tour will present artists challenging and expanding what dance music can be. Eschewing bubble-gum EDM, the artists joining Sónar On Tour are uncompromising in their vision for what people can dance to. They are innovators capable of creating some of the dancefloor’s most sublime and transcendent moments.

About the artists:

Die Antwoord returned to Sonar, Barcelona this summer to present their new live whirlwind, entitled "TEN$ION." It is a performance and album that shatters hip-hop and the rave spirit to smithereens and puts them back together, according to Die Antwoord’s own formula. On Tour the trio will present this overwhelming show that exudes futuristic decadence, hedonism, sarcasm and sexuality.

Azari & III has revived the original spirit of house, based on vibrant songs and analog electronic productions, featuring guitar, drums, bass, piano, wind instruments, and vocals, above all else. A rereading of the earliest canons of Chicago house, as close to pop as it is to the dancefloor, their self-titled album ended up in several 2011 best of lists. Standout tracks like "Hungry for the Power" and "Reckless With Your Love" have rightly become huge dancefloor anthems.

Paul Kalkbrenner might be the biggest star American dancefloors have never heard of. Born in Leipzig but based in Berlin, the name of Paul Kalkbrenner, is closely linked with B-pitch Control, but he started to move masses after his performance as the lead in the film “Berlin Calling," for which he also provided the soundtrack. He now sells out stadiums to tens of thousands, with a singular emotive take on techno that forms the melodic heart of his live show.

Tiga is one of North America’s most revered electronic artists. The man behind albums like “Ciao!”, outstanding tracks like “Pleasure From The Bass” and “Sunglasses at Night” plus a long list of remixes for top drawer artists such as The Human League, New Young Pony Club and Cabaret Voltaire, has kept pushing the envelope since first being discovered. A champion of all forms of good dance music, and the man behind the always influential Turbo label, Tiga is a Canadian national treasure.

Seth Troxler is quite simply one of the most captivating characters of modern dance music. The Detroit native has won over legions of fans for the singularity of his vision and inimitable bravado, on and off the decks. As one quarter of Visionquest, he played a major role in making the label one of the driving forces in dance music over the past two years. Whether it be DC10, fabric or Panorama Bar, or even an intimate after-party, Troxler’s diverse record-bag, and brave selecting style have made him one of dance music’s fastest rising stars.

Nic Fanciulli lives and breathes house music. The UK native got his start in Maidstone, and continues to hold monthly parties there, that have become regarded as some of Britain’s best. Grammy nominated, Fanciulli is one of the rare talents, equally adept in-studio as they are behind the decks. Glance through the discography of his influential Saved Records imprint, and Nic’s deep knowledge of dance music’s history, and his knack for spotting the next big hit becomes quickly apparent.

Gesaffelstein is a sculptor of sound. He takes the minutiae and delivers a grander structure. Impeccable production is channeled into immersive, rugged soundscapes, capturing techno’s more apocalyptic elements. His music is transformative on a dancefloor, far from IDM, its music that pulls you in with both hands.

View Sónar North American Tour on YouTube and browse their photo gallery at Barcelona's 2012 International Festival of Advanced Music and New Media Art.

Venue

Métropolis, 59 Saint Catherine Street, Montreal, QC H2X 1K5

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Phone

514-844-3500

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