SURREY — Music and food are the focus of Surrey's annual Fusion Festival, set to return to Holland Park this weekend (Saturday and Sunday, July 18 and 19).
The award-winning, Coast Capital Savings-presented event will feature live music on four stages and also 40 cultural pavilions — all free to attend.
On the food front, The Flavours of Surrey is a yearly attraction at the festival that brings together local growers, businesses, producers and the public in an interactive and fun environment. This year’s Celebrity Cooking Stage features Surrey’s David Jorge, winner of TV’s “MasterChef Canada†contest (July 18, 3:30 to 4 p.m.), plus Trevor Randle, chef Brian McKenna, Shelley Robinson and Tammy Wood.
But really, live music is the festival's top draw. With that in mind, here are some of the music artists to see and hear this year:
JOSE FELICIANO (8:45 p.m. Sunday, Concord Pacific World Music Stage)
Guitarist Feliciano is recognized as the first Latin artist to cross over into the English music market, opening doors for others who now play an important role in the American music industry. He has been hailed by more than one poll as "best guitarist," and his hits include "Feliz Navidad" (inducted into the Grammy Hall of Fame in 2010), "Che Sara" and "The Sound of Vienna." Born blind in Puerto Rico, Feliciano's career began to bloom in New York's famed Greenwich Village. He is now an in-demand player, and has shared stages with some of the most notable musicians in the pop world.
SUPERNATURAL: A SANTANA EXPERIENCE (7:30 p.m. Saturday, SFU Celebration Stage)
Langley-based guitarist Doug Towle's seven-piece band recreates the music of Santana with great skill, from the Woodstock era to present day. The band includes Pete Davyduck on bass, Lyndon Dewitt on percussion, Patrick Gavigan and Heidi McCurdy on vocals, Mike Michalkow on drums and Bret Zeigler on keys. Check out versions of "Smooth," "Game of Love," "Evil Ways" and other hits in the band's promo videos (Supernaturaltribute.com/video), recorded not long ago at Blue Frog Studios in White Rock.
JAZZY B WITH MISS KAUR (8:30 p.m. Saturday, Concord Pacific World Music Stage)
Transatlantic star Jazzy B has been dubbed the Crown Prince of Bhangra in the years since his debut album dropped in 1993. Born in Punjab and raised in Canada, Jaswinder Singh Bains has built a following around the globe with catchy songs, lavish videos and energetic live shows.
DESTINEAK (7 p.m. Sunday, Surrey Cultural Stage)
This award-winning electronic duo out of Vancouver is known for delivering a DJ experience combined with live performance that employs a hybrid drum/DJ/live PA rig (check out the promo video at Youtube.com/user/ DESTINEAK). Vocalist Christina Sing is joined on stage by Bobby James, the powerhouse drummer for Vancouver rap-rock band DDT in the 1990s.
KUBA OMS (7 p.m. Saturday, YVR Cultural Community Stage)
With songs including “Electrolove†and “My Love,†the Vancouver Island-based Oms mixes 70s-era soul, funk and rock n’ roll for a crowd-pleasing musical adventure – think Jamiroquai jamming with Paolo Nutini, Jason Mraz, Ben Harper and Al Green. “I just love to write something meaningful and sneak it in to a pop song,†the award-winning songwriter once told a biographer. Oms’ last album, ADHD, is “an insight in to the human condition and our rapid development to an age of technology and electronics: losing our attention spans and part of our humanity along the way.â€
CHIN INJETI (6:30 p.m. Saturday, Concord Pacific World Music Stage)
The former Bass is Base man returns to his Surrey stomping grounds with his groove-based tunes, heard most recently on the album The Reverb. As a producer, Injeti has had a hand in a couple of Grammy Award-winning projects, including Eminem's Recovery. Long ago, he first picked up the bass while living in Ontario. "I can pretty much blame it on Geddy Lee," he told a biographer. "I love Rush. I wish I had a sexier story, but when I heard Hemispheres I thought, wow! I want to be able to do that. I just followed them for years, and then everything came to me."