MONDAY AUGUST 4th
(BC DAY HOLIDAY MONDAY)
1:00 PM - 7:00 PM
BANFIELD PARK / VIC WEST
521 CRAIGFLOWER ROAD
VICTORIA BC
~ FREE PERFORMANCES ~
FREEDOM ENGINE (MATHEW JONSON LIVE AMBIENT)
Originally from Victoria, Mathew Jonson has developed one of the most distinctive voices in electronic music. When you hear one of Jonson’s songs, you almost immediately know it’s his. And yet there’s no mistaking any given song for another. His music offers a rare fusion of populist intensities and nuanced musicality. His standards for sound and presentation are exacting. Both on stage and in the studio, Jonson’s fealty to analog equipment and real-time playing; as opposed to mere layback serves as a standard bearer for a kind of electronic music that goes way beyond the drag ‘n’ drop world of digital composition.
Freedom Engine is an alter alias of Mathew’s, an outlet for unbridled expression as heard on the debut album “A Box Full of Magick” and at performances at electronic music festivals where intricate sound design and emotive electronics are held in high regard: Dekmantel, Houghton and Mutek. Freedom Engine is also the name of the music academy founded by Mathew, focused on music education and mentorship for a new generation of electronic musicians.
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RIGHTEOUS RAINBOWS OF TOGETHERNESS:
From Basscoast to Rifflandia, and a few editions of Wonderment along the way, Righteous Rainbows’ technical wizardry and improvisational approach have made them one of BC’s most treasured live electronic music acts. While known for their dance floor antics, they will be performing ambient in the park this year, drawing from their ambient album “Astrobiology”.
https://righteousrainbowsoftogetherness.bandcamp.com/album/astrobiology
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SOFT ERROR (efemme & hrdvsion)
Having played ambient as Efemme and Hrdvsion in 2021, this husband-wife duo have returned to slay dancefloors in 2023 and as Hot Sleepers in 2024.For 2025, they will perform as Hot Sleepers at The Downbeat on August 3, and then perform an ambient set under their new moniker, Soft Error.
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PJS
PJS serve up drones that evoke sunlight and shadows bouncing off a clearing of pine trees. Patrick Dique and Jordan Christoff have settled into an unabashedly psychedelic lane, releasing albums on labels like Global Pattern, Ume Records, and Kudatah. Their latest, Spirals, arrives via Cosmic Winnetou, and captures PJS at their most wooly and contemplative. The record is centered on heavenly drones, which rarely evolve past a gentle hum. Spirals calls to mind a zoomed in glimpse at an intricately patterned tapestry, which is probably why it was listed in the Best Ambient on Bandcamp in January 2025.
https://pjsmusicsound.bandcamp.com/album/spirals
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CASCADIA SOUND
Cascadia Sound is a collaborative project featuring Chris Rozek and DJ Dub Gnostic, founders of Victoria’s Wonderment Music Festival. They originally met while active in the early 1990s Toronto electronic music scene, where they were influenced by artists who regularly visited from Detroit, Germany and the UK. They each made their own way to the west coast before reconnecting as Cascadia Sound in 2010.
https://soundcloud.com/cascadiansound/deep-in-dub-live
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Banfield Park is located along the shoreline of the inner gorge waterway in Vic West, roughly 20-30 minutes walking down the Galloping Goose pedestrian / cycling pathway from the Johnson Street Bridge. The park is located at 521 Craigflower Road on the #14 Bus Route, behind the Vic West Community Centre (where public washrooms can be found). There is a kids playground on site and a swimming dock at the water. There will be no concession on site, but there are nearby cafes and restaurants, including Thai and Mexican food in the 800 block of Craigflower, and the waterfront patio of Glo Restaurant across the Selkirk Trestle. Please come prepared for your water, food, sunscreen, swimming and floating needs. And please pack-it-in, pack-it-out!
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Wonderment takes place on the unceded territories of the Lək̓ʷəŋən peoples, the Esquimalt and Songhees First Nations. Banfield Park was traditionally used by local First Nations for canoe races and community gathering.
Wonderment 2025 is supported by the Government of Canada, the Province of BC, the BC Arts Council, the Capital Regional District, and the City of Victoria. We are also grateful for the supports of Open Space Gallery, Exclaim!, The Georgia Straight, The Capital Daily, DL Sound, Long & McQuade, Modo Carshare Cooperative, the Vic West Community Centre, Sunbelt Rentals, and the Inn at Laurel Point.
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SCHEDULE:
1:00 PM - PJS
2:00 PM - Righteous Rainbows of Togetherness
3:00 PM - Soft Error
4:00 PM - Freedom Engine
5:00 PM - Cascadia Sound
The event ends by 7:00pm.
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