Summer rock concert heads to B.C.'s Pemberton Valley

Residents of a small community just outside Whistler, B.C., are preparing to turn up the volume next summer as a music promoter makes plans for a major, three-day concert in the usually quiet village of Pemberton.

HUKA Entertainment says the lineup won't be revealed just yet, but the dates and location of the festival are set and tickets are available online at pembertonmusicfestival.com as early as Friday morning.

The concert, which HUKA CEO A.J. Niland says will include A-list headliners offering a wide spectrum of rock, indie, hip-hop, electronic dance music and more, will be held in the Pemberton Valley, about 35 kilometres north of Whistler, from July 18 to 20.

The Lil'wat Nation, Pemberton business, tourism and elected officials are all behind the event which a HUKA news release says will include a variety of arts, activities and other forms of entertainment and offer a blend of on-site camping and off-site hotel lodging options.

Pemberton hosted a large, multi-day concert in 2008 and while the event received accolades, promoter Live Nation cancelled further concerts in the area because of logistical and financial problems.

HUKA is optimistic it has resolved at least some of those problems by gaining permission to use acreage beside the planned festival grounds, eliminating the need for off-site camping or excessive commuting which was blamed for causing major traffic delays at the 2008 concert.