Category: Sponsors 2023

Tomorrow is the big day! We will be holding a raffle draw in the evening, with tickets available for purchase throughout the day. For $5 per ticket, you’ll be entered into a draw to win one of the following prize packs, each valued at $75.

Prize 1:

$50 Cheap Thrills gift certificate
Keiji Haino – Abandon All Words… 2CD (Alien8 Recordings, 2001)

Prize 2:

$50 Scream & Writhe gift certificate
Keiji Haino – Abandon All Words… 2CD (Alien8 Recordings, 2001)

Prizes 3, 4, 5:

Untitled Zine, issues 3-6
Masonna – Frequency L.S.D. CD (Alien8 Recordings, 1998)

Prize 6:
Artbreakhotel – Karas LP (Buried In Slag And Debris, 2022)
Merzbow – Aqua Necromancer (Expanded) 2LP – limited white vinyl edition (Absurd Exposition, 2022)

Thanks to Cheap Thrills for donating the gift certificate and classic Alien8 CDs, to Untitled Zine for donating copies of their publication and the Artbreakhotel LP, and thanks to Scream & Writhe for donating the gift certificate and Merzbow 2LP.

See you all tomorrow! The noise starts at 2:30PM sharp!

We’re grateful to have Pizza Bouquet as a sponsor for Initial Shock. Locally-owned and operated in Montreal since 2018, @pizzabouquet is a spot favoured by many for their large slices, 16” pies and unique specials that make them arguably the best pizza joint in town. They’re located in Little Italy at 45 Rue Beaubien East, so you know where to go next time the craving strikes. Special thanks to Andre and the crew for helping us feed performers during the fest.

Initial Shock kicks off at 2pm this Saturday, July 1 @ La Sotterenea (4848 Boul. Saint-Laurent). See you there!

Another one of our generous and supportive sponsors is Untitled Zine, a pro-printed Canadian zine dedicated to covering unique voices in contemporary harsh noise, experimental, drone, and the avant-garde. Edited by Chris Gibson and Noah Gadke, each issue is rich with articles, essays, reviews and interviews penned by artists and fans of all ilks across the experimental music landscape. It’s refreshing to see the amount of care and hard work that goes into each issue, and the formidable list of seasoned contributors continues to satiate a growing number of supportive readers.

The latest issue of Untitled is their largest yet and features a bevy of artists such as Mattias Gustaffson (Altar of Flies, Barstool Mountain), GX Juppiter-Larsen (The Haters), Barrett E. Leddiard (who will be performing at Initial Shock as TOANCHE DWELLING) and many more.

Untitled has generously donated copies of their four most recent issues to be won as part of our raffle draw the night of the fest. Issues can also be purchased through Scream & Writhe and Untitled Zine themselves.

As a DIY festival, we’re grateful to have sponsors who are supporting our event and throwing us some swag to give away to some lucky attendees. One of those sponsors is Cheap Thrills, Montreal’s longest-running independent record store. A mandatory stop for anyone visiting from out of town during the fest, Cheap Thrills deals in a well curated selection of new and used records and have always been supporters of the underground. For many years, Gary, the shop’s proprietor, also ran the well-respected Alien8 Recordings, releasing now classic albums by harsh noise artists such as Aube, Knurl, Masonna, Merzbow and many others across an array of genres.

Cheap Thrills has generously donated a $50 gift certificate and classic Alien8 CDs by Masonna and Keiji Haino which will be included in our raffle draw (prizes to be drawn and given away the night of the fest). Many thanks to @cheapthrillsmtl for their generous support of Initial Shock. Head to their downtown location at 2044 Metcalfe Street to grip the essentials!