The cool thing about Calgary is how easy it is to get away from Calgary. Drive an hour or two from the city limits, and you can hike mountains, bum around a stuffed gopher museum, or visit the “Official Star Trek Capital of Canada.”
Case in point: over the weekend of February 6 to 8, the Badlands hosted a different kind of rock than it is known for. Now in its third year, the Cold Bones Festival lit up the “downtown” streets of Drumheller with a multi-genre music, glowstick dance parties, and hangover-killing pancakes. And the lineup featured heavy amounts of Calgary representation, from the jazzy pop of Ginger Beef to the folk-y anthems of hometown hero Michael Bernard Fitzgerald.
“We wanted to create a space [where we could] bring people to the valley, so they could see what else is out here,” said Chris Lorenz, who founded the festival with his partner Candace in 2024. “People mostly see this as a place to bring your children … and we’re trying to change that.”
Travel Alberta is investing in the festival to spotlight Alberta beyond the usual Banff-and-Jasper circuit. For Scenesters looking to play tourist without blowing the budget, festivals like this (or Loud As Hell later in the summer) offer an affordable weekend away. A weekend pass is only $85, with 50 per cent off for those under 17.
Wandering on foot between the four Cold Bones venues feels like a condensed version of a certain Calgary festival. Bouncing from the hip-hop vibes of K-Riz inside Heller Good Sandwiches (which the Lorenz’s own) to spacey indie noise courtesy of Victrix at Drum Distilling felt immediately familiar to this experienced Sled Islander. The Establishment‘s special Badlands beer brought a taste of home to dino-country. And how can you say no to a free Sunday pancake breakfast six months before the Stampede?
It’s affordable and fun to be a tourist in your own province. Between music festivals like this and tons of “weird retail” shops, there’s a whole lot more to Drumheller than the Royal Tyrell Museum. “We see the valley as an opportunity,” said Lorenz. An opportunity to support small business, grab a delicious meal … and party it up in the Badlands. Relive it all below.
All photos by Sebastian Buzzalino, Unfolding Creative Photography, unless otherwise noted.
All captions by Nathan Iles.
