Held every Labor Day weekend in the northern Québec mining town of Rouyn-Noranda, the Festival De Musique Émergente, or FME for short, has brought a bevy of new music discoveries to eager audiences who don’t have regular access to the thriving indie music scene in Montreal and beyond. Having survived the 2008 economic collapse and the hell that was the COVID-19 pandemic, the small, plucky fest has proven to be incredibly resilient, thanks in large part to a city and province willing to devote funds to the arts in a region that is known more for strip mines and toxic tailing ponds in the middle of the picturesque northern boreal forest.
Once a year, Rouyn-Noranda transforms from a blue-collar town into a vibrant, inclusive festival welcoming not only the usual fans of underground music who travel from locales such as Val d’Or, Timmins, North Bay, and even the Ottawa-Montreal region, but most importantly, local residents. Young families with kids in strollers mingle with metalheads, hip hop-obsessed teens check out a new Francophone act alongside a gaggle of curious grandparents, and grizzled dudes chat happily in twangy Québécois accents with tote bag-wearing hipsters from Mile End.
Of all the dozens of artists who performed at FME 2025, a few stood out more than others, many of whom showcased just how strong the Québec music scene is right now.
Bibi Club
The guitar-synth duo of Nicolas Basque and Adèle Trottier-Rivard has been generating significant buzz in the Canadian music industry in 2025, thanks to their recent album, Feu de garde, which, among other accolades, was named to the Polaris Music Prize shortlist earlier this summer. Juxtaposing classic French chanson with mid-1980s coldwave, guitar licks worthy of the Fall, and insistent beats that hearken back to early 1970s Krautrock, it’s a vibrant sound on record.
However, in the tiny Cabaret de la Dernière Chance, Trottier-Rivard and Basque cranked up the volume and unleashed a crescendo after a deafening crescendo of noise, chest-pummelling beats, and dreamy melodies, resulting in a dizzying, immersive ride for the hundred or so people crammed into the room.
Virginie B
Québécois hyperpop artist Virginie B made the most of her opportunity, on a tiny side stage, I might add, to make an indelible impression on everyone who stumbled across her high-energy performance. What started as a gathering of a couple of dozen curious onlookers gradually turned into a chaotic little rave that grew exponentially by the minute. With a charismatic, outgoing persona that matches the eclectic, manic music she creates, she commanded everyone’s attention as she and her band played selections from her very fun 2024 album, Astral 2000. Of the many performers at the festival, Virginie B was easily the biggest discovery, a vibrant addition to the Franco-pop landscape.
Population II
Two years removed from their seismic FME debut, during which the Diable Ronde pool hall (RIP) was all but leveled by the noise, the Montreal progressive rock trio have become critical darlings in their home province, not to mention arguably Québec’s most formidable live rock band right now. 2025’s album Maintenant Jamais has Population II expanding their heavily psych/space/krautrock sound into jazz and funk.
The guys put in a blistering prime-time performance on the festival main stage, creating a swirling cacophony that was both visceral and catchy. Guitarist/knob-twiddler Tristan Lacombe led the way with his screaming 12-string solos, his body contorting with every note. If that wasn’t enough, the band played a special lakeside set the following night, debuting their Yoo II collaboration with fellow kraut jammers Yoo Doo Right and Austin multi-instrumentalist/producer Nolan Potter.
Population II was such a formidable presence at FME that the only thing left was a coronation as the best band in Québec. Well, “best band of FME 2025″ will have to suffice.
Ariane Roy
While Lou-Adriane Cassidy might be the reigning Québécois pop star of 2025, her best friend Ariane Roy is hot on her heels. Roy’s adventurous new album Dogue ditches any and all traces of her recent singer-songwriter past in favor of a vibrant melange of 2020s pop, the studio nerdery of Steely Dan, the genre-stretching of Gaga, and the snarling disco of Dalida.
Even better, her main stage performance was met with wild adoration from the outdoor crowd, thanks in large part to Roy’s magnetic personality. She can command a big crowd, and the cosmopolitan touches on songs like “Coule”, “I.W.Y.B”, and “Ames Soeurs” elevate her music to the level of Belgian Star Angèle. If there ever was a Québécois artist primed to break out in Europe, it’s Ariane Roy. The decision to embrace the more aggressive, confrontational side of her art is starting to pay off.
Klô Pelgag
Under the nom-de-plume Klô Pelgag, Chloé Pelletier-Gagnon (get it?) has been charming Québec audiences for years with her sumptuously arranged art pop, with 2020’s Notre-Dame-des-Sept-Douleurs catapulting her into the mainstream. 2024’s Abracadabra saw her refining her sound even more, and her headlining set leaned heavily on that record’s lush sound. Featuring a superb backing band, who expertly brought Abracadabra’s multi-hued sound to vibrant life, Klô Pelgag put in a rousing, effervescent performance to an adoring capacity crowd, with the fan favorite “Libre” compelling hundreds to dance in the street.
Bad Waitress
What better way to offset all the sparkling Franco-pop than having the nastiest punk band in Canada tear things up? Four of the fiercest musicians you’ll ever come across, Toronto’s Bad Waitress returned to FME, this time to play a midnight set in the lounge of a local curling club. Looking and sounding like the unholy spawn of Babes in Toyland, L7, and 7 Year Bitch, Bad Waitress literally laid waste to the place, their songs a deafening roar, the feral screams from vocalist/guitarist Kali-Ann Butala equal parts devilish glee and feminine rage.
Following a comparatively precious set by Brooklyn punks Mary Shelley, Bad Waitress sent the weaker-willed patrons scurrying to the exits like rats on a sinking ship, but the rest of us chose to go down with the vessel. It was ugly, it was weird, it was glorious.
The OBGMs
Back in 2021, Toronto’s the OBGMs made a somewhat muted FME debut when the festival was under pandemic restrictions (seated, masked, etc.). Four years later, the gloves (or, rather, masks) were off, and the band was ready to tussle as direct support for Québécois pop punk heroes Les Trois Accords, for which a gigantic crowd had gathered. In no time, singer Dez McFarlane had the crowd in the palm of his hand as the band played selections from their brilliant 2024 album Sorry, It’s Over.
Never mind the fact he’s an Anglo; the French-speaking crowd fully bought what McFarlane was selling, and band and audience combined to create an outdoor spectacle that rivals any other Montreal concert I’ve seen all year. While American hardcore continues to attract the attention of the indie crowd these days, thanks to Turnstile and Knocked Loose, the ferocity of the OBGMs cannot be ignored.
Moonshine
Co-created by Pierre Kwenders, Montreal underground legends Moonshine have been specializing in after-hours dance parties for years, throwing epic, Afrocentric warehouse raves until dawn. It was anybody’s guess how the Northern Québec concertgoers would respond to something so cosmopolitan and hip. Still, not long after the crew hit the stage and started blasting their ebullient, contagious grooves, the small space was packed with people, everyone compelled to dance the night away. It was only a two-hour performance, but it was a taste of Montreal rave culture that locals won’t soon forget.
Scorching Tomb
Montreal death metal band might have been opening for Québécois deathcore legends Despised Icon, but their addition to the annual Sunday “Metal Night” was no mere afterthought. Scorching Tomb can play. Combining the chugging, midtempo power of Kataklysm with the gnarly tones of modern deathcore, the band wasted no time getting the packed venue moving, vocalist Vincent Patrick-Lajeunesse leading the charge with his mighty, guttural roar. Due in October, the band’s debut album, Ossuary, is a scorcher, and they gave FME a healthy dose of what to expect. They just might be Québec’s next significant metal export.
