The Phoque Off music festival in Quebec is not afraid to push the limits and has decided to go beyond simple reality for its 2022 edition. This one will take place… nowhere. But it will be accessible from everywhere. Or, to be more exact, it will be by visiting the digital immersive environment of the New York company Nowhere, which has all the appearances of what is called, these days, the metaverse.
The term “metaverse” was made popular last fall by US billionaire and Facebook founder Mark Zuckerberg. The organizers of the Seal Off festival also use it extensively.
The chances of meeting “Zuck” in the virtual crowd orbiting around one of the three digital stages occupied by the event from February 21 to 25 are close to absolute zero. Those of coming across a few hundred alternative music lovers from all walks of life are excellent, however, assures Yanick Capuano, co-founder and programming director of this rather crazy event which was born in 2015. “We created the Seal Off for music professionals, but the public quickly showed interest in our shows and our programming”, explains the organizer in an interview with Duty.
“In a normal room, we would have 200 places reserved for people in the community and a hundred for the public. This year we will open the festival to the public earlier, with an event open to all, he says. 200 places will be offered to the public and 100 places for professionals. »
We created the Seal Off for music professionals, but the public quickly showed interest in our shows and our programming.
Presenting concerts in immersive digital environments is nothing new. Video game enthusiasts who are familiar with the huge online game Fortnite know it, those who can occasionally attend live concerts of international megastars.
Le Phoque Off uses a unique Web platform called Nowhere to which you connect exclusively on your personal computer. No virtual reality headset or smart phone. The avatar that is created there displays live the flow of the webcam pointed towards you. You can only mute your own microphone, if you wish, but that’s it.
There is a will of the organizers to ensure a certain authenticity precisely by avoiding that people show up anonymously at the shows. “For human contact, Nowhere looks like a real congress where you can quickly exchange contact details, as if it were a business card. It’s an element of human contact that we considered important,” adds Yanick Capuano.
All-round audacity
On site, viewers will hear the conversations taking place nearby. They will also hear the music playing on the stage in front of them if they get close enough. The organizers promise high sound quality. You will have to connect your PC to your stereo to take full advantage of it.
They also promise eclectic programming despite the challenges posed by the pandemic and restrictions related to travel and the use of public places. The event lost about a third of the performers its organizers had hoped to feature.
Nevertheless, there will be something for everyone since the majority of artists will still be on site, albeit virtually. The programming relies on a variety of musical genres that pull in all directions. It goes from soft pop to black metal.
There is of course a heavy contingent of local artists, but we also note the presence of some international artists, with in particular the arrival of French, Mexican and South American groups.
When planning the 2022 edition, before the holidays and before the announcement of new restrictions, Patrick Labbé, the co-founder and general manager of Le Phoque Off, intended to celebrate a certain return to normal life by presenting a very diversified musical menu. If anything, holding the event in the metaverse will only make this diversity more apparent.
“Our goal has always been to deliver bold content,” he says. The 2022 program was going to be bold even face-to-face. It was only later that we learned that another formula would have to be found. »
Fans of the Seal Off will rejoice: audacity translates very well into the metaverse.