Friday Night Headliner

Friday • 9:00 pm –10:00 pm | Main Stage (119 Ave & 93 St in the Grassy Field)

Secondhand Dreamcar is a 9-piece soul and roots band fronted by Canadian Folk Music Award-nominee Dana Wylie and also featuring notable producer Harry Gregg on bass, Jamie Cooper (Up and Over Trio, Obsessions Octet) on drums, Kyle Mosiuk (The Hello Darlins) and Chad Murphy (Dallas Smith) on guitar, Rooster Davis on organ, plus a horn section made up of some of Canada's best – Dave Babcock on sax, Bob Tildesley on trumpet, and Peter Filice on trombone. This group of Alberta heavies is crafting a distinct, funky, and lyrically driven sound that journalist and programmer Peter North has deemed the most exciting thing to come out of Edmonton since KD Lang and The Reclines.

The band had its serendipitous seminal moment when Wylie, Gregg, and Cooper were asked to form a house band for a pro jam at Edmonton venue SOHO. They were not a unit before that––Wylie and Cooper had never even shared a stage before––but within six months of playing together every week the chemistry was undeniable. Getting serious as a band was more of a realization than a decision, and the band line-up fleshed itself out just as organically. Secondhand Dreamcar began a residency at the historic Blues on Whyte club in September 2023, which by the end of the year had garnered them a remarkably sizable following and a glowing reputation, especially considering they had yet to release any music.

The band recorded their debut album Answer the Call at Gregg’s studio Riverdale Recorders in November 2023, and it is set for release on October 11th, 2024. While Secondhand Dreamcar is brand new, its members are all seasoned pros, and have collectively released or been featured on hundreds of albums, and have won and been nominated for dozens of awards. And like the serendipity that brought them together, their music has that special kind of magic that can no more be explained than denied.