Pemberton BC is located at the foot of Mount Currie and is home to the first Pemberton Festival, July 25-27. 2008. This “European-style” rock festival is put on by Live Nation, and boasts artists such as Coldplay, Nine Inch Nails, The Tragically Hip and Jay-Z.

A major focus of the Pemberton Festival is to be as environmentally friendly as possible, reducing its environmental impact. If you carpool with more than four people to the festival, you will be given free parking. Shuttles to and from the concert site will be available from all lots, and from Whistler Village to the festival site.

“EcoNeutral” is calculating the festival’s total carbon footprint. After the event, trees will be planted to balance it out. Hydro hook-ups will be on-site, instead of fuel-burning generators, as well as on-site recycling, bio-degradable packaging and toilet paper that is made from 100% recycled materials.

Take a look at some of the artists performing at the festival:

Nine Inch Nails
(http://www.nin.com)
NIN has sold over 20 million albums worldwide, and will play material from the entire NIN catalogue on opening night.

Wolfmother
(http://www.wolfmother.com)
Wolfmother is Austrailia’s hottest rock trio. The band is often compared to Led Zeppelin and Black Sabbath.

Tom Petty & The Heartbreakers
(http://www.tompetty.com)
Tom Petty has sold over 50 million records and is still one of the biggest touring acts in the world.

The Tragically Hip
(http://www.thehip.com)
If you’re Canadian, you should know who The Tragically Hip is. The group has continually evolved for twenty years, and has still been able to maintain their unmistakable sound and captivating lyrics that keep fans coming back for more.

Sam Roberts Band
(http://www.samrobertsband.com)
With over 300,000 albums sold, fans will continue to be pleased when hearing material from the band’s latest release: “Love at the End of the World.”

Coldplay
(http://www.coldplay.com)
This band should need no introduction. Coldplay shot to fame in the year 2000 with the release of their landmark debut album, "Parachutes." The band’s fourth album “Viva La Vida” is out now. Coldplay will close the Pemberton Festival, and leave festival-goers to complete their festival experience on a high note.

Jay-Z
(http://www.jay-z.com)
Jay-Z is one of today’s top Hip-Hop performers, and will bring his New York street style to Pemberton.

For a more in-depth look at the first Pemberton Festival, head on over to the official website at http://www.pembertonfestival.com.

+Debbie Gebert
July 18, 2008
Photo: Official Pemberton