As Alberta’s summer festival season draws near, BUNS are gearing up for a fun-filled summer on the road, including a trip up to North Country Fair. The festival-favourite jam trio of guitarist Nick Basque, bassist Luc Levesque, and drummer Nate Raboud can’t wait to bring catchy hooks, freewheeling instrumentals, and fun-loving atmosphere to stages across Alberta.
Perhaps unsurprisingly for a jam band, BUNS came together organically in 2022, starting with a chance introduction and near-instant musical connection between Basque and Raboud. The pair met at an electronic music show and quickly made plans to jam with bassist buddy Levesque the following weekend.
“The first thing we did was have a 12-minute improvised jam that was just seamless,” Basque says. “We all just sat in silence and were like, ‘Yeah, we should probably start a band.’”
Just as the band itself came together quickly, their rise to prominence in the Western Canadian music scene was equally fast. Within two years, BUNS found themselves building an impressive resume with headlining slots at ValhallaFest in BC, Groverfest in Beiseker, Alternative Waves Festival in Medicine Hat, and North Country Fair.
BUNS have also released two full-length albums, 2023’s Fresh Out the Bag and 2025’s JoyRide. While the meticulous, structured nature of recording seems to run contrary to BUNS’ free-flowing nature, Basque says the band leans into the process making their three-piece sound as big as their imaginations.
“Since there’s only one guitar player in this band, I’m often finding myself having to do…chords into leads and kind of doing both of them at the same time,” explains Basque. “But when in the studio, I can kind of just play my chords to the song and [solo] over them to how I hear them.”
So, what can people expect when they see BUNS live this summer?
“Be prepared to dance,” says Basque. “It’s a fast-paced, all-over-the-place kind of vibe.”
Indeed, BUNS live shows pack quite a wallop, with funky jams fusing rock, funk, blues, jazz, and more into the band’s freeform sets. The songs flow into each other with improvised (and thoroughly danceable) interludes designed to keep crowds moving and grooving from start to finish.
Looking ahead to Alberta’s summer festival season, BUNS are excited to once again return to Driftpile for North Country Fair, citing their 2023 festival debut as an overwhelmingly positive experience.
“Every time we’ve gotten in front of those North Country Fair people, they’ve been pumped to see us,” says Basque. “We’re pumped to get back there and just make people dance and be happy.”
Learn more about BUNS and their upcoming shows here.