Also Cool's Taverne Tour Ten Year Anniversary Top Picks
Celebrated for its distinctive, alternative curation, our favourite wintertime festival Taverne Tour turns 10! Promising to buzz the icy boulevards of Montreal’s Plateau from February 12th-14th, 2026, Taverne Tour will host artists travelling from New York, London, Gatineau, Paris, Boston, and more, alongside hometown heroes across over 20 venues.
Of course, while we hope you’ve secured your tickets for the stacked Also Cool showcase at O Patro Vys on Friday the 13th (with Amery, Jane Inc. and Yolande Laroche)—there is so much to discover. Here as your festival compass, explore our Taverne Tour Top Picks below.
Also Cool x Taverne Tour presents Amery, Jane Inc. and Yolande Laroche
Bernardino Femminielli by Aabid Youssef
Bernardino Femminielli allures with his elusive, nocturnal swank. The shadowy vagabond’s recent singles via Tony Price’s Maximum Exposure Inc. marry dancefloor-ready heat with Femminielli’s signature hushed delivery. The after-dark crooner returns to Montreal from Paris to perform Valentine’s Day night alongside fellow enigma, Elle Barbara.
Bernardino Femminielli plays Saturday, February 14th at La Sotterenea.
Christopher Owens by Sandy Kim
The music of Christopher Owens’ retired band Girls was the soundtrack of our formative years. The New York-via-Los Angeles singer-songwriter has kept us company for the better part of the last decade, with his tenderness not so much hardening, but more so evolving, on his latest solo pursuit I Wanna Run Barefoot Through Your Hair.
Christopher Owens performs Thursday, February 12th at La Sala Rossa with Sean Nicholas Savage and Fine Food Market.
Fine Food Market by Elliott Jeffrey
Folk dream-pop darling Fine Food Market, otherwise known as Sophie Perras, has a knack for songs that feel soft-focus and emotionally precise – like a memory you’re not ready to let go of. Tracks like “Midnight Train” and “Wild World” unfold slowly, steeped in country-folk textures and a familiar, comforting haze that feels well-suited to the festival’s intimacy. Across I’m afraid to be in love with someone who crashes their car that much, Perras writes with sincerity and theatrical flair.
Fine Food Market performs Thursday, February 12th at La Sala Rossa with Sean Nicholas Savage and Christopher Owens.
Hélène Barbier by Dom Berthiaume
Described as “anti-complicated,” Hélène Barbier is a charming live wire. Hailing from France, and now ten years settled in Montreal, Barbier’s bespoke, guitar-forward effervescence shines on her most recent solo record Panorama.
Hélène Barbier plays Valentine’s Day evening on February 14th at Turbo Haus alongside N NAO and Pastel Blank.
Nuha Ruby Ra by Louise Mason
We can’t quite put a finger on the sound of Londoner Nuha Ruby Ra, making her a must-hear act from this year’s Taverne Tour selections. The soloist’s 2023 EP Machine Like Me invites you in with its punk rock attitude, only to keep you hooked with its punchy, sharp and seductive turns.
Nuha Ruby Ra performs Thursday, February 12th at La Sotterenea alongside Durex, VICTIME and Korea Town Acid.
Protomartyr by Trevor Naud
Thriving in duality, Detroit post-punk outfit Protomartyr can shred and brood. In recent years, the band has expanded their palette into shoegaze-adjacent territory, all while staying true to their Motor City melancholic roots. To the delight of super fans, the group will be headlining two hard-hitting bills at this year’s edition of the festival.
Protomartyr plays Thursday, February 12th with Yoo Doo Right, Hot Garbage and Alix Fernz at Le Belmont (SOLD OUT), and returns Friday, February 13th with FACS, Shunk and We Owe.
Yoo Doo Right by Jan Kuča / Rose KoЯnmier
Montreal experimental rock trio Yoo Doo Right build expansive, slow-burning tracks that swell to fill every corner of the room. Songs from From the Heights of Our Pastureland unfold patiently, moving across long stretches of post-rock plains and sudden peaks of intensity, more experiential than cinematic. When vocals surface, they cut sharply—“We took this land with calloused hands,” Justin Cober cries on “Spirit’s Heavy but Not Overthrown”—providing a pointed moment of clarity within the band’s towering sound.
Yoo Doo Right takes to the stage on Thursday, February 12th with Protomartyr, Hot Garbage and Alix Fernz at Le Belmont (SOLD OUT).
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