Mitch McKinnon, stage name Shylow, a future bass artist from Revelstoke, will be performing at Monstercat Compound, a free street festival held at Monstercat HQ in Vancouver’s Railtown on Saturday, Sept. 18.
Monstercat Compound is an all-ages block party, featuring live art, video games, food trucks and more, all free of commission. The festival is a celebration of the local Vancouver community, providing a platform for local companies and performers.
Having performed at Shambhala, Center Of Gravity, Motion Notion, and more, Shylow has been making a name for himself on the west coast.
For the first time, he will be performing at Monstercat Compound on the Westwood Recording Stage.
Born and raised in Revelstoke, Shylow started experimenting with electronic music when he was 16.
“I paved my own way,” said Shylow. His music is influenced by a variety of scenes and genres: pop, hip-hop, core electronic and European metal to name a few.
After launching the Shylow moniker in 2016 with the help of Nick Westwood, CEO of Westwood Recordings and one half of B.C.’s own the Funk Hunters, his career was on an upward trajectory. Stalled by the pandemic, Shylow is excited to jump back into the electronic scene starting at Monstercat Compound.
“It’s exciting and it feels like I haven’t skipped a beat, but at the same time, this is my first major outing since COVID,” said Shylow. “It’s cool to have this as my first major billing back.”
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“Monstercat has always been on my radar,” said Shylow. “They’re a monolith in terms of electronic music online. They at the forefront of music technology, and their compound speaks for itself. You’ve got the VR, you’ve got music workshops, it’s all about building independent and up-and-coming artists.”
A true Revelstokian, Shylow sees possibilities to grow the electronic scene here in the place he calls home.
“As a town, we had some of those guerrilla gigs over the summer, and we need excitement for shows like that,” said Shylow. “We’re just on the cusp of having something special happen here once there’s more services and people have the ability to live and work. We’re bound for that eventually, and I think it just needs some love and care.”
Some of Canada’s top electronic performers will be headlining the event, including the Funk Hunters, Eminence, and Rylan Taggart. Shylow shares the Westwood Recording Stage with other upcoming electronic music stars such as Case of the Mondays, Jessu & Pyka, and Kotek.
To check out Shylow’s music, follow him on Soundcloud at www.soundcloud.com/iamshylow and follow him on Instagram at @iamshylow.