“I did a stage dive and completely took out this girl—God bless her heart. I picked her up, and I was like, ‘I’m so sorry’. And she turned to me smiling, and I was like, ‘This show is the shit.’”

More than a month later, the echoes of one unforgettable night at Louis’ still linger. Three local bands—Blu Beach Band as Mac DeMarco, Blind Commentary as Title Fight, and Tracy Waters as Pinegrove—are still basking in the afterglow of a show that was equal parts tribute and triumph.

The idea for 331 came about when William Sanzu Kuto was managing the SaskTel Saskatchewan Jazz Festival: “I realized how strong community-driven events centered around live entertainment can be. At the same time, I couldn’t help but notice a gap—the University of Saskatchewan campus lacked events that truly celebrated the youth and alternative communities.” 

In his work with the USask UNICEF chapter, Kuto organized 331 in collaboration with the USSU, the College of Arts and Science, the USask Biology Club, and the UofS Debate Society.

With more than 320 attendees, the event raised between $6,600 and $7,000. Organizers will be donating $2,000 to the Prairie Harm Reduction, “especially given their lack of government funding,” Kuto says. The remaining funds and future fundraising proceeds will be directed toward a UNICEF campaign. “With so many impactful initiatives to choose from, our strong funding position gives us the opportunity to support a cause that can make a noticeable difference,” Kuto said.  

Kuto was inspired by the “real festival experience” offered by Sask Jazz as well as Beefy Records’ celebration of the “alternative community” in Saskatoon: “From the start, my goal wasn’t financial—it was about building a successful event where attendees could find like-minded people and where bands would walk away with a memorable experience they’d want to relive. More than anything, we wanted to create a concert that resonated with both the audience and the artists—something they’d look back on with excitement and be eager to be part of again.”

Kuto shared exciting details about future shows: “Looking ahead, 331 may become an annual concert. Louis’, the USSU, and the bands themselves have expressed interest in bringing it back—bigger and better. Next year’s event, potentially titled 441, is already shaping up, with Greenwing as a possible addition to the lineup.”

Tracy Waters is a high-energy band from Regina, SK, known for their raw and exhilarating live shows. The lineup consists of Justin Wagner (Guitar), Marshall Brooks (Drums and Vocals), Imari Wensel (Vocals and Guitar), and Orlando Salazar (Bass and Vocals). The band’s formation was as spontaneous as their music. What started as an impromptu show, with two of the members performing while the others watched from the crowd, sparked an immediate connection driven by their shared passion to create and share music. I spoke to them following their performance at Louis’ for 331.

Q: Can you tell me about your musical influences?

The band’s sound initially began with a chill, folk-influenced vibe—Wensel initially envisioned something like Men I Trust. However, after performing their first single, “50 Nic”, and feeding off the crowd’s energy, their sound quickly evolved.

Salazar: “I got an overdrive pedal, and that changed everything.”

Another turning point came at their Hampton Hub show, where a moshing crowd cemented their direction. “With each show, we realized what energy and expression get the crowd going,” Salazar added.

Live performances shape their songwriting process, with songs often coming together on stage before being recorded. The band is still refining its sound, avoiding “labels or restrictions”, said Wagner. They point to “Violet” as an example of the “drastic duality” in their music, a defining element of their style.

Wensel: “What’s super important to us is not having an idea of how the song should be. What we’re learning now is like, you just have to be of service to the song.”

 Q: Have you guys ever felt pigeonholed [by audience expectations]?

Wensel: “We’ve definitely had learning experiences where we expected so much. For example, we were asked to do this show, and it was quite a milestone for us. We set great expectations—we wanted to look good and have aura.”

However, the band’s high hopes quickly turned into disappointment. “We thought this was going to be ‘the show,’ but it ended up being the worst,” Wensel added.

Salazar: “We were too uptight, trying too hard to live up to the idea of what we thought we were. My mom […] came up to us afterward and said, ‘You guys didn’t seem like yourselves.’”

Brooks: “On the contrary, we have a little community around us [with] all these other bands. They’re with us wherever we go,”

Salazar: “I think people cling to authenticity—that’s why people have stuck with us.”

Q: What did you think about the energy at Louis’?

Wagner: “We were treated really well by everyone that threw the event. The crowd was amazing. The energy was fantastic.”

Brooks: “We got free nachos.”

Wagner: “We got a lot of love for Saskatoon—a lot of love for the UofS. They treated us so good.”

Salazar: “It was a lot of cool contrast between the people that were there, the people that were obviously Blind Commentary fans, like outcasts and fruits and whatnot,” he added playfully. “Everyone was vibing, the girls were moshing just as much. I did a stage dive and completely took out this girl—God bless her heart. I picked her up, and I was like, ‘I’m so sorry’. And she turned to me smiling, and I was like, ‘This show is the shit.’”

Brooks: “Everyone there was just super nice. Moshing or not, everyone’s there for each other, everyone had everyone’s back, everyone’s equal too.”  

Wensel: “That’s the one thing I love about Sask shows […] there’s no barrier between the artists and the crowd. I really like how it’s just a bunch of people coming together to do music.”

Q: Speaking of the lack of boundaries between fans and performers, I know you guys have a fan page. Have you—

(Band laughs and hollers)

Q: —Have you had any other crazy fan experiences?”

Brooks: “When we first saw [the fan page], we’re like, ‘Yo, this is really weird.’ There’s one point where we got so in our head about it that we were like, ‘Yo, these people have to stop, \we have to shut down this operation.’”

Wensel: “‘Cause it was like, ‘Where are they getting some of these photos?’ There’s a photo of me on there from when I was ten!”

Salazar: “I mean, no matter who it is, there’s people who care that much about us to make a fanpage.”

Wagner: “Yeah, it’s kinda cool. But, like—chill out!” (laughter). 

Salazar: “For our [album] release show […] we had our set list written on dresses, and at the end of the night, there were all these people coming up to us and being like, ‘Yo, can I get that one?’ And there were people fighting, like, ‘No I want that one!’ There were a couple kids that came on to us with a sharpie, [asking] ‘Can you sign my Tracy Waters shirt?’ I was so imposter syndrome, like, ‘Am I worthy of signing this kid’s shirt?’”

Q: Where do you guys see yourselves going?

Wagner: “We want to do some kind of tour soon this summer. We really want to bring the sound and the energy out to Alberta, Manitoba, and even maybe all the way up in BC.”

Wagner: We want to try something new every show, writing lots of music, hopefully some [music] out this year.

Q: What’s the most rewarding part of being in a band?

Brooks: “For me [it’s] the community. At the end of the day,  whatever happens with the show or with our music, we always have people here for us, which is—it’s not something I’ve always had—something to this scale. So, it’s really nice to just have all these people in my life.”

Q: If you could open for any band or artist, who would it be?

Wensel: “Title Fight.”

Salazar: “Turnstile.”

Brooks: “Pinegrove.”

Wagner: “Fontaines D.C.”

 Q: Is there anyone you want to shout out?

Wensel: “Blind Commentary, Endless Retirement.”

Brooks: “Blu Beach Band, Riley [McLennan] of Lova Lamp, Nathan [@brain____freeze].”

Wensel: “@utopiacapturedd, Failed States, Sadie Hawkinz.”

Wagner: “Jacob Slater.”

Brooks: “Shout out to you, the reader of this newspaper.”

Wagner: “Shout out to Sean.”

Wensel: “Shout out to Bob Dylan.”

Q: Have you guys seen the movie?

Wagner: “We went and saw it last week, and then the next day, me and Imari both bought a harmonica.”

Tracy Waters reflected on 331 as an awesome opportunity to fundraise for a good cause and discussed their commitment to using their music to give back to the community. Salazar emphasized supporting up-and-coming artists by providing opportunities, while Wensel highlighted that all the proceeds from their album release show were donated to the YWCA. Wagner felt that it was meaningful “to be a part of something bigger than yourself,” such as the benefit shows they have organized for the Regina Sexual Assault Centre.

Tracy Waters has been nominated for Album of the Year for Who The Fuck Is Tracy? at the 2025 Sask Music Awards. The SMAs will occur on Sunday, March 2, at the Regina Performing Arts Centre. Tickets can be purchased here. Their next show is on Feb 28, at The Exchange in Regina, featuring Whale and the Wolf, Lova Lamp, and Blind Commentary. Tickets can be purchased here.

Special thanks to the event photographers Light Thief Media @lightthiefmedia and Utopia Captured @utopiacapturedd.