The Beauty and Chaos Behind Canmore AMPfest with Kasey Nolan

Metalheads can look intimidating from the outside, but Kasey Nolan says the community behind the music is often one of the most welcoming places you can find. Kasey is a Banff-based musician, independent promoter and the founder of Beauty In Chaos Productions. For more than a decade, he has helped create space for punk, metal and alternative music in the Bow Valley, connecting local artists with bands from across Alberta and beyond. He is also the founder of Canmore AMPfest, an all-ages festival built to showcase the full range of alternative music while giving artists and audiences a place to come together outside the usual bar and nightlife circuit. In this conversation, we get into what first pulled Kasey toward punk and metal, how Beauty In Chaos Productions began and why he felt the Bow Valley needed a festival of its own. We also talk about what makes AMPfest different from a traditional metal show, why the lineup stretches from fingerstyle guitar and electronic music to punk, hardcore, metalcore, black metal and melodic death metal, and what connects all of those artists despite how different they may sound. Kasey explains why keeping the festival all ages has always mattered, what artsPlace makes possible as a venue and how much work goes into organizing a full day of live music behind the scenes. Most importantly, we talk about the assumptions people make about punk and metal shows, why the scene is more inclusive than many people realize and what first-time attendees can expect when they walk through the doors. Canmore AMPfest returns for its fifth year on July 25, 2026, at @artsplacecanmore. The lineup includes: @eyeofhorusofficial@lushclot@[email protected]@umiyokai@sorguinazia@beyondsuffering@regalfoul@soggymoccasinsofficial@victorialiesband@jonnyrocketmansatomictango@timmymannmusic@kyle_pullan@quantummonastery Tickets are $40, with $20 youth tickets available through artsPlace Canmore. Canmore AMPfest is supported by Beauty In Chaos Productions @kaseynms, @banffpunknights, Heavy Metal A Way Of Life, The Pro Image and our good friends at @defendingawesome. This episode is brought to you by @drinkshaft, the Bow Valley’s number one grab-and-go cold brew. Thanks to Kasey for taking the time to join us and explain the work, community and chaos behind AMPfest. See you next Tuesday.