WASSABI COLLECTIVE
Wassabi Collective is the high-energy tribal funk group that became a cult favourite on Canada’s festival circuit in the early 2000s. In celebration of their 25th anniversary, the band reunited and hit the road, electrifying clubs and festivals across British Columbia, Ontario, and Nova Scotia.
Formed on Canada's West Coast in 2000, Wassabi Collective became known for their genre-defying sound, high-energy performances and unmistakable sense of adventure. For more than a decade, the band crisscrossed Canada in a converted school bus, building a devoted cult following while appearing at major festivals and venues across the country and beyond.
Their journey included legendary festival appearances at Shambhala, Evolve Fest and OM Fest, performances across North America, a feature on PBS's Roadtrip Nation, and a standout appearance at the 2010 Vancouver Winter Olympics. In 2012, after more than a decade on the road, the band stepped away.
Now, after more than ten years, Wassabi Collective are back!
Led by sultry vocalist and percussionist Melissa Meretsky and frontman and guitarist Brent “Gisto” Hongisto, the reunited collective brings the same infectious energy that made them festival favourites in the first place—music designed to get audiences moving while creating a communal, celebratory atmosphere.
Their sound draws freely from funk, reggae, world music, electronic grooves, psychedelia and dance music, creating the kind of genre-defying experience that is difficult to categorize and impossible to sit still through.
As Exclaim! once described it:
“Wassabi’s joyous sound takes you on a cosmic carpet ride from satisfaction to pure bliss... THE ULTIMATE FEEL GOOD ELIXIR.”
“Now they’re back—and spicier than ever.”
https://wassabi.net/
https://www.facebook.com/wassabicollective/
https://www.instagram.com/wassabicollective/
https://www.youtube.com/user/WassabiCollective
https://open.spotify.com/artist/3DsFLE4rzS91vxPE4P5Apd