Scene directory
A verified directory of the rest of the Vancouver music ecosystem: college radio, other publications, local labels, the record-store circuit, and the community organizations that hold the scene up.
A bigger scene means more to cover. Every entry links out — the link is the destination.
UBC's campus and community station, on the FM dial since 1982 and running more than a hundred locally focused shows in seven languages. If a Vancouver band gets radio play anywhere first, it is usually here — and Nardwuar still does his weekly show.
Last verified July 16, 2026
SFU's volunteer-run campus and community station, broadcasting from the Burnaby Mountain Student Union Building to the eastern half of the region. Its music programming digs into the indie, underground, and world sounds commercial radio never touches.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A listener-owned co-operative on air since 1975, with 300-plus volunteers producing 140 hours of original programming a week from the Downtown Eastside. Its music show collectives take direct submissions from local artists.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A long-running Vancouver concert-photography and review crew shooting rooms from the Rickshaw to Rogers Arena, publishing full galleries within days of the show. Plainly, the other photographers in the pit.
Last verified July 16, 2026
CiTR's print arts magazine, published continuously since 1983 — the longest-running independent music publication in the city. Still free, still in print, still profiling Vancouver bands before anyone else does.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The city's broadest event-listings platform, with a daily music calendar that runs from arena tours to record-store in-stores. If you want one page of everything happening tonight, this is it.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Vancouver's alt-weekly institution, covering the city's arts and music since 1967. The monthly Van Jams column and can't-miss concert lists remain a reliable read on what is moving in local music.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A digital magazine devoted entirely to independent arts journalism in Vancouver, from new-music season announcements to venue-policy news. Some of the most consistent long-form culture coverage the city gets.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Chad Kroeger and Jonathan Simkin's independent label, named for the area code and home to Marianas Trench, Theory of a Deadman, and Carly Rae Jepsen's early records. Runs 604 Studios, a full production facility, on the side.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A DIY label pressing small-run vinyl for Vancouver artists since 2011, right down to an annual Christmas single. The label layer of the local scene at its most personal.
Last verified July 16, 2026
604's indie-minded sibling imprint, launched in 2010 with its own mandate and roster — the Zolas, Hotel Mira, and Fake Shark among them. The bridge between the DIY layer and the industry proper.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Vancouver's flagship indie label since 1991 — the New Pornographers, Neko Case, and cub all started here. Still signing and releasing new local records every year.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Founded in Vancouver in 1984 and the launching pad for Sarah McLachlan, Nettwerk completed a management-led buyout in early 2026 and remains an independent, distinctly Canadian company. The biggest label story this city has produced.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Commercial Drive
East Van's go-to shop since 2001, hailed by the CBC as one of Canada's top ten record stores. Buys collections of any size, any day, and stocks everything from must-own classics to the esoteric end of the aural experience.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Downtown
A West Hastings fixture since 1996 that grew out of skate culture into one of the city’s best crate-digging rooms, especially for hip hop, jazz, and electronic. Listening stations and a deep used wall reward the patient.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Commercial Drive
On the Drive since 1982, with a hand-picked selection that runs from Tom Waits to Tinariwen and a till that still sells local show tickets. World music is the specialty; the whole shop is the point.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Main Street
Vancouver's oldest independent record store, on Main Street since 1981, with in-store shows and release parties that make it a small venue in its own right. New and used vinyl, 45s, posters, and deep local memorabilia.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Main Street
Musician-owned and self-described as Vancouver's community record store — a longtime hub for local releases, consignment, and show tickets. The Hastings satellite closed in 2020; the Main Street original carries on.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Kitsilano
The West 4th institution since 1981, survivor of more than one brush with closure and still stocking one of the deepest new-and-used walls in the city. A pillar of the Kitsilano block that once defined Vancouver record shopping.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The charitable society behind the Vancouver International Jazz Festival, running since 1985 and one of the largest independent arts organizations in B.C. The 2026 festival put on dozens of free and pay-what-you-can shows across the city.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A volunteer-run non-profit building self-esteem in girls and non-binary youth aged 8–17 through music creation and performance, with year-round programming at the Moberly Arts and Cultural Centre. The next generation of the scene starts here.
Last verified July 16, 2026
Safer-spaces training for nightlife, music, and hospitality — consent education, bystander intervention, and harm-reduction workshops for venue staff and event crews. The reason a growing number of local rooms have a trained safety lead.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The province's music industry association: travel grants, the ARC artist accelerator, and professional development for both the for-profit and non-profit sides of the business. The first stop for any B.C. artist looking for funding.
Last verified July 16, 2026
A Vancouver charity funding certified music therapists in hospitals, hospices, schools, and seniors’ care across B.C. and Canada since 2012 — over $4 million granted to date. Where the scene’s money does the quietest, most direct good.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The member-run non-profit that has staged the Folk Fest at Jericho Beach since 1979 — the 49th edition runs July 17–19, 2026. An org-shaped festival and one of the longest continuous volunteer efforts in Vancouver music.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The non-profit society presenting experimental and contemporary sound in Vancouver since 1973, anchored by its annual festival each fall. The 2026–27 season brings artists from as far as Japan, Korea, Egypt, and Australia.
Last verified July 16, 2026
The all-ages advocacy organization that ran shows and pushed the city on venue regulation through the 2010s, seeking a permanent alcohol-free space. Its channels have been quiet since 2019, but its fingerprints are on every all-ages conversation Vancouver still has.
Last verified July 16, 2026
