Shr3d Fest is quickly becoming an annual event in Toronto that guitar enthusiasts and music lovers are looking forward to every year. Entering it’s 4th consecutive year, the purpose of Shr3d Fest is to raise money for charity. Proceeds from this year’s event went to SickKids Toronto. As an official non-for profit organization, board members Justus Hajas and Jordan Wav put together a stacked lineup of bands to take the stage, while working with a number of companies including Zeru Guitars, Ernie Ball, Neural, Fruit FX, Rok-Lok and Temple Audio Design to provide giveaways that would be raffled off to those in the audience.
This year’s show took place at Supermarket Bar & Variety on July 4th, which featured four talented guitar-heavy acts: Jordan.wav, Lavender, Gracefield, and Odd Times.
Starting the night off was Gracefield, a Toronto-based prog rock trio. Without an official release (although there are rumours of EP on the horizon), they set the tone for the evening with a healthy dose of guitar solos that including those you can hear on the track AQUARIAN posted on their Instagram account.
Following Gracefield was Lavender. A project formed by Justus Hajas, Nick Loduca, and Mitchell Greenham, Lavendar is somewhat of a supergroup you could say, with each member being part of other bands and or having other projects on the go. They released their debut single Live A Lie on May 28, 2026. Armed with headless 8-strings, the trio covered a lot of ground on their fretboards, layering screaming lead lines and guitar solos overtop of low djenty riffs.
Next to take the stage was Jordan.wav. As a serial guitar shredder, amassing over 130K Instagram followers, and creating the famed Frog Pedal, Jordan, accompanied by a trio of musicians, serenaded the crowd with jazzy clean-toned riffs and technical guitar solos. Having released the groovy track Moondance just a month prior, Jordan.wav showed off his guitar chops with a plethora of solos both rehearsed and fully improvised.
Closing out the night was Montreal’s own prog / power metal trio Odd Times. When I say prog and power metal, they do exactly that masterfully, blending classic 80s and 90s metal riffs with technical prog elements. How would I explain it? Blend Mötley Crüe and Periphery with a splash of The Dillinger Escape Plan. It’s unique, it’s guitar-driven, and lived up to the name of Shr3d Fest.
The very first Shr3d Fest took place June 8, 2023 at The Piston which featured music by Justus Hajas, Polychuck, and Jordan.wav. A year later, Justus and Jordan were joined by NRTHN, & OBNOXIOUS for Shr3d Fest 2. Shr3d Fest 3’s lineup included Standards, Justus Hajas, .30, and Jordan.wav.
While Shr3d Fest 4 is officially in the books, one thing’s for certain, we are eagerly awaiting Shr3d Fest 5 next year.
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