SNOTTY NOSE REZ KIDS
Where: Capital Ballroom, 858 Yates St.
When: Friday (8 p.m.) and Saturday (8 p.m.)
Tickets: $47.86 from thecapitalballroom.com
Why: Snotty Nose Rez Kids have become upwardly mobile in recent years, from signing a major label contract with Sony in 2023 to scoring a Juno Award nomination last week. The hugely talented Indigenous hip-hop duo began checking dates off their Hot Planet Tour in November, and arrive in Victoria for two shows at the Capital Ballroom battle tested and with a wave of momentum at their backs. Not that rappers Young D and Yung Trybez need any assistance in that area: Previous performances by the Vancouver group have become live event benchmarks, and the standard against which all other hip-hop concerts are judged in this city. Don’t sleep on getting advance tickets, either — there’s a reason Snotty Nose Rez Kids are booked for back-to-back nights, after all.
BLUE WHALES: RETURN OF THE GIANTS
Where: IMAX Victoria, Royal B.C. Museum, 675 Belleville St.
When: Thursday to March 7
Tickets: $12 from imaxvictoria.com
Why: The world’s largest animal on the largest screen of its kind in B.C.? That’s a heavenly combination for film buffs and cetologists alike, especially when the documentary is presented in IMAX 3D. There are few better ways to see this 45-minute film, narrated by Andy Serkis of The Lord of the Rings fame, which follows two scientific expeditions as they track blue whales through the Indian Ocean and Mexico’s Gulf of California. IMAX Victoria is rewarding no matter the content, but when the screen is alight with the largest animals ever to have lived — bigger than any dinosaur, for the record —it is a must-see moviegoing experience. Note: IMAX Victoria is celebrating Family Day on Monday by offering free admission to children, youth, students and seniors.
MAD CADDIES
Where: Wicket Hall, 919 Douglas St.
When: Tuesday, 8 p.m.
Tickets: $37.02 from ticketweb.ca
Why: Ska-punk spectaculars like this triple-bill were once de rigeur around these parts, especially during the third-wave ska boom of the 1990s. But in recent years, gigs by California’s Mad Caddies are in shorter supply. Respect is due to the Victoria BC Ska and Reggae Society, organizers of the Victoria Ska and Reggae Festival, an annual summer staple, who always do a bang-up job catering to the ska-punk community. More gigs like this Tuesday night throwdown (with support from Belvedere and Sweetleaf), and the underground music scene in Victoria will return to its fighting weight.
