Bleeker rocked the Roots North Music Festival's biggest stage at St. Paul's Centre on Friday evening.
Bassist Mike Van Dyk says playing in the band's hometown was a "rare opportunity."
"From Day 1 with the festival, I've been a part of it and have volunteered where I can," he said. "That's why coming back felt like the right thing to do."
It was an opportunity for the band to play in front of friends and family.
"It's cool," Van Dyk said. "I have a lot of close friends here that haven't seen us in 20 years. That's a big thing."
Playing in Orillia gave him a sense of nostalgia.
"All of our parents are here," he said. "It reminds me of when we were kids and they used to take us to shows in Orillia."
Van Dyk loves that Roots North is a "homegrown" festival that showcases some of the area’s best talents in more than 20 venues.
"It's good for the different venues," he said. "It's good for those businesses and it's good for the community."
Derick Lehmann, chair of the festival board, says Bleeker was an "excellent" addition to the Roots North lineup this year.
"We all think of Bleeker as the hometown boys from Orillia," he said, "but those guys have performed on the world stage. They were just on a major tour with The Trews, and they've opened for Aerosmith."
This year, Roots North is celebrating its 10th anniversary. It began with a 200-seat main venue at the Orillia Community Church and has expanded to a 400-seat main venue at St. Paul's Centre.
"It's a beautiful theatre and the sound is of professional quality," Lehmann said.
In its first year, Roots North had three or four auxiliary venues with a handful of local artists performing. Now, there are more than 40 artists who perform over the five-day event.
"We are expanding the number of musicians, we are expanding the number of guests who can come and enjoy the performances, and we are expanding our geographical reach, too," Lehmann said. "We are out at Quayle's in Oro-Medonte, and we have future plans for Coldwater, Severn and Ramara."
All of the artists who perform during Roots North this weekend are paid by the festival or by the host venue.
"It's important for us to support the artists in a monetary way for the artistic value that they bring to the festival," Lehmann said, noting there are also more than a dozen artisans selling unique items in the basement of St. Paul's on Saturday evening beginning at 6 p.m.
Lehmann is proud the festival gives a boost to downtown businesses during a shoulder season. This year, people from Brampton, Toronto, Collingwood, Owen Sound, Gravenhurst, Bracebridge and beyond are attending the event.
"In April, there usually isn't much going on," he said. "We are bringing in a lot of tourists. We are partnered with the Champlain Hotel, and about 50 per cent of our ticket purchases are from out of town."
The headliner for Saturday night is Begonia, a pop singer-songwriter from Winnipeg.
"We had her scheduled for 2020 and that, unfortunately, had to be cancelled," Lehmann said. "Finally, it's lined up with her touring schedule and our weekend. We are really excited to have her."
To have Begonia, a runner-up for the Juno Award for Adult Alternative Album of the Year in 2021, on an intimate stage like Roots North, is "special," Lehmann says.
While they are nearly sold out, any remaining tickets can be found here. Weekend pass tickets cost $65.
"It's important for us to keep music accessible," Lehmann said. "It's important to keep that ticket cost as low as we can for the quality of talent that we are bringing in."
