Sonic Unyon
Details
Sonic Unyon was launched in 1993 as an independent record label and quickly carved out a reputation as scrappy and resourceful tastemakers, releasing seminal singles and albums from some of the luminaries of Canada's rock galaxy. Though understandably associated with that boom, the label and its roster has evolved steadily and reinvented itself in the decades since, and over the years, Sonic Unyon has branched out in numerous ways.
Sonic Unyon Distribution was founded in 1998 and to distribute Sonic Unyon and other labels in Canada, amassing a roster that included dozens of domestic imprints as well as exclusively representing over 200 international independent labels in Canada. Sonic Unyon Distribution was ultimately sold to MapleCore in 2008.
In 2009, Sonic Unyon became the organizing force behind Hamilton's free music and arts festival Supercrawl, and has since broadened its events-based business to include the annual Because Beer Craft Beer Festival, as well as the Why Not Wine Wine Tasting Festival, and has since opened Hamilton-based multi-use cultural events spaces Mills Hardware and Bridgeworks in 2014 and 2020 respectively, adding Guelph's Sonic Hall to the fold in 2024.
In addition to its signature annual events, Sonic Unyon has produced JUNOfest 2015 and 2022, JUNO Songwriters’ Circle in 2019, and Hamilton's 2015 Pan Am Games closing celebrations. Sonic Unyon holds contracts with the City of Hamilton, Hamilton Tiger-Cats, and Creemore Brewery for production services. Sonic Unyon produced the 2021 Grey Cup Festival and is contracted to produce the 2023 Grey Cup Festival. The label team also produced the 2023 Polaris Music Prize Gala and the 2023 edition of CBC Toronto's Sounds of the Season.