Back in olden times, when oil supplies looked like they would never run out and six-cylinder cars were the auto industry’s idea of being environmentally responsible, a group of Australians made a great movie called The Road Warrior. And don’t hold the fact that they picked Mel Gibson as their star against them.

The Road Warrior made the case that the future will be an ugly place, something that, prophetically, seems more likely than ever today. Given that before long we’ll all be patrolling the highways and back roads of British Columbia in search of precious, precious fuel, you might as well start practising your driving skills today. Luckily, in the months ahead, you’ll have a good reason to do so. There are countless out-of-town concerts this summer that are worth hopping into your automobile and burning the world’s ever-dwindling oil supplies for.

Because you don’t want the future to look like the last reel of The Road Warrior just yet, we’ll forgive you for having invested in a fuel-efficient Smart car. But you won’t be earning points for refusing to dress the part. Which is another way of saying that when you pull out of Vancouver for your road-trip odyssey, we expect to see you looking like The Road Warrior’s hockey-masked horror show Lord Humungus. The “Quiet! No more games—we are here for a purpose!” speech is entirely optional.

Gibsons Landing Jazz Festival (June 10 to 12 at various venues in Gibsons)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: The favourite music of pre–rock ’n’ roll America in a sun-soaked setting that couldn’t be farther removed from the smoky 1920s speakeasies of New York City and New Orleans. The 16th edition of this small-town success story features fingerstyle-guitar champion Don Ross, hard-bop locals the Cory Weeds Quintet, and swing sisters Definitely Diva.
Big selling point: The chance to see how the other half lives. Like the rest of us, you no doubt resent the fact that you can’t afford a home on the Sunshine Coast, but don’t let that stop you from playing day-tripping tourist for this intimate Vancouver International Jazz Festival warm-up.

Serf (June 25 at Squamish)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: Sorry, Monty Python and the Holy Grail fans—despite the event’s name, SERF isn’t built around the music and customs of feudal England. Instead, expect a giant beachfront party where the entertainment includes much-respected homegrown talent such as Los Furios, Kuba Oms, and C. R. Avery.
Big selling point: The beach, not to mention the fact that you won’t have to tromp around in soot-stained rags begging some ponce with a crown for another bowl of gruel.

Victoria Ska Fest (July 5 to 9 at various venues in Victoria)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: Admittedly, Victoria doesn’t seem like a major destination for those whose mix tapes are filled with the Gladiators, Heptones, and Laurel Aitken. But B.C.’s capital city becomes just that every summer, thanks to its now-legendary Victoria Ska Fest, which this year includes the Planet Smashers, Gramps Morgan, and new-schooler Ky-Mani Marley.
Big selling point: Not only is the ferry ride to Victoria cheaper than a return flight to Jamaica, the ganja is twice as potent as anything you’ll find in Kingston.

Mountainfest 2011 (July 7 to 10 in Merritt)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: Not that long ago, the Merritt Mountain Music Festival was the number-one destination for horny, shirtless, and drunk frat boys who’d always dreamed of contracting a scorching venereal disease in the great outdoors. Kudos to organizers for rebranding the event MountainFest, and turning the attention back to where it should have been all along: the music, specifically that of the Nashville-country variety.
Big selling point: Genre giants like Vince Gill and Crystal Gayle and young guns such as Dierks Bentley and Crystal Shawanda, all in a sun-parched setting that looks right out of Tombstone.

Vancouver Island Musicfest (July 8 to 10 at the Comox Valley Exhibition Grounds in Comox)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: An, um, decidedly eclectic showcase that suggests someone put a well-stocked iPod on shuffle and then began calling the booking agents of whoever popped up first. Where else are you going to get hippie icon David Crosby, hip-hop vets Arrested Development, and prog-rocker Jon Anderson sharing the same stage?
Big selling point: Here’s a chance to put another pin in your been-there-done-that map. Because, no matter how much you love exploring Super, Natural British Columbia, here’s betting Comox has traditionally ranked right below Trail on your places-to-see-before-you-die list.

Harrison Festival of the Arts (July 9 to 17 at Harrison Hot Springs)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: Think about this for a second: when the Harrison Festival of the Arts set up its tents for the first time, in 1978, the Saturday Night Fever soundtrack still topped the charts, the Sex Pistols had just disbanded, and Grease ruled movie theatres. Thirty-three years later, the multidisciplinary event has become a legitimate institution, with this year’s musical offerings ranging from blues stalwart James Cotton to folk-fusionist Madagascar Slim to roots renegades New Country Rehab.
Big selling point: In good news for those who understand that too much sun can be a bad thing, shows take place on heat-baked beaches and in air-conditioned concert halls.

Rockstar Energy Drink Mayhem Festival (July 12 at the White River Amphitheatre in Auburn, Washington)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: The new-breed metal of Disturbed, Godsmack, In Flames, and Trivium, which is another way of saying that this isn’t the place to show off your mack jacket, GWG jeans, and high-tops with extra-large tongues.
Big selling point: Have you seen how cheap beer is in America? After you sock back a case of Schlitz at the pre-show tailgate party, you’ll still have enough dough left over for both a Suicide Silence hoodie and a Machine Head G-string.

Nakusp Music Festival (July 15 to 17 at Nakusp Festival Grounds in Nakusp)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: And you thought that the Vancouver Island MusicFest lineup was out-there. With a smorgasbord where even Nardwuar the Human Serviette would have trouble connecting the dots, Nakusp will spotlight everyone from the Doobie Brothers to Soul Asylum to Kevin Costner to the Pack a.d.
Big selling point: Assuming you can actually find Nakusp, you’ll discover that the on-site amenities include a kid zone and “Bavarian gardens”, which pretty much guarantees that grandparents will be dumping their grandkids off to fend for themselves in a controlled environment while they toodle off to get bombed to Doobie Brothers classics like “Black Water”.

Mission Folk Music Festival (July 21 to 24 at Fraser River Heritage Park in Mission)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: One of the most forward-thinking festivals—folk or otherwise—that you’re going to attend all year. The Mission Folk Music Festival might not get the attention of its Vancouvercounterpart, but its programmers should take a major bow for a lineup that includes everything from Californian Celtic harp players (Patrick Ball) to Norwegian Sami fusionists (Mari Boine) to Belgian bagpipers (Griff).
Big selling point: It’s nice to have an excuse to go to Mission that doesn’t involve visiting cousin Billy, the black sheep of the family, in the Ferndale Institution correctional facility.

Mount Baker Rhythm & Blues Festival (July 29 to 31 at the Deming Logging Show Grounds in Bellingham, Washington)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: You know that scene in Ghost World where that band calling itself Blues Hammer plugs in at the local bar and rewrites the sound of the Mississippi Delta? Given the presence of the Twisters and James King & the Southsiders, the Mount Baker Rhythm & Blues Festival is probably going to be a lot like that.
Big selling point: Admit it: you’ve always been a little curious as to what exactly goes on at the Deming Logging Show Grounds.

Salmon Arm Roots & Blues Festival (August 19 to 21 at Salmon Arm)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: The great thing about this Salmon Arm mainstay is that it’s always had a pretty open mind as to what constitutes blues and roots music. So while Jonny Lang and the Ben Waters Trio will please the purists, Broken Social Scene and Mofro will be on hand to do some boundary-pushing.
Big selling point: Salmon Arm’s back yard includes over 700 kilometres of lakefront beaches. Yes, heaven looks a lot like this.

Live at Squamish (August 20 and 21 at Logger Sports Grounds in Squamish)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: With Pemberton Festival a memory, Live at Squamish has stepped into the void to become B.C.’s preeminent big-scale, big-names music festival. If the thought of catching Weezer, Girl Talk, Metric, Black Mountain, and Tommie Sunshine over a two-day period doesn’t get your heart racing, you are officially dead inside.
Big selling point: When this thing—now in its second year—gets bigger than Coachella (or at least the same size as Sasquatch), you’ll be able to say you were there back in the day.

Jazz on the mountain at Whistler (September 2 to 4 at Whistler Resort)
What you’re squeezing into the Smart car for: Whistler is most famous for its skiing, not to mention being too-expensive-for-everyone-but-Chad-Kroeger homes, but over the years it’s also become known for hosting top-drawer music festivals. Jazz on the Mountain hopes to become known as the latest, with the inaugural event’s lineup spotlighting vibraphone pioneer Gary Burton, fusion veterans Spyro Gyra, and one-time Jay Leno sidekick Kevin Eubanks.
Big selling point: Few places on this earth are more spectacular than Whistler, so if the music is half as good as the setting, get ready for 7th Heaven.