nxne toronto

NXNE takes heat for sparsely populated festival grounds

For the second year in a row, NXNE took over the parking lot at 51 Commissioners St., in the Port Lands.

In 2016, many complained about the lack of water stations and shade at the venue. After this weekend's extended, three-day festival, the main issue seemed to be the crowd (or the apparent lack thereof during the day).

A post shared by Michael J. Allain (@mjallain) on

While the audience grew in the evenings for headliners Kaytranada, Post Malone and Passion Pit, photos captured throughout the day and early evening atop the on-site Ferris wheel revealed gorgeous skyline views but also sparsely populated festival grounds.

There's no official word on attendance figures right now, but folks on social media haven't been shy about sharing photos of the near-deserted outdoor venue.

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Some called for the annual event to return to its roots by having a series of small shows at venues throughout the city. In past iterations, NXNE also held massive free concerts at Yonge-Dundas Square, which usually filled the space with screaming fans.

This weekend, of course, was a doozy in Toronto with Pride as well as the sold-out July Talk and Arkells concert at the Budweiser Stage.

Here's how Toronto music fans captured the second annual NXNE in the Port Lands (for better or for worse).

Lead photo by

@nicoleroannef


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