The Strictly Hip have been carrying The Tragically Hip’s catalogue to venues across North America since 1995, which means they have been doing this particular work for over three decades — longer than most touring bands have been bands. That kind of tenure either hardens into repetition or deepens into something closer to craft. The Buffalo-based five-piece, originally conceived in St. Catharines, Ontario, practically in The Tragically Hip’s own geographic territory, makes a credible case for the latter.
About the Show
The Tragically Hip occupy a specific and unusual place in rock: enormous in Canada, largely underknown south of the border, which gives their catalogue a persistent underground currency in upstate New York. The Strictly Hip have spent three decades navigating that asymmetry, building their own devoted following among listeners who know every lyric while also serving as a genuine introduction to the music for those coming to it fresh.
The band is deliberate about framing what it does. Not a tribute in the loose sense, and not what they themselves describe as a campy impersonator act. The members approach the material with academic methodology, aiming for “reverence, respect, and accuracy” in delivering music they characterize as “the soundtrack of a million camp fires, road trips, and backyard parties.” That is both promotional language and a reasonably honest description of what The Tragically Hip actually sounded like at full strength. The Strictly Hip perform these songs passionately and with reverence to the original creators, by their own account, and they have built enough of a following to play sold-out venues across North America doing it. The current lineup features Frank Nicastro and Bruce Wojick on guitar and vocals, Jeremy Hoyle on lead vocals and guitar, Steve Padin on drums, keys, and vocals, and Alan Sliwinski on bass.
Venue & Logistics
The show is at 1832, the entertainment venue within the Seneca Niagara Resort & Casino in Niagara Falls — a city that sits at the Niagara River, directly across from Ontario. For a Tragically Hip tribute act that got its start in St. Catharines and now calls Buffalo home, playing in Niagara Falls carries a geographic logic most tribute bookings don’t. The show is part of the western New York concert calendar. Show time is 8:00 p.m. on Friday, February 26.
Tickets
Tickets go on sale October 2, 2026. No ticket price was available from sources at the time of publication. Buy tickets