Bluesfest: Day 8

On Thursday, I was officially on assignment for Sors-tu and I had a lot of bands to cover at Bluesfest.

When we arrived on site, Jon Spencer Blues Explosion was rocking out on the main stage. Although the band has the word "blues" in its name, it sounded more hard rock to me. The group was somewhat entertaining, and it seems like frontman Jon Spencer had a bit of A.D.D. I applaud his dedication to this music, but after a while, it just became a bit too much. Also, screaming the word "blues" in the mic does not make your music more blues!

Then we headed to the Claridge Stage to check out LP. I discovered this singer/songwriter at last year's Folkfest and I absolutely love her! A tiny Bob Dylan lookalike, she came out on stage, rocking the ukulele. Not only is she super adorable, her voice is out of this world! Definitely worth checking out. The crowd was showing her lots of love. A fan even gave her a painting and a bouquet of flowers.

LP was playing for four other musicians, and she said this was their first time playing together as a band, which was quite surprising. These guys have such a great synergy and they seem to really enjoy playing together. She played some of her older material as well as some new songs. If you ever get the chance,

Finally, it was time for the Tragically Hip, whom I had never seen live before. I wasn't sure what to expect but these guys were on fire. There was so much energy coming from the stage! Gordon Downie was a madman. His stage presence is so weird and corky... I honestly thought he was intoxicated. Nope... Turns out that's just his thing. It was really entertaining!

The group played hits like "Poets", "Bobcageon", "Ahead by a Century" and "Courage". The crowd was energetic and happy, and the weather was perfect.

Before we left, we stopped by the River Stage to see Kenny Wayne Shepherd, an up and coming blues guitarist. I had never heard of him but my partner had. This guy is amazing! There's a lot of hype around this guy, and for good reason. Apparently, this guy has played on stage with Stevie Ray Vaughan and people have said he's the next B.B. King or Eric Clapton. Pretty remarkable accolades.
He did perform a wicked cover of Jimi Hendrix "Voodoo Child".

See my French review of the shows here.

Folkfest: Day 3

Day 3 of Ottawa Folk Festival was a wet one. A wet and cold one. Being the practical gal that I am, I took out my bright blue rain boots and my parka and headed to Hogs' Back Park.

After a friend introduced me to them, I've come to really enjoy the music of the Great Lake Swimmers. I was really excited to hear that they were playing at Folkfest. I really enjoyed their set.

Afterwards, LP was playing at the Ravenlaw stage. I made a point to check out her show, although I had never heard of her. A few friends of mine said she was great, so I thought it might be worth while to stick around.

Am I ever glad I stuck around! LP was absolutely phenomenal! The power behind that voice is out of this world. She put on a very fun and energetic show. By far, the best discovery of Folkfest!

While LP was playing at the Ravenlaw stage, Yukon Blonde was rocking out on the Tartan Homes stage. Although it was really tempting to leave LP and go check them out,  I decided to stay at the Ravenlaw stage. I did have a chance to catch Yukon Blonde's last two songs. There was a nice crowd gathered at the stage and people were sharing great feedback on the band's performance.

The headliner that evening was Great Big Sea. After a few hours in the cold and wet weather, I felt ready to head home. Overall, day 3 was fantastic and I was pleased.