Arkells Sends Day Two at CityFolk Festival Out with a Bang

Day two of the CityFolk Music Festival kicked off tonight, Thursday, September 14th, 2023, and to say the least, it was a crowd-pleasing evening from all of the performers. Thousands of people gathered this evening at Lansdowne Park in The Glebe in Downtown Ottawa to witness the beauty and simplicity of live music and to enjoy gathering amongst themselves for the second festival season after lockdown. Tonight’s line-up had no still bodies in the crowd and a bunch of die-hard fans leaving with no voice.

With the opening act hitting the TD Main Stage at 5:30 p.m., TD Bank and CityFolk Music Festival presented the opportunity to multilingual artist Sophie Ash, who originates from Ottawa, Ontario to perform outside of the grounds in front of the TD Stadium for 45 minutes. Despite the chillier weather, people bundled up and certainly showed up to show their support for this up-and-coming artist. With a band consisting of her friend Andrew on electric guitar and Faress on bass, Sophie played acoustic guitar and sang lead vocals. Not only did she have the attention of the crowd surrounding her, but she also gained the attention of those dining outside on the patio at the LOCAL Public Eatery. Her family and friends showed up to show incredible support for her and fans could be seen with signs reading “We love you, Sophie!”. Not only is she a singer/songwriter, but she is also a co-producer and composer who played an incredible mixture of original songs and covers. Her original song “Trouble” started off her set, and her covers ranged from songs by Indie-Pop artist Swedish artist Leon to an elegant cover of “Tennessee Whiskey” by Chris Stapleton. She shared a story on how during the Covid-19 lockdown her band met up and crafted their beautiful original song “Blue Moon”. She ensured she extended the most heartfelt thank you to TD Bank for the opportunity and to CityFolk for allowing her the opportunity to perform before the commerce of day two on the festival grounds.  

Kicking off the festival on the Courtside Stage at 5:30 p.m. was Claire Coupland who struck the hearts of the crowd, drawing them over to the stage. Coupland is best known for her incredible capability to bring a sense of gracefulness feel of contemporary to her musical genre, indie/folk. Fans began to pile in and eventually, the entire seating area was full- with standing room only. Claire has a brand new album called “New Light” which was released in February. After tonight’s show, she packed up to head out to continue her tour across Ontario. Claire immediately captivated the audience with her beautiful harmonies, accompanied by Sarah Hiltz. She played acoustic guitar and sang vocals, and Hiltz played electric guitar. A super cool full-circle moment for me was the fact that I met Sarah Hiltz at a smaller concert series at the beginning of the year so seeing her on a larger stage was so exciting. Coupland sang “Drifting in the Breeze” off of her new album while explaining that the majority of her songs are on the darker folk side, but during lockdown, she wrote this more upbeat and happy tune.

She played a wide variety of her original songs and her beautiful voice and modest personality captured the entire audience. The beauty that poured out of two instruments and voices was impeccable and one to remember. She shared stories of missing Vancouver Island and shared how she writes songs imagining stories through the eyes of others, giving them more meaning to her and allowing her imagination to wander further. Her stories and connections made the audience lean into her storytelling that much more and it was a beautiful evening with a stunning folk essence sprinkled all over the audience during her set. 

For her second appearance in Ottawa this year, Ruby Waters blew Canada’s capital away and brought a high intensity of energy while kicking off CityFolk’s TD Main Stage at 6:00 p.m. Her band did a phenomenal job at kicking off her set with a beautiful instrumental that highlighted her electric guitarists’ abilities, alongside the drummer. She had beautiful backup vocals that created stunning harmonies. The crowd stared in awe as she exhibited her raw, authentic and incredibly unique vocal tone. She has a rasp like no other and her tone is so beautiful it sends chills down your entire body. She performed her new single “Flash Flood” which came out in May and can be streamed on all streaming platforms, alongside all of her other albums and hits. Within five minutes, the crowd doubled as her voice shot across the venue reaching the lawn seating at the very back. The crowd roared out screams halfway through the majority of her songs. Her band, but most notably her one electric guitarist, brought an impeccable level of energy drawing the crowd in and getting them dancing by moving around the stage and jumping around in excitement.

The most beautiful thing in music is when you can visibly see the impact and groove music has on others, so when the band exhibits such beautiful emotion it captivates the audience that much more. She performed her song “Open Arms” from her 2022 EP “Heather” which had the entire audience singing along to it and a group of girls in the front crying. “Open Arms” is currently charting on Alternative Radio and it’s about welcoming each day with open arms and feeling supported. A couple in the front row got engaged during this song, leading Ruby to dedicate her next song, “Good Recipe”, to the newly engaged couple. She ended her set by running down the stage steps to sign autographs at the front of the stage. Ruby is an incredibly personable artist and you can sense her down-to-earth personality from a mile away. She was a fan favourite and has such a beautiful soul.

Following the tradition of Montreal, Quebec-based artists this year at CityFolk, it was only fitting that REDFOX made their appearance on the Courtside Stage at 6:30 p.m. This band has an extremely unique sound, combining drums, an electric guitar, a banjo, a violin, an acoustic guitar, and vocalists. On lead vocals and violin was Daphnée Vandal, on lead guitar was Jono Townsend, Tim Loten on the banjo, Samuel Neumann on the drums, and Sam Robinson on bass. These instruments and incredible musicians combined create a folk/electric type feel to their music, leading them to recently be rewarded a Canadian Folk Music Award in the New/Emerging Artists 2023 with their most recent incredible album “Stranger Love”. They announced that their second album is currently in the works. They spent the summer touring including spending time in the United Kingdom, and Ottawa was so lucky to have them make an appearance. They were greeted to the stage with a screaming applause with an eager audience awaiting their beautiful storytelling.

They opened their set with a song from the award-winning album and had the entire crowd dancing around in their seats, awarding them with a cheering applause to every song. Alongside the incredible band, was the incredible crew behind the scenes who added more depth to the performance by changing the lights on every beat in their song “Can’t You See”. They also dedicated a song to everyone who struggles with anxiety, giving a beautiful speech of reassurance before performing their single titled “Mellow Out”. As incredible as the band is as a whole, one of the most impressive things was how the lead singer could sing but also play the violin at the same time. They shared a beautiful song called “Shiver” from their previous album that was written by their bassist, Sam Robinson and also shared songs that the lead singer had written over a decade ago. This was their last show of the season, in which they stated they were so excited to be spending it surrounded by everyone in Canada’s capital. The venue filled out beautifully for their performance and was filled with an entire audience who sang along and danced with them their entire set. The connection between the band can be sensed by anyone who observes them, as they refer to themselves as the Foxy Fam. I think it’s safe to say that everyone left their performance tonight feeling like a newfound part of their family, and also with a new favourite band on their radar.

7:20 p.m. brought the crowd back over to the TD Main Stage for the incredible Gov’t Mule. Consisting of Warren Haynes on vocals and guitar, Matt Abts on drums, Danny Lewis on keyboard, guitar, and backing vocals, and Jorgen Carlsson on bass, this band has been running its course picking up popularity along the way for over 2 decades. This band has released over 20 live and studio albums. They are known worldwide for their diverse style of music, which is known for being open, honest, improvisational, and organic. They are a rock jam band who comes from America and their lead vocalist, Warren Haynes, is a GRAMMY Award-winning artist, leading the band to multiple Grammy nominations. Upon their arrival on stage, fans could be heard chanting “We love you Warren”, embracing the GRAMMY artist and his band with so much love. Within seconds of the band beginning to sing, the crowd piled in. There wasn’t a still body in sight while the guitarists picked the guitars throughout the instrumentals.Gov’t Mule released an album back in July of this year called “Peace… Like a River” in which they performed title tracks, but they also dug back to 1996 to take fans on a nostalgic and emotional journey. The audience was up and moving during their performance of “Hammer and Nails” from their 2002 album, “The Deep End Vol. 2”.   Upon looking out at the audience, Haynes had the largest smile on his face while disclosing how incredible it was to be back in Ottawa. Their instrumental introduction to their song “Rocking Horse” had the drummer exhibiting his talent and had the audience getting pumped up. They embraced their musical and instrumental capabilities and performed a lot of instrumental solos which allowed for each musician’s capabilities to be captured and presented. Anytime the music would dim, the crowd would scream and applaud this incredible band, who kept feeding them song after song. Throughout their performance of “Time to Confess”, I couldn’t help but notice a very enthusiastic group of festival goers and music lovers who were screaming the lyrics and dancing their hearts and souls out. Gov’t Mule captured the audience and had them wrapped around their finger from start to finish, ending their set with a field full of screaming fans.

Don’t let the name fool you, he isn’t The Tallest Man on Earth, but his music is sure to blow you out of the water. The Tallest Man on Earth, also known as the man who will utilize every last centimetre of his guitar cord, took the Courtside Stage at 7:30 p.m. and there was absolutely zero sitting or standing room. Kristian Matsson, known as The Tallest Man on Earth, has been touring for over a decade and is most well known for his use of the stage. While playing guitar, he was jumping, crouching and running around the stage bringing the crowd to match his energy. The crowd sang along with him and drowned him in cheering and applause in between his songs. His crowd interaction was beautiful as he would have the crowd sing portions of the songs and he’d share stories with them. He sang songs from his 2010 album “The Wild Hunt”, all the way up to his most recent release “Henry St.” which came out in 2023. It takes a true artist and performer to be able to make the audience feel the music the way he can present it, making him a stellar artist. During his performance, I couldn’t help but notice how in sync the audience moved to the beat and how their enthusiasm maintained the same throughout the entire set. After the first song of his set, he drew the crowd in closer to create a mosh pit which elevated the energy to the next level. Matsson’s humbleness shines through his performances and his love for the music industry is extremely relevant.

f you were out and about Downtown Ottawa before the beginning of CityFolk, you may have been granted a free opportunity to come see the show. Before the show, Arkells went out into the streets of Ottawa and hid 3 pairs of tickets for tonight’s shows. Meryl Abrahams posted to her Instagram story sharing that she was one of the lucky recipients of one pair of tickets. They hit the TD Main Stage at 8:55 p.m. with Gov’t Mule doing a fantastic job drawing the crowd over upon the arrival of Arkells on the stage. The crowd was pumped up and piling in by the second. Winning the 2023 JUNO Award for “Group of the Year” and collaborations with big names in music such as Tegan and Sara to The Lumineers (Wesley Schultz), it’s safe to say they are rapidly making their way back up to the top in this decade. Max Kerman, Mike DeAngelis, Nick Dika, Tim Oxford, and Anthony Carone made their second appearance in Ottawa in the past year, after selling out the TD Place less than a year ago. They opened their set with their newest single “Skin” released at the end of June and their energy got the crowd going wild.

Arkells brings forward a diverse selection of musical instruments such as drums, a saxophone, a trumpet, a trombone, a piano, a bass, and an electric guitar. The band has been together since 2006, which they made known as they played songs from every one of their albums from 2006 to now. They grabbed the crowd’s attention immediately by presenting a high-energy introduction to their song “Past Life” where they had the band clapping on the beat as they jumped around the stage. The end of this song saw the entire band at the front of the stage dancing, and the crowd matching their energy perfectly. Before their performance of “All Roads”, lead vocalist Max Kerman asked the entire audience who came to the festival with a friend. He then asked the audience to turn to someone near them and introduce themselves, because we are all here indulging ourselves in the beauty of live music and embracing an opportunity to gather with those who are here for the same reason. 

Halfway through their set, Kerman noticed a vibrant green sign in the audience that was being held by a young fan. He reached out to the audience asking if the sign could be passed up to him on the stage. The sign read “My name is Harlan and my favourite Arkells song is “Oh, The Boss is Coming!”. The band proceeded to perform that song for him and dedicated it to him, and before the final chorus, Kerman stopped the song to ask Harlan to come up on stage and sing the chorus with him. They finished the song together strong and the band all applauded for the sweet little fan who will remember this moment for the rest of his life. They also brought up the man, Jordan from YC Drum Company to celebrate his wedding with his fiance next weekend, and interacted with countless signs requesting songs in the audience. One sign read, “This is my 7th show and I’ve never heard Private School”, leading the band to play the song for the fans. The band left the stage with loud applause and definitely gave the crowd an incredible night to remember with their dancing shoes still on both feet as they exited the venue.

CityFolk Festival runs until Sunday, September 17th, 2023 and hosts an incredible upcoming line-up with headliners such as Bush, KALEO, and Hozier. For full information regarding scheduling, ticket purchases, and further festival information, visit https://cityfolkfestival.com/.