Category Archives: Rock, Alternative & Punk

The weekend edition of CityFolk got underway on the great lawn at Lansdowne on an unseasonably balmy Saturday afternoon. First to hit the stages were locals and kind of locals Danielle Allard, Common Deer, Miss Emily, Twain, and Fred Penner’s G-rated show for the little ones.

Cover photo: Jessica Wedden performs during Marvest 2017. Photo: Derek Mellon

Saturday couldn’t have been a better afternoon for Marvest, the free portion of CityFolk that brought several short performances to untraditional venues over the span of Bank St. The venues were all within walking distance of each other, and combined with the unusually warm September weather, it made for a magical musical adventure unlikely to be soon repeated.

The third night of Ottawa’s CityFolk festival did not disappoint, kicking off at 6pm while the sun was still shining on Lansdowne. It was a warm evening filled with surprises, from the beautifully cooperative September weather to the unanticipated talent demonstrated by the performers — particularly by Son Little, The Suitcase Junket, and Amanda Marshall.

Day 2 at CityFolk Festival in Ottawa brought us the stylings of The Family Crest, Daniel Rateliff and the Night Sweats, Jenn Grant, and Jack Johnson. These artists all have one major thing in common, you can’t help but move to their tunes!

On June 2, 1987 Saskatoon, Saskatchewan Jay Semko, Don Schmid and Bryan Potvin, aka The Northern Pikes, would release an album that would forever make The Northern Pikes a household name across Canada and the single “Teenland” would become an anthem for a generation. This fall Jay, Bryan and Don are taking Big Blue Sky on the road across Canada starting October 12 in St John, NB.

It’s always been a pleasure enjoying a show at The John St. Pub in Arnprior, I have seen several great shows there and played there myself as well. An upstairs bar setting with framed albums on the walls, a good size dance floor open area for the crowd, totally an 1980’s throwback feel, kudos to them, but tonight July Twenty First was special, it was the reappearance of Jeff Martin of Tea Party and Solo Fame. I unfortunately missed his first show here, but I was assured of an awesome show by friends. The show had several support acts, all unique, which added to the great flow of the evening, Crossing Jane, Vicki Brittle, Etoile Noire, Robb Kerr. I knew we were in for a treat of an evening of Local Artists.

September 2 was a night to remember for classic rock fans in Toronto as Edgar Winter, Alice Cooper and Deep Purple made a stop at the Budweiser Stage for Deep Purple’s The Long Goodbye Tour. For me personally, it was special because all three bands were a part of the soundtrack of my youth.

As I mentioned in a previous review, I’m a big, no make that huge, fan of all things Australian. Midnight Oil is one of the reasons why. Fifteen years we’ve had to wait, but let me tell you: It was worth it!!! Even more in the current political climate, the world is going thought. For lucky Toronto fans this was the second time Midnight Oil graced us with their presence this year.

A Tradition Continues with The Posse

After a day spent outside at The Loyalist Days in Prescott, it was nice to sit back and be part of a continuation of a family tradition. The Loyalist days has been around since 1977 at the Fort Wellington. Brent Coville’s father used to play the festival with his band, before the festival took an interlude for many years. It was like a continuation of the event though the music.

The second day of Dine Alone Records and Mill Street Brew Pub’s Hopped and Confused festival saw some entertaining acts as Ottawa’s own New Swears opened the day 2 on the sunny Saturday evening.