Rock, Rudd and reggae

One of the problems of being a fan of bands from the 1960s is that when they come to town and Bluesfest is that the folks who were young in their heyday show up to watch them too. And most of these folks are of sufficient vintage that standing up for a few hours is rally more discomfort than they care for. Thus, when I finally hauled my own rapidly aging carcass down to LeBreton Flats, a vast armada of lawn chairs had already sprung up in front of the Fast Food Chain Stage where Spencer Davis, The Yardbirds and The Zombies were slated to play. Spencer Davis was already on stage, but it was quite clear that any watching and listening I was going to do was going to be from a further distance than I like if I stuck around. So instead I went off to the Music-Themed Eatery Stage.

They'd also already started, and were playing some of their rowdy rock and their one country song, as well as a cover of Someone's Going to Get their Head Kicked In Tonight.


Allrights, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

I felt the urge to wander so I popped over to see who was playing at the Black Sheep Stage. It was Marc Charron, who I think I recall performing with other acts many years ago. His band features such familiar faces as Marty Sobb.


Marc Charron, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

After that I toodled back over the hill to see Joe Louis Walker, a bluesman of many years experience. He sounded pretty good, but once again the urge to wander struck.


Joe Louis Walker, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

I headed over to the Telecommunications Giant Stage to listen to a bit of Xavier Rudd. In the years since I've seen him at Bluesfest he's acquired a bassist and Djembe player and has begun to sound remarkably like Peter Gabriel. There was a huge crowd.


Xavier Rudd, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

I returned to wtch some more Walker, who had been joined by piano man David Maxwell, the Texas Horns and Curtis of the Brothers Chaffey. Walker was having some fun teasing the crowd with musical quotations from a wide range of blues acts.


Joe Louis Walker and Curtis Chaffey, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

Sometime during my wanderings I also went back to the Black Sheep Stage to see the presumptuous young lads who have knicked the name of DNA for their band. They seem pretty able, bu nothing too out of the ordinary.


DNA, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

As night fell I went back to the Music-Themed Eatery Stage. I have zero interest in Our Lady Peace, had no chance of getting close to the Zombies, and don't have a clue about the Spam Allstars, but figured that Toots and The Maytals would be a good show and possible a secondhand marijuana buzz. The band started things off with Pressure Drop and featured a cover of Louie Louie.


Toots and The Maytals, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

Toots occasionally strapped on an acoustic guitar.


Toots and The Maytals, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

He also dueted with his daughter Leba on True Love Is Hard To Find.


Toots and The Maytals, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 14, 2009

A really fun show, and also the most waving lighters I've seen at a show in several years. Then again, Maytals fans may not be using them to light tobacco with ...

Sex and the city

All right, I said I was going to post some more Gaga Weekend photos. I skipped the showgoing last night since Bluesfest's Monday lineup was of zero interest to me. You want real rock'n'roll action, you head to Yogi's Meatlocker about a month ago. I had hoped to see the entire lineup at the Gaga Weekend's matinee show, but was too tuckered out Saturday morning to arise in time to catch everything. When I arrived The Fucking Machines were playing the small studio room that served as the "side stage" for the afternoon's entertainment, maximum capacity about 30 at a tight squeeze.

Scott sings!



Dave gurns. All these Fucking Machines are pretty tightly show because just out of the frame is a mass of heaving bodies.



Another Dave, shot between elbows.



The next show on the go was The Girlfriends. They dressed fancy for the occasion, with Wolfgang in a sequined skirt, leopard print top, truly alarming mask and blond curls. Nigel went for the tie-dyed hippy gal look, and I have no damn idea what Sammy is wearing. It, too, is alarming. On the positive side, no one hit me with a guitar or fell on me. The world egg shortage is probably to blame.



Microphone action!



Wolfgang goes down.



Sammy sings some.



Wolfgang rocks the curls.



And so on!



More Nigel!



There was a fair bit of crawling going on.



Stripping action!



The end!



The Fucking Machines are playing again July 23 at the premier of Judas Feast, a rock'n'roll cooking show which at one time, and possibly still, was going to use some of my Holy Cobra photos. I'm going to be out of town, so someone let me know how that goes down. Cloven Hoofs, featuring former Mighty Eagle Band members, is also on the bill. The Girlfriends have just returned from a trip to destroy Montreal, so no doubt they'll be up to some unwholesome shenanigans soon.

• Show reminder: The Birthday Cakes, Trees and Adelphia perform at the Emldale House. There's Chamberfest sneak-preview action at Raw Sugar.

Rain, rain, go away!

So much for my weather-predicting capabilities. Not only did it rain, it was rather cool, never a good combination. At least things stayed pleasant enough for the first part of the day.

I arrived as The Balconies were starting their set. I was very impressed by their Gaga Weekend set, and they were just as good this time around. A sizable crowd gathered to listen to their new-wave sounds, and there was a good turnout at the autograph tent later on. It was still warm and sunny enough for Jacquie Neville to note that wearing black was a mistake.


The Balconies, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

Following their set I went off to buy a copy of their new CD and to go to the Music-Themed Eatery Stage to watch The Sedatives. Ian Manhire appeared to be getting a primer on the operation of the Hammond Organ as I arrived.


Sedatives, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

Then they were off an rocking, with a very hard-hiotting set. Apparently copies of their new album have arrived, but Ian forgot to bring them. He did promise to make a cover and bike one over to whoever was interested though.


Sedatives, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

Since their set only lasted about 30 minutes I alsom managed to pop over the hill to see most of the Sunparlour Players set. Hmm, I'm not completely sold on their somewhat hectic take on Americana. The triple kick-drum lineup is kind of nifty, though.


Sunparlour Players, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

And one can't fault the amount of energy the players - particularly accordionist/drummer Michael Rosenthal.


Sunparlour Players, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

The New Mastersounds followed The Sedatives on the Music-Themed Eatery Stage. They're a Leeds-based funk-soul-R&B combo. I can't say they held my attention, but they did seem to have some of the audience grooving along.


The New Mastersounds, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

Casting around for something to watch I passed by the Fast Food Chain stage, where the Homemade Jamz Blues Band was performing. Not hugely fascinating, but I dig those custom instruments.


Homemade Jamz Blues Band, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

They're a family outfit, drummer Taya, 10, is the youngest.


Homemade Jamz Blues Band, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

I decided to go and see Land of Talk since I enjoyed their Zaphod's set with Menomena and Field Music. They played a similarly fine set, and like the Sunparlour Players before them praised The Balconies' show.


Land of Talk, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

Then I headed back over the hill to catch The King Khan and BBQ Show, which is when things turned nasty. I don't mean musically nasty, I mean meteorologically nasty. with a lengthy rainshower. Bleaaah. Not too good for the camera, either. At least King Khan and BBQ were entertaining as usual, with their between-song banter even more cracked than usual. Also, King Khan kicked the crap out of those heads mounted along the front of the stage, an act I heartily condone.


King Khan and BBQ Show, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

I went looking for an umbrella for sale, but had no luck, so soon enough I was back at the Music-Themed Eatery Stage getting wet. At least I had a plastic bag to wrap my camera in. Bloodshot Bill and his new wife also showed up to bop along around this time. That done, I headed off to the Telecommunications Giant Stage to fulfill my main reason for sticking around through the rain - seeing Neko Case, one of my favourite singers, perform.


Neko Case, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

It was well worth the wait and slight sogginess, she put on a super set, which lasted about 80 minutes, including a cover of Harry Nillson's Alimony and an encore performance of Sook-Yin Lee's Knock Loud.


Neko Case and Tom V. Ray, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

She was joined by her usual backing band, including Jon Rauhouse (below on banjo), but usual co-conspirator Kelly Hogan couldn't be there due to a death in the family.


Jon Rauhouse, Paul Rigby, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 12, 2009

After that, I sped on home - I've got an early day today, and I'd prefer to be reasonably dry when it comes time to greet it.

Temples of sound

Yesterday was a very good day to have an umbrella handy. I had originally planned to get to Bluesfest early, but when I awoke there was thunder crashing, so I reasoned there wouldn't be any Bluesfest action for some time. I headed off to LeBreton Flats when things looked like they were clearing up only to be caught in the first of several downpours. I had hoped to see some of Jill Barber's performance, since I had enjoyed her Zaphod's set in November 2006, but by the time I arrived she had finished, so I had to settle for a snap of her signing autographs and looking pretty in pink.


Jill Barber, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

As it is, the first act I saw was San Francisco's John Vanderslice, who combined some melancholy pop songwriting with an injection of sinister guitar tones. He was pretty good, but I heard other intriguing sounds wafting my way from the Fast Food Chain stage.


John Vanderslice, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

I wandered over their to catch the hardbitten blues styling of Lightnin' Malcoom and Cedric Burnside, grandson of the notorious and legendary R.L. They sounded pretty good and a couple of people I bumped into later in the day referred to their set as a highlight of the day.


Lightnin' Malcom and Cedric Burnside, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

One of my own favourites of the day was Chris Smither, who is both an ace guitarist and songwriter and possessor of one of the great careworn voices in folk music. He put on a spellbinding set on The Black Sheep Stage, and returns today to the Barney Danson Thatre.


Chris Smither, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

I headed back over the hill to watch Texas rock'n'roller Doyle Bramhall. He's a singing drummer who played with Stevie Ray and Jimmie Vaughan in his younger days. He made me think of a rootsier ZZ Top. It was also fun to see Howling Wolf guitarist Hubert Sumlin enjoying the set from the wings.


Doyle Bramhall, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

When he was done I traipsed back to the Fast Food Chain Stage since I could hear that Diunna Greenleaf hadn't finished her set. She's a hefty gal with a growly voice and a great sense of humour who put on a great show. She's a superb stage presence and is ably assisted by guitar great Bob Margolin and a crack band.


Diunna Greenleaf and Steady Rollin' Bob Margolin, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

After that there was little more to do but wait around for the church to play. Two separate rainshowers kept the stage crew busy mopping the stage and covering electric gear with tarps. The band finally got started about 20 minutes behind schedule, but were well worth the wait. They brung it harder than any other band I've seen at Bluesfest this year and sounded great. An awesome blowout set of psychedelic music.


the church, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

After that I grabbed a bite to eat, then headed off to the Barney Danson Theatre to wait for YaHoWa 13 to start. I was the fifth person in line - the first four were Mark McIntyre and Bill Guerrero of the band whose name is a symbol and Rance Mok and Diane Lachappelle of Mark's other band, Cold Coffee & Salty Boots. The revivified trio attracted about four dozen people, several of whom left during the first song after realizing the white-haired trio would be playing heavy duty mind-expanding drone rock and not hippy anthems. "We hope we brought you where you wanted to go and back safely again" said guitarist Djin when the set was done.


YaHoWa 13, Barney Danson Theatre, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

After that there was still 30 minutes or so of Femi Kuti's African jazz-funk set to catch. He had the crowd swaying and jumping to his Afrobeat stylings.


Femi Kuti and Positive Force, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 11, 2009

Best of all, the weather was much nicer, and promises to stay sunny today.

Oh sunny day

It was another day of perfect weather at LeBreton Flats: Sun shining, cool breeze, not too muggy. There was nothing that particularly excited me on the schedule, but at least two acts looked promising.

The first was The Dodos, a "psychedelic folk" band from San Francisco. I was intrigued to discover that the band now includes Joe Haener (that's him playing xylophone behind guitarist Meric Long), who has been through town a couple of times playing with The Gris Gris. They don't sound much like that band, blending more acoustic sounds with a whole lot of floor tom rolls.


The Dodos, Bluesfest, July 10, 2009

After that it was a short jaunt over the hill to the Music-Themed Eatery Stage to see Okkervil River, the second act to grab my attention. This is a band that Darrell Angus of Golden Famile and Rickety Ship introduced me to back when we were coworkers, but my continued interest with them has more to do with the membership of frontman Will Sheff in another of my favourite bands, Shearwater. My fuzzy memory of the band led me to expect something gentle and rural, instead of Austine, Texas's answer to Sadie Hell. Sheff was a wild man on stage, and the band certainly likes the feedback (I believe this may be the first time I've seen a mandolin has been deliberately employed to generate it).


Okkervil River, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 10, 2009

The remainder of my Bluesfest Friday wa sa bit aimless. I bumped into Both Kinds of Music and Liquor Pig Fest host Richard Parks at the Okkervil River show. When it was over he said he was heading over to see Brock Zeman on the Fast Food Chain Stage, so I moseyed on after to catch the last few songs in a rocking country set.


Brock Zeman, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 10, 2009

I killed a few minutes listening to the Sam Roberts Band while perusing the offerings at the merchandise tent. I hoped they'd have a copy of Skynyrd's First, and so they did. Devotchka hail from Denver, Colorado, and play an intriguing blend of Romani and Americana music, supplemented with some left field stuff like a theremin. They have a taste for cinematic music as well, I hear. Most importantly, they have a sousaphone player, Jeanie Schroder (she also plays double bass). I left about the time they started a cover of The Velvet Underground's Shiny, Shiny, Shiny Boots of Leather.


Devotchka, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 10, 2009

After a couple of songs I made my way back over the hill to the Black Sheep Stage to see King Sunny Ade and His African Beats. He certainly does have a lot of beaters: In addition to the regulation drummer, he has five other guys played various African percussion instruments. Then there's the trio of backup vocalists, a guitarist, bassist and keyboardist. It was a jolly anf groovy time.


King Sunny Ade, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 10, 2009

After about an hour the effect of insufficient eating (and an hour at the gym) was beginning to catch up, so I wandered off to listen to a song from Jackson Browne (dull) and Steve Earle before retrieving my bicycle and heading home.

• Show reminder: Jon Reilly-Roe performs at Irene's. Black Boot Trio and Folk Hum perform at the Elmdale House - and of course there's Bluesfest Byward shows aplenty in the Market area.

From blues to blast

The weather for Day 2 of Bluesfest 2009 was certainly an improvement on opening day - in fact I doubt you could ask for nicer weather: Sunny, not too humid, a lovely breeze. Ideal circumstances to watch music outdoors.

I heard the Brothers Chaffey before I saw them, as I bicycled along the Ottawa River. Bluesfest now has a bike depot conveniently located near the river behind the Fast Food Joint Stage so it was just a few minutes between leaving it there and plopping myself down near the front row. Curtis, Matthew and Co. played a great sounding set. They usually do, but I suspect they might have had a boost from Ken Friesen, the producer of their last album Bloodlines, manning the soudnboard. Lots of great tunes from both their albums, plus a cover of The Kinks' I'm Not Like Everybody Else.


Brothers Chaffey, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

I had hoped to catch a bit of Kyrie Kristmanson,but unfortunately she finished stuff off before I could tear myself away from The Brothers Chaffey, so I settled back at the Fast Food Joint Stage to wait for Holy Fuck to get things started. They sounded pretty good, but weren't knocking me out like they have at previous shows, so I headed off about a 20 minutes into their set to seek out a good spot for Metric's performance.


Holy Fuck, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

There was a huge crowd awaiting Metric's arrival - no surprise there - but they were pretty well-behaved compared to the last time I saw Metric at Bluesfest where I spent their entire set being squished against the barricade. I've liked Metric ever since I saw them open for Broken Social Scene (a band that didn't persuade me I liked them at that Capital Music Hall show), but I'm not a fanatic about them, so once again I split for the Fast Food Joint Stage and an act I really did want to see.


Metric, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

That would be Iron & Wine. Yesterday I was admiring Darcy Yates' facial foliage during Flash Lightnin's set and ideally musing he was a contender for best beard of Bluesfest ... alas, he must hand the title to Samuel Beam, at least for now. If Sam had been around during the 1950s he could have been a beard model for all those biblical epics like Ben-Hur. Beam played a lovely set; his voice and guitar-playing were both top-shelf and both his songwriting and between-tunes banter are enlightened by his considerable intelligence, humour and powers of observation. His comparison to the sound-bleed from Metric's ongoing performance to having an SUV with music pumping out of it pulling up beside you at a light and interrupting a conversation with a dinner date was most amusing.


Iron & Wine, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

After that captivating set, I tootled over to the Black Sheep Stage. As before, I stopped at the Hard Rock stage to snap a couple of photos of the act playing there, in this case The Road Hammers. On the way back, they were playing a cover of ZZ Top's Legs, and doing a decent job of it.


Road Hammers, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

Oumou Sangare is known as the Songbird of Wassoulou, a region of Mali with its own particular style (or perhaps that should be styles) of music. The eponymous form for which Sangare is known features a lot of the instruments familiar to anyone who caught Toumani Diabate's set last year. It was an entertaining set, highlighted by a pair of very energetic dancers and of course Sangare's soaring vocals. She's also got Living Colour drummer Will Calhoun on board in addition to a bunch of African pros.


Oumou Sangare, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 9, 2009

I made my way back to the bike depot as her band was kicking off the encore; not only did I beat the rush, but I made it home in time enough to walk over to the Atomic Rooster and catch both bands slated to perform there that night. In fact, Fear of Lipstick was just finishing off their soundcheck as I walked in.

The Moncton, New Brunswick combo has been touring with The Creeps for the last few days. The two bands share an affection for hard and fast Ramones-style punk rock.


Fear of Lipstick, The Atomic Rooster, July 9, 2009

The Creeps ripped through a typically great set, with some additional strangulation-by-audience thrown in.


The Creeps, The Atomic Rooster, July 9, 2009

And now it's really time to go to bed!

• Show reminder: Aside from Bluesfest stuff, both at Lebreton Flats and in the Market (Peter Murphy at Mavericks!), there's Uncle Cat performing at Irene's and The Ireland Brothers Band plus The Andrew Shedden Band at the Elmdale House.

Cover songs

Man, I thought my Gaga Weekend backlog was bad, but with Bluesfest's arrivals I guess I'd better start cleaning things out, eh? So back to Cozzie's for the evenings capper, Beach Blankets. If you've seen a Beach Blankets show, you already know there was a lot of crazy frat rock goodness and plenty of drinking. If you haven't what are you waiting for?!?

Michael "TLC" Hurts models that evening's Hawaiian look prior to things getting underway.



Daniel takes his stand.



Mihajlo rocks the mesh as KJ looks on in horror (not really).



Andy looks tres mid-80s.



It's not easy to tell at first glance, but Daniel is in fact sitting on Mijhalo.



Singing, tambourine shaking, Daniel's butt, etc.



Singalong action!



Daniel works the crowd.



They've only got one microphone between them.



Big finish!



They're heading up to Montreal for the Wooly Weekend Record Fair August 8.

Come rain or come shine

It's that time of year again - time to take two weeks off work to see myriad musical acts introduced by Radio DJs who have mostly never heard of them before, time to avoid food concessions like the plague, time to watch the skies for impending meteorological doom - in other words, time for Ottawa's Cisco Systems Bluesfest. The weather certainly wasn't looking too friendly when I headed out my front door at 5:30 p.m. and sure enough when I hit Somerset St. it started to rain with vigor. There was even a crack of thunder, and I had visions of being turned away at the gate. No such worries, though. It had let up by the time I arrived, and it had the beneficial effect - for those of us who like a little elbow room - of scaring off less determined music fans. Thus, I got into Bluesfest without a wait, there were no lines to scan my ticket, and I was standing in front of the Telecommunications Giant Stage before Amanda Rheaume cranked things up, instead of halfway through her set.

Amanda's sounding better and better each time I see her - perhaps because such viewings tend to take place at yearly intervals. All that international travel must be sharpening her skills.


Amanda Rheaume, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

I split after a few minutes because I wanted to see Toronto's Flash Lightnin on the Black Sheep Stage. I obviously left too early because they were still busy soundchecking whan I arrived. They played Mavericks a while back and impressed me with their Raging Slab style power trio blues. They've been back to Ottawa a couple of times since and seem to have made a few fans because the plaza filled up pretty quickly. They undoubtedly made a few more admirers with another tight set.


Flash Lightnin, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

I had nothing better to do, so I then made a stop at the Fast Food Chain Stage to watch Blue King Brown. I had vague hopes they might be a grizzled American bluesman, but in fact they're a multi-member Australian political reggae collective. The band sounds good and frontwoman Natalie Pa'apa'a has an interesting look, but I can't say I found her a compelling singer.


Blue King Brown, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

After a couple of BKB tunes I walked over to the Telecommunications Giant Stage to grab a good spot to watch The Black Keys. They attracted a very large and enthusiastic crowd and put on a sharp set. They aren't my favourite charged up blues duo (granted it's a crowded field) but you can't fault their performing chops.


Black Keys, Rogers Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

I spoke to a lot of people who were eagerly awaiting a chance to see Jeff Beck. I'm a fan too, but I confess my interest tailed off somewhere in the mid-1970s. Instead I returned to the Fast Food Chain Stage to see legendary British progressive outfit Van Der Graaf Generator. The turnout was not large, but there was a fairly devoted fanbase in evidence - I also heard a lot more French spoken in the crowd. Peter Hammill (that's him below), Hugh Banton and Guy Evans sounded good, but I confess that without David Jackson's saxophones something was missing for me.


Van Der Graaf Generator, Subway Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

Once again I snuck away, this time to check out Jeff Beck - how many opportunities will I get do that, right? There was of course a sizable crowd between me and the Giant Financial Institution Stage, and that always puts a damper on my enjoyment of an act. Beck may be a guitar wizard but I really wasn't feeling it.


Jeff Beck, Bank of America Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

The best plan for those bored at Bluesfest is to make one's way to the Black Sheep Stage; particularly if there's a Latin American or African act on stage. Thus I made my way, there, stopping to listen to a bit of New Orleans roots rocker Eric Lindell en route at the Music-Themed Eatery Stage.


Eric Lindell, Hard Rock Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

It was salsa time at The Black Sheep Stage with Paris-based Sergent Garcia. Once upon a time Sergent was a member of French drum machine punks Ludwig von 88, now he's rocking Cuban style, with a modern twist. He had the crowd bouncing and dancing with no trouble thanks to his crack band of Cuban and French musicians (plus one bassist from Guyana) That's him below in the red shirt. The band is performing tonight at Ritual Nightclub on Besserer, opening for Rjd2. I'm guessing that will be a party and a half ... (Flash update, it seems Rjd2 couldn't make it, so Sergent and Co. will be opening for Clinton at the free stage instead [Update to the update, Rjd2 is now at the Whiskey at midnight]).


Sergent Garcia, Black Sheep Stage, Bluesfest, July 8, 2009

Not a bad first day. I'm looking forward to The Chaffey Brothers and Iron & Wine today.

• Show reminder: I'm going to guess that things will be nuts in the Byward Market as the Bluesfest starts its first in a string of free shows there with a performance by Funkadelic mainman George Clinton. There's also a host of other Bluesfest-connected shows in various venues. Elliott Brood, Matt Mays and Think About Life stand out for me. Elsewhere The Creeps and Fear Of Lipstick rock The Atomic Rooster. The Backsliders slide into the Elmdale House.