The first act I saw was Milwaukee soul combo Kings Go Forth. They're a sharp bunch of performers fronted by Black Wolf, a former member of The Essentials, a 1970s outfit that produced one well-received single at Curtis Mayfield's studio. The band is apparently composed of refugees from ska and calypso bands and keeps things super groovy.
Kings Go Forth at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
I briefly took shelter from a spot of rain in the War Museum, where I spotted Wayne Coyne charting with Jon Bartlett. He dresses in that same grey suit offstage as well, and seems a most affable and approachable fellow. I'm told the night before Pat Lawlor of The Flaps rang him up at his hotel and invited him to drinks at The Manx - and he showed up to chat for 90 minutes. After this thrilling celebrity sighting, I went over to the main stage to see That's The Spirit play a handful of songs. They were a five-piece for this occasion, and sounded really excellent.
That's The Spirit at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
I decided to move about a bit and went off to see Michael Jerome Brown. He was decent enough at the last Bluesfest show I caught him at, but this time her was really fine, despite not doing anything different this time around ... I must have been in the mood for the blues or something.
Michael Jerome Brown at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
I've heard good things about Bear In Heaven, a Brooklyn group who played the Hard Rock Stage, which was apparently geared to a younger set for Saturday. They've got a heavy beat, and I think their drummer is excellent, but the rest of the group's sound was not doing much for me, so I left after a couple of tunes - and I noticed I wasn't the only escapee.
Bear In Heaven at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
As I wandered, I came across Roy Rogers & His Delta Rhythm Kings. They sounded pretty good and had a decent amount of stage presence too.
Roy Rogers & The Delta Rhythm Kings at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
Caravan Palace are from Paris. They say they're influenced by Django Reinhardt and Daft Punk and call their music electro-swing. This turns out to be the most accurate band self-description in my lengthy history of suffering through band self-descriptions. They were darn energetic, and I can't say I've seen a bland that loud with a clarinet player before. They certainly had the crowd fired up and were all-round entertaining, though I suspect they could ditch the techno side of the equation and get along just fine.
Caravan Palace at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
After a brief trip home for eats and suchlike, I returned to catch some of Carolyn Wonderland's set. The Texas guitar gal probably gets called "feisty" a lot. I had the impression she was more of a steel guitar slinger. But she was rocking a Telecaster with some fiery fingerpicking.
Carolyn Wonderland at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
The Texas Horns were on hand to add some extra punch.
The Texas Horns with Carolyn Wonderland at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
She's back again today at 5:45 p.m. on the Subway Stage ... I then passed by the Real Estate Developers Stage where Supertramp's Roger Hodgson was doing his thing. He seems like a nice chap, dedicating Dreamer to the pair of recently wed Bluesfest volunteers assigned to his care and upkeep. From what I heard he can still play his songs as ably as in his heyday ... maybe it's not over yet. I was mortally tempted to stick around since those were the songs playing on the radio when I was a lad, but the main stage was calling.
Roger Hodgson at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
I wanted to get a good spot for The Flaming Lips, which even a mere 30 minutes before their set turned out to be a cinch. Either Metric drew a spartan crowd or the kids all split to go and see Passion Pit. The Flaming Lips turned in an eye-popping set, which started off with an unclad lady cavorting on the semi-circular backdrop behind them.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
She then sat down, spread her legs, and as strobing lights emitted from her nether regions, The assembled Lips emerged through the screen. Here's drummer Kliph Surlock.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
And of course, the famous Wayneball!
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
What followed was like being in the world's largest children's party - confetti, balloons and ribbons everywhere.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
Many, many balloons.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
There were dancing girls stage left and dancing boys stage right ...the enthusiasm did slack a bit as the show progressed.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
Stephen Drozd gets in some loudspeaker time.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
Derek Brown of Crocodile is once again accompanying the band.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
You play guitar for a little while and your hands can really swell up. Unfortunately at the speeds I was shooting the green lasers didn't really show up well.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
The band has been playing Taps at every show until the end of the war in Iraq.
The Flaming Lips at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 10, 2010
Well, there was much more that I'll show off at a later date, unless you have enough energy to go over to my Flickr photostream and check 'em out there.
- Show reminder: Coliseum, Burning Love, a reunited BOAR and Thunderuncle rock Mavericks.
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