Bluesfest: Danny Michel Y Los Hombres Malos

I've seen Danny Michel a couple of times. He's got a lot of fans in this town, but I can't say I've ever found him more than likeable despite his evident skill as a guitarist and songwriter. Oh well! The few songs I caught at the National Bank Stage, before heading off to see Blue Rodeo, were pleasant enough. Unfortunately I can't find any information about his band, Los Hombres Malos.

The hombre on bass.



The hombre on drums.



Danny works the technology.



The hombre on Banjo.



Danny is illuminated.



Malos action!



Closeup action!



The banjo player was quite active.



The crowd goes wild!



He's got a trio of dates in Waterloo, T.O. and London starting Dec. 15.

• Show reminder: Feist and Bry Webb play NAC Southam Hall; Hellbound is at The Rainbow.

Bluesfest 2011: Day 10

I made it my goal Friday to catch a big chunk of Blue Rodeo's headlining set. I'm a fan of the band, and they are of course frequent - some might say inevitable - Bluesfest headliners. However, until yesterday there was always another band on the bill I was more interested in for their timeslot. Not so yesterday - it was a case of either people I'd seen before - Paul Thorn, Danny Michel - or someone I didn't really want to check out (I already had more than enough of Mac Miller's audience watching Big Sam's Funky Nation).

But first, a stop at the Hard Rock Stage for Jamie McLean. Like the aforementioned Big Sam, he's a veteran of The Dirty Dozen Brass Band. I went to check him out on the strength of news he'd toured with the Drive-By Truckers. He plays some tough-sounding, bluesy roots-rock.


Jamie McLean at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

When he was done I went over to the National Bank Stage to check out Hannah Georgas. Georgas had already attracted a big crowd for her folky indie pop. She sounded fine but didn't intrigue me.


Hannah Georgas at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

I went back to see harmonica man James Harman perform on the Hard Rock Stage. He was backed by Monkeyjunk, and David Maxwell and The Texas Horns also put in an appearance - definitely a set for the blues hardcore. I have to say, I appreciated his dismissal of the rock-jock's introduction: "Whatever." A little black-and-white action for you ...


James Harman and Monkeyjunk at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

I popped over to see some of Big Sam's Funky Nation. The crowd seemed quite young, but judging from the profusion of Mac Miller T-shirts in evidence it was clear they were mostly folks grabbing an early spot for the dancefest to come - not that they didn't appreciate Big Sam's stuff (which also featured Jamie McLean on guitar).


Big Sam's Funky Nation at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

I stopped for a bit to eat while Big Sam and Co. played in the background, then went over to see a bit of Danny Michel Y Los Hombre Malos. Like Georgas he attracted a big crowd - being a former native and popular favourite - but didn't seize my attention.


Danny Michel Y Los Hombre Malos at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

Finally, off to see Blue Rodeo. The crowd was huge and more than ready to sing along. The bunch I was next to were more enthusiastic than in tune, so I moved back a bit to where the audience was more musically inclined (or at least less stoned). They had Wayne Petti from Cuff The Duke with them, as well as Junkhouse, Crash Vegas and Jim Cuddy Band axeman Colin Cripps.


Blue Rodeo at Ottawa Bluesfest, July 15, 2011

Now, on to the weekend!

• Show reminder: Auto Racing, The Consonance and Professor LeStrange are at Zaphod's; The Creeps, Old Wives, The Weekend Kids and Male Nurse Band will rock Cafe Dekcuf; Streat Meat will be performing with Rockalilly Burlesque at Babylon; The Hammerheads play their regular Rainbow gig; Wide Mouth Mason perform at Mavericks; Go Long! and Open Sky will be at Irene's; The Elmdale hosts Mubarak Farah and the Airliner Blues Band, Still Native and The Ticket. The Cody Allen Band, Yanis Khamsi and The Streets of Hastings are on the bill at the Avant-Garde Bar.

To Valhalla and back again

After a grim Saturday, a sunny Sunday was a relief. My first stop of the day was yet another set by Danny Michel - this time a complete one. Judging from comments Danny made during the set he usually plays solo and while not an impromptu get-together, this show wasn't over-rehearsed either. It was some energetic if less than surefooted popcraft.

It's all about basic black, and killing your TV.



Guitarist Andrew Eldridge. Don't see too many guitars out there with three P-90s.



Also on board, Dennis Mohammed on bass.



And finally, drummer Steve (I hope it's Steve - my notes make a lot less sense a month after the fact).



Jim Bryson was invited to perform one song with the band and ended up playing keyboards for the entire set.



This was the photo just before the teaser photo I published earlier - which is why it looks almost identical.



Explanation time.



Singalong action!



Pop action!



He's not a guy I go out of my way to see (I find his voice a bit insinuating for my taste) but he's got a good line in pop hooks.

• Show reminder: I go back to work today after three days off, so you know there's a tone of shows on around town (grumble, grumble) - USAisamonster and Smoke Judo make strange noises at End Hits; The Love Machine release their new CD at Babylon with Viscera's Recital and The Imports. Sunparlour Players, Entire Cities, The Rural Alberta Advantage and Jane Vain play the Black Sheep Inn for Day 1 of the i(heart)music festival. The Sin Kickers, The Red Light Saints and Speakeasy perform at Zaphod's

Finally!

There goes Bluesfest for another year. On the last day I camped out at the Black Sheep Stage. I was slightly tempted to go and see Detroit Women, but elected in the end to stick around. I saw three acts I've heard and enjoyed before, to varying degrees, and enjoyed them all once again. There were also three acts I hadn't seen before - I got a real kick out of of them too.

I was too much of a slowpoke getting down to LeBreton Flats to catch all of Danny Michel's rock set, but did catch a good chunk of it. Jim Bryson was invited to play keyboards on one song and ended up playing the whole set. The weather also took a turn for the better. "Now I can complain it's too hot!" jested Michel.



Next up was Papa Mali, my favourite surprise of the day. The dreadlocked guitarist hails from Louisiana and serves up a great swamp-soul-funk combination with cool reverbed vocals. His singing style and lyrics made me think of Baby Huey. He also played an instrumental cover of Neil Young - After the Goldrush, I think. If I were running Bluesfest, he'd top the list of performers I hadn't heard of before that I'd invite back.



With a name like King Sunshine, I expected a soca or calypso outfit. I wasn't far off - this Canadian nine-piece give a definite Caribbean inflection to their dancefloor friendly sounds.



I saw the Deadstring Brothers last year, and enjoyed their take on the countrified side of The Rolling Stones. They were even better this year - and, as singer Masha noted, "I'm embarrassed to say I'm still wearing the same stuff as last time." Heck, there are now some actual brothers in the band!



I know Steve Forbert mostly by reputation, but have never been fortunate enough to catch him live. Never mind that his first album is approaching its 30th anniversary, he still acts like a man with a hotfoot on stage.



Following Forbert's set, someone waved a magic wand, transforming a graying and sitting crowd into one 30 years younger and without lawn chairs. Sharon Jones and The Dap-Kings ended things off with an equally energetic performance. A raised stage with a metal barrier isn't exactly an ideal situation for a Sharon Jones performance, but with some hopping and lugging a few folks from the crowd did make it up to dance on a couple of tunes.



A swell end to good festival. Further photos will appear in the days ahead.

• Show reminder: There's much hardcore at Babylon with Madball, Outbreak, Death Before Dishonor and Unleash Hell. Mink, The Poulsens, Transmission (or is Transformers?) and Sin Silver play for free at Zaphod's.

Rain delay

It had to happen eventually: Rain dampened the spirit of festival-goers yesterday. This wasn't the gig-cancelling lightning threat of last year's Bluesfest, just on-and-off showers that left things damp, gloomy and miserable. I stuck it out until around 9 p.m. for a bevy of Canadians acts (mostly local), but as things began to get heavy I packed up and left - I'll catch Blackie and the Rodeo Kings on some other occasion. Things were overcast when I arrived. As I chained up my bicycle I could hear The Empiricals nimbly navigating their penultimate tune. I snapped the picture below as they wrapped things up.

You may ask, "Why is Paul Hogan blue?" I must have hit the white balance switch taking my camera out. I could probably tinker it back to normal, but since this is Bluesfest I decided to leave it as is.



The show I had really arrived in time to see was up next. Amos the Transparent impressed me a great deal at the last (and first) show by them I saw; they sounded just as good this time around. While they didn't have matching shirts, they did have Ana Miura on hand. They also had their new album with them; it will see official release Aug. 28.



John Mooney and Blueisiana were supposed to play next, but Mr. Mooney fell ill and had to stay home. Amanda Rheaume and her band played in his stead and did a good job. Unfortunately the rain arrived about the time they got on stage.



I had planned to see a bit of gospel this Bluesfest, so I went over to the Black Sheep Stage hoping that Geoff Moore might sound something like, say, Bill Withers. He did not. I left.



The other option available at the time was Patrick Watson, who was just about to start up on the Rogers Stage. He has a charming, somewhat goofball stage presence and uses a delay pedal on his voice with interesting results. His band has some fun with odd musical doodads as well.



Following a singalong finale which saw Watson making his way into the crowd, I went back to the River Stage where I caught the end of Danny Michel's show. I'll probably see more of him today with his rock band. He came back for an encore, which is why he's wearing a satchel.



My final show of the evening was local fave Jim Bryson, who played a rollicking set which included a blues guitar duel with Jake Bryce.



That seemed a good way to the end of night, particularly with the wet and cold starting to seep through my Converse sneakers in a serious way. It really started pouring as I biked on home - I hope conditions didn't get too miserable back at the Flats.

• Show reminder: Shipwreck, Ceremony and Lion of Judah play End Hits.