Bluesfest: The BushPilots

After catching The Ethics' last few songs on the Main Stage, I popped next door to the Claridge Stage to see another Ottawa Band , The BushPilots, who have made plenty of appearances on the blog before, although crazily enough it had been a good couple of years since I'd actually caught a full live set from them. Problem solved!

Kevin Smith prepares to hit.



Less guitar, more pointing from Rob Bennett.



Blame the harmonica.



Glen tinkles the ivories, or whatever they make keys out of these days.



Jeff rocks the low end!



Singalong action with Tom and Tom!



Extra Kevin!



More Glen and Jeff!



More guitar!



And so on!



I dare say a good chunk of the crowd was awaiting K'Naan, but most appeared to be having a good time ...



Extra Jeff!



And so on!



They recently played at a tribute to much-missed Lance Matthews at the Rainbow, and now doubt will be hitting the stage again soon.

Bluesfest: The Ethics

The final Sunday of Bluesfest was a bit of a dud - honestly, there wasn't much I felt like sticking around for -but it did give me a chance to catch up with some local bands I hadn't seen in a while, as well as a couple of out-of-towners. First on the list of locals were The Ethics, last seen (by me) performing at Raw Sugar in April 2011.

Kevin Hersak rocks the shades.



Jeff Gleeson in the pink.



Matt Arnold of Soiree fame handles the low end.



Marcus Ward works the keys.



The whole lot, including drummer Paul Ross!



Singalong action!



Faceoff action!



Kicking action!



More Paul!



Unfortunately I only caught a bit of their smart pop set; then it was off to watch The BushPilots.

Bluesfest: Mastodon

I'm not sure why, but in my late 30s I started listening to a lot of heavy metal - before then the only band in the genre I'd had much time for was Motorhead. Nowadays I've got a collection that runs from Abrahma to Yob. And among the many bands that I've become keen on is Mastodon. The prog lovingmetal behemoth landed on the River stage to finish off Bluesfest's final Saturday and played a great set.

Fuzzy - in more ways than one - action with  Brent Hinds and Troy Sanders!



Brian Kelliher rocks the Les Paul!



Extra Troy!



Yeah, the photos were basically all horrid so here's the last one!



They've already got a few dates for this year's festival season, all overseas.

Bluesfest: Shemekiah Copeland

Back to Bluesfest, where I followed the Monophonics set with some seriously rocking rhythm and blues courtesy of Shemekiah Copeland.

Here she is with guitarist Arthur Neilson. Fun fact: Neilson once slung his axe beside Cyndi Lauper in Blue Angel.



And here's bassist Kevin Jenkins (also a one-time Lauper sideman!) and rythm guitarist William Scandlyn.



Shady action!



Copeland's got some serious pipes.



And so on! Yes, it was getting a bit dark for decent photos.



Then it was back to the River Stage to await the arrival of the mighty Mastodon!

Fuzz, buzz and twang

Off to Zaphod Beeblebrox on Saturday, where a trio of local acts put on a great show for the assembled dozens. The Dead Bees, Glorious Moonrockets and Sick Sick Sicks each brought something different to the table.

First up, Glorious Moonrockets, making a fine racket.


Glorious Moonrockets at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

Rhythm section action!


Glorious Moonrockets at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

Then on to Sick Sick Sicks. I've never seen them before. They've got some Old Weird Americana, some rockabilly and some ska, plus songs about longboarding, hallucinogens and riding bicycles. There was also some microphone licking from bassist Red. You may also recognize drummer Kosta McKay from his stint with Department of Foreign Affairs (the band, not the ministry).


Sick Sick Sicks at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

Guitar action!


Sick Sick Sicks at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

And now on to Dead Bees, who favour a melodic kind of pop, and which also features some DOFA vets, including Kosta, making the night a doubleheader.


Dead Bees at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

Also hailing from the ranks of DOFA, Chris Thibedeau, who plays both bass and guitar (particularly on their cover of Big Star's September Gurls, a favourite of his). Chris Sims rounds out the trio.


Dead Bees at Zaphod Beeblebrox, January 19, 2013

A well-rounded evening.

Crabs and clearwater

Last night I popped ovr to the Daily Grind on Somerset to check out some heavy music, courtesy of Montreal's Crabe and local outfit Big Moan. Montreal's Panopticon Eyes were also on the bill - and the act I was keenest to see - but couldn't make it. That's okay, the rest of the slate did just fine.

First up, Big Moan with a big helping on head-nodding heavy rock, a la Kyuss and the Small Stone circle of bands.


Big Moan at Daily Grind, January 18, 2013

A seriously down-tuned version of Creedence Clearwater Revival's Feelin' Blue finished off their set.


Big Moan at Daily Grind, January 18, 2013

On to Crabe, who reminded me of France's Gunslingers, if only that band had stripped down to guitar and drums and chopped their songs into bits.They drove six hours from Quebec City to get to the show - that's dedication!


Crabe at Daily Grind, January 18, 2013

It was a very cool set.


Crabe at Daily Grind, January 18, 2013

The triple latte was good too!

Bluesfest: Monophonics

After Beirut I went back to the River Stage to see what California combo The Monophonics were all about. They're an old-school collection of organ rockers who like their funk with a touch of psychedelica.

Ian McDonald handles the licks, Kelly Finnigan works the keys and sings.



It was another sweaty day.



Here's bassist Myles O'Mahony and the brass section, Alex Baky and Ryan Scott.



More saxophone.



Extra trumpet!



Singalong action!



Myles sings!



Drummer Austin Bohlman rounds out the group.



Rhythm section action!



Gripping action!



I saw them the next day on the mainstage, working up an even greater sweat.



Extra brass!



Extra bass!



If you like your funk retro, they were definitely the band to see. Up next on their dance card is some work with French singer Ben l'Oncle Soul and some live touring in February.