Artist: Amigo the Devil When: July 11th, 2025 Where: Lebreton Flats Park, Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa Context: A few days in to this year’s edition of Ottawa Bluesfest and I’ve already been treated to a number of unforgettable performances that have not only introduced but quickly made a fan of this humble music nerd to their respective artists. One example of these pleasant surprises was the 7:45pm set by Amigo the Devil on Friday night on the River stage. It was my friend Josh and the fact that this artist was the only reason he was attending the festival on this night that pushed me to have a look into the music of the noir folk artist beforehand. A few spins of their tunes had me looking forward to the set as well but I was woefully unprepared for how blown away I would be. Frontman Danny Kiranos’s immense stage presence and storytelling prowess had the crowd wrapped up with him, laughing and crying and singing along. Especially poignant were the duet with his girlfriend Abbey covering the John Prine tune “In spite of ourselves” and in introducing “It’s all gone” with a crack that he wished he had never wrote the song after losing most of his possessions in a house fire last month. I can’t wait to start digging further into his catalogue and wouldn’t hesitate to see Amigo the Devil, solo or full band, live, again and again and again. Point of reference song: “Murder at the bingo hall”
Carson Kehrer on the drum kitKaterina Kiranos adding some percussionDanny Kiranos playing banjoDavid Talley on guitar
Carson rocking outDanny and Abbey duetDavid TalleyKaterina playing the melodicaAmigo the Devil taking it away
(It’s the eve of the first day of this year’s edition of Ottawa Bluesfest! Can you tell I’m excited? I bought a full pass when they went on sale back at the end of February and I had no idea if I’d be well enough to attend any of it. I’ve been looking forward to it ever since. I still don’t know how many of the shows I’ll get to but I’m looking at it all as a bonus. To celebrate, I’m taking a pause in our regular scheduled programming. Today, I’m sharing some pics from one of last year’s great sets and hopefully, I’ll have a few more words and pictures to share on the festival over the next 11 days.)
The Tea Party live at Bluesfest July 13 2024
Artist: The Tea Party When: July 13th, 2024 Where: Lebreton Flats Park, Ottawa Bluesfest, Ottawa Context: This set of pictures is more than just a record of a rock performance. It also shows and reminds me of one of the many reasons I love Ottawa Bluesfest so much. It has not only given me the opportunity to discover so many excellent acts over the years but it has also allowed me to witness the performance of acts that I would not have otherwise seen. The Tea Party is an example of the latter. The trio originally from Windsor, Ontario were a huge name in Canadian alternative rock throughout the 90s. I knew them by name and because I’d heard them played ad nauseam on the radio, benefactors of our country’s Canadian Content laws. I had nearly forgotten about them but gave them another look in advance of last year’s edition of the festival when I saw their name on the bill and I was pleasantly surprised at how many of their songs I knew and (more importantly) liked and how well they held up. These songs motivated me enough to head down to the festival grounds specifically to see them* and The Tea Party did not disappoint. In their energetic one hour set, they tore through pretty much all their hits (including “The bazaar”, “Temptation”, “Sister awake”, and the song below), impressed with their prowess on multiple instruments, and Jeff Martin did the same with his frontman showmanship. Point of reference song: “Heaven coming down”
Jeff Martin surverying the crowdJeff Burrows at the kitStuart Chatwood on the bassJeff Burrows in the zoneJeff Martin pulling out the big gunsStuart Chatwood on the keysThe trio just jamming away
*And leave before the headlining set by Motley Crue.
(I got the idea for this series while sifting through the ‘piles’ of digital photos on my laptop. It occurred to me to share some of these great pics from some of my favourite concert sets from time to time. Until I get around to the next one, I invite you to peruse my ever-growing list of concerts page.)
Lowest of the Low, live at Overflow Brewing Company
Artist: The Lowest of the Low When: April 25th, 2025 Where: Overflow Brewing Company, Ottawa Context: I’ve been a fan of the legendary Toronto indie rockers since I was a teenager and first fell for their debut album, “Shakespeare my butt” in the early 90s. I’d seen live them a handful of times already, each since their triumphant reformation in the early 2000s, but it had been more than a decade since the last time* so when I saw this show advertised, I hemmed and hawed a little but bit the bullet in the end. Part of the reason I pondered so much was because of the location** and given my recent medical issues*** but after everything, I was super glad I went. The show was the second on a month-long mini-tour in support of their newest album, “Over years and overnight” (due out this Friday). The problem with slogging an album not yet released is always that you can’t properly sell it at the merch table**** and that fans won’t have had the time to familiarize themselves with the new material. However, the band did push through a good deal of these new tracks, were mostly well received by the crowd, and definitely had me looking forward to giving the album a spin. Most of the rest of the set was pulled from the group’s classic debut*****, which had the whole crowd singing along, along with a sampling of the best of the rest of their output from over the years. Indeed, Ron Hawkins and the other gentlemen in the band displayed that are great show people, knowing their audience and their bread and butter, so of course, there were laughs and cheers and maybe some tears. So much fun. Point of reference song: “The only one I see”
Ron Hawkins, frontman and lead vocalistMichael McKenzie, lead guitaristLawrence Nichols, keys, backing vocals and legendary on the harmonicaGreg Smith, bassist and pogo dancerDavid Alexander, drummerGreg and Michael enjoying the jamRon HawkinsLawrence rocking the harmonicaRon and Greg having a rest while David and Michael rock outRon and Lawrence performing ‘Black Monday’
*The last time being in September 2013, possibly one of, if not the last time founding member Stephen Stanley performed live with the band.
**The venue was at Overflow Brewing Company, a local craft brewery that is a bit out of the way in terms of transit, and definitely required a cab ride home given that I am still not driving.
***This was my first live show in more than six months and I was a bit unsure but in the end, it was the perfect show to get back in the saddle.
****Though frontman Ron Hawkins kept making cracks about us being able to pay to scan a QR code at the merch table.
*****By my count and not necessarily trustworthy memory, 10 tracks from the debut, including “Rosy and grey”, “Bleed a little while tonight”, “Salesmen, cheats and liars”, and “Henry needs a new pair of shoes”.
My (life in) music lists 