Tag: Ottawa Bluesfest

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Live music galleries

Live music galleries: Amigo the Devil [2025]

Amigo the Devil at Ottawa Bluesfest 2025

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 kit
Katerina Kiranos adding some percussion
Danny Kiranos playing banjo
David Talley on guitar

Carson rocking out
Danny and Abbey duet
David Talley
Katerina playing the melodica
Amigo the Devil taking it away
Categories
Live music galleries

Live music galleries: The Tea Party [2024]

(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 crowd
Jeff Burrows at the kit
Stuart Chatwood on the bass
Jeff Burrows in the zone
Jeff Martin pulling out the big guns
Stuart Chatwood on the keys
The trio just jamming away

*And leave before the headlining set by Motley Crue.

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Live music galleries

Live music galleries: Fanclubwallet [2024]

(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.)

Fanclubwallet at Ottawa Bluesfest 2024

Artist: Fanclubwallet
When: July 14th, 2024
Where: River stage, Ottawa Bluesfest, Lebreton Flats Park, Ottawa
Context: Just over a month ago, I was deep into the enjoyment of attending the local music festival, Ottawa Bluesfest, and as I often do, I spent more time at the side stages than I did partaking the main event on each night. In fact, some of my favourite sets were not just native to Canada but were local to the city I currently call home. And I thought I might like to give props to some of these over the next few weeks, starting with local indie pop outfit, Fanclubwallet. Hannah Judge originally started making music in her bedroom during the pandemic, got some attention on the streaming services, and after a full length album and a couple of EPs, put together a full band to collaborate with on her latest outing. She had said band with her when she performed on the River stage on the last day of the festival, a set I had penciled in the moment I purchased my pass. I had enjoyed pretty much everything by her project that I’d heard thus far, a quirky brand of dream pop with plenty of hooks, and it was just as fun live. Hannah and her crew obviously felt comfortable on the stage, perhaps emboldened by the family and friends and hometown built fan club (not intended to be funny). The frontwoman was just as novel as I had imagined, playing her guitars by times and at others, a toy apple. And still others, dancing like no one was watching and singing in those cheerful tones that help make Fanclubwallet’s tunes so bright and full of sunshine. Perfect for a warm summer evening.
Point of reference song: “Band like that”

Hannah Judge aka Fanclubwallet
Eric Graham playin’ guitar
Luka Malatestinic also playin’ guitar
Nat Reid the bass man
Michael Watson banging on drums
Hannah playing the apple
Hannah and her band