As usual, we’ll have you covered throughout the festival with daily previews to get you geared up for that day’s lineup at Lansdowne, and then a slew of pictures the next day to help you relive the experience – or give you a bad case of FOMO. Fair warning.
After an incredible three days of music, we head into the CityFolk weekend with another impressive slate of artists on the two stages.
TD Stage:
6:00pm: Mikhail Laxton
7:20pm: David Kushner
8:45pm: KALEO
Saturday’s main stage will feature a healthy helping of soul mixed into its trio of acts hailing from the four corners of the world, yet with a familiar thread uniting them all.
First is Stittsville’s Aussie transplant Mikhail Laxton. Last we saw Laxton, he was playing an impressive set on day 1 of Bluesfest this summer, with a brand new album soon to come. That album finally dropped last month, and sees the singer-songwriter take his soul-infused folk into a new country direction. Whatever the genre though, Laxton’s heartfelt vocals remain the star and draw in listeners with its smooth yet authentic quality.
In most cases, music artists that are ‘overnight successes’ have been toiling away for years, maybe decades, before getting discovered. For David Kushner, that is not the case. After his first few songs in 2021, the Chicago singer-songwriter released “Miserable Man” at the beginning of 2022, and it went viral on TikTok. Since then his career has been a whirlwind, with each successive release a massive global hit. Currently sitting in the Top 200 most played artists in the world on Spotify, he has amassed almost a billion streams on the platform, thanks to his latest single “Daylight”. Chart-topper and platinum certified in multiple countries, the April single has already crossed the 500 million mark. While the success may be swift, Kushner is no viral flash in the pan. His songs are well crafted, with a voice that sounds both fresh and seasoned, somewhat reminiscent of Sunday’s headliner (but we’ll get to him tomorrow).
Closing the night on the main stage is a bit of a conundrum – how can a band of Icelanders sound so much like they’re from the southern U.S.? KALEO’s take on rock and blues infusion took the world by storm in 2015 with their breakout hit “Way Down We Go”, nowhere more so than right here in Canada, where the single has been certified eight-time platinum. The subsequent full album A/B was a runaway success, with lead track “No Good” (which also went platinum in Canada) opening the album with an immediate introduction to their blues riffs and soulful vocals. That success did mean an abundance of touring, which delayed their follow-up album, but fans were finally rewarded for their patience in 2021 with Surface Sounds. Staying true to their blues rock roots, a few songs on the album venture outside their comfort zone, such as the funkier “Hey Gringo”, but no matter the exploration, lead singer JJ’s powerful vocals are unmistakeable, and prove just how universal music can truly be.
Courtside Stage:
5:30pm: Kristine St-Pierre
6:30pm: Andrea Ramolo
7:30pm: Allison Russell
For the first time since opening night, the Courtside Stage will be broadening its slate of artists beyond folk (and beyond English), step by step.
Local regular Kristine St-Pierre will kick the night off with her award-winning bilingual folk, mixing songs from her EPs and latest singles, and if we’re lucky, a few previews of the material that will be on her upcoming album.
Next is Toronto’s Andrea Ramolo, who has taken her original folk stylings and pushed them in different directions with her new EP, a collaborative effort with Italy’s Kalascima. The result is a fascinating mix of traditional Italian folk with non-traditional instruments and electronica elements to create a truly modern sound. Ramolo is a great fit in this experiment, given that her latest album, Quarantine Dream, was already dabbling with that broader sonic palette, as well as being recorded both in English and in Italian.
Closing the tent is another Bluesfest returnee, Allison Russell, who also had an album on the verge of release at the time of her set. The Returner was released last week, and while there are still elements of folk that were prevalent on her last album, her new release skews much more towards soul, exemplified with the title track that incorporates backing harmonies that feel almost gospel-like. Folk, soul, or wherever she ventures, Russell’s voice will bring listeners along for the ride effortlessly.
Keep checking apt613.ca and our social media feeds for more previews and photos throughout the festival!
