Ottawa Bluesfest

Go play outside.

Silver Creek celebrate 10 years as a band.

British hard rockers The Cult brought their legacy of music in a short one-hour set of songs from as far back as their second album, Love (1985).

Many Bluesfest attendees on Saturday were hurt and surprised by comments made by Ian Astbury, lead singer of The Cult, a British rock group known for gothy 1980s hits like “She Sells Sanctuary”.

Day Two of Bluesfest saw another packed lawn in front of the main City Stage for headliner, Noel Gallagher accompanied by his band of four – The High Flying Birds, and a 3-piece horn section. They whipped up a generous set that gave equal billing to their own music as well as to Gallagher’s material […]

You could say Ottawa blues guitarist-singer-songwriter Lucas Haneman was born to play. Haneman’s fascination with the guitar began as soon as he was old enough to sit on his daddy’s knee and reach the strings. At age 6, he was given a toy guitar with plastic strings, and moved up to a classical guitar a few […]

The voice may have been a deeper, richer, and more buttery version than what it used to be, but at 60, Billy Idol can still let out a rebel yell, and he showed his army of long-time fans he’s still the sprite and sneering delinquent of rock ’n roll. From the fiery angst of his […]

Ottawa’s singer/songwriter and piano man, Tyler Kealey, showcased his natural-born prowess on the ivories once again, inside the pristine acoustics of Bluesfest’s Barney Danson Theatre on opening night, the same stage he played in 2012. A good deal of Kealey’s musical path was paved on the Bluesfest grounds, which began during his high school years, […]

It’s been a ball, Bluesfest, and we’re sorry to see it end. But well, all good things, right? 220 acts, 11 days, 5 stages and too many good times to count. Before moving on here’s a recap of what stood out. Fan Fervour Tragically Hip fans endured pouring rain to hear their band. Kanye fans […]

The combination of the setting sun amidst the ambient sounds of Middle Eastern music cast a spell over the growing audience that quickly assembled in front of the Canadian stage on this final night of Bluesfest. Canadian headliners, The Tea Party, would take us on a magic carpet ride through their vast repertoire, dating all […]

It’s as much output that can be produced by a set of drums, bass, guitar, and a Hammond organ, by musicians that are masters of their instruments. It’s a wall of sound consisting of music from genres of heavy and progressive rock, with the use of blues, classical, and other scales. Add to this a […]

The Yips have been a prominent part of Ottawa’s music scene since they got together, in 2012. Since then, they’ve put out two EPs on their own, and a split with Organ Eyes.  The band plans on releasing their first full-length album by the end of 2015. Local band the Yips are playing Bluesfest for […]

Ottawa Bluesfest was once again the site of a performance by Alejandro Rose-Garcia, aka Shakey Graves, who graced us with a visit two years ago inside the Barney Danson Theatre. This time, he was placed in what seemed a more fitting setting: down by the river’s edge on the Canadian Stage, where the somewhat self-contained […]

Ottawa Bluesfest, one of the top ten outdoor music festivals in North America, is now in its 21st year, but has grown to become something much more than a phenomenally successful music festival. It’s an enterprise that has not only brought some of the biggest world talents to our city, but has also focused a […]

Ottawa’s musicians are like those in any other cities: they struggle to promote and develop their craft while staying true to their sound. Becoming a rock star isn’t easy, nor cheap and the first person to tell you would be Samantha Everts of YouRockRed. Known for her Rock Star grant writing specialty, Everts has helped […]