Ottawa is no stranger to summer festivals, and although music enthusiasts around the city may have been disappointed with the cancellation of this year’s Capital Hoedown, solace could be found in the season’s Folk Festival last weekend.
This year’s festival, which took place Sept. 6-10 just steps away from Mooney’s Bay at Hog’s Back Park, delivered an eclectic range of performers.
In addition, various artisan vendors, beer gardens and music workshops were strewn across the site to the supplementary enjoyment of ticket holders.
Since its inception in 1994, Folkfest has been a staple in Ottawa’s music scene, showcasing the talents of a variety of international and local folk artists. Among the local talent were rising stars Black Dogs, Ottawa-born Kelly Sloan, and singer-songwriter Brock Zeman.
Festival-goers saw headlining performances such as Ben Harper Sept. 6, Lindsey Buckingham of Fleetwood Mac fame Sept. 7, Great Big Sea Sept. 8, Dan Mangan Sept. 9, and Bon Iver Sept. 10. Equally impressive opening acts included Matthew Good, Timber Timbre, Yukon Blonde, LP, Hey Rosetta!, and Whitehorse.
This season, Folkfest played host to a Canadian artist whose performance can be considered somewhat of a comeback after a four-year hiatus in which he said goodbye to his Canadian borders and journeyed around the world.
Halifax native Matt Mays played one of his first performances in years at the festival after taking a creative break from musical production.
“I was traveling for music purposes and I wanted to see other parts of the world,” Mays said about his time off.
“I needed a break and I needed some time to zone out.”
Mays fans need not worry about his absence from the music industry. He described his travels as one that was both music-oriented and about self-discovery. Mays said he carried his ukelele with him everywhere he went.
“I usually play guitar everyday but that’s hard to lug around all the time,” Mays said. “The ukulele is the next best thing.”
His performance at Folkfest highlights the release of his new album, Coyote, which includes what Mays described as an accumulation of the genres in his past works. He described his fans in Ottawa as “awesome” and expressed his excitement to perform for the capital.
The festival was originally conceived by Max Wallace of CKCU radio and Chris White, a local artist, to “showcase Canada’s folk traditions through music, dance, storytelling and crafts.”
