Acts ranging from Inuit throat singer Tanya Tagaq to hip-hop all-stars Arrested Development showcased the diversity of folk music at the 17th annual Ottawa Folk Festival, which ran from Aug. 13–15 and featured over 45 artists from around the world.
“Festivals are definitely akin to summer camp,” said Rolf Klausener, front-man of local indie darling, The Acorn. “You get to see [artists] you wouldn’t really get to see otherwise. It’s generally really relaxed, everyone’s having fun and you’re outside.”
Aug. 13 featured Toronto’s Bruce Peninsula, who combined church-like chants with prog-rock riffs. Tunes like “Crabapples” off of the album Mountain is a Mouth induced foot-stomping and arm-flailing dance moves from young and old alike.
Atlanta’s Arrested Development closed the night with an incredible performance that roused even the staunchest lawn-chair sitter from their roost. Playing hits like “People Everyday,” “Tennessee” and “Mr. Wendal,” the group’s command of the crowd was unparalleled all weekend long. Band-leader Speech engaged the audience in chants between lead verses while Tasha Larae and Montsho Eshe entertained with co-ordinated dance moves and rock-solid back-up vocals. More than any other performance of the weekend, it was plain to see how much joy and passion these performers had for their craft.
The camp vibe returned Saturday as throngs of middle-aged men in chinos and tube socks, women with long, graying braids under sun hats and young parents with children strapped across their fronts joined well-heeled hipsters for day two of the festival.
The workshops during the day were an opportunity to see musicians collaborating and instigating creativity with one another. By putting together bands and artists whose styles were decidedly different, it seemed as though organizers of the festival were themselves trying to push the boundaries of what folk music is. The Hidden Cameras’ self-proclaimed “gay church folk music” meshed with Bruce Peninsula’s rollicking drums and chanting and Arrested Development’s soulful vocals and funky bass while The Acorn bridged the gap between Tanya Tagaq’s primal screams, growls and guttural breaths and Calexico’s Latin-infused Americana.
Where Saturday’s line-up showed the diversity of folk-music, Sunday was in a way a return to the roots of the genre. Torrential rain made for some programming issues and soggy fields, but the covered stage and gymnasium of the Ron Kolbus Lakeside Centre housed the smaller crowd of diehard music lovers determined to folk all weekend long.
Ramblin’ Jack Elliott was a riot, mixing song and story, but they don’t call him “Ramblin’ Jack” for nothing. The 81-year-old Elliott sometimes took up to 10 minutes to get settled and tell an anecdote between tunes and although it made for an endearing experience, it was hard to remain patient, particularly when there were other bands playing across the park.
Horse Feathers had the misfortune of being scheduled at the same time as Elliott but those who opted to see the Portland, Ore.-based quartet were not disappointed. Horse Feathers wove carefully composed melodies using traditional folk instruments like banjo, violin and acoustic guitar that carefully balance Americana and indie.
Back at the tent to close out the festival, Jim Cuddy performed with Luke Doucet. Based on the amount of toe-tapping and grinning from audience members, Cuddy seemed to be playing to please. One woman remarked that the tent may have been the smallest venue Cuddy had played in a long time.