I ran into a friend from work and another old buddy who told me that the guest guitarist for the Storm Outside was her fiancé and his cousin. I know the two of them to have a keen ear for good music so seeing them in attendance assured me the show I was about to see would be worth watching.
The man himself, Claude Munson, arrived on stage solo at first, acoustic in hand and hair tied back into a ponytail. He played a sweet and simple tune to start things up. The rest of the band joined him on stage afterwards and they got going with the show.
The music flowing from the stage was an unexpected departure from the overtly jazz-tinged music I had been enjoying for the past week. It shifted towards pensive, slightly dark, and ambient folk music. Comparisons with groups such as Timber Timbre, The Weakerthans, The Deep Dark Woods, and Dan Mangan were evident but the group played such a lovely combination of these styles to make something I really hadn’t heard before.
Munson had a comfortably laid back stage presence that lent itself to the low-key folk music wafting down from the stage. One particular track that stood out had to do with dreams finally returning after Munson quit smoking.
The smokey, dream-like, yet anchored in misty, swampy reality feel of the music continued for the entire set, which only lasted an hour as do all those on the OLG stage. There weren’t any stand-out solos from other members of group but they were hardly necessary as they all played so well together anchored around Munson—and despite not being a permanent ensemble at the show.
Certain band members flutter around the Ottawa music scene, or so I was told, playing with different groups and bringing their talents into what I’m sure are other wonderful sonic combinations. I for one hope to catch Munson & the Storm Outside again some time very soon, perhaps with a few other local musicians tacked on for good measure.
They closed the set with a more upbeat track that got a few dread-locked members of the crowd up and dancing near the stage.
The set was closed with a well-earned standing ovation. I can safely say this was one of the most refreshing and possibly best sets I saw at the entire festival. I was more than pleasantly surprised with the performance and truly hope to see them again some time soon.
