Review of Bluesfest Day Nine: Crowds rock ’n’ roll and rage on

In the near 30 C weather, Bluesfest attendees donned sunglasses and baseball caps to  protect themselves from the heat on the festival’s ninth day. But many also wore long manes of hair and all-black outfits. 

Upon closer inspection, the black outfits made sense as festivalgoers proudly donned rock band merchandise of Metallica, Queen and appropriately, Mötley Crüe. 

On the second-last night of Ottawa Bluesfest, acts including JJ Wilde, Charlie Edward, The Tea Party and Mötley Crüe performed with pounding backbeats and fierce guitar riffs. 

Canadian rock artist JJ Wilde emerged in ripped jean shorts and a red tank top button up, kicking off the RBC Stage in style.

“It’s hot as fuck out here,” she said to the crowd near the start of her set. 

Wilde maintained high energy with hip sways and dancing while gliding across the stage, slipping into her songs “The Rush,” “Hands,” “Mercy” and “Arizona.” Nursing her connection with the exhilarated crowd, Wilde at one point received a friendship bracelet from an audience member. 

Festival attendees were already double-fisting beers as beads of sweat dribbled from their faces. A few kept cool with handheld fans.  

Over at the River Stage, 20-year-old Charlie Edward from London, Ont., played for a modest-sized crowd that grew as more people trickled in throughout his set. 

“I fucking love you guys,” he shouted to his flourishing audience. 

Gracefully riffing on vibrantly coloured electric guitars, Edward started his set in a suave black blazer which he later ditched, opting to play shirtless in the sweltering heat.

With a classic rock ’n’ roll rasp to his voice, Edward performed songs including unreleased track “Addicted to You” and his first single, “Bad Looks Good,” released the day before the performance. 

Between sets, festivalgoers sat at tables and criss-crossed on the floor, taking a break in the air-conditioned Canadian War Museum, clutching large reusable lemonade cups. 

The break didn’t last long, however, as a sizable crowd gathered for Juno Award-nominated trio The Tea Party, who hit the RBC Stage with vigour.

Progressive rock with influences from traditional music around the world, the band kicked off with the tantalising “The River,” the opener of their 1993 album Splendor Solis.

Jeff Martin’s roiling deep vocals paired with Stuart Chatwood’s rumbling bass and Jeff Burrows’ steady drums ushered the audience through an intoxicating setlist including “The Bazaar” and “Psychopomp.”

“We don’t have much time tonight,” Martin told the crowd, adding the promise to focus on playing music instead of telling stories. 

The band slowed things down but maintained their zeal for the powerful “Heaven Coming Down” combined with a cover of U2’s “With or Without You,” a standout number the audience sang to with their hands up in the air, as festival workers sprayed water onto the eagerly receiving crowd. 

The temperature cooled by the time Mötley Crüe hit the RBC Stage to an audience donning bandanas with cigarettes hanging from their lips.

A satirical newscast prefaced Crüe’s entrance, before the heavy metal four-piece jumped into “Primal Scream” and “Too Fast For Love.” They played through older hits “Shout at the Devil” and “Live Wire,” much to the crowd’s delight as they ruthlessly headbanged to the beat and hoisted their shirtless friends atop their shoulders. 

Crüe’s performance — heavy on roaring guitar riffs that sometimes overpowered lead vocals — delivered tones of nostalgia to the 1980s merchandise-donning audience, many of whom were older adults. 

Crowd energy peaked when the band closed with “Dr. Feelgood,” “Same Ol’ Situation (S.O.S.),” “Girls Girls Girls” and the enthralling “Kickstart My Heart.” 

Under the stars and smoke from the stage, a lingering feeling of nostalgia clung to the night as audiences left LeBreton Flats for nearby bus stations.

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Featured image by Alexa MacKie.