Bluesfest 2009, Day 7
Date: July 14, 2009 Come the Winter, Come the Summer Bluesfest continued its eclectic path on day seven, as I saw gangsta rap survivor Ice Cube play the main stage as a lead-in for Australian roots rocker Xavier Rudd. After that, I failed to find much room on one side stage for reggae legend Toots and the Maytals and ended up sampling the genre-splicing Spam Allstars. Cube is far removed from the prime musical years of his fiery youth but he proved that he still knows how to rock a great set. Cube performed in front of a giant banner suitable for the huge stage but kept things musically minimalist, supported by the brother combination of DJ Crazy Toones and rapper WC. This no-frills set-up showcased Cube's delivery, which was consistently strong during a set that concentrated on hits such as "It Was a Good Day," "Bow Down," and "You Can Do It." Cube spent a lot of time working the crowd, getting people chanting along and making the obligatory call to live up to the song title "Smoke Some Weed." Even though I remain skeptical that "the hood in Ottawa is just the same as the hood in L.A." or that we are the "Westside centre of the world," it was enough for the latter to be true for an hour. Cube also devoted a large portion of the show to hyping his own legacy, including an amusing segment that saw WC read the names from an N.W.A. album before finally asking in mock surprise, "Oh, you were in this band?" The snippets of "Straight Outta Compton" and "Fuck Tha Police" that followed had the audience hopping. Even if the youthful rage that inspired such songs in Cube has faded, there was nothing wrong with his performance in a set whose mood was best captured by the fun vibes of "Bop Gun (One Nation)." Shifting styles sharply, the next act to take to one of the alternating main stages was Xavier Rudd, moving the mood from gangsta to hippie. When I saw Rudd in February of last year, a fan remarked that his show would be sunshine when we needed it most. Little did I suspect when I read the initial Bluesfest schedule that Rudd would need to fill a similar role in the middle of summer; but with the dreary season that we had been having, it turned out to be the case. Fortunately, we were doubly blessed on this evening, with literal sunshine in the sky and metaphorical sunshine in the form of Rudd's always uplifting music. Rudd has been a frequent visitor to Bluesfest but he had a couple of notable changes on this visit. The first was a new supporting cast, with bassist Tio Moloantoa and drummer Andile Nqubezelo, both hailing from South Africa, rounding out his sound. Moloantoa proved to be a dynamic performer, gesticulating and mugging for the crowd with exaggerated facial expressions as he slapped his bass, while Nqubezelo demonstrated his considerable skills sitting behind a standard rock kit and roaming with a djembe. With Rudd seated working his trademark array of instrumentation (including a drum kit, didgeridoos, guitars, and various percussion), the group sounded very cohesive from the opening song, "The Mother," and they never fell out of step, even as the music moved through various jams. The unity seemed even more impressive when Rudd mentioned later in the set that they had only been playing together for a couple of weeks. The second major surprise for me was seeing Rudd come out from behind the kit to deliver several songs on guitar only, perhaps feeling that he had more room to stray with the full rhythm section anchoring the sound. Rudd always makes a strong connection with his audience and his trip to the stage front only amplified this vibe. It was also interesting to see Rudd interact with his bandmates, particularly when James Looker joined in on banjo for a fantastic and extended take of "Energy Song." Whether behind his kit or hopping about the front of the stage, Rudd sounded great, leading his band through a set that included "Footprint," "Messages," "Come Let Go," "Let Me Be," "Up In Flames," and "Message Stick," with several jams and detours along the way. With the jubilant crowd around me fully reflecting Rudd's positivity, this was one of the most purely enjoyable sets of the festival. That Xavier Rudd took advantage of his allotted stage time was a blessing but it left me late switching to one of the side stages to see Toots and the Maytals. Unfortunately for me, several thousand people beat me to the punch, leaving me no polite way to get close to the action. I sampled a couple of songs and came back partway through the set, again to little avail, although I can say that I saw the group play "Sweet and Dandy." They sounded great and looked to be putting on a solid show, and all accounts that I read afterwards echoed that impression; but I had to chalk this up as one of those missed opportunities that tend to arise with festival scheduling. As a backup plan, I wandered to the Blacksheep Stage, where I was quite surprised and impressed by Spam Allstars. The six-piece crafted a musical stew of mostly-instrumental songs, blending a strong horn section with guitar and percussion, anchored by DJ Le Spam. The music had elements of electronica, Latin, funk, hip hop, and dub, building to the kind of irresistible groove that is perfect for a summer festival. The group's main goals seemed to be keeping the jams flowing on stage and butts moving in the crowd; and they succeeded on both fronts. With some notable draws on the other stages, there wasn't a huge turnout at the Blacksheep Stage, but I heard more than a few people echo my own feelings of having stumbled on something special. The second half of Bluesfest passed in great fashion, with Ice Cube's solid performance leading into another killer set from Xavier Rudd, and the missed opportunity of Toots and the Maytals leading to a great surprise find in the Spam Allstars. <--Prev (Bluesfest 2009, Day 5) | Next (Bluesfest 2009, Day 8)-->-->Return to Concert ListReturn to Main Page |