Bluesfest 2009, Day 8
Date: July 15, 2009 The Bluest Rap Song Day eight of Bluesfest, and much of the media coverage leading up to the festival, was dominated by Kiss, who drew the largest crowd of the event's history. I was more entertained by the makeup-clad Kiss fans wandering the grounds than the few minutes that I took in of the band itself, though, with my day consisting mainly of The National and K'naan. I arrived in time to hear the last twenty minutes of The Arkells, who were the first band of the day on the secondary main stage. The Hamilton rockers drew a sizable crowd with their early slot. The large gathering may have been a byproduct of the fact that more bodies were passing through the gates on this night, but most of the credit must go to the band's solid playing, as the Kiss die-hards were already camping the other main stage. I can't say that I was floored by the band's straight-ahead rock but I did enjoy their energetic and engaging set. After a picnic supper, I stayed at the same stage for The National, one of many bands making their Ottawa debut. Hearing so many performers over the course of the festival say that they've never been to Ottawa before is frustrating, in that it's a reminder of the many times that acts skip the city en route to Montreal. It also presents a problem in that a festival attendee lacking a knowledge of everyone on the bill is faced with a sudden influx of bands to come up to speed on before seeing them play. For me, The National was one such band. Had they passed through on an earlier tour, I would have had the incentive to buy in to the group's critical acclaim and delve into their songs. Instead, I gave their albums a quick listen in the days before seeing them play, with many other bands on my brain. All of that is a lead-in to my summary that I really enjoyed seeing The National play but walked away without any individual songs really staying with me. It's also the case that while the musicians on stage created a rich sonic output, they mostly stayed low-key in their playing, with the exceptions of singer Matt Berninger and Padma Newsome, who played several instruments but was most dynamic while spinning about the stage with his violin. Despite my lack of knowledge of the band, their staid demeanour, and the rain that dampened the latter portion of the set, the interesting music and Berninger's strong baritone were enough to render the performance a success. Just don't ask me to name the highlights. The National had their start time pushed back to 7:45 and almost as soon as they finished their hour-long set, the curtain dropped on the main stage for Kiss, who descended from the rafters amidst a burst of pyro. I'm sure that this could have been fun near the front of the stage, within the throng of supporters; but from my position near the rear of the estimated 35,000 attendees, it felt pretty flat and distant. Bowing out of that spectacle, I soon made my way to the Blacksheep Stage for a more intimate and rewarding experience, K'naan. The Somalia-born, Toronto-based rapper/singer drew a sizable and excited crowd and he repaid them with a set that was by turns exhilarating and intimate. K'naan set the tone for a diverse approach by freely blending his gentle crooning with more hard-hitting raps, sometimes dropping down to what amounted to a hushed poetry rendition, sometimes getting the crowd bouncing. "Soobax" saw him working a talking drum, while his standard accompaniment was rapper Rayzak and a full band (guitar, bass, keyboards, and drums). The success of this approach was perhaps best exemplified by the excellent "Wavin' Flag." K'naan started this number singing solo, before the crowd eagerly took over the chorus, only to have the full band bring the affair to a triumphant, uplifting conclusion. The set list generously showcased K'naan's recent album, Troubadour, as well as its predecessor, The Dusty Foot Philosopher, with highlights including "Strugglin'," "T.I.A.," "Somalia," "Fatima," and a night-closing pairing of "Dusty Foot Philosopher" and "Stabbed By Satan." It was fitting that the finale reflected the give and take between K'naan and his audience; much as he had jumped into the crowd earlier in the night, several dozen fans jumped on to the stage as the band reached its conclusion. The moment got a bit crazy, with K'naan first half-encouraging the rush, then seemingly worrying that things could get out of hand; but as far as I could tell, everything stayed cool. While Kiss was on the other side of the War Museum, peddling their well-choreographed odes to rebellion, the Blacksheep Stage hosted a more vibrant slice of chaos. The much-hyped eighth day of Bluesfest was another strong one for me, although my fun came in ducking out of the biggest spectacle in favour of lesser-attended but still well-appreciated sets from The National and K'naan. The National setlist (courtesy the cooperation of that guy who I always see at Bluesfest looking for setlists) 
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