July 15th, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts
My first stop on this evening was to catch Ottawa’s own Lucas Haneman Express. For those complaining about the lack of blues artists, this local act kept the early arrivals with a scorching set. The band was thrilled to be opening the City Stage for Dave Matthews! I next caught The Suitcase Junket over on […]
July 14th, 2018 | by Mike Milito | published in Concerts
Roland Prince hit the Blacksheep Stage at 6 PM on day 4 of the RBC Ottawa Bluesfest. Local hip-hop and R&B artists are seldom spoken of in the Ottawa Music scene, so Spotlight figured we’d check out the Kanata born artist. We were pleasantly surprised. A self-proclaimed “proud weirdo” with a background in stage acting, […]
July 13th, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts, Uncategorized
As day 4 rolled in, I was most looking forward to seeing the Strumbellas hit the City Stage. With 3 solid albums under their belts and some strong Ottawa shows over the last few years, they have become one of my favorite bands. Sunday night was no exception as the band delighted the crowd with […]
July 9th, 2018 | by Matthew Perry | published in Concerts
Ottawa Bluesfest Day #3, the day that all screaming teens, parents, and people of all ages were waiting for, AKA “Shawn Mendes day!”. Another packed day with a lineup of musical talents would not let anyone down regardless of your genre preferences. Lauv made a strong impact on the City Stage, packing the largest area […]
July 9th, 2018 | by Mike Milito | published in Concerts
While the awful security line overshadowed the opening day of Bluesfest 2018, the cooler weather seemed to calm the crowd on Day 2, allowing everyone to enjoy what these two weeks are all about, the music. Local artist Kelsey Hayes opened up the new Claridge Home Stage. Bluesfest adopted the “tent-over-the-audience model” many bigger festivals […]
July 6th, 2018 | by Matthew Perry | published in Concerts
It was opening day for Ottawa’s annual RBC Bluesfest, the temperature was pushing over the 40C mark with humidity at a high, however that did not stop the flocks of music fans from heading down to Lebreton Flats! Opening the show was Jupiter & Okwess on the City Stage. Next up on the Black […]
June 26th, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts
Unfortunately rain set in for the late afternoon as the concerts started to get underway. That didn’t slow down local band Rebelle who brought their A game to the stage. The energy on display on stage made you forget about the light rain that was falling. I’ve been following the band for a few years […]
June 25th, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts
Day 2 of this year’s festival saw great weather for its evening concert series. The headliner for the night was Broken Social Scene, who closed things out with a great performance. The first band I caught was Ellevator and they didn’t disappoint. I have been listening their recently released self-titled EP since it came out […]
June 2nd, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts, Features
I finally had the opportunity to check out a Head For West Records showcase. They have been holding the monthly events at Live On Elgin for a few months now. This was their 10th edition. Lucky for me I was able to catch a couple of local acts – Lost Acres and Arms of the […]
April 24th, 2018 | by Scott Martin | published in Concerts, Features
Ottawa’s Rebel 101.7, along with Moose McGuire’s, gave the local hard rock scene a kick in the ass with their Real Rock Search this year. Stynger was crowned the winner and took home $5000 cash. Along with The Elegant Devils and Crossing Jane, the 3 bands battled it out in the grand final last week […]