Folkfest Day 4: Blue Rodeo, Neutral Milk Hotel, Mustafa the Poet & More
Photo: Marc DesRosiers, Ottawa Folk Festival Press Images
Jim Cuddy of Blue Rodeo perfectly summed up day four of Ottawa Folk Fest, “This is about the dirtiest show we ever have had to play.”
Blue Rodeo greeted the crowd by complimenting us on being “hearty souls,” for having braved the torrential downpour, strong winds and frigid temperature of late summer. The Canadian veterans were spot on to close out the main stage at Hog’s Back Saturday night. It was nice to see Blue Rodeo again, as they use to play the Ottawa festival circuit every year, but have been away for a while only visiting us for their Valentine’s Day show.
They played a bunch of the hits like “Head Over Heels,” “Rise Up,” and “What Am I Doing Here.” The band dug deep in their catalogue, much to my glee, and played “Diamond Mine,” off their second album, released back in 1989. The amazing organ playing on that song paired with the grandiose setting was magic.
Seeing songs I grew up to was magical, but finally getting to see Neutral Milk Hotel was a religious experience. The band broke up 15 years ago after releasing one of the most influential albums recorded in the late 90s and most of us never thought the day would come where we could see them live. Imagine discovering a band, falling in love with them only to discover you will never ever get to see them… Then one day out of the blue you are told not only are they touring again, but they are playing your town. The band asked that people respectfully take in the concert and not take photos or video. I was clearly not the only one enamoured by Neutral Milk Hotel, as I did not see one person go against their request. Much respect to Ottawa’s concertgoers.
The sermon began with “I Will Bury You In Time,” and followed by “Holland, 1945.” As lead-singer and guitarist Jeff Mangum stood rather still and looked a little awkward on stage, multi-instrumentalist Julian Koster danced and pranced around reminding me of an elf (and it was certainly cold enough for him to fit in). Koster masterfully played several different saws, the accordion, keys and the bass during the set. Neutral Milk Hotel are often described as lo-fi garage rock, but on this night they had a very full sound that filled the park and our hearts. A perfect example of their range was when the entire band but Mangum left the stage and he played “Two-Headed Boy.” The powerful stripped down acoustic song had the crowd singing along to every word, but it really picked up as the band re-joined him for a rocking and epic conclusion to the tale.
The band did not interact much with the crowd, which is fine because it left more time for all the music we have waited so long to hear live. They did however speak up to say “We have never been to Ottawa before, thanks for such a nice welcome.” The ceremony concluded with “Two-Headed Boy Pt. Two” with the line “But don’t hate her when she gets up to leave.” Come back any time! We will never hate you! The kindness Ottawa showed you will never diminish!
Setting the stage for Neutral Milk Hotel was the unlikeliest of artists, Mustafa the Poet. The passionate spoken word poet from Toronto was very captivating and as he spoke you could not hear a single word from the crowd, he had us hook, line and sinker. And with uplifting quotes like, “change is feeling, change is emotion, from voice to voice this is the most powerful thing that can happen, music is about awareness,” Mustafa has it all figured out. His piece “Invisible Disability” (video above) about his friend with schizophrenia was so powerful and moving. Having no band backing him, he called on the crowd to hum along to set the beat and the thousands eagerly awaiting Neutral Milk Hotel obliged.
Seeing the last name Cohen on the schedule had me quite curious and took me to the Valley Stage to check out the spawn of Leonard, Adam Cohen. Cohen started twenty minutes late and asked the crowd “is this band called free beer and 60 virgins? Because I can’t believe so many of you are here right now.” The band backing Cohen provided beautiful string arrangements throughout the set, especially during the song “We Go Home.”
Starting my day was Ottawa’s sci-fi post-rock band Saturnfly. The band’s set focused on songs from their yet to be released debut LP Cyborg’s Lament. The album is based on an sci-fi story of a cyborg who travels through space in search of truth and meaning. Saturnfly are a very interesting band not only due to their sci-fi story telling, but considering their instrumental makeup. Marion Arthur Kiss plays cello and is the lead singer, husband Stephane Arthur Kiss plays guitar, Lou Le Blanc plays the Moog (an analog synthesizer designed by Dr. Robert Moog) and Mina Messiha on drums. The band was also giving out homemade cookies throughout the set. The last two songs the band played older pieces “Secret to Saturn” and a folky song “Dance Through My Dreams With We.” The band concluded by handing out more cookies and free copies of some of their music.