Festival Recap: Music & Beyond

 Ottawa Life’s Festival City Series is back! We'll provide a unique look at some of your favourite events. We’ll go beyond the music with artist interviews, volunteer profiles, concert reviews and spotlights on the tastes, sights and sounds of the festival season.  Your city! Your festivals and events! Like a good sunscreen,

Plans of His Own – The Gordon Lightfoot Interview – Part 1

 Listen to part one of our interview with Gordon Lightfoot above. The singer lay silenced, his synapses struggling for some light within the darkness of the coma that had muted his voice. An eye flutter here, a possible movement there but the man who’s music meant much to many, a

A Big Show with Hat Fitz and Cara for Small Halls

 Images by Roseanne Lake. The Festival of Small Halls is exactly as it sounds, a bunch of bands going to historic and beautiful places around Ottawa playing big shows in small places. The festival is meant to bring life and vitality back to small venues outside of the city landscape. It

Fiery Folk: Union Duke Lights Up the Blacksheep Inn

 Matt Warry-Smith, a member of the Toronto band, Union Duke, has a tattoo on his leg of the words “Keep Music Evil” that’s visible below the cut off point of his Bermuda shorts. The audacity of the phrase, coined by Anton Newcombe, epitomizes the band’s fresh and furious take on

Belle Starr Packs Its Fiddles for Ottawa

 In the 1800s, Belle Starr was the name of a notorious American outlaw. Today the title has also come to represent a Canadian female trio, who similar to the rebel, defy categories. The band, consisting of Miranda Mulholland, Kendel Carson and Stephanie Cadman, hit the road this February on a

Blue Rodeo Slams Harper In New Protest Song

 It’s been merely a month, but yet another anti-conservative diddy has gone viral. Following the controversial suspension of federal government scientist Tony Turner, Superstar country-rock group Blue Rodeo are the newest band of Canadians protesting the Conservative party with their new hit, “Stealin’ All My Dreams.” In a recent trend,

CityFolk Impressions

 ABOVE: Ewan Currie from The Sheepdogs plays at CityFolk. (Photo by Michael Wing)  This year’s CityFolk festival swept into the new venue at Lansdowne Park on the perfect weekend. It was warm and sunny most days, with as little rain as anyone could have hoped for. The festival line up

Folk in the City: Celebrating Canadian Talent

 Sounds of CityFolk are echoing throughout Ottawa, with the much anticipated music festival kicking off next week. This year's line-up the most brag-worthy to date, and OLM has put together a quick list of Canadian performers you won’t want to miss! Motel Raphaël Clara Legault, Emily Skahan and Maya Malkin

James Leclaire: The Sing-a-Long Sounds of Storytelling and Sorrow

 Album cover by Brett Clarke. James Leclaire’s fourth album, These Weights, combines the soulful storytelling of folk and country music with the anthemic energy of punk, to create a sound he calls ‘dirt country.’ “There is a country twang to it but it’s got an edginess that is a little

An Old Guitar and an Ottawa Bar

 Union Duke’s soaring vocal harmonies and throbbing beats have enlivened hearts and dance floors across the nation. The quintet is sure to have Ottawa concertgoers heel-stomping and hip-swaying with their performance at the Black Sheep Inn on July 31. Balancing a mixture of soulful indie rock, bluegrass and country, the

The Brothers at Bluesfest

 Roots-rockers, The Bros. Landreth will be showcasing their unique “Canadiana” style at Ottawa’s Bluesfest this Sunday. With wailing electric guitars, thundering organs and naturally harmonious vocals, at first listen The Bros. Landreth may sound like they hail from the American south, and not from the isolated prairies of Manitoba. “Down

Bluesfest Beats

 Photo courtesy of Steve G The RBC Ottawa Bluesfest is here! As the festival plays on, OLM will continue to highlight must-see performances by some of the acts that you may have not yet discovered–so Ottawa music lovers listen up! An exciting variety of bands and artists will rock the festival this

Bluesfest Beats

 Photo courtesy of Steve G The RBC Ottawa Bluesfest is here! As the festival plays on, OLM will continue to highlight must-see performances by some of the acts that you may have not yet discovered–so Ottawa music lovers listen up! An exciting variety of bands and artists will rock the festival this

Bluesfest Beats

 Photo courtesy of Steve G The countdown to the RBC Ottawa Bluesfest is on. As the weeks leading up to the festival go by, OLM will continue to highlight must-see performances by some of the acts that you may have not yet discovered – so Ottawa music lovers listen up! An

Bluesfest Beats

 Photo by Steve G The countdown to RBC Ottawa Bluesfest is on. As the weeks leading up to the festival go by, OLM will continue to highlight must-see performances by some of the acts that you may have not yet discovered—so Ottawa music lovers listen up! An exciting variety of

Don’t Miss Craig Cardiff this Summer

 Craig Cardiff is coming back to Ottawa this summer! The Canadian, Juno nominated, singer-songwriter from Arnprior, Ont., known for his steady and smooth folk rhythms, is hitting the Ottawa festival circuit with performances on June 13 at Westfest and June 28 at the Tim Hortons Ottawa Dragon Boat Festival. Don’t

Bluesfest Beats: From Electro-Synth Pop to Back Porch Folk

 Photo Credit: Steve G The announcement that Kanye West will be gracing the stage at the RBC Ottawa Bluesfest this year was a source of great excitement for Ottawa music lovers—but Yeezy is far from the only reason to check out the festival this year. As exciting as the headliners are, Bluesfest

Folk Rock Hits the Road to Ottawa

 Shining headlights across the country, Vancouver-based folk rock band The River and The Road are touring Canada in support of their new album. They will be stopping in Ottawa on Thursday, May 14, for a performance at Cafe Dekcuf. The band started off as a busking duo, consisting of singer

The Farmer’s Ghost

 I once heard a story About a ghost Who defied the fates And lurked about Fields and pastures And farm yard gates Each morning The phantom So the locals state Haunted farms And worked the fields Until very late Legend claims A farmer took his life After going insane When

Ontario’s Newest Folk Star

 Fiddler, singer, and step dancer April Verch is emerging into Ontario’s music spotlight! Recognized for her blissful voice, lively dancing and striking performances, her upcoming appearance at the National Arts Centre (NAC) is not one to miss! With impressive reviews coming from newspapers like the Huffington Post and Toronto Star, there

Tie Up Your Dancing Shoes and Get Ready for Sea Perry

 Get ready to put on your dancing shoes for the single Molly’s Shoes by Canadian folk-rock band Sea Perry. The catchy and upbeat song dropped at the beginning of April from the band’s debut full-length album, Do What You Do, set to be released April 21. If this first single

Ottawa Celebrates Diverse Cultural Roots

 Photo Credit: Connie Kaldor Embrace a return to your roots by taking part in the fourth annual Ottawa Grassroots Festival. The Grassroots Festival plans a spring weekend of family-oriented concerts and workshops each year thanks to its 100 per cent volunteer-run organization. The festival particularly focuses on folk music, dance

Unleashing Folk ’n’ Roll 

 Cloudless, blue skies are drawing nearer for the Toronto band Sun K with the release of their debut album on March 10. The eight-track collection titled Northern Lies, brings together a combination of folk and rock genres creating a fresh and catchy sound. “We like to call it folk ’n’

Orange Art Gallery: Pushing boundaries in the capital community

 Following a trip to NYC with husband and co-owner Matthew Jeffrey four years ago, Ingrid Hollander felt that Ottawa needed a contemporary gallery willing to take big risks. “We found that galleries here had a much more retail-oriented, commercial focus. We wanted to provide a cool space that could showcase

Support Lung Cancer Canada with an Evening of Hope

 My friend and colleague, Philip Clarke, a seemingly healthy and vibrant individual, was diagnosed with stage four lung cancer on November 12, 2012. Fourteen months later, on February 7, 2014, at the age of 48, Philip lost his battle.  The diagnosis was a shock to Philip, and to his family, friends and colleagues. But the shock soon turned