I made my way into the second day of Bluesfest with the following mentality: here is where the real fun begins. With legends such as BB King and Grace Jones gracing the Bluesfest stage, today was going to be quite special indeed…
Brisbane based Transvaal Diamond Syndicate were wrapping up their APRA stage set as I arrived. The blues/rock two piece (who perform as a four piece) made waves last year by hitting number one on 4ZZZ’s Hot 100 Songs of 2010 with “Home”. The track came off the back off of a brilliant EP Diamonds and Dust, which naturally featured heavily in their set today. They are a true high energy band, and saw the crowd get surprisingly rowdy for such an early set… a testament to their on stage prowess, no doubt. A cover of House of Pain’s “Jump Around” closed things up, seeing the crowd barely touching the ground.
I made sure to catch another glimpse of the extraordinary Ruthie Foster, whom I so enjoyed the day before, before heading over to see what was happening at RockWiz Live. The event, which seems to have become a staple of the Bluesfest calendar, sees audience members paired up with the rock and roll elite in a game show modeled after the SBS series of the same name. Julia Zemiro remained our hilarious host, and today we saw Marcia Hines, Glenn Richards and Tim Rogers join the usual suspects. The show would continue on throughout the week, where artists such as Eli “Paperboy” Reed would see themselves added to the roster.
After what I hear was an amazing set from Yodelice, C.W. Stoneking played the main stage to a fast growing and appreciative crowd; a performer who oozes the cool of the 30s and 40s soundscape. An excellent storyteller to boot, there’s nothing not to love about this Melbourne-based performer. Blackbirds, meanwhile, followed Transvaal Diamond Syndicate on the APRA stage, shooting out tracks like “Insane in the Membrane” amongst tracks off their self-titled debut record (which was funded by their fans). A band who got their start busking on the streets of Byron Bay, it seems like the sky is the limit for this three piece.
Over in the Juke Joint, Bob Abbot and the Fabulous Green Machine put on quite the fun set – think of “Blue Suede Shoes” and you’ll get an idea of the vibe this band brings out – all the while spreading a ‘Green’ message. All this from the Mayor of the Sunshine Coast! Seriously! They brought a guest vocalist on stage for a cover of Aretha Franklin’s “Respect”, which closed out the set. Meanwhile, back on the Apra stage, The Hands were pumping up the bass and the synth – with the dueling keyboards from the brothers Doley providing the centerpiece of a very entertaining set.
Xavier Rudd rocked the main stage with his Didgeridoo, seeing the crowd clap along to every beat. Like Grunwald, Franti and Harper, Xavier has become a mainstay of the Bluesfest lineup, and we all know what we’re going to experience when we see him live – an hour of catchy jams and great music. He certainly let no one down in these regards. Jack Thompson, meanwhile, made his Bluesfest debut as the leader of a terribly talented ensemble, The Original Sinners. While Jack was the man everyone came to see, it was the band who everyone stayed for – Jack playing a mean harmonica as the band jammed through their material.
Following what many considered “the surprise act of 2011” (who I unfortunately missed during both performances) Trombone Shorty, Fistful of Mercy filled up my personal category of the same name. Their talent wasn’t a surprise – when you have Ben Harper, Joseph Arthur and Dhani Harrison making sweet music together (along with violinist Jessy Greene) – but just how brilliant it was definitely was a surprise.
Maybe it was the sight of seeing George Harrison’s son on the stage (a spitting image!), but the set was hypnotising from start to finish. Like many of the artists at the festival, Fistful played tribute to our headliner, Mr. Dylan, performing a cover of his track “Bucket of Tears”. Harper’s own track “Please Me Like You Want To” made an appearance, as did Arthur’s “In The Sun”. The self-titled track “Fistful of Mercy” was an easy highlight of the performance.
The three members, accompanied by the excellent violin of Greene, worked tremendously well together. At the end of the day, you can tell that these are musicians who simply enjoy making music together, holding a great respect for each other’s craft. This feeling is infectious – you can’t help but admire them all – but most importantly, they simply make impressive music at the same time. In spite of the legends on display today, Fistful were my highlight of the day.
I made tracks over to Blind Boys of Alabama next, who were accompanied by a fantastic backing band as well as the legend of New Orleans, Aaron Neville. Having seen them at a prior Bluesfest, the vibe was anticipated, though the energy was greater than I remember – one of the members making his way (with assistance, of course) into the crowd to greet those in the front row, and quite honestly never missing a beat. They know how to work it!
Toot and the Maytals followed on the Mojo stage, which saw ‘Toot’ harmonize with his female vocalists in such an impressive fashion. By now I’d also heard that Ruthie Foster came on and performed with the iconic Eric Bibb during his set. Spending much of my day doing interviews behind-the-scenes, this wouldn’t be the first collaboration I’d miss at the event. By all accounts, it was highlight of the day, if not the whole week.
As his band jammed it out, BB King slowly made his way onto the stage, asking the crowd “Do you feel like singing?” which moved onto “Do you want one more?”. The answer was always yes. Much like with Thompson, this was the sort of performance where you came to see BB, but at the end of the day it was the music of the amazing band behind him who kept you hanging around.
Surprisingly positioned on the 2nd largest stage (Crossroads), it was near impossible to get anywhere near the stage, though BB’s purple shirt could have possibly seen from outer space. It was an honour to see the legend in action, though performing well known tracks such as “Rock Me Baby”.
He certainly doesn’t play the guitar like he used to, but when you hear those riffs you know that this is the man that made a festival like Bluesfest possible. At 85, BB is one of the last remaining members of the pioneers of blues music – so many of whom have graced the Bluesfest stage over the last 22 years, but have sadly passed. To witness BB gracing the stage, in what will no doubt be his final Australian tour, was something truly special.
I closed out my night running between the ridiculously talented guitar duo Rodrigo y Gabriela and the incomparable Grace Jones. With the former taking to the stage some 45 minutes late (which, at one point, when the lights dimmed only to come back on again, garnered boos from the crowd), I didn’t have the opportunity to catch too much of Grace’s first half. What I did witness, however, was something truly wonderful – the iconic performer suspended on a platform above the stage, gradually being lowered to join the band, all the while wearing an impressive garment and performing her 1981 hit “Nightclubbing”, eventually covering the crowd in confetti.
Costume changes and theatrics would make up the remainder of her set, which included plenty of tracks off of her recent(ish) album Hurricane, as well as selected favourites from her back catalogue, backed by 2 vocalists and a six piece band – which included her son on keys and percussion (“Yes, he’s a good looking boy… they all are”). But more on Grace Jones in a moment…. First, I had to make tracks over to catch one the always impressive duo Rodrigo y Gabriela. The story of RyG has become something of legend in the music community: meeting in Mexico, the duo eventually moved to Dublin, Ireland, where they took up residence as travelling musicians – playing gigs where they could, busking where they couldn’t. Eventually, they caught the eye of Damien Rice, who invited them along to play the music festival Oxygen… and the rest, as they say, is history.
They have since released six albums and toured the world relentlessly, becoming one of those true world-of-mouth success stories. When you see and experience them live, it’s no wonder why. The duo perform instrumental music, each armed with nothing more than their acoustic guitar. Gabriela can often be seen providing the beats, but really they both just thrash the crap out of their instruments. There really is no other way to describe it.
Their music, even when it reaches into the land of the cover song, is without genre definition. Likewise, the experience of seeing these two performers showcase their music is an opportunity you shouldn’t pass up. I last saw the duo in 2006, so it was a wonderful experience to hear them once again tonight, performing tracks off of their 2009 album 11:11, amongst their back catalogue, and usual selection of covers.
Having had my RyG fill, it was time to make my way back to the epic set of Grace Jones, who earlier in the set, took a moment to scold the crowd: “impatient, aren’t you… if you only knew! I’ll tell you later…” While this did little to impress the crowd, it is fair to say she was well worth the wait. Between Hula Hoping for over 10 minutes (continuously) during “Keep it Up”, her laser hat during “Love is a Drug” and embracing a rotating stripper pole, the theatrics, combined with the excellent source material, made for a truly enjoyable experience.
The set ended with “Hurricane”, in which the former supermodel (who never shyed away in showing off her backside) fought against a wind machine, draped in a large cape that flew across the stage. A sight to behold, and a fitting end to what was a terribly impressive set. Here’s hoping the delays aren’t as prominent in her Tuesday performance (edit: they were)!
As we left the venue, we briefly caught Fishbone ripping things up at the Juke Joint. With their sets in 2007 becoming something of legend in the Bluesfest community, it was a pity to see them play on the smaller stage – but it didn’t mean there wasn’t any less energy from the iconic group. They had the kids dancing well into the night…
