Troy already wrote an in-depth report of the Hillside Inside Festival we went to this past Saturday so I’ll just write a short version, mostly because I’m lazy. So here goes, in the order of appearance:
The D’Urbervilles. Never heard of them before, but they weren’t horrible and their stage act was entertaining.
Great Lake Swimmers. One of my favourite Canadian bands, I was thrilled that we got to stand next to the stage! I don’t think their music is the kind of music you’d play in an arena, though. Their performance was enjoyable, but I really feel that they didn’t sound like they should. I’m blaming it on the venue.
The Magic. It’s a local Guelph band, apparently, and, just like the D’Urbervilles, they weren’t horrible. They dressed like a glam rock band and played music with an 80’s vibe. Groovy!
K’naan. I’ve always enjoyed listening to his first album, The Dusty Foot Philosopher, but I hadn’t expected to be blown away by his live performance. And blown away, I was. He was amazing and his was the best performance in the whole festival, hands down. And I’m not even a big fan of hip hop music. Once again, we got to stand next to the stage, which was awesome.
Jay Malinowski. Um, I was too busy trying to figure out how to eat my Jamaican Chicken Curry Roti wrap thingy properly to pay attention to his music. All I can say is, that was a very filling dinner! I wasn’t hungry again until we were on our way home close to midnight.
Bell Orchestre. I had no expectations since I never heard of them before but they turned up to be quite enjoyable. They played orchestral, instrumental rock a la Godspeed You Black Emperor! (if you’re familiar with their music) with strings, brass and percussion. The violin girl had very toned arms!
Thunderheist. If I were a teenage party girl, I’d probably enjoy their music. They had these flygirls dancing on stage to some of their songs. And there was this flyboy wannabe dancing to their music right in front of where we were sitting. He had some pretty good moves but still, I had to try hard not to laugh because I’m easily amused. Of course Troy had to conveniently go to the washroom.
Bedouin Soundclash. The lead vocal was Jay Malinowski (see number 5). I kind of enjoyed two or three of their songs. But after awhile, I felt like telling to them to play that song from that commercial already.
That 1 Guy. He was a one-man band who played music from various genres with his magic pipe (and no, I didn’t mean bong). He was entertaining and his music was enjoyable, but he also kind of reminded me of our dirty neighbour across the hall back in Waterloo who liked to play crappy music out loud every Friday night.
Sam Roberts Band. I really, really, REALLY DID NOT ENJOY their music. The hour they played felt like the longest hour ever. I kept praying pleasegodletthisbetheirlastsong over and over again, but god didn’t listen to me. Sigh.
Stars. By this time, I was already too tired to be enthusiastic and SO ready to go home. I only knew three of the songs they played. The male vocal dude had a very theatrical stage act. Maybe that’s what they call making love to the audience? He also kind of reminded me of Ben Linus from LOST for some reasons. I don’t know why. He wasn’t creepy or anything.
All in all, we had a good time. I hope your Saturday was awesome, too!