Festival returns to Victoria Park, August 9 to 11
The Regina Folk Festival is probably the most fun you will have in The Queen City. Every year, concert-goers pack the festival grounds at Victoria Park no matter who is playing – you are pretty much guaranteed some quality acts.
This year’s event is no different – here are Ominocity’s Top Five Picks for the 2013 Regina Folk Festival.
Man Man are a lurid carnival of brass
Man Man sound like what would happen if a group of art punks became the ring leaders at a lurid carnival of brass bands and tiger trapeze artists. Loud and stampy, the multi-member group promise to deliver a completely unique performance that is both abrasive and quizzical.
The group’s latest album, Oni Oni Pond, isn’t out until September, but Ominocity got a chance to attend a secret streaming listening party and it’s going to be unreal – expect more fall-down-the-stairs gin-soaked blues howling.
Charles Bradley is just getting started
Despite being well into his 60s, soul singer Charles Bradley is best categorized as a talent that somehow fell through the cracks. As seen in the documentary Soul of America, Bradley survived homelessness and menial jobs – including impersonating James Brown – to become a legendary R&B figure.
And make sure to check out his second full-length album, Victim of Love – total savage rock ‘n’ roll romance.
Don Brownrigg gets his groove back, folk-rock style
It’s taken him six years, but Maritimes folk artist Don Brownrigg is finally releasing the follow up to his debut album. Comprised of folk songs that traverse the line between country and blues, Brownrigg’s sophomore LP, It Takes All Kinds (to make this world, I find), is a far more refined effort.
“It sums up the past couple years of my life, like a journal or something,” says Brownrigg. “I think there is an overarching theme with a lot of effort to figure out what that one path is. Part of it is figuring yourself out, but each song has its own theme – a scatterbrained tone.”
Neko Case’s live show packs a furious wallop
During one of her first shows in Saskatchewan as a solo artist, country chanteuse Neko Case beat up a heckler. Maybe. The legendary show went down at Amigos, where Case’s backing band was none other than The Sadies.
“She was so exhausted she was out of her gourd,” says guitarist Dallas Good. “And she picked a fight with someone who was heckling her in the audience. Or vice versa.”
But that probably won’t happen ever again, right?
However, you should probably check out the cover, and the appropriate title, for her upcoming album The Worse Things Get, The Harder I Fight, The Harder I Fight, The More I Love You. It’s a total mind warp. Can’t wait to hear the music.
The Afterparty
Every time we’ve been to Regina Folk Fest, the afterparty, dubbed the After Dark Carnival by the Regina Folk Festival, is always completely bumping. Located at The German Club a few blocks down from the festival site, expect a more intimate crowd looking to get down until the wee hours of the morning.
Friday’s set consists of Buffalo Narrows, Close Talker and DJ Duchess. Saturday’s afterparty features Nomadic Massive and DJ Charly Hustle.
Total dance party. Also, drinks. Lots of drinks.
Be sure to download Ominocity’s iPhone app for a complete festival schedule.
Ominocity had tonnes of fun at last year’s Regina Folk Festival – check out our review HERE.
-Photo from Flickr user “Regina Folk Festival” – Creative Commons.