I recently attended the OCFF Conference (Ontario Council of Folk Festivals) as a delegate from Folquebec. Here are a few Top 5 lists from my experience:
Top 5 Favorite things about OCFF:
- The MUSIC: 3 days/nights of great music
- The PEOPLE: Seeing old friends and meeting new ones
- The OCFF STAFF: Always friendly and helpful
- The PANEL DISCUSSIONS: Some great ones this year, special mention to David Newland’s panel on Social Media (check out his amazing site www.rootsmusic.ca )
- The RECEPTIONS: Free food and booze :)
Top 5 Least Favorite things about OCFF:
- Paying $10/day for wireless (not cool)
- Paying $13.50 for a glass of wine at the lobby bar (ouch!)
- Seeing artists play their heart out at a showcase with nobody in the room (breaks my heart)
- Last-minute schedule changes (there was an absolute must-see artist for me that changed their private showcase time from Midnight to 2:30AM, I didn’t make it in the end, really disappointed)
- Waking up Sunday morning (it wasn’t pretty)
Top 5 Showcases I saw at OCFF:
OK, I wasn’t going to make this list, but many people have asked me, so here it is. It is incredibly hard to pick out 5 performances out of so many, and there were a lot of really good showcases, not the least of which all of the artists who performed for Folquebec. But if I were to pick 5 showcases that stood out for me, these would be it:
- Dan Mangan: Blew. Me. Away. Since getting back I haven’t stopped listening to his album. I wake up early to play it, and stay up late to keep listening to it. Reminds me why I love music :)
- Cécile Doo-Kingué: Montreal-based blues artist, her guitar playing will make your face melt.
- Ian Kelly: Francophone artist from Montreal who sings in English. He’s sold 32,000+ albums in Quebec, and there’s a good reason why.
- Galant, tu perds ton temps: 5-female francophone a cappella group from Quebec. Enough said.
- Tie: Craig Cardiff & Peter Katz: OK, this is a cop-out of my top 5, but I saw them together in a private showcase room. They both played the Montreal Folk Festival this past year, brilliant songwriters, and they didn’t disappoint.
All in all, I had an absolute blast. A big thanks to all of the staff at OCFF and most importantly, the musicians who really make it all happen. Keep doing what you do :)
Cheers,
Dave
I was there to take pics and support my partner Leah Morise on the trumpet.
Likes:
Couldn’t agree more on Dan Mangan! Shane Koyczan, Twilight Hotel’s showcases rocked. Getting to jam with Janine Stoll, Donne Roberts, and of course Leah Morise among others is always my favorite part of these things.
Dislikes:
Agree with all your dislikes, thought I didn’t have time to use the net (my laptop died upon arriving at the hotel)
Thanks for the comments Mike! I regret not seeing Twilight Hotel, and Janine Stoll is awesome, her first solo album is one of my all-time fav’s!
Nice one Daver! ;)
Thanks Emmer :)