6:44 p.m.: Thunder Bay artist Katherine Nemec has just wrapped up her set with a smoking cover of “Superstition.”
I’ve been catching Katherine here and there throughout the weekend, and I’ve listened to some of her singles. She is consistently solid, and her sound is marked by a huge voice and catchy melodies. She’s one of those artists who may not be breaking new musical ground — yet — but you can’t help enjoying what they do because they’re getting those parts right and doing it with a lot of polish.
7:30 p.m.: I’m watching Martin Kerr from the covered beer garden because it’s continued to rain on and off since about 5:30.
“Here’s a gloomy depressing song for you about the state of the world,” he tells the audience before setting up his song “Immigrant.”
Kerr reminds me of another British Martin, Martyn Joseph, in that he’s a particularly gifted songwriter with a tremendous range of material and an uncommon ability to connect with his audience.
Tonight, he’s performed “As Good As I Get,” a song inspired by all the random people who offer him their opinions about what he could do to get famous, and a cover of 4 Non Blondes “What’s Up” with words rewritten to criticize the Trump Regime.
He gets everyone singing along on a cover of Dobie Gray’s hit “Drift Away” and performs another rousing rendition of “You’re Amazing.”
And I stand corrected from my earlier report. He was not exactly covering Phil Collins during today’s workshop. He was performing “Donald on the Air Tonight,” a song he wrote to Collins’ melody.
8:49 p.m.: Abigail Lapell appears to have sung away the raindrops with her understated songs and beautiful harmonies.
It’s still gray, but the beer garden has emptied of shelter seekers. I stopped by the tent to make sure it was still standing and was relieved to find no flooding had occurred.
I will pause here for a moment to note that the food offerings on site here are much more robust than when I was last here six years ago, particularly for vegans. The Ladies Auxiliary is back with their home-cooked meals, including vegetarian chilli, which I’m dining on this evening. The Superior Inn has a quinoa bowl on offer, and Melly Bee’s, a restaurant operating near the camping area, has veggie burgers. Veggie burgers!
Also, the beer garden has dealcoholized beer, which I am also enjoying. It’s nice to see this becoming a more routine offering at events like this.
9:30 p.m.: I know I’ve heard Passenger perform “Let Her Go” numerous times but I suddenly can’t remember what it sounds like because the Stanley County Cutups are performing it on stage, and I’m convinced it has always been a bluegrass song.
The crowd is on its feet for the song, and it never really sits down again.
The band, which includes Jeremy Penner on fiddle, is gathered around a single mic old-time style, and they’re tight as hell with gorgeous harmonies.
They also treat us to a bluegrass version of Neil Young’s “Down By the River” and — of course — some Stanley Brothers.
It’s a fantastic set that cuts through the gloomy weather.
10:26 p.m.: Sandra Bouza is tonight’s headliner and she’s rocking the mainstage with her powerhouse vocals, crowd-pleasing blues rock sound and big big stage presence.
Much of the audience is on its feet as Sandra powers through a collection of originals and covers that includes Amanda Marshall’s “Let it Rain.”
In fact, if you want to try and imagine what Sandra sounds like tonight, just think of that song, and you’ll be close.
The crowd is dancing up a frenzy in front of the stage, and Sandra seems to be reading it like a disc jockey and singing just what she thinks they want to hear next. Either that or she just chose a set that happened to connect perfectly with this crowd.
Whatever it was, she leaves the stage to roars from the audience and raucous demands for an encore. She returns and closes things down with an a cappella cover of “Mercedes Benz.”
And that’s a wrap on Night Two of Live from the Rock. Time to head back to the tent and rest up for Day Three!
Thanks for the great review heather! It was a beautiful festival and you captured the vibe really well.