by Tiana Feng

Toronto art-pop maker Delta Will releases his EP Transcendental Visits today. The release will be celebrated at The Piston on Thursday night. Described as “space rock” the EP displays a mash of blues influences, fancy percussion parts and classic-rock tinged guitar riffs.

This year’s Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival was incredible. I’m so glad to have had the chance to check out so many fantastic performances and to have the chance to write about my experience.

To wrap up my coverage, I’d like to share 10 highlights from my Harvest.

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by Laura Feeney

The Tedeschi Trucks Band was the much-anticipated headliner at the Blues Tent on Friday night of the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival. The Florida-based 11-member blues-rock band certainly lived up to their hype, delivering an exceptional set that kept the audience moving for just over two hours.

 The performance included a unique mixture of classic blues, funk, soul, and rock. They kicked off the show with an electric cover of George Harrison’s classic ‘Wah-Wah’. The show included hits from their Grammy award-winning album ‘Revelator’, as well as classic covers like ‘The night they drove old Dixie down’ and plenty of all-out jams. The tent was filled with dancing and joy as the audience let loose and danced well into the night.

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by: Laura Feeney

Despite their separate venues, Rusted Root and The Record Company brought similar enthusiasm and style to their performances on Friday night at the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival. These shows were not originally on my to-see list, but enthusiastic reviews persuaded me to take a chance. I soon found myself being swept up in lively, dancing crowds and losing track of time.

The Record Company is a newly formed modern blues-rock band from Los Angeles. The opening number set the tone for their performance: upbeat, energetic, and soulful. Frontman Chris Vos proceeded to introduce the band’s style as good time music and encouraged the audience to have fun. Their classic blues sound was highlighted through Vos’ raw vocals, soulful lyrics, and funky slide guitar solos. Transitions between songs were filled with singing or storytelling about the band’s connection to blues music. Continue Reading

by Laura Feeney

Since our Wednesday night at the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival was jam-packed, last night my Harvest-buddy and I decided that we should enjoy the festival “like normal people.” What did this involve? Selecting a few acts to pop into and getting fully distracted by buskers, food, and friends – of course!

I love the Harvest.

We stumbled onto Queen Street after a marathon photo-editing session and decided to check out a few minutes of Big Head Todd and The Monsters. This produced one of my most memorable Harvest memories to date – the Colorado-based band rocked a bluesy cover of LMFAO’s ‘Sexy and I Know It’ on steel guitar. We left the already-packed Blues Tent beaming, now fully prepared for another fantastic night of music and unexpected turns.

Our next stop was the Mojo Tent, where the winners of the Harvest UK-NB Battle of the Blues were set to play. The Groove-a-Matics, featuring guitarist Johnny Whitehill, were selected from nearly 100 UK bands as the next big blues band, so naturally my curiosity was piqued. Mick Cantwell’s deep soulful voice and saxophone solos caught my attention during the first few numbers, but my focus shifted once Johnny Whitehill gained some momentum and began producing one electric guitar solo after another. They played through an enjoyable electric blues-rock set with crisp guitar solos, plenty of saxophone, and classic blues lyrics. In case you missed them, they’ll be playing one last set at the Hoodoo House Stage on Saturday at 7:30. Continue Reading

by Laura Feeney

If last night’s performances are any indication, then this year’s Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival is going to be one of the best yet. The calm, unseasonably warm night saw Fredericton come alive as the two main tents opened their doors for the first round of performances this week.

Starting off the night in the Blues Tent was Garrett Mason of Truro, NS, and Keith Hallett from Fredericton, NB. These guys are young, talented, and energetic – their guitar-focused set enlivened the already eager crowd. Mason turned up the heat during his crowd-pleasing tribute to Bo Diddly, while Hallett brought raw vocals and slide guitar prowess to the stage. They showcased an electrified and youthful take on the blues and shared the spotlight admirably. Continue Reading

by Laura Feeney

The end of the summer in Fredericton is sweetened by the anticipation of one of the finest Music Festivals on the East Coast – the Harvest Jazz and Blues. This is the largest annual music festival in Atlantic Canada, featuring an impressive 150 performances (35% of which feature New Brunswick’s own musicians) on 26 stages (including 4 completely free venues). 

I’ll be covering the Harvest Jazz and Blues Festival as only a Maritimer can – starting with this list of 10 things to see at this year’s festival. After much research, discussion, and debating, this is a peek at what my (anticipated) week will look like: Continue Reading