I tend to graze at music festivals, nibble a bit of this act or that performer and move on after a couple of songs. I’ll only stay longer if they manage to grab my attention. The 2015 edition of RBC Ottawa Bluesfest started Wednesday night and I have been grazing the music on offer. Here are some impressions of six of the artists that I have seen so far.

Hoodie Allen was a pleasant surprise. He was totally out of place, squeezed in between a couple of country music performers, but he reacted positively, joking about it. I found his hip hop style far more interesting than the electronic dance music the previous night, which in theory would have been a better stylistic fit.

Langhorne Slim

I had read about Langhorne Slim and the Law in the newspaper a couple of days before his performance. That got me to his set – it was up to him and the band to hold my attention and keep me there. They failed to do that, I left during the second song.

I have seen literally thousands of artists in concert. It is part of working in the music business. That makes me a tough person to win over. But it can be done – just give me an exceptional show. A few years ago at this festival Grace Potter and the Nocturnals not only grabbed my attention, but impressed me so much I bought her latest album before leaving the festival grounds. Unfortunately, moments like that are rare.

Charles Bradley

Charles Bradley was one of those acts I wanted to see since I had read about his musical odyssey. I enjoyed what I heard, but it seemed to me that there was too much evidence of his influences (James Brown, Otis Redding, and Wilson Picket came to mind) and not enough originality. He did do a cover version of Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold” that was interesting, but not what I wanted to hear. (I told you, I’m tough to please.)

I do like country music, in small doses usually. Jason Aldean was one of the big names at the festival. He has sold more than ten million albums in the past decade or so, he’s a genuine country music superstar. My problem with country music is I don’t listen to enough of it, so once again Jason is someone I know by reputation but I am not familiar with his music. He put on a good performance that the crowd loved. It was pleasing sounding country music, but didn’t really grab me.

Kim Simmonds

I did actually get to hear some blues on Friday night. Kim Simmonds and Savoy Brown, who have been around since the 1960ss, provided some very tasty musical treats. The man delivered some (mostly) laid back melodic blues, which was very refreshing after having heard most country and dance music at the festival up to that point. I stayed for most of his set.

Hawksley Workman

I’m pretty sure I have seen Hawksley Workman before, at this same festival a few years back perhaps. I know I have heard him on the radio, though once again he is one of those artists that I know I have heard but I couldn’t name you any of his songs. When he hit the stage I stopped my grazing for a while. He was playing some meat and potatoes rock and roll, even though I found the vocals to be muddy in the mix, which made the lyrics indistinct. Since I am a lyric guy it is a tribute to Hawksley and his band that I stayed for 45 minutes, almost all of his set.

Originally I was planning to talk about Kanye West’s performance here, but this post is already getting kind of long. We’ll save Kanye for another day. I’ll be continuing to graze though the offerings at Bluesfest, and will offer you some more impressions on Monday.