Music

Dawson City Music Festival Day 2

by Michael Joffe

After taking in a full opening day at DCMF, I decided to ease into evening festivities at St. Paul’s church. Slid along the pews as Dawson City-based newbie (but soon-to-be-departing) A Young Linthead rubbed out raw tunes, sparsely accompanying herself with banjo. We, the gathered, were then treated to the splendid Elfin Saddle. Their rich sound & lush arrangement featuring homemade percussion kits and assorted instruments was honed in faraway Montreal shores and further fine-tuned during their current DC artists residency.

Across town (4 blocks away) at the legendary Palace Grand Theatre, bands did more than merely provide a soundtrack to ghosts and old Vaudevillan air. Burning Hell regaled everyone with witty songs about inhabiting his own skin, beard, life and all. Buzzband tUnE-yArDs dispatched an onslaught of catchy-ass acrobatic vocal melodies (which delightfully bordered on yodelling at times) and irresistably danceable live-looped rhythms. The packed dance party was forced to close sans encore but Dan Mangan held court and let his loveable music take command of the venue.

At Mainstage, Whitehorse heroes Sasquatch Prom Date (best band name ever!) delivered seriously raucous rockabilly armed with pink wig, pompadour and tuxedo. White-hot blues star Shakura S’Aida and her tight band worked the crowd up into hands-in-the-air frenzy in no time. Where does she get the energy to strut like that and just how insane were those burning solos by guitar-vixen Donna? Such questions evapourated along with the sweat on our cheeks as tired feet dragged along gravel streets and weaved through the post-midnight Dawson bar-star crowd formations.

What to do inbetween concerts during DCMF? Hmmm. Maybe hang with Dan Mangan on the ferry while he plays “Sold” over engine noise and river burps.

By AY