Snapshots: Saturday at the Gateway Festival
Shayne Cafferata/Nick Murray
The weather was warm and sunny and the music was loud and clear at the Gateway Music Festival in Bengough this weekend. Friday Night saw a combination of great local acts like Surf Dads, Kara Golemba and Poor Nameless Boy and national touring headliners like Big Sugar, Yukon Blonde and The Kentucky Headhunters.
The crowd was a diverse selection of Craven Country Jamboree types, local countryfolk and hipsters from Saskatoon. Plus a couple cats from Moose Jaw. Including a pair of the friendly city's most cherished musicians; Brodie Moniker and Megan Nash.
There was even a pancake breakfast all three mornings in the town of Bengough and a pool stage set up during the afternoons so festival goers could swim and lounge by the pool while listening to some great live music.
The whole event, much like Ness Creek the weekend before, served as a great reminder of how great the musical talent in Saskatchewan actually is.
Nick Faye from Nick Faye & the Deputies was the most photogenic performer of this night. Bass player Byron Chambers on the left. The band performer hits from their fantastic new record Stumbling Distance.
Nick Faye & the Deputies percussionist Adam Ennis playing at dusk and surrounded by a lovely violet hue.
My personal favourite show of the night was Regina's Library Voices.
Library Voices has a horn section. Here is Mike Thievin on the Saxophone
Small town folkster Ellen Froese alongside her drummer in cool psychedelic shades. Ellen was born in a Mennonite homestead and homeschooled. Somebody there must have had some pretty great musical chops.
Seth Anderson from Canmore, Alberta played a great solo set. Anderson said the highlight of his weekend was watching John K. Samson play at sunset. He also played a songwriters circle at the pool stage with Ryan Hicks and members of Chixdiggit and Library Voices.
The forever-charming balladeer Zachary Lucky. One of the leaders of the pack of "SaskCore" music. Known for tracks like "Saskatchewan" and "Ramblin' Man's Lament" pulled out all the stops in his performances. Even bringing the wonder Belle Plaine on stage for some accompaniment.
Did Zachary Lucky hire Dwight Yoakam to play the steel guitar for him?
The Karpinka Brothers brought their joyful garage-folk sound and fun energetic sing-alongs with them.
The Mage of Mortlach. The Pride of Moose Jaw. Megan Nash performed with Tanner Wilhmel Hale from Bears in Hazenmore singing melody. She played "Salted Salamanders", "Deer Head" and many more of her local classics. One of the best things about a Megan Nash performance is her banter with the crowd. She told a story from her youth about protesting A&W for not using Canadian beef that had the crowd in stitches.
Canadian Indie song writing legend, John K Samson, formerly of the Weakerthans wasn't just Zachary Lucky's favourite performer. He had people literally in tears while he sang.
Kathleen Edwards was as cool as ever. Playing Bengough into the dark night.
I change my mind. Elliott Brood was my favourite performance. It looked like some kind of vintage acoustic music. The sound was awesome. Raw, smoothly overdriven. The highlight of the event.
Headliner Steven Page. The frontman of the Barenaked Ladies, played a set long into the night. Longer than most people expected. So long actually that one of the beer tent bands that was set to play afterwards was forced to play after the liquor sales had been shut down.
And yes. Page played many of the old BNL classics.