More coverage (photos, reviews) of Ottawa Bluesfest 2026: Paolo Stante/Samantha Martin & Delta Sugar/Elisapie

[The article was written by Zachary Resnick, photos from Melody Maloney and Ross Macdonald.- AC]

The weather was absolutely perfect for the final day of Ottawa Bluesfest 2026, and I chose to stake out the Lebreton stage to wind down my multi-day coverage of this mammoth festival. 

First up, a classic 3-piece blues and rock act, with the talented Paolo Stante at the helm. They opened strong with ‘So Down.’ 

While the first two numbers were more rock-oriented, the tone slowed down for ‘Dreaming,’ which was pure blues. 

Things mellowed even further for the country-tinged ‘Dream Girl,’ off of their most recent album, Lawless.

‘Favorite Kind of Drug’ had a little funk to it, and was followed by their new single, the rocking ‘Dirty Laundry.’ 

The tempo sped back up for ‘What You See,’ a study in deep south blues with some energetic guitar solos. 

To the particular delight of the crowd was a crunchy cover of the Beatle’s ‘Come Together.’ 

The band closed out their quick ‘n’ dirty set with the gritty ‘Hell or High Water,’ and received some well-earned applause as the stage crew furiously began setting up for the next act. 

Usually an 11-piece band(!), a scant seven members of Samantha Martin & Delta Sugar took their places on stage, though their sound was none the lesser for the smaller size. \

Hailing from Toronto, Martin opened the show with the rich-sounding ‘Meet Me in the Morning.’ This bled right into ‘Love is All Around,’ which was more of the same – soulful, rich, and powerful. 

Saying she was thankful for the cooler weather, ‘Don’t Have To’ got Martin jumping up and down, and the crowd clapping along in time. 

‘You’re the Love’ recounted a terrible dating experience, and it’s about here that I have to mention that Martin has PIPES. Her voice is so strong and booming, it’s impossible not to be completely enveloped by it. 

Next up was the introspective ‘Good Trouble,’ which was followed by ‘All Night Long,’ an autobiographical story about waiting up for a no-good, cheating man. 

Under appropriately blue lights, ‘I Got a Feeling’ was traditional blues, and a study in them at that. Martin’s energy and stage presence were impressive. The whole band was great. 

Grabbing her guitar, Martin launched into ‘Send the Nightingale,’ and kept the energy ramped up for the band intro. 

She closed the set explosively with ‘Chasing Dreams,’ and the band was packing up and off to prepare for their second show of the night in the Barney Danson theatre. 

In no uncertain terms, the big draw for me that night was one Elisapie Issac, the multi-award winning, multi-disciplinary Inuk artist. She’s an amazing personality, and I couldn’t wait to finally see her live. 

As the sun began to set, the band took the stage with big, bass-y chords ringing out amidst the soft and smoky pink lighting. 

Elisapie took center stage to a huge pop and launched into ‘Uummati Attanarsimat (Heart of Glass)’ in her native Inuktitut. 

Before I go on, I have to describe not only how surreal it is to not know a language, yet understand every single word, but also just how commanding Elisapie’s stage presence is. She is captivating. She is entertaining. She is powerful. It was just incredible. 

Without pause, she went right into ‘Taimangalimaaq (Time After Time)’ and the crowd simply could not get enough. 

The lights shifted to a soft teal as the drums rang out for her cover of Willie Mitchell’s ‘Call of the Moose.’ 

Next up was ‘Californiamut (Going to California),’ a song her musical uncles had also loved greatly. 

The lights went way down for the start of ‘Isumagijunnaitaungituq’ (The Unforgiven)’ and it was a softer, more haunting version than ever I’d heard before. 

After a brief story about dreams she’d had as a child, and the older brother she’d lost, we were treated to ‘Sinnatuumait (Dreams)’ and every note was achingly perfect, pointed precisely at the heartstrings. 

Under a single, solitary spotlight, we got a solemn acapella from all four band members of ‘Taimaa Qimatsiniungimat (Hey, That’s No Way to Say Goodbye).’ It was heart-wrenching. 

The spot went out. The stage went dark. For a moment, silence. And then, as the lights came back up, it was time for ‘Quviasukkuvit (If It Makes You Happy).’ 

‘Wolves Don’t Live by the Rules’ was a huge hit, and had nearly the whole audience singing and clapping along. 

Elisapie closed her tour de force set with the always-amazing ‘Arnaq’ to a standing ovation and cheers as fireworks exploded overhead. What a way to close out Bluesfest under the tent at the Lebreton stage.