Music and photos from the second night of Ottawa Bluesfest: Hank Azaria, My Son the Hurricane, and Mark Rebillet

[Ross MacDonald and Karen Coughtrey were again there for us. – AC]

Night two of Ottawa Bluesfest may have been for the more rock/urban minded but those looking for a different fun twist on the rock genre were drawn to the Hard Rock Stage, where a lineup of My Son The Hurricane, Hank Azaria and the EZ Street Band, and Marc Rebillet were ready to entertain.

If you’ve ever seen My Son The Hurricane, you know the brass funk rock band from the Niagara region will bring the party. They declared it was a dance show off the top and it was impossible not to groove along, the band’s big sound radiates joy. If that sounds like your cup of tea, they really are a not to be missed band and will be back in Ottawa in the fall (October 23rd) at Overflow brewing.

If you haven’t seen them lately you may be unaware they have a new singer, Sarah Faz, who brings to the band slightly different vibes, turning up the already urban sound a notch.

Thirteen members of the band were present on stage in Ottawa, seven of which made up the brass section (hence the big joyous sound). The three trombonists were of note, catching the attention of the crowd with their trombone choreography, including a move they call trombone suicide.

The band played ‘Does Your Mama Know’ off the new album (out in 2025) Yesterday, Today and Tomorrow and other favourites. The band’s energy and love of performing is palpable and they really make the crowd’s participation in the matching of their energy seem essential to the experience, almost daring you to try and not have fun.

The band included in the set a few covers including Metallica’s ‘Wherever I May Roam,’ Reel 2 Real’s ‘I Like To Move It’ and Alexis on Fire’s ‘This Could Be Anywhere In The World’ which they dedicated to their hometown of St Catherines.

Next it was time for the boss, or well nearly. Hank Azaria and his Bruce Springsteen celebration project were second to grace the Hard Rock Stage on Day 2 of Ottawa Bluesfest. Hank Azaria and The EZ Street Band call themselves a celebration, because cover band doesn’t seem to cover it.

The performance was exactly what you would expect, the vocal impressions Hank is famous for and a near perfect imitation of Bruce, playing all the favourites. Any Springsteen fan knows that his shows are lively and fun and Hank and his band brought all of that, the only significant difference would be that sadly the set was much shorter than the average Springsteen show.

Hank regaled the crowd with stories of getting into doing impressions in his teenage years and other personal stories along with stories of Springsteen himself and the stories behind his songs. This was his first time in Ottawa and he complimented our beautiful city, here’s hoping he’ll be back for those who missed this performance.

Headlining the Hard Rock stage was American Electronic musician Marc Rebillet with a performance in all honesty you need to see to understand. On the surface the musical performance is looping sounds and beats in a somewhat stilted and disjointed manner but at its core it’s danceable, fun, full of heart and joy and laughs.

Marc is Youtuber and he strutted on to the stage in nothing but boxer shorts and sneakers with his long hair left somewhat wild, allowing one to feel as if they are catching the artist performing from a safe space like behind a screen at home. However there is no barrier between him and the audience. His shows are improvised and the crowd is brought right into the creative process helping him decide on sounds and directions.

One should be aware the performance will likely be profanity filled but most likely what you will remember are the laughs shared between audience and artist as he creates music from the sounds (audience shouts, birthday celebrations) and sights around him (audience t-shirts, crowd surfers). On this night he used the local Ontario can of Creemore Springs Brewery Premium Lager to create a song around the words ‘Take Something Ordinary and Create something Extraordinary.” Marc is also part French and delighted the crowd with a dramatic reading of the story on the can in both official languages, extra drama for the French.

Although improvised and seemingly random and frivolous his songs are not without meaning and he slipped important themes into the songs, such as changing friendships and mental health and left no doubts of his thoughts on the president and his tariffs (Fuck Donald Trump.)

It might not have had all the bells and whistles of the big show on the main stage, although it had its share of pyrotechnics, but it was definitely one of the most special and unique shows that will happen at Bluesfest this year and was highly entertaining making it the perfect end to a beautiful summer Friday evening.

Hank Azaria and The EZ Street Band
Hank Azaria – lead vocals
Adam Kromelow – band leader, keyboards
Christian Nourijanian – keyboards/piano
Jeff -bass
Philippe Lemm – drums

My Son The Hurricane
Danno O’Shea – band leader, drums
Sarah Faz – vocals
Chris Sipos – guitar
Fraser Gauthier – bass
Cooper Hannahson – percussion
Ashlee Standish – keyboards
Liam Bird – tenor/baritone saxophone
Victoria Cox – baritone saxophone (absent?)
Justin Williams – trombone
Alyssa Shanghavi (Zorp) – trombone
Craig Darling – trombone
Lisa Gudgeon – trumpet
Raphaël Désilets – trumpet
Andrew Knox – trumpet