One last review and photo collection from Ottawa’s CityFolk Festival: Down with Webster, USS, and Cam Kahin

[Ross MacDonald, Zachary Resnick, and Melody Maloney were there. – AC]

City Folk 2025 saved what may have been its most rocket-fueled lineup for the final day.

The GTA’s Cam Kahin appeared on the main stage with an explosive start to his set. It was loud, furious, and set the tone for the entire night.

There was a lot of emotion on display in ‘Whatever You Want,’ the lyrics dripping raw, angry intensity to match Kahim frantic onstage movements. 

“I’m usually this sweaty on track 1,” he joked, taking a break to towel off. Me too, buddy. Sweaty boys unite. He then launched into ‘In, Around,’ a gravelly punk lament. ‘What Are You Waiting For’ featured some heavy, distorted riffs.

With a new album titled “Chug” coming, we were treated to ‘Yeah Right,’ a song fittingly about “getting drunk.” Kahim took a moment to give some props to his new guitarist, Daniel Little, who was playing his first ever show with the band that very night (and melting face, might I add.)

Next up were a couple of slower tunes: the tense and uneasy ‘Limbo’ and then ‘Break or Bend.’ The latter, only written about a month ago, featured more intricate guitar and softer drums.

Another unreleased track, ‘Come Around’ would be coming around in a couple of weeks, but we heard it here first. Starting slow, the song ramped way up, lyrics full of malaise and longing, with a ton of pedal distortion on the closing riffs. ‘Queen St.’ had a little “oh oh” call and repeat from the audience, who were thoroughly digging Kahim’s sonic offerings.

‘Nicotine’ featured more of that signature distortion in the bridge, and Kahim closed the killer set with the fast paced and screechy ‘Try Again.’ 

Next up was USS, or Ubiquitous Synergy Seeker, for those in the know. This would be their first City Folk, and their first Ottawa show in 3 years. 

Blue and white flashing lights welcomed the duo onstage to some HUGE cheers from the crowd. Opening with the breakneck ‘Anti-Venom,’ Ashley Buchholz strummed his heart out, while Jason “The Human Kebab” Parsons impressed with handstand record scratching. 

They moved next from the Sublime-esque ‘Who’s with Me’ into the pulse-pumping ‘Freakquency,’ which had the pit bouncing along. 

Things slowed down for the briefest of moments before the earth-shaking bass of ‘Shipwreck’ kicked in, and everyone’s hands were in the air, as if they indeed did not care.

‘Work Shoes,’ an anthem for the clock punchers, got a huge pop from the fans. Ash ended the tune by shredding with his sneakers. These guys do know how to put on a show.

We were treated to a snippet of George Michael’s ‘Careless Whisper’ as Parsons guided us through some hands up stretching, which perfectly prepared the crowd for ‘Hollow Point Sniper Hyperbole.’

Probably one of the duo’s best-known tracks, it saw Ottawa’s own DJ Noah out on stage, high kicking all over the place. 

Following the song, Ash gifted Noah a little birdhouse, saying “Live 88.5 gave our music a home for a long time, so we’d like to give Noah this gift of our appreciation.” 

They immediately launched into ‘Laces Out,’ a cacophonic wall of sonic harmony, which could only be followed by ‘Us,’ a thunderous anthem that kept the fans clapping to the beat. 

The duo gave a quick shout out to Cam Kahin, and after a quick guitar switch which Ash made light of, we heard ‘N/A OK,’ the crowd singing along to every word. 

The full-tilt ‘Alien’ followed, itself followed by chants of “USS!” from the audience. 

Next up was ‘Yo Hello Hooray (Everyday), before Parsons put the sound system through its paces with “the bass test.” 

‘Yin Yang’ featured a flashing light show matching the kinetic energy of the song, followed by ‘This is the Best’ with its deep, synth-y bass.

The penultimate number was ‘Nepal’ before the duo closed their set with ‘Damini,’ dedicated to the upcoming Down With Webster. 

The aforementioned Toronto-based rap-rock group opened to a massive pop with ‘One in a Million,’ which had everyone’s fingers in the air. 

They immediately followed up with ‘It’s Time to Win,’ Cameron Hunter and Martin “Bucky” Seja, ever the animated and dynamic MCs. 

This show would be the last stop of a long tour, and DWW promised it would be a big one. 

They erupted into the heavy beats of ‘Professional,’ which had the crowd dancing and showed off some of Patrick Gillett’s meatier riffs.

Everybody’s favourite ‘Rich Girl$’ draws many elements from the Hall & Oates classic, but with a fun spin and a 2000’s hip-hop feel.

‘Big Wheels’ followed, another Muchmusic heyday classic. Red lights blazed and everyone clapped along for ‘She’s Dope.’

DWW took a moment to say just how well things have been going for them, and announced that they are indeed making new music. To wit, we were treated to their new single, ‘Okae,’ and then a track which will debut next month, ‘Rock Wit You.’ 

Other highlights of the set included ‘Back of my Hand,’ ‘Grind,’ and ‘Royalty.’ 

DWW closed out their time with the one-two punch of ‘Chills’ and ‘Whoa Is Me,’ the perfect tunes to sundown this year’s stellar City Folk Fest. 

This marks the tenth anniversary of City Folk at Landsdowne. A huge shout out to all the volunteers that make these events possible. See y’all next year!