Posted on September 26, 2010 by Johnnie Regalado

And so another night of Rifflandia concludes and we find ourselves at the halfway point of the festival. I began the second evening much like the first, with a couple beers in the Market Square Beer Garden. I was excited to see that the Digital Screen Projections of the stage were running properly this time around (they weren’t up when I was at Market Square on Day 1). The organizers also changed up the beer garden lineup system. So far this year I have been impressed by the superb organization of the festival. In my travels this weekend I have yet to hear any major complaints and hardly anything about lineup issues. It seems that everyone’s getting to see the bands they want to see, myself included.

Before arriving at Market Square I poked my head into Lucky Bar to see how things were shaking down in there. A lot of people had noted to me that Lucky Bar’s lineups seemed to be just their regular weekend showcases with a special headliner. The emptiness of the narrow bar seemed to also comment on this. I wasn’t in quite the right head space to be one of only a handful of people at a dub step show so I headed over to Market Square where I was able to catch the tail end of the set by Maurice. From what I heard they were pretty solid and the crowd was digging it. Afterwards, Yukon Blonde took the stage and continued the good times. Everyone at the venue was in high spirits and excited to see Jets Overhead and the legendary Gord Downie perform.

I will admit that I have never really listened to The Tragically Hip. I must have just missed out on them. I ended up leaving after Yukon Blonde and making my way up to Alix Goolden Hall. One of my favourite parts of the festival so far has been listening to locals and out-of-town bands alike struggle with this venue name. Two of the better misses so far: “Alex Golden Hull” and “Alex Goulash Hall”. Name aside, this is one of the most beautiful, visually and acoustically, venues in all of Victoria and it seemed much more inviting than the cold outside of Market Square.

The Wooden Sky were on at 10:30pm and they played to a full venue. At 800 seat maximum capacity, this was no small feat for the Toronto indie folk group. Friends of CFUV, these guys have performed live and been interviewed on air a few times over the last couple years. The group was geared up, even sporting an eyeglasses headband lent to them by Forestry’s Blake Enemark. They played to an enthusiastic crowd who reveled in the wholesome Canadian rock songs that the group hammered away. If anyone this weekend has deserved some extra time on their set it was them.

The evening concluded with The Great Lake Swimmers who picked up right where The Wooden Sky left off. As heavy a hitter as there is in Canadian indie folk, the group picked up a Juno nomination and the Polaris Prize Short List for their 2009 album Lost Channels. These guys are what good Canadian music should sound like, the kind of country music that doesn’t make you cringe. Their songs have an identity and it’s a plaid shirt. Even on this far west island their songs sound like home. Singer Tony Dekker had no problem filling the venue with his exquisitely crafted songs. They brought a perfect close to solid second night at Rifflandia 3.

Tonight: another night at the Metro Theatre with Chad VanGaalen and Frog Eyes or a peek at the mysterious Ariel Pink… only time will tell.