8 Things We Learned At Festival D’été De Québec

Image via FEQ

I arrived in Québec on Sunday night, and any potential Grohl-spun FOMO was quickly squashed when I found out the Foo Fighters’ set was rained out the night before. I’m told that buckets of rain soaked the Plains, and the threat of lightning forced roadies to drag Dave Grohl off of the stage just four songs into their set. I guess the Iron Throne Of Rock he designed while high on oxy doubles as a lightning rod.

My first night in Québec would also mark the first time my path has crossed with Iggy Azalea. Regardless of where you land in terms of the Iggy Azalea debate, we can all agree that her career is in a pretty bizarre place right now. This was one of the only shows she didn’t cancel this summer, and it certainly delivered on the promise of weirdness. Iggy careened through an awkward 14-song set, front-loaded with deep cuts and fan favourites, saving “Black Widow” and “Fancy” for a double-stuffed finale. The only problem (okay, the second “Problem,” if you’re counting) being that the dozen song prelude zapped the massive crowd’s energy. When the opening bass notes of “Fancy” finally rang out, people were already heading for the exit. Shouts to Iggy’s water tech, though. Whenever Her Igg-ness had a thirst that needed quenching, dude would pop up out of the stage, hand her a water bottle, and disappear like a mallet-shy whack-a-mole. Career goals.

How many times have you thrown your head back in ecstasy while air-guitaring the solo from “More Than A Feeling”? Turns out, seeing it live, alongside a horde of dad-rock faithfuls, is even more satisfying. Before I saw Boston rip their guitars and vintage synthesizers into shreds on the Plains Of Abraham at Festival D’été De Québec, I had no idea that there was more to “More Than A Feeling” than meets the eye. Brace yourself, because it’s super dark: Boston’s original singer Brad Delp committed suicide in 2007. The band soldiered on, borrowing a plot ripped directly from Rockstar featuring Mark Wahlberg. Vocalist and die-hard Boston fan Tommy DeCarlo got the band’s attention by posting spot-on covers of their songs on his MySpace page. DeCarlo was invited to sing at a concert in honour of Delp, and he remains in the touring lineup to this day. This bleak narrative gave an otherwise indulgent exhibition a bit of emotional context, and sitting through an 8-minute organ solo was much less of a challenge. Plus, they had a gong.

On July 14th, El-P and Killer Mike brought their perfect sonic union to Québec City’s Imperial Bell Theatre for another installment in the Run The Jewels saga. A capacity crowd of Québecois youth shook the venue’s floors as they bobbed along in unison to RTJ 2 standout “Close Your Eyes (And Count To Fuck),” seemingly adopting it as their own personal anthem. After trading rapid fire bars for nearly an hour, the duo left the stage, and the house lights shot on. What followed was one of the only genuine, unplanned encores I’ve ever seen. A ceaseless “Run! The! Jewels!” chant lured them back on stage; the house lights switched off, and they did it one last time, solidifying their set as a FEQ highlight.

You probably know that one song by Swedish electro-pop duo Icona Pop, but I’m happy to report that Caroline Hjelt and Aino Jawo shake off the one-hit-wonder label with a charming, high-energy live show. They delivered clumsy tandem dance moves with a wink, and took a break to mob out to “Bitch Better Have My Money” before “I Love It” closed out their brief set. It’s almost like they knew we would rather listen to Rihanna than an Icona Pop deep cut, and so would they. For what it’s worth, their Charli XCX-assisted single received a bigger reaction than Iggy Azalea’s did an hour later. Well played.

Samuel T. Herring is Baltimore’s best dancer, and the Future Islands set at FEQ put his deep lunges and rolling upper cuts on fine display. After running through choice cuts from the band’s extensive back catalogue, Herring announced that he’d split the crotch in his well-tailored slacks. The front row got more than they bargained for, while Herring channeled Blanka from Street Fighter during the chorus from “Seasons (Waiting On You).” A suggestion for next time: yoga pants.

When The Rolling Stones come to town, everything shuts down. On Wednesday, you couldn’t go anywhere without seeing a giant set of cartoonish red lips staring you in the face. The logo was emblazoned on t-shirts, hats, poorly-rendered caricatures peddled streetside, even on motorcycles. Lineups starting forming in the early afternoon, and a crowd of over 100,000 fans were all buzzing about Keith Richards’ rumoured blood transfusions and Mick Jagger’s 120-person entourage. As I stood watching a band with a combined age of 284 (requisite squad goals reference) tear through a note-perfect 2+ hour set, I nearly caught myself complaining that my feet hurt. Then I saw Mick Jagger traipsing across the stage like a teenager, bringing on-stage cardio to an extreme new level. The Rolling Stones showed why they’re the most enduring rock band of all time, and I forgot about my feet while swaying to “Wild Horses.”

Every year, Festival D’été De Québec books an insanely diverse lineup with some off the biggest names in music, but even when they manage to book The MFing Rolling Stones, the city takes centre stage. On my visit, even Mick, Keith, Ron, and Charlie took a backseat to Québec City’s beautiful scenery, immaculately-preserved architecture, and its warm and welcoming people. How do you say “IT WAS LIT” en français? With a steady diet of poutine and La Fin Du Monde in the rearview, I’m already looking forward to next year’s fest. À bientôt, Québec!