FESTIVAL. Many spectators braved the cold on Sunday evening for the highly anticipated Salebarbes show as part of the Trad Cajun Festival at Woodyatt Park.
With temperatures hovering around 10 degrees Celsius and a cool breeze, hoods, scarves and even winter coats were popular items of clothing for festival-goers. But it was especially the performances by Salebarbes and Lendemain de eve that got music lovers in the mood.
The Acadian quintet began their performance with “Last Time,” which appears on their latest album, À Drink Standingte. Jean-François Breau, Kevin McIntyre, George Béliveau, Éloi and Jonathan Painchaud quickly delivered their hit “Good Lord,” which got the 10,000 or so spectators in front of the stage singing and dancing.
Jean-François Breau, Eloi Painchaud and George Béliveau. (Photo: Ghyslain Bergeron)
As the show progressed, the audience became more immersed in the world of Salebarbes. A true Acadian party atmosphere prevailed at the Trad Cajun festival. If Steve Veilleux and the organizing committee’s goal was to transform Woodyatt Park into a festive venue worthy of the biggest events, they can say mission accomplished.
The songs “Chat par la cheu”, “Stirer la roux” and “Un autre Evening Ennuiant” also characterized the performance of the five Acadian sidekicks.
The musical versatility of each member of the group was highlighted throughout the performance. Jean-François Breau and Jonathan Painchaud swapped instruments a few times, while the former switched from guitar to drums and vice versa. George Béliveau showed his talent as a violinist as his instrument was used in several songs. And what about Éloi Painchaud’s wild guitar solo at the end of the performance, reminiscent of the great rock guitarists? Kevin McIntyre was more reserved on bass and was able to talk about his youth in elementary school in Charlo, New Brunswick with the song Tite Gum.
After leaving the stage for barely a minute, Salebarbes quickly arrived and delivered a final song, Marcher l’floor, during the encore.
Festival-goers came from across the province, from Chibougamau to Sherbrooke and from Montreal to Quebec and even from Ottawa and New Brunswick, surely returning home, reciting their “20 Hail Marys and five Our Fathers” before spending a peaceful night full of dreams of the concert they attended.
The party opens the day before
Marc-André Rioux. (Photo: Ghyslain Bergeron)
At around 7 p.m., the group Lendemain de eve appeared on stage with one goal in mind. “Hello Drummondville! We are the group Lendemain de eve and we are here to party!” exclaimed singer Marc-André Rioux right at the beginning of the performance.
The quartet played tracks on stage for about an hour. Their songs “A good Bottle”, “Medley Cayouche”, “Un p’tit Shooter”, “D’la beer au ciel” and “We were drunk” especially made the audience dance, ready to welcome Salebarbes. The audience, which gradually gathered in front of the stage, quickly forgot about the increasing cold.
“With you, Drummondville, we were welcomed as if we were kings! It is thanks to you that we experience everything that happens to us!” said Rioux at the end of the Lendemain de Vive concert.
Nicolas Pellerin and the great Hurleurs filled the Canadian Tire marquee during the dinner hour. They played several songs of traditional and even Irish inspiration. Dancers from the Mackinaw troupe also participated by performing for the audience during certain pieces. The quartet of string instruments and drums even offered an unscheduled encore at the urgent request of festival visitors.
Impressive audience
For Steve Veilleux, organizer of the Trad Cajun Festival, this second edition was a testament to how much the people of Drummondville have embraced it. The number of visitors has doubled within a year.
“People reacted from one end to the other. Woodyatt Park, my childhood park, is full. This is our reward for all the work we have put in. People quickly embraced Trad-Cajun within the first year; which is rather rare. When you put together a big festival, it can take several years to get there. It really touches me that people come to us and go back and forth between the different scenes,” commented Steve Veilleux.
Dressed warmly, the crowd at Woodyatt Park was large. (Photo: Ghyslain Bergeron)
After a hot week, the cold of October took hold again this Thanksgiving weekend. Saturday was marked by rain showers. Despite the capricious weather, festival-goers prepared to have a good time. In addition, several fire pits were operating in the park to warm passers-by.
“Organizing a large summer festival in Quebec is a no-brainer at first. We have to live with the weather that is beyond our control. By doing it in October, this crap increases when the cold comes into play. However, we have an atmosphere that cannot be compared to any other festival in Quebec. I think we have our own signature and the autumn decorations make it even more colorful,” the organizer added.
Saturday evening attracted around 2,500 people, but on Sunday the limit of 10,000 spectators was exceeded, according to Steve Veilleux. “The people who stayed are gladiators. We were touched when we saw them staying in the rain for Saturday’s shows. It will leave great stories in our park,” continued Mr. Veilleux.
Additionally, some food trucks ran out of supplies that second evening. “We were missing almost everything. We didn’t expect that. Food trucks were robbed, as were bars. It’s a nice problem. “We will make sure we don’t miss anything next year,” said the organizer.
Steve Veilleux has already started thinking about the next edition of the Trad Cajun festival, for which he says he has many ideas. He also expressed the wish to add an evening to the event on Friday.
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