Kitchener Blues Fest Aug 10 2019 Darby Mills

 Canada’s biggest free admission blues festival celebrated it’s 19th Annual TD Kitchener Blues Festival drawing in 140,000 people in four days, with 43 bands on 4 stages making close to $4 million dollars.  Sat. Aug. 10th, YNC’s stage lineup went all day with Big Dan, The Topside,             

Lachy Doley, JD McPherson, 2-time Gemini nominee, and Juno awarded Jack Semple followed by the stupendous Juno nominated Darby Mills.  Darby Mills Project lit the stage ablaze with their cerebral melodies of complexity and tranquillity, as guitarist Randy Gabel, bassist Dave Hopia, drummer Chris Murray Driver and keyboardist Doug Rasmussen, alongside Darby, dove deep into her extensive catalog as they nailed hits from her FLYIN SOLO album with Want it, Run, Hot Water, Cry To Me, Monkey, Bad Bay Boy, as well, blending in the fuel-injected Feel My Body from her LIVE album. Engaging the fans with some The Headpins classics Staying All Night, Just One More Time, and Don't It Make Ya Feel, projecting their smooth version of Stories' Brother Louie.  DMP covered 3 pioneering women in music, that were instrumental in creating Darby’s voice today: Janis Joplin's Piece of My Heart; Kiki Dee's I Got The Music In Me and Carol King’s song that Aretha Franklin made famous (You Make Me Feel Like a) Natural Woman. DMP ended with a message, "Don't Stop Keeping On."   The 1000s in the audience roared with anticipation and DMP extended a 3 song encore nailing Head Pins Turn It Loud, Nazareth's Hair of The Dog, and Allman Brother's Whipping Post to close out their one-of-a-kind outdoor set.    Kicking Sept. 11th into Notorious overdrive with an all-original Loverboy lineup, co-founder/frontman Mike Reno, co-founder/guitarist Paul Dean, drummer Matt Frenette, keyboardist Doug Johnson along with bassist since 2000, Ken ’Spider’ Sinnaeve delivered hit after nostalgic hit to the full house Living Arts Centre, we sure were the Lucky Ones.  I felt as if I was the Queen of The Broken Hearts as I allowed them to Take Me to the Top. With each Jump, literally sprang from their seats like being released from a tightly wound magical music jack in the box.  This Could Be The Night, is one to remember, as Mike Reno stated, "This next song was the 1st song that started it all for us, there was no turning back." The stage was on fire, man oh man The Kid Is Hot Tonight.  "Remember where you were, what you were doing, and if you were caught doing it," Reno said.  We wanted this stellar show to go on all night and would be disappointed When It's Over.  Mike Reno asked, "How many men were here tonight" (crowd cheered) and the deafening roars when he asked," How about the ladies," and sure enough there was more women-to-men ratio, some things never change.  When it comes to rock n roll music, it turns you inside out and I know I reverted back to 1 of those 80s Hot Girls in Love instantly.  Loverboy hasn't changed, they are still chick magnets, and man it was sweltering inside that 1,350-seat Hammerson Hall, I was ready to explode, so thrilled to be a part of the audience’s responsive energy upon that magical Wed night. I felt young again, transported back in time into my teenage self as LB really did Turn Me Loose.  The audience went ballistic as they cranked out their classic rock staple to cement the evening's last song Working for the Weekend, and encored loud and proud leaving us Lovin Every Minute of It!  For full reviews/photos click on www.seeingshowswithdebdraper.com