Bahamas took over the Main Stage as Hillside began to wind down on Sunday evening. Fronted by the immensely skilled Afie Jurvanen, with the angelic-sounding Felicity Williams and Carleigh Aikins on backing vocal duties and the Weakerthans' Jason Tait keeping the beat, Bahamas delivered an excellent show as the sun set over Guelph Lake. Opening with the beautifully melancholic "Lost in the Light" from this year's Barchords, the set picked up with the almost Weezer-esque "I Got You Babe" and "Okay Alright I'm Alive." Jurvanen proved to be in high spirits, sharing anecdotes about drinking at the airport before bringing an audience member's hand puppet onstage. The puppy-ish character made the rounds at Hillside, seemingly appearing at the front of nearly every set, and Jurvanen somehow managed to cover Wreckless Eric's "Whole Wide World" while wearing the thing. Donning a cowboy hat, he proclaimed, "Sometimes I like to dress up like Garth Brooks and put on a puppet!" With the crowd completely under Bahamas's sway, "Caught Me Thinking" was another high point in the set. It was followed by closer "Snow Plough," which Jurvanen suitably described as a lullaby, as the sun dropped below the trees, ushering in the final night of the festival.
To see Exclaim!'s Hillside photo gallery, head here.
To see Exclaim!'s Hillside photo gallery, head here.