GOAT At The Ottawa Bluesfest

No Masking It: Swedish Experimentalists Horn In Ottawa, Canada On July 9, 2026

Photos By Andrew DePedro

Voodoo!
Masks!
Costumes!
Doomy riffs!
And whatever else I happened to catch from this last-minute performance!

Turns out that this year’s Ottawa Bluesfest lineup has more than one quirky band bearing as much critical acclaim as they have outlandish stage costumes. I present to you the band GOAT, who hail from that hotbed of Baron Samedi-inspired voodoo known as…uh, Korpilombolo, in Sweden’s Norrbotten County (population 529 according to a 2010 census survey). And, as it turns out, the small community’s history is indeed based on a history of heavy voodoo worship according to the band, who likely had been so well entrenched within that same history a lot more than they wanted to that they’ve since relocated to Gothenburg. That, and most likely because Gothenburg is more densely populated and has a more vibrant live music scene. No offence, Korpilombolo. 

That said, GOAT’s own history, despite being an otherwise fairly new band with a bit of a cult following since releasing their debut album World Music in 2012, predates as far back as between 30-40 years ago when the band started as a trio, mostly playing live shows in and around their hometown and recording music on the down low. They soon attracted enough of an indie following that they were signed to a UK-based label by the name of Rocket Recordings in 1998 – except that their own recordings with the label didn’t immediately *ahem* take off as the band’s songwriting approach is, by even their own account, strange. “Normally, when we play together we don’t play songs – we make music – and every time we play is a new time. When we had the possibility to record, we have made songs for the album,” according to one of the band members in a 2014 interview with The Quietus, “It started with the song ‘Goatman’, and that song was recorded just for us. Then Rocket [Recordings] asked us to write some more and we continued. Our songs are never really finished and we never know how they will end up when we start recording.” 

Five albums, countless tours and festival headlining slots including Glastonbury and Coachella later, it appears that GOAT have mastered the art of finishing a song by their own accord. And not only have their appeal grown, but so have their touring lineup from three members to seven – all of whom prefer to remain anonymous as they let their grandiose wall of heavy doom riffs and rhythmic world sounds do the talking in ways that a regular interview just couldn’t do in capturing GOAT’s overall essence. 

And Lord knows I tried when, following an early night from the Alternates group yielding some unexpected free time after no shifts were available on my first night, I literally stumbled into the Lebreton Stage amongst a sea of urban cowboy hats and cut-off jean shorts – CODY JOHNSON was the headliner that night on the neighboring RBC Stage and his only actual appeal was really drawing the aforementioned female fanbase wearing those aforementioned cut-off jean shorts – and encapsulated by some hypnotic exotic funkified 70’s beats. Pretty sure that this was the same music that James Bond heard while hanging out at the Fillet Of Soul restaurant in Live And Let Die before he disappeared down a hole in the floor. Or it was maybe the rotating booth. Either way, it was the type of catchy 70’s-sounding soundtrack music that transcended space and time at least to my ears and soon became Live And Let Die meets Heavy Metal, which was where the actual performance came in. Backed by an energetic-sounding and musically enthusiastic five-piece band comprised of two masked guitarists (including one playing an old-school Flying V which JIMI HENDRIX was also known to play, albeit left-handed), a bassist brandishing the legendary Rickenbacker four-string that Lemmy, Geddy Lee and Cliff Burton were known for playing, and a drummer and percussionist who both appeared to play about three different instruments each between them, the voice of GOAT belonged to two young masked ladies donned in exotic dance costumes best described as Carmen Miranda during her Las Vegas era. And they too were keeping some time with the music with their tambourine and maracas playing, though it was their soulful voices that were their real talent, overflowing with a combination of Motown-inspired crooning and heavy belting skills. Having arrived somewhat late to the show itself meant that I’d only caught and recognized a handful of their closing songs – specifically the ambient chaos of “Gathering Of Ancient Tribes” and the swaying funk of “Run To Your Mama”. 

So while Bluesfest’s lineup landscape once more appears to be awash in mostly modern country and nu-metal, it’s also nice to know that it can still accommodate for a distinctly alternative type of musical outlet in the form of GOAT who, when they got a job to do, they do it well and give their detractors hell.

https://www.facebook.com/goatsweden
https://goat.bandcamp.com/