The headlining appearance by Lanois, in particular, was expected to be a true highlight of the 2005 festival, which runs through July 17. The 53-year-old studio wizard, who has helped mold hits for the likes of U2, Peter Gabriel, Bob Dylan and Emmylou Harris, is a French-Canadian from Hull, Quebec. Although Hull is a good four-hour drive from Quebec City, Lanois was, at least initially, treated like a hometown hero by the roughly 8,000 fans in attendance at the Molson Dry Stage.

Despite the Northern pride working in the headliner's favor, it was the opening act from Down Under that ended up stealing the show.

Regardless of what one thinks of Rudd's mostly mellow folk-pop sound, the Australian is certainly worth catching live. The term "one-man band" is definitely overused by music writers, but it's totally fitting for Rudd. The singer/songwriter utilizes guitar, harmonica, percussion instruments and, most famously, three didgeridoos (of different keys) to create a world of sounds in concert.

Rudd's set drew strongly from last year's "Solace," which is his fifth release in Australia, but his first to receive widespread distribution in North America. Partially eclipsed from the crowd's view, sitting behind a short wall of instruments, Rudd charmed listeners with such peaceful, easy-feeling tracks as "Solace" and "Let Me Be." When he wasn't displaying his amazing circular-breathing ability on one of his three didgeridoos, he showed a warm and soothing vocal style that strongly recalled David Gray, Jack Johnson and, most often, Paul Simon. It made perfect sense when he closed with his cover of Bob Marley's "No Woman, No Cry," which is featured on "Solace."

Touring in support of the new CD "Belladonna," due to hit stores on July 12, Lanois had his work cut out for him in following Rudd's crowd-pleasing set. Unfortunately, despite delivering a small handfull of memorable moments, the veteran's show couldn't match the newcomer's offering on numerous fronts. Most notably, it just wasn't as fun. There was never any doubt that Rudd was having a blast during his set. Conversely, there was never any doubt that Lanois was working very hard, with the same intensity that he brings to the studio, during his show.

Likewise, the crowd had to work pretty hard to remain interested in the second half of this doubleheader. After initially receiving a warm response from his fellow countrymen, Lanois quickly began to lose the audience's favor as he performed an unfocused, and uninspiring, set of blandly atmospheric music.

Because Lanois has such a signature sound, which colors basically everything he touches, fans can't help but compare his performances to those by the artists he's produced. That's not a good thing, given that Lanois can't compete with the likes of U2 and Gabriel.

When he tries to distance himself from those artists, however, the result can be even worse. The prime example during this concert was when he led his band into a spacey jam that would have embarrassed the Grateful Dead. If Lanois had directed U2 down a similiar path, "Actung Baby" would have been lucky to sell 20 copies.

But fans who weren't crazy about Lanois' set could simply walk down the street and catch a performance by Spain's Ojos de Brujo or go dance to the grooves of hot electronica artist TIGA. If none of those performers did the trick, fans could comfort themselves with the knowledge that the next 10 days of music would bring such talents as Calexico, Porcupine Tree and Dinosaur Jr. That's the beauty of the Quebec City Summer Festival.

The Quebec City Summer Festival's full schedule is posted at the event's website.