By Chelsea Cooley

NedFest is a backyard keg party that’s gone nuts. In its 13 year history the little mountain festival that could, has brought legions of jam and bluegrass artists to the shores of Barker Reservoir — the festival’s home since 1999.

With jam and bluegrass roots running deep in the town of Nederland, this festival almost seems like a Ned showcase, and in fact, it kind of is, except for some of the national acts. But year in and year out, NedFest proves that the town of Nederland is a haven, not just for musicians, but for top-notch musicians, who feed off the beauty of the mountain surroundings to create their art.

:: Leftover Salmon ::

:: August 28 — 6:30 p.m. ::

They’re the absolute epitome of NedFest. The pioneering spirit of Leftover Salmon, long ago, launched them way above and beyond the Nederland scene. But even while Leftover Salmon has seen massive success around the country, they still call this area home and they give back by continuing to be involved in the scene that spawned them. For years, they’ve lived by the phrase popularized by their departed friend and co-founder, banjoist Mark Vann, who said, “Go big or go home.” Leftover doesn’t know how to do anything but go big, and watching that happen is monstrously fun.

:: Cornmeal ::

:: August 27 — 6:30 p.m. ::

After 10 years of evolution from their humble beginnings in Chicago, Ill., this group’s fun brand of dance-grass has gained a loyal following. The band recently released its first live album Live in Chicago, but it was their 2003 album Tales from Magic Stone Mountain that was picked up by college and AAA radio stations throughout the country. Like festival headliners Leftover Salmon, the band follows in the footsteps of genre bending characters like John Hartford and New Grass Revival, which honor traditional bluegrass, but also throws the rules out the window.

:: David Grisman Sextet ::

:: August 27 — 8:30 p.m ::

Forty-five-year mandolin veteran David Grisman counts Bill Monroe, “the father of bluegrass,” as one of his greatest idols. Perhaps best known for his work with Old and In the Way, a group he formed with Jerry Garcia in the 1970s, this virtuoso has been nominated for five Grammy awards since 1990. Most recently, he released David Grisman’s Folk Jazz Trio with his son Sam, a bassist, and guitarist Jim Hurst. An excellent choice for any serious bluegrass lineup, Grisman will be joined at NedFest by bassist Jim Kerwin, flutist Matt Eakle, percussionist George Marsh, guitarist Grant Gordy, and fiddler Mike Barnett, for this special sextet set of “Dawg” music.

:: Great American Taxi ::

:: August 26 — 4:30 p.m. ::

When Leftover Salmon’s Vince Herman met keyboardist Chad Staehly at a Rainforest Action Group benefit concert in Boulder in 2005, they thought they would create the perfect local supergroup — a country rock jam band in the tradition of the Grateful Dead and New Riders of the Purple Sage. After seeing some early lineup changes, the band has solidified with a crack set of musicians, including the former rhythm section of the local Phish tribute band Phix.

:: Split Lip Rayfield ::

:: August 27 — 2:30 p.m. ::

Lawrence, Kansas’s own Split Lip Rayfield might be the only band with a gas-tank bassist, playing a handmade, recycled-junk instrument right onstage, and that, simply put, only works because of Split Lip’s punk-grass take on Americana. The band has vaulted over hardships, including the loss of  founding member and guitarist Kirk Rundstrom in 2007, and carries on with a firm ‘what doesn’t kill us makes us stronger’ ethos. It’s that spirit that makes them a fine fit to NedFest.

:: Larry Keel & His Big Friends ::

:: August 27 — 11 a.m. ::

Originally from Manassas, Va., Larry Keel received widespread recognition in bluegrass circles after winning the Telluride Bluegrass Festival guitar competition in both 1993 and 1995. Keel frequently plays with such greats as Jorma Kaukonen, Keller Williams, members of Yonder Mountain String Band, the String Cheese Incident, and Leftover Salmon, as well as his wife Jenny and brother Gary, who taught him to play. Last year, he released the album Thief with Keller and the Keels.

:: Runaway Truck Ramp ::

:: August 27 — 12:30 p.m. ::

Their performance at NedFest will be a reunion show for this longtime Colorado favorite. Formed in 1996, the band released two CDs and gained a national audience over the course of five years, before band members went their separate ways to explore other projects. Bringing them back together for this show is a testament to the fabric of the community that NedFest has woven itself into.

:: Head for the Hills ::

:: August 28 — 12:30 p.m. ::

A young and talented group, Head for the Hills was recently named the “Best Bluegrass Band” in Colorado by Westword — no small feat when you consider the number of bluegrass bands in the area. The band’s 2010 self-titled release made the CMJ top 200 national radio listings and ranked number 29 on Colorado Radio’s “Top 50 Albums of 2010.” Their unmistakable skill and momentum encouraged Leftover Salmon’s Drew Emmitt to become their producer and String Cheese Incident’s Bill Nershi to let them record in his Sleeping Giant studio.

By Fallon Anderson

Halloween is marked by the opportunity to become whatever it is you desire. This year, Colorado is flooded with unbelievably talented musicians to help define you for the night. Be your style dub step, hip-hop, or bluegrass, there’s a show for you this Halloween season. With Halloween falling on a Sunday this year, many venues are using Friday and Saturday night as their official party, which means a full weekend of musical choices:

:: Halloween Hootenanny w/ DJ Matt Fecher ::

:: Bluebird Theater ::October 29 ::

Starting out as Hootenanny Head Honcho Chris Baumgartner’s private Halloween party, the Hootenanny will celebrate its 9th year this October at the Bluebird Theater, going public for the first time. Sprinkled with guests such as DJ Matt Fecher (who has DJ’d the past three Hootenannys) and Mike Deez & Sunshine, this year’s Hootenanny is sure to be successful in stirring up mischief and raging the dance floor. Starting at around 50 people, the event has grown to now more than 500 guests over the past nine years. Costumes are mandatory!

:: Peter Rowan’s Free Mexican Airforce ::

:: w/ Head for the Hills ::

:: Aggie Theatre  :: October 30 ::

The combination of these bluegrass boys could be deadly. Colorado’s own Head for the Hills will join Peter Rowan on stage in Fort Collins this Halloween season for a throw-down of great proportion. Former bandmate of Jerry Garcia and David Grisman, Peter Rowan’s federalé-influenced band, Free Mexican Airforce, and its ganja-friendly theme song take bluegrass and give it a bit of a twist, as does the supporting act, Head for the Hills. A wrecking ball of improvisation, these boys wield a melting pot of an audience. (Head for the Hills will also headline Cervante’s Masterpiece Ballroom in Denver on October 30.)

:: Leftover Salmon, Todd Snider, and Great American Taxi ::

:: The Fillmore Auditorium :: October 30 ::

It’s just not Halloween in Colorado without Leftover Salmon. Salmon has never, ever, met a party that it didn’t get along with and these days, with only intermittent Leftover gigs, the men have ample ‘Salmon energy’ stocked up to give away like candy. Frontman Vince Herman will do double duty by also playing with his band Great American Taxi .

:: Magic Cyclops ::

:: Hi-Dive 10/31 ::

Named the sexiest man of all time, anywhere, by himself, Fort Collins DJ Magic Cyclops brings back what we chose to leave behind in the ’80s. He fears not what an audience may have to say and, in fact, does one better by taking no requests. Tackling profound issues like teen pregnancy with his hits, and tight pants, the fanny-pack and head-band adorned low-fi mastermind is a most hysterical talent.

:: The Glitch Mob ::

:: The Fillmore Auditorium :: October 31 ::

The Glitch Mob comes in on a level straight out of the future. Bass lines funky and rib-rattling, lyrics patched in from place to place, The Glitch Mob aims to move an audience to reformation. With the release of their debut album Drink the Sea this past March, The Glitch Mob has blown up from coast to coast. An electro-dance party at its finest, with beats from beyond our time and a dance floor full of transformative energy.

:: VibeSquad ::

:: Gothic Theatre :: October 30 ::

With a new EP put out just a few months back, VibeSquad is tearing through Denver come Halloween weekend.  VibeSquad, a.k.a. Aaron Holstein, infuses the dance floor with beats and electric dub from below the belt. Packing clubs across the country, this Boulder native will no doubt drown the Gothic with high energy flow.

:: Chicago Afrobeat Project ::

:: Quixote’s True Blue :: October 30 and 31 ::

A cultural experience engulfed in a dance-compelling atmosphere is what emerged from Chicago in 2002. Chicago Afrobeat Project is the product of Nigeria’s political influence portrayed through afrobeats. Nominated for the Chicago Music Awards’ “Award of Honor for Contribution to World Beat Music” three years running, and also for “Best African Artist” two years in a row, Chicago Afrobeat Project breathes the intensity of Chicago’s rich music scene into the infectious sounds of afrobeat.

:: Hot Rize ::

:: Boulder Theater :: October 31 ::

Powering through their 32nd year as a band, Hot Rize is like the Rolling Stones of bluegrass. They’ve toured the world and set a standard that tight, note-perfect bluegrass doesn’t need to be stodgy. Together since 1978, Hot Rize set the stage for bands like Yonder and Leftover by breaking rules, but still playing well enough that people didn’t care. A truly classic act, the members are respected throughout the bluegrass community as pioneers of the genre.

:: Slim Cessna’s Auto Club ::

:: Bender's Tavern :: October 30 ::

Both Spin Magazine and No Depression have called Slim Cessna’s Auto Club “The Best Live Band in America.” That’s pretty damn huge! The formerly Denver-based band, which is now spread around the country, is perfect for Halloween with a mix of gothic Americana that is both as haunting and as uplifting as a religious revival tent. The band has shared the stage with Johnny Cash, the Violent Femmes and Rev. Horton Heat, among others, and is equally at home in each environment. It’s country, it’s punk, it’s off-the-wall and it’s old-timey all at once.

:: The Motet ::

:: Fox Theatre :: October 31 ::

The Motet has made a tradition out of covering the most danceable acts imaginable every Halloween. In the past it’s been Prince, Michael Jackson and Talking Heads, but this year, the band will set its sights on Earth, Wind and Fire. The band will be joined by a slew of guests to flush out the sound of the “Boogie Wonderland.”

Additional Halloween shows:

Head For The Hills with Special Guest Peter Rowan

Friday, October 29th @ Cervantes’ Masterpiece

Octopus Nebula w/ Random Rab, Blockhead and Sleepyhead

Saturday, October 30^th @ Cervantes’ Masterpiece

Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad & Dubskin

Saturday, October 30th @ The Other Side

Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe w/ Gift Of Gab

Halloween Night, Sunday, October 31st @ Cervantes’ Masterpiece

The Dyrty Byrds w/ The Congress

Halloween Night, Sunday, October 31st @ The Other Side

by Andrew Martin

Photos by Josh Elioseff/www.dancerproductions.com

I have been to many music festivals over the past 10 to12 years. Each one creates its own unique vibe and culture, fueled largely by the artists performing, the crowd in attendance, and the natural surroundings of the area. While I have had my share of memorable experiences at these other musical gatherings, I can honestly say that there is something very special about the Telluride Bluegrass Festival that sets it in a class all its own.

There are a variety of factors which coalesce to make Telluride Bluegrass a truly unique experience. There couldn’t be a more beautiful backdrop to hold a music festival. The stage is nestled in a valley surrounded on all sides by looming, dramatic mountain peaks. Varying shades of green spiral around the mountainside as the sun highlights the treetops. Once you hit tree line, these dazzling shades of green fade into jagged, rocky, snow-covered peaks. Basking under bluebird skies for four straight days, you have the makings of one of the most inspiring landscapes for musicians to create their magic.

However, this setting alone would not make Telluride Bluegrass the special event that it is. What truly sets this festival apart from many of the others I have attended are the tradition and community that have developed over the past 37 years. Many of the performers are long time veterans, having attended and/or played for 20-30 years (even more for some – Sam Bush has been there 36 out of 37 years). Furthermore, the Festivarian community has developed a strong bond over the years as return attendees reunite every June for their annual bluegrass fix.

The splendor of Telluride Bluegrass goes way beyond the performers on stage, and to truly experience this event in its full glory, you must venture beyond the confines of the festival grounds and absorb the tradition, culture, and community that have developed over the years.

Day 1

Day 1 actually began for me Wednesday afternoon when we arrived in town. Before setting up camp in a grassy lot overlooking the mountains, we wandered through Town Park, the lifeblood of the Festivarian community. This is the main campground adjacent to the festival, and it has become home to many longtime Festivarians (the Planet Bluegrass term for the attendees of their events). If you miss out on the Town Park culture, you are not experiencing Telluride Bluegrass to its fullest.

By 5 pm on Wednesday evening, Town Park had become a bustling community. It was a full-fledged tent city, packed with elaborate shade structures to provide respite from the bruising sun. If you travel along the main path for a few hundred yards, you will reach a clearing facing a raging waterfall that empties into a creek by the mountainside. The roar of the water pouring into the creek reverberated through the canyon, drowning out the din of Festivarians milling about behind me. A strong gust of wind blasted me in the face, rousing me from the doldrums that had set in after nearly 8 hours in a car.

Sarah Jarosz

I couldn’t think of a better way to open the festival. At the ripe old age of 19, Sarah was primed to make her mark on the Telluride musician community this year. I would describe her music as folky singer/songwriter. She plays the mandolin, guitar, and banjo, and she has a beautiful voice. Yet perhaps the most charming part of Sarah’s performance was watching how much she was truly enjoying the experience. Unlike many of the veterans, Sarah was obviously still relishing every moment of her opportunity, and the excitement radiated from her face all weekend. This might have been Sarah’s official induction into the Telluride musician community; she was a regular guest on many of the weekend’s sets.

Alison Krauss & Union Station

Alison Krauss is one of the big stars of Telluride Bluegrass, and there was a huge turnout for her performance. She has a beautiful voice, and her set was by far the most soulful of the day, if not the entire weekend. Jerry Douglas was the star on dobro, making the music come alive. Yet, while this was a beautiful, soulful set, it was very mellow. There were many times when I would have liked for her to pick up the pace and bring some energy. At my first Telluride Bluegrass five years ago, Alison Krauss was spectacular. This time, she was a little more ordinary.

Tim O’Brien Band

This was probably the most fun set of the day and an excellent way to end the night. Tim O’Brien is a quirky dude with some odd songs (one talked about the produce he finds in the grocery store). Josh commented that he looks a lot like Harry Anderson from Night Court, and I can see the resemblance as well. The musicianship of his band was very strong on the whole, although the drummer seemed a bit comatose from time to time. Yet, his shuffle beats were enough to keep the crowd buzzing and on their feet after a long day of music.

Recap

It was a good overall day of music, but nothing spectacular. I was hoping to be wowed at some point during the day, but it just wasn’t meant to be. Thursday’s performances were strong enough to set the tone for a great weekend, and they also left a lot of room to raise the bar in the coming days.

Day 2

I had a pretty late night Thursday hanging out in Town Park. There were some fun picking sessions already underway by the time I had arrived. One featured about 10-12 musicians at its peak, producing some very inspired music. Bluegrass melodies bounced around the tent as mandolins, guitars, and banjos traded solos late into the night. The biting cold didn’t seem to affect the players or the large group of spectators watching. I met some great people there, many of whom were long time Town Park veterans. After two nights, I was beginning to feel like part of the Festivarian community.

Cadillac Sky

Cadillac Sky took the stage around noon as the sun was beginning to float high above in the sky. Festivarians were slowly meandering in, still a bit bleary-eyed from a long Thursday night. The band played a folky brand of bluegrass with excellent songs and strong musicianship. While I realize that many bluegrass purists would tell me this was far from a traditional bluegrass set, it seemed like one to me. The conventional instrumentation, relaxed vibe, and skillful songwriting fit the lazy mood of the crowd.

Interlude – Into Town

I took a break mid-day and wandered into town with a new friend I had met earlier in the afternoon. One of the nice things about Telluride Bluegrass is that the town plays an important role in the festival culture. It is a true mountain town in the purest sense, and it was a lot of fun to catch a little local flavor while I avoided the beastly sun. Unlike some of the other Colorado ski towns, Telluride retains a lot of its old school feel. A-frame houses painted funky shades of yellow and purple dot the sides of the street, and the signs on the storefronts were worn with age, giving them a certain sense of character. I would imagine that Telluride didn’t look much different back in the 70s.

My friend Kara wanted to buy an authentic cowboy hat, so we went to Appaloosa Trading Co., where all of their hats are hand crafted in-house. There were two older men working in the store. They were both gray-haired and soft-spoken, and their faces were weathered from a lifetime under the mountain sun. They were artisans in the purest sense, and they took a great deal of pride in their workmanship. We talked at length about the local Telluride culture, and I was instantly taken back to my days living in the Vail Valley. For the first time an awhile, I found myself longing for the mountain town life.

Lyle Lovett

I only caught the second half of the set, but it was amazing. I’m not sure if this was due to Lyle Lovett’s prowess as a performer or to the fact that he brought out all of the heavy hitters to sit in for the entire second half of the set. With Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, and Jerry Douglas on stage, the music soared to heights I never would have expected from Lyle Lovett. With the three guest musicians, Lyle Lovett had a very large band. There were probably 8-10 musicians on stage laying down beautiful harmonies and trading tasty solos on every song.

Leftover Salmon

This show was a rocking good time and a great way to end the night. The band was definitely in top form throughout the set. After two days of fairly mellow music, they raised the energy level substantially. Looking out into the crowd, I saw a sea of bodies getting their groove on from start to finish. Sam Bush came out for a few songs on fiddle, and his countermelodies danced around Drew Emmitt’s mandolin lines, elevating the music to peaks I have rarely heard from Leftover Salmon. The “King of Telluride” made four guest appearances Friday, and this might have been one of his best.

Recap

Friday was a really good day of music – better than Thursday. It was more rocking and more soulful. You could tell the festival was just starting to hit its stride. Still, after two days, I had not been wowed once. I had seen many strong performances, but I was still waiting to get my mind blown.

Day 3

The dog days of the festival were beginning to take their toll on me. I wandered into town early in the morning with a friend in search of a coffee shop. We were both in need of some caffeine to clear the cobwebs. The coffee shop was buzzing with Festivarians, and in my sleepy state, I felt like I was moving in slow motion. Unfortunately, my beverage didn’t do much to rouse me from this lethargy. I still felt like I had been hit by a truck.

We then made our way over to the Lost and Found in search of my friend’s back pack and credit card (her two main casualties during Friday’s debauchery). We hit the jackpot on both. It was a good omen, and we instantly knew we were in for one hell of a day.

Jerry Douglas with Omar Hakim and Viktor Krauss

After waiting patiently for two days, I was finally blown away. This was without a doubt the best set I heard all weekend. The band featured three world class musicians and guest appearances by legends such as Bela Fleck and Sam Bush. This was definitely not bluegrass. Fueled by the stellar dobro playing of Jerry Douglas and Omar Hakim’s spectacular drumming, I watched in awe as they played a ripping set of instrumental music featuring a great blend of intricate songwriting, blistering slide solos, and soulful pieces. As a musician who plays in an instrumental band myself, this set was right up my alley. It was great to see the band stretch out and take some chances – this was easily one of the most adventurous sets of the weekend.

Bela Fleck, Zakir Hussain, and Edgar Meyer

I’m sure I’ll receive quite a bit of backlash for this review, but this set just never really delivered for me. I was watching three musical virtuosos, and the level of musicianship was probably unparalleled by any other act of the weekend. However, this was not one of Bela’s finest shows. It was sprawling, introspective, and noodly – very intellectual music that just never really developed the strong underlying groove that was needed to support the litany of solos flowing from Bela and Edgar. At his best, Bela Fleck is able to create an environment where all of the musicians on stage engage in non-verbal, musical conversations. While he and Zakir Hussain flirted with these moments a few times, they never really established the type of musical communication that makes a Bela Fleck show reach spectacular heights.

Sam Bush Band

There’s a reason Sam Bush is the King of Telluride. He put on one of the best performances of the weekend. It had a little bit of everything – ripping bluegrass, soulful ballads, and even a few rocker tunes featuring Sam on an electric guitar. There is no doubt that he is completely at home at Telluride. In between songs, Sam would tell us tales of his favorite moments from previous years’ festivals, taking on the role of Telluride sage.

The highlight of the show was an epic version of “Take Me Out to the Ballgame.” Sam Bush brought out just about everyone for this tune, including Chris Thile, Drew Emmitt, Tim O’Brien, and Edgar Meyer. There must have been at least eight mandolin players on stage for this one, as well as a bunch of fiddle and banjo players. Almost everyone got to take a solo, and with each soloist, the feel of the song gradually shifted in style. The seventh inning stretch will never be the same again.

Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros

While many people were downtown catching Drew Emmitt’s Nightgrass set, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros put on a tremendous show. I had never heard of this band, and I was not expecting the roller coaster ride that was about to ensue. From start to finish, their performance was passionate and inspired, with surprises at every turn.

They are a ten piece band featuring a lead singer that looks like a disheveled, modern-day Jesus with a bit of a Jim Morrison vibe, several multi-instrumentalists, an accordion player who looked like Alice from “Alice in Wonderland, and lots of layered, textured, harmony vocals.

The band has a bit of a vagabond gypsy vibe. They have a full sound with soulful, dark, theatrical music. Their singer is a very charismatic front man, although he’s also a bit of a freak. But that is part of their allure. At the end of the show, he jumped into the crowd and had everyone sit around him in concentric circles while he sang with just a guitar and some light percussion in the background. It was very powerful, and you could see that some of the crowd members were having a spiritual experience. All in all, their set was one of the greatest points in an excellent weekend of music.

Recap

With all of the major players performing, this was by far the best day of music. I was blown away by several of the bands, and the Edward Sharpe set was truly an unexpected gem. Overall, Saturday proved to be one of the most diverse days of music, with sets encompassing driving bluegrass, intricate instrumental compositions, punk, and theatrical art rock.

Day 4

No discussion of Telluride Bluegrass can be complete without an explanation of “The Running of the Bulls.” This event has become a huge part of the Telluride tradition, extending back to the early days of the festival.

Here are the rules for The Running of the Bulls:

1. At the beginning of the final set of the day, you may place your chairs in line for the next day (although many people are waiting in an unofficial line as early as 2 pm).
2. You can have people in your group take shifts manning the chairs, but someone must be there at all times.
3. You are not supposed to sleep in line, although many people bend this rule. However, sleeping in line may jeopardize your spot in the tarp running order.
4. Sometime in the middle of the night (generally between 4-6 am), the tarp runners will receive a number based on their order in line. After the numbers are given out, the runners can return to their tents for a few hours of sleep.
5. About 10 minutes before the gates open, the tarp runners return with their number to claim their place in line. Once the gates open, it is a free-for-all to get your tarp down at your favorite spot before someone beats you to it.

The tarp runners take this ritual very seriously, and it is not uncommon for various groups jockeying for position in line to get into heated exchanges. They represent a micro-community among the Festivarians, and many of them have been participating in this tradition for decades. It is definitely an integral part of their festival experience.

Carolina Chocolate Drops

They were one of the best bands of the weekend. Hailing from the Carolinas, this three-piece plays a blend of southern hillbilly stomp music, bluesy roots music, and freaky African American “porch music.” They predominantly played guitar, fiddle, and banjo with a few home-made instruments thrown in for good measure. In one song, the female vocalist/fiddle player broke out a kazoo. I’ve never witnessed someone play a tonal kazoo solo that fit appropriately within the key center of the song. It was pretty wild. The band had tremendous energy, and they captured the entire crowd. It was hard to find anyone sitting down for this rollicking performance.

Punch Brothers featuring Chris Thile

The Punch Brothers are an awesome band, although I can understand why there were a lot of people in attendance who did not love the set. This is truly musician’s music, filled with intricate lines, complex rhythms, well-arranged hits, and elaborate chord progressions. If I had to describe their music, I’d call it progressive bluegrass. They are all phenomenal musicians, and they produced some of the most complex and technical bluegrass of the week. As a musician, this set spoke to me. It was one of my favorites, and I relished all of the subtle nuances in their music.

Telluride House Band

The House Band was the perfect way to wrap up the festival. All the big stars were present: Sam Bush, Bela Fleck, Jerry Douglas, Edgar Meyer, Bryan Sutton, and Stuart Duncan. After collaborating at Telluride Bluegrass for decades, these musicians have clearly developed a deep friendship and mutual appreciation for one another. This came across loud and clear throughout their set. It was obvious that everyone on stage was having a blast. While the rest of the weekend consisted of focused, serious performances, this set was loose and free flowing. They played some very memorable bluegrass tunes with world class musicianship and tasty solos. They even got Bela to sing a little bit. This band should close out the festival every year.

Recap

As far as the music goes, this day came in a close second to Saturday. Once again, I was blown away several times throughout the day. There was a true arc to this festival, and it came to its completion on Sunday. I thought it would be difficult to follow Saturday’s performances, but the musicians certainly delivered in a big way. Telluride Bluegrass is a special festival on many levels, and the performances on this final day provided the symmetry and closure for a nearly perfect week.

For more photos, visit Marquee’s Facebook Fan page

Leftover Salmon turns 20 on New Years: industry insiders share their memories

:: Leftover Salmon ::

:: Eldo (Crested Butte) :: December 28 ::

:: Boulder Theater :: December 30 & 31 ::

:: Ogden Theatre :: Jan 2 ::

By Timothy Dwenger and Brian F. Johnson

This New Year’s Eve in Colorado, when the hands on the clock hit midnight, there will be more than just the flip of a calendar to 2010. As the chimes on the clock ring in the new year, they will also be signaling the 20th birthday of one of Colorado’s most eclectic, talented and unlikely heroes — Leftover Salmon.

It was in 1989 that Left Hand String Band members Mark Vann and Drew Emmitt merged their musical paths with a western Pennsylvania refugee named Vince Herman of the band The Salmonheads, and Leftover Salmon was born. The group hosted its first gig ever on New Year’s Eve at the Eldo in Crested Butte, Colo., coming up with their name on the drive to the gig from Boulder.

Blending raw talent with an unparalleled stage presence and a no-holds barred approach to any style of music, Leftover Salmon turned bluegrass and the ideas of what roots music was on their heads, and did so with enough infectious energy to win over even the staunchest traditionalists.

Together, the band has shared tremendous successes, fought relentless battles, even lost dear members of the family along the way. They have inspired, entertained, given selflessly, and they have provided the soundtrack to countless Colorado days and nights.

The very first issue of The Marquee featured Leftover Salmon on the cover, and since that issue the band has been featured on more covers of The Marquee than any other act. So, to celebrate their birthday, we wanted to get away from the typical interview and story that we normally do. Instead, to celebrate this monumental event, what we’ve done is asked musicians, industry insiders, friends and family to give us insight into how this group of mullet-loving misfits with hearts as big as their talent has shaped the Colorado music scene over the last two decades.

During their 20 year run, the band’s quirky name has come to mean so much to music fans and industry folks. Our contributors told us the first thing that popped into their minds when they heard the words “Leftover Salmon.”

Mark Bliesener (The Band Guru, co-managed Leftover with Chuck Morris at Morris, Bliesener and Assoc): The originators (along with Hot Rize) of ALL that was to follow.

Bela Fleck (Bela Fleck and the Flecktones): A great party atmosphere, and great energy and enthusiasm.

John Cowan (Newgrass Revival): Drew, Vince, & Mark Vann come to my mind very clearly: the Holy Trinity, as it were.

Billy Nershi (String Cheese Incident): My wild life in Telluride, Colorado. Skiing all day, going straight to the Floradora Saloon, cooking ‘till 10 p.m. and going to the One World Cafe to boogie all night to Leftover Salmon.

Anders Beck (Greensky Bluegrass): One word: FUN! It is humanly impossible to be within earshot of that band and not be having the time of your life. It’s infectious!

Col. Bruce Hampton (Aquarium Rescue Unit): Some weird biologically engineered fish experiment in central Oregon … the dry part.

Scramble Campbell (Painter): Smiles and Mayor McCheese.

Kirk Peterson (Boulder Theater): Beards, mullets and marijuana.

Leftover Salmon’s unique blend of bluegrass, rock, country, blues, jazz and Cajun/zydeco music may rub some bluegrass purists the wrong way, but they have bridged a gap between these genres. Though they are probably most closely associated with bluegrass, they have served as ambassadors to music lovers everywhere by welcoming them into the fold without pretense. They opened doors most people didn’t know existed and our contributors were able to put into words what Leftover Salmon has meant to the bluegrass community over the years.

Mark Bliesener: To the zealots — little. To those who truly know — rebirth.

Candace Horgan (The Denver Post): Even if they are only peripherally bluegrass, Leftover Salmon has certainly helped popularize bluegrass in Colorado by introducing the music to people who might not have heard it before. The band also paved the way for acts like String Cheese Incident and Yonder Mountain String Band.

Eric Dyce (City of Denver/Red Rocks): Leftover Salmon redefined bluegrass and added two new generations to the genre.

Bela Fleck: They gave the community a different option and brought a new, young audience.

Pete Wernick a.k.a. “Dr. Banjo” (Hot Rize): They are the zany “explorers” out on the edge in rock-land, but still looking back over their shoulder at the bluegrass friendlies, and visiting us sometimes.

John Cowan: I, like Salmon, have lived forever on the periphery of bluegrass. The bluegrass community as a whole usually tries to ignore or pretend these artists don’t exist unless in some way it benefits them (i.e. records, magazine sales, airplay etc.), which is a shame because the reality is that all of these peripheral or New Grass artists bring fans to people like Bill Monroe, Ralph Stanley, and Del McCoury etc.

Billy Nershi: Leftover Salmon showed people how to take bluegrass music add that X factor and get everybody dancing their ass off.

Anders Beck: They were the first ones that I saw who changed the rules. With them, the stuffy confines of traditional bluegrass were tossed out the window — in flames.

Kirk Peterson: Serious music can be seriously fun.

Though Salmon has been an integral part of the bluegrass music-loving community over the years, it is important to also realize the impact they have made on the lives of individual people. Without the band there would be no fans, but just as critically, without the fans, there would be no band. It is the magical entanglement of band, fan and music that has kept the whole thing going for 20 years and our contributors shared some of their favorite memories of the band.

Mark Bliesener (The Band Guru): FESTIVAL!!!

Candace Horgan: Salmonfest 2000 at Planet Bluegrass with a variety of acts, from Pete Wernick to The Derek Trucks Band and John Bell of Widespread Panic. Salmon led a wild parade through the grounds after dark, complete with Mardi Gras style costumes, before taking the stage for a three hour set. Guests like Bell sat in during the course of the night.

John Cowan: Most of them involve the band with Mark Vann still alive. Mark was a sweet, smart, introspective guy with his own sense of humor and he was a hell of a banjo player. Drew is one of my best friends, and I’m just flat out crazy about Vince and his P.T. Barnum take on music.

Col. Bruce Hampton: They helped me find the treasures of the Galapagos Islands.

Billy Nershi: I sat in with them one night long before String Cheese. They sang that song “Zombie Jamboree.” Vince sang “back to back, belly to belly. I don’t give a damn, ’cause I’m really Billy Nershi.” He has a way of making everyone feel special.

Bela Fleck: When bassist Tye North had his head shaved on stage.

Anders Beck: Seeing them play the Rico Theatre in 1999. They led the entire crowd out of the venue in a conga-line to continue the party in the streets.

Scramble Campbell: Planet Salmonfest 2000. Col. Bruce, John Bell, Baby Gramps, YMSB, LoS all in one day … yummy!

Kirk Peterson: Seeing what looked like Ken Kesey’s deranged farmhands playing Old and In the Way-meets-Metallica for the first time at North Western University’s spring festival on Lake Michigan, circa 1993-94.

Those memories, combined with hundreds and thousands more, went on to influence the lives of everyone who came in contact with their contagious energy over the years. The final question that our contributors responded to was concerning how their lives have been impacted by Vince, Drew, Mark and the other members who have made up Leftover Salmon over the years.

Candace Horgan: Because of Leftover, I discovered things like the Telluride Bluegrass Festival and RockyGrass. I’d also say that because of my experiences at those festivals, I ended up learning to play the fiddle.

Eric Dyce: I am a much mellower dude having known Leftover Salmon.

Pete Wernick: They’ve altered the geography of the progressive end of the bluegrass spectrum, thereby enlarging the big umbrella I’ve been operating under for years. On the negative side, more people are more confused than ever about what the word “bluegrass” means. On the positive, they have spread joy far and wide, and associated it with the kind of music I love.

Col. Bruce Hampton: They inspired me to spell Galapagos correctly.

John Cowan: It has made me a better musician, a better human, and mostly a better entertainer by recognizing through Salmon and their very real example, that the audience isn’t just a part of creation, they are the creation, and the soul reason to do it.

Anders Beck: LoS is a constant reminder of how much fun I should be having as a touring bluegrass musician. WWVinceDo?

Bela Fleck: I appreciate that they were strongly influenced by my generation, so that was a gift to us. Also, Mark’s passing so young. Remember to smell the roses and enjoy the great moments when you are lucky enough to be part of a band of brothers. It doesn’t always last forever.

:: Leftover Salmon ::

:: Eldo (Crested Butte) :: December 28 ::

:: Boulder Theater :: December 30 & 31 ::

:: Ogden Theatre :: Jan 2 ::

Recommended if you Like:

• New Grass Revival

• Hot Rize

• Yonder Mountain String Band

:: Head for the Hills ::

:: Harvestival :: October 10 ::

:: Fox Theatre :: October 23 ::

By David Stuhlemmer

At the dawn of their sixth year as a band, Head For The Hills has climbed up through the ranks to become one of the most notable success stories in the Colorado bluegrass scene.
The quartet is putting the final touches on their second album, and if their momentum continues, the band will end up having a superior view from their position on top of the bluegrass hill.

For this new album, produced by Leftover Salmon’s Drew Emmitt, the band members took a different direction than their debut release, Robber’s Roost. “We definitely made a conscious effort to get away from the Pro Tools, isolation booth and headphone model, which pretty much dominates. There is nothing wrong with that, but after that first album of being in different rooms with no sight lines, we wanted to take a new approach,” said mandolin player Mike Chappell. “ Some of the tracks were recorded completely live,” he added.

But, while the band is shunning one type of technology and method of recording, they’re embracing another, and it’s one that some say could bring recordings back to what they were before the digital age.

Bassist Matt Loewen explained, “Our engineer Jake Wargo met this guy Gus Skinas and he works with this DSD (Direct Stream Digital) technology which is a different format of recording than on analog tape or recording onto Pro Tools on a computer like most people do. It’s higher fidelity and has a high sample rate. Sort of hard to explain but it just sounds a lot better,” he summed up.

What his summation glossed over, however, is the fact that Skinas (who helped Sony originally develop and pioneer digital audio) has created a multi-track recorder/editor, known as the Sonoma System, which restores the warmth of analog that is typically lost in digital recordings. The sound isn’t just a little better, but is a remarkable difference that even untrained ears can easily pick up on.

But, in addition to recording processes and Skinas and his technology, the group has also assembled an all-star cast to perfect the album. “Using this format of recording — to have multi tracks to do it live — there hasn’t been a lot of that done,” Loewen explained. “The engineer that we are bringing in to mix the record is this guy Vance Powell who just won a Grammy for best engineered record for the Racounteurs. He just mixed that album, he did not record it. Vince has the Grammy and Gus is the guy that has remastered some of the world’s best albums for Super Audio CD.”

With all of the knob turners in place, the next step was getting the musicians rounded up and Chappell explained that the album was recorded under the careful watch of some local jamgrass heroes. “We did it at Billy Nershi’s studio. Billy ended up being more involved and gave us some guest vocals and a background guitar part out of him,” Chappell said. “Drew (Emmitt) played on the album too.”

In fact, there is a slew of notable special guests and friends who appear on the album. “James Thomas did a grand piano solo and we had Anders Beck from Greensky Bluegrass play dobro and lap steel,” said fiddle player “Sloppy” Joe Lessard. “There is some good diversification in the instrumentation.”

Lessard went on to explain that every part of the album, even songs not written by the band, have the Head For The Hills style stamped on them. “I would say that we still focus on having pretty much entirely originals and we make sure that if it is someone else’s tune on our record that we are going to do the arrangement and we are going to put our spin on it and make it ours,” Lessard said.

As the band continues to grow their name locally, they have also set their sights outside of Colorado and this summer they did some of their most extensive touring. “We traveled a bunch this summer. With the exception of a trip to Bristol, Tennessee, we haven’t really gotten east of the Mississippi. But this summer we did a big loop around the West through Montana, California, and Utah,” Loewen said.

This month the band will be hosting their own festival near Fort Collins. “Imagine Harvest and Festival just mashed together!” Loewen said. “Harvestival at Grant Family Farms is going to happen on October 10. Otis Taylor is also playing, as is David Grisman, and then we close out the night.”

Chappell concluded, “It is just so cool what we are doing now and I think that we are all really excited about it. We are doing something new and I like that — raising the bar from the level we were at, even maybe three months ago.”

:: Head for the Hills ::
:: Harvestival :: October 10 :::
: Fox Theatre :: October 23 ::

Recommended if you Like:
• David Grisman
• Yonder Mountain String Band
• Leftover Salmon

:: Drew Emmitt Band ::

:: Aggie Theatre :: Jan 27 ::

:: Boulder Theater :: Jan 28 ::

:: Bluebird Theater :: Jan 29 ::

By David Stuhlemmer

“It’s been probably the biggest year I have ever had, and it’s been wonderful,” Emmitt told The Marquee over the phone from Vail. After a drive through the day from Crested Butte, he was ready to take the stage with some of his oldest friends — Leftover Salmon.

Intermittent yet ever-successful reunions with Leftover Salmon, maintaining two other national touring acts, one album that came out in July and one due up in the spring, all contribute to a cumbersome calendar. “It gets a little crazy but it’s nice because it is not monotonous,” Emmitt said, seemingly more comfortable about his position now than he has been in the past.

As strict commitment to Leftover Salmon diminished, Emmitt was able to focus on his solo career and further explore the boundaries of musical composition. “There is a lot of freedom in the way we are doing things now,” he said. Year-round touring with the same group has given way to a couple months of tour and time off from all of his projects. Dependent full-time stage crew and staff have turned into independent part-time gigs for more people. The overwhelming burden was lifted and individual members have been allotted the necessary time frame to collect their thoughts. “It is nice not to be locked into one big giant machine, and now when we do Salmon it’s fun,“ he said.

Emmitt’s three projects each offer their own innovative spin on bluegrass. Carrying the torch from Sam Bush and New Grass Revival, he has stripped away the Sunday best and the cowboy hat and extracted the purity and virtuosity of old time mandolin. “I totally appreciate and love traditional bluegrass. It is a wonderful art form that is to be respected and learned, but it is also meant to be expanded on,” Emmitt said, adding, “It’s kind of how Bill Monroe invented it. He was a renegade.” A traditionalist’s mentality with a rock and roll edge, Emmitt and his band will continue to thrash and mold the traditional with the contemporary. The Drew Emmitt Band starts its tour in Colorado and heads out West from here.

This incarnation of the Drew Emmitt Band takes his earlier expansion and with the help of some new players, goes even further. “We did our first tour as a five-piece, adding Andy Thorn on the banjo,” Emmitt said. “It’s kind of the new super-charged version and we are having a real good time with it.” Tyler Grant returns to the cast on the guitar. Steven Sandifer on drums will give the band some extra rocket fuel, while Lyons local Eric Thorin will set the pace on bass. “It feels very solid; as solid as a band can feel in this world.” The group will stick to its grassroots with the addition of a 5-string but will continue to explore the outskirts of the form and blend it all so eloquently with in-your-face rock and roll.

This past July was accompanied by Drew Emmitt Band’s third studio release, Long Road. The follow-up effort to the entirely acoustic Across the Bridge offers an introspective look into the group’s current makeup. “With the latest record from my band we are definitely picking up momentum,” said Emmitt. “It is a pretty good representation of what we are doing now.” Adding drums in the studio, not to mention the likes of Jeff Sipe and Steven Sandifer, allowed Emmitt and friends to dig in. “To me, rock and roll and bluegrass are very similar. Bluegrass rocks out pretty hard,” he said.

The album hosts both new and old Emmitt compositions, with a few notable classic rock covers. Boasting a plethora of musical talent from a variety of influences, Long Road goes through the grass and into the blues just before it hits that rock.

In addition to recording with his band, Emmitt just finished up an album last month with his fellow front man, marking the first studio release for Emmitt Nershi Band. The album will feature a collection of songs written together by former String Cheese front man Bill Nershi and Emmitt. “It is interesting how it’s all feeding into itself. It has become a real cumulative thing. Especially working with Billy has been a real boost,” Emmitt said. These two have such an extensive repertoire of resources providing endless creativity for their compositions.

Jason Carter appears on fiddle throughout the album, paying homage to the old time, while former String Cheese Incident bassist Keith Moseley also appears on the release. The much anticipated collaborative effort promises to be jam grassy and is expected hit the shelves this spring via SCI Fidelity Records.

:: Drew Emmitt Band ::

:: Aggie Theatre :: Jan 27 ::

:: Boulder Theater :: Jan 28 ::

:: Bluebird Theater :: Jan 29 ::

Recommended if you Like:

• Bill Monroe

• String Cheese Incident

• Leftover Salmon

:: Various venues around Vail :: Dec. 8 – 14, 2008 ::

By Brian F. Johnson

Photos by Soren McCarty andSusan Etter

Just to make things clear, so that no one can claim a lack of journalistic integrity later on, I have to admit this out in front: I got styled for this festival. Now, I’m a lucky guy and get styled a lot for shows and festivals but this was almost picture perfect.

We got a late start on Friday afternoon – already having missed several days and nights of music that started the week-long festival, including a blow out by Big Head Todd and the Monsters on Thursday night. The reason we got the late start was a much-needed stop at a tire store, and while it put us behind, we were thankful for the new car-sneakers the rest of the weekend.

Snow was dumping long before we hit the Eisenhower Tunnel, and by the time we pulled into Vail it was a full-on winter storm, the perfect setting for a festival that bills itself as the “largest early season, winter resort party in North America.”

Waiting for us at the hotel was a goodie bag like I’d never seen before, full of hats, scarves, coffee mugs and beer. But being so late we took only a quick glance at the bag and ducked out the back door of the hotel, which was all of 100 yards from Dobson Ice Arena.

We had, in fact, missed about half of the first set, but the hot Dobson Arena was really only getting warmed up when we got there. I’ve seen Salmon a ton, both pre- and post-hiatus, and I can say with all honesty that Friday night may have been the best show I’ve ever seen by them. Leftover Salmon is, without a doubt, one of the best festival bands in the country — maybe the world — and their ability to whip a crowd into a frenzy is unparalleled. Friday night they did it with seeming effortlessness.

While Keith “Scramble” Campbell danced and painted on the side of the stage, the Leftover boys tore through their second set and while smiles and laughs always abound on a Salmon stage, this night they seemed particularly merry.

After the band left the stage, the party, the group and close Leftover family over-flowed into the hotel bar, where we happened to be staying, so, suffice to say, I can’t really tell you about the rest of the night with any accuracy, but no one I saw seemed to be having a bad time.

One of the things that made Vail Snow Daze such a different experience is the town of Vail itself. Now, I’m not into the whole walk around and shop for hours and hours, but while the other festivarians were on the slopes, with the family in tow, we set out to explore the town and the fresh snow made it look like something out of a Norman Rockwell painting.

Saturday night, the snow started to really fall again — even harder this time. The idea of standing out in the snow for several hours for a live show didn’t seem all that great, but we bundled up and braved the weather and we were glad we did.

There’s something completely special about standing outside in the snow seeing live music, and The Fray, who headlined Saturday night, knew it.

Playing a series of songs from their new self-titled album, their new single “You Found Me,” and the hits they’ve had from their debut, How To Save A Life, the Denver pop band kept the crowd on the edge of their frozen little toes for three hours. At times, the people around me had more than an inch of snow on top of their hats, and it was truly cold, but no one seemed to mind or complain.

While the snow accumulated on the edge of the stage, the band somehow managed to keep their fingers warm enough to complete their set, and somehow avoided the shocking potential of mixing snow with electronics.

I don’t know how they did it, or what it was that made this whole festival come off so flawlessly. Normally when you take big-name, high priced sponsors and mix them with relatively conservative towns, the result is disastrous, or at the very least a bland experience for the fans. But someone everything aligned for this festival, which turned out to be a great party for the music freaks, as well as a perfect pre-holiday getaway for families. And as if it was a well-coordinated cue set up by the promoters, attendees woke Sunday morning to a foot of fresh pow-pow, so that boarders and two-plankers alike could shred the gnar before heading home.

Two thumbs way, way up for Vail Snow Daze. I can’t wait to see who they get next year.

:: with support from Boulder Acoustic Society and Riverbend ::

:: Boulder Theater :: November 29 ::

By Jeffrey Keith

Elephant Revival is living proof that the way high Colorado Front Range town of Nederland continues to inspire some of the finest and most creative music to be found anywhere. Following the lead, but not the footsteps, of groups like Leftover Salmon and the Yonder Mountain String Band, the five-piece Elephant Revival has created a unique and appealing modern acoustic sound simultaneously soaked in all manner of tradition.

“You can call it ‘neo-acoustic electric transcendental folk’…The folk rock connotation doesn’t quite cut it,” said multi-instrumentalist/songwriter/vocalist Dan Rose during a recent breakfast sit-down with The Marquee at Nederland’s acoustic HQ, the Shining Star Cafe; lead singer and woman-of-all-sounds-percussive, Bonnie Paine, joined the mid-morning party as well.

In a little over two years, the group that spent the earlier part of the decade getting acquainted at places like East Coast rooftops, bluegrass festivals and Rainbow Gatherings — and “finally got together at Walnut Valley in Winfield, Kansas,” according to Rose — has played about 300 shows, toured festivals, theatres, clubs and house concerts around the region and beyond, and recently released a stellar debut CD. Fresh off a summer tour highlighted by appearances at many regional festivals including YarmonyGrass, the Yellowstone Music Festival and Desert Rocks Festival, the group has been celebrating the release of Elephant Revival at a series of local shows and appearances.

Produced and engineered by Lyons transplant and now local string ace, David Tiller (Taarka, ThaMusement), Elephant Revival is a wonderful debut album, presenting the songwriting and singing talents of all five members in a cohesive fashion that reflects the collective vision and sensitivities of the group, and which has placed ER firmly in the folk tradition while simultaneously and seamlessly incorporating elements of jazz, swing, rock (with multi-instrumentalist Sage Cook on electric guitar), Scottish tradition, and even a little bluegrass and new age. The beauty of this mix in Elephant Revival is that it all seems so right. With the beautiful, some say angelic, voices of rock-solid washboard/percussionist Bonnie Paine and accomplished fiddler Bridget Law working in perfect harmony with each other and with the guys in the band — plus three members who play several different instruments — Elephant Revival paints a broad tapestry of lovely and haunting melodies and tales of love and emotion, up-tempo, uplifting modern ballads, and instrumental pieces bridging the gap from olde world tradition to 21st Century acoustic. With a host of friends and family assisting on strings, baby sounds and even French horn (ie. Dave, Enion & Aesop Tiller; Zach Cramer; Daniel Plane; and Annie Paine), Elephant Revival has a lot to be proud of with their self-titled first album.

With time now to catch their collective breaths following a memorable summer, the group has, for the moment, shifted their focus to a limited number of local appearances and a likely mountain town run this winter, planning for the near future and, most importantly, recharging their collective and individual creative muses. “We’ll be taking a little time off in the coming months to continue cultivating new music,” said Paine, which means that Front Range folks will likely see a variety of ER side projects hit the calendar in coming months.

For Paine, reflecting on these urgent modern times and the role of her friends and herself in Elephant Revival, it seems obvious to this writer that the words of author Tom Robbins, nearly verbatim from the end of Still Life With Woodpecker, are quite apropos: Everything is part of it. “Being ready for change is huge … believing in the potential for great things coming from change, positive things, doing what we can to help” seems to be a daily guiding principle for Paine. “Realizing where we’re at right at this time” and connecting with a “sense of spiritual community” that can, hopefully, without sounding too trite, help save the world, is the message that appears to fuel this uniquely multi-talented young woman who regularly sits in on washboard with her friends in Little Feat when they find themselves in the same town.

“The bus is running good, the tank’s full of veggie oil. We’ve been collecting oil for it all summer long on tour, all kinds of ways. It’s a start, it gets people thinking …We’re filling vehicles with bags of apples!” laughed Paine, who, along with her band mates, has a strong interest in educating and networking with different communities on projects like sustainable living and touring, biofuel, and local food production.

The big picture for Elephant Revival in 2009 is still coming into focus, and the group hopes some big things could be in store. “We’re planning to be a strong presence at the Sundance Film Festival in Park City, Utah in January,” said Rose. “We’d love to get overseas sometime soon and are looking into that. We’ve also been talking with various friends in other parts of the country about doing some national touring together this year.”

:: Elephant Revival ::
:: with support from Boulder Acoustic Society and Riverbend ::
:: Boulder Theater :: November 29 ::

Recommended if you Like:
• Tim O’Brien
• The Wayfarers
• The Waifs

By Mike Hedrick

New Year’s Eve and Halloween are traditionally two of the best nights of the year to see music, but for the last few years Halloween has fallen mid-week, which has led the “holiday” to be stretched thin over multiple nights.
This year, however, with Halloween falling on a Friday night, promoters have stepped up huge and Friday, October 31, 2008 could end up going down as one of the best of the best.
Below is a list of (not every, but) a lot of the shows taking place on the Front Range that night:

Leftover Salmon with Pangea – Fillmore Auditorium
Usually the smell of leftover fish and old string cheese is bad. In this case it’s damn good. The polyethnic cajun slamgrass Front Range staples never need an excuse to dress up and go crazy but given the opportunity they go big, or they go home.

Jedi Mind Tricks – Fox Theatre
Anakin doesn’t have jack compared to these guys — the hip-hop group from the City of Brotherly Love, who earlier in the month will release their latest creation, A History of Violence.

Motet – Cervantes’ Masterpiece Ballroom
David Byrne called, he said he wants his music back. Wait … he just texted and said it’s cool if The Motet does it because, let’s face it, they kick ass. Following their tradition of covering other folks’ material on All Hallows Eve, the Motet will this year do the music of the Talking Heads.

ZZ Top – Paramount Theatre
Screw mustache rides, are you ready for a long ass beard ride? The classic southern rock brothers band will most certainly have more than half the crowd wearing beards for the night.

DeVotchka – Boulder Theater
Satisfy your wanderlust and let the gypsies come to you. These guys are fast making their Halloween show an epic experience, but then again, it’s the Boulder Theater and even crappy bands have epic nights there, so this could be epic times a thousand.

Everything Absent or Distorted – Oriental Theatre
Make sure you’re everything but absent, it’s ok to be a little distorted. These guys are dropping their new album The Great Collapse this month and their most recent photo shows people laying in front of tombstones in a graveyard. Very Halloween, indeed.

3OH!3 – Gothic Theatre
It doesn’t get much more gangsta than two white boys straight outta Boulda, and with their post-Vans Warped Tour high this could be one of the most downright humorous shows of the night.

Electric Six – Bluebird Theater
Danger, danger, these Detroit boys are high voltage. As evident from their lit up packages of blatant symbolism. Can I get you some disco to go with your rock?

Laylights – Meadowlark
This band will put you hipsters in the mood to get laid, maybe even with the lights on. They’re often compared to early Echo and U2, so a good ’80s costume is encouraged.

Monofog – hi-dive
Best enjoyed in a purple haze, these local yokels call their music “dark basement stomping rock and roll.”

Railbenders – Herman’s Hideaway
No word yet on whether this will be a honky-tonk Halloween, or if they’ll be covering another artist like they did for Halloween a few years ago when they took on Mötley Crüe. Either way, it’ll make you wish for canned beer in your goodies bag.

Ghostface Killah – Vinyl
There’s no better place to be on a Halloween night than with this Wu-Tang member. Ghostface loves Iron Man, so if you can pull off the whole armored flying suit you’ll get immediate street cred.

Girl Talk – Ogden Theatre
Just read our cover story. Sure to be the dance-party of 2008, regardless of Halloween.
Shakedown Street – Quixote’s True Blue
Jerry Garcia Band Halloween-night shows were, for many years, some of the best Dead-related concerts around, always certain to bust out a “Werewolves of London.” If trippy-hippie heaven is your goal, look no further than this pillar of the Bianchi Empire. Just hope that club owner Jay Bianchi hasn’t shaved his eyebrows again for this year’s celebration.

Widowers – Larimer Lounge
These guys sure as hell won’t be thinking about their dead spouses once they realize how much Denver groupie tail they’re gonna get after this show. The Lounge is a little creepy on a normal night, on Halloween it’s certain to give you the willies.

June 5 – 8, 2008

Text and video by Brian F. Johnson

Courtesy of photographer James Allison www.jamesallisondesign.com

DAY I – (but, not really)

Any festival can get hit with a stroke of bad luck or bad weather. The good ones are the ones who know how to rebound, and 2008 was that kind of year for the Wakarusa Music and Camping Festival.

Google Maps clocks the drive from Denver to Lawrence, Kan. as 8 hours and 15 minutes, but on a day when 30 tornadoes touched down in the state of Kansas, Google’s time allotment gets thrown out the window.

From essentially the western edge of Kansas all the way to Lawrence (which is on the eastern side of the state), I was caught in a storm that I couldn’t get out of. I tried to drive through it, but the conditions were insane, with sheets of rain and wind that were so powerful it obscured the view of everything except my windshield wipers. Plan B was to sit and wait it out, but even after an hour of letting the storm move around, it had yet to pass and so I slowly ventured on.

For the record, whoever makes up speed limits in Kansas is an asshole! I-70 shouldn’t have a speed limit in Kansas. You should be able to go as fast as you want, but when the conditions were good, 70 m.p.h. was all that Johnny Law allowed, so I kept to it.

Finally, after nearly 13 hours on the road, I pulled in to Clinton Lake State Park, the home of Wakarusa. It wasn’t actively raining, but the sky had grown black with clouds, wind was blowing hard and thunder was booming. Lightning flashed all around, turning the dark skies mid-day bright every few seconds. The wind was blowing and the thunder was clapping, but it wasn’t raining.

I had gotten out of the car to have a smoke when a bolt of lightning, which broke off into multiple fingers, hit the ground nearby with a huge, thunderous clap, scaring the shit of me. I flinched and ducked, then looked over to the guys in the car next to me, laughing their asses off. Soon, however, no one was laughing. Word came that the weather wasn’t going to improve and that the festival was shutting down for the night. Done! I had traveled all this way to find that I wouldn’t be seeing music — not today anyway.

I was too tired to be bothered by it, and in a few minutes when the rain did hit, I realized they had made the right decision to pull the plug for the night. I found a parking lot, crawled in the back of the van, chugged a beer and passed out.

DAY II – Friday

I woke to find surprisingly sunny skies, but having missed the box office the night before, I still had no idea of the lay of the festival land. Turns out the box office had gotten swamped the night before, so they moved it to a parking lot near the water’s edge of Clifton Lake. For a couple of hours a bunch of stunned-looking folks gathered in the lot, all asking when the box office would open and the accompanying questions of where to go, etc.

That aside, however, if you hadn’t been there the day before, you wouldn’t really have known of the calamities from the storm. The organizers did an absolutely amazing job at simply moving on and going about business as usual for the festival. Throughout the rest of the weekend, I didn’t hear or witness one gripe about something that they hadn’t properly handled. A TON of festivals could learn a lot from that.

By noon I had set up camp, filled my lungs with smoke and my stomach with coffee and I was on my way to see music.

Stardeath and White Dwarves @ Sun Down Stage

All I knew about these guys when I walked toward the stage for their Saturday morning set was they sure as fuck know how to name a band. Brilliant band names and great music don’t always go hand in hand, but this time they most certainly did. They played the first notes I heard at Wakarusa and it was some pretty damn awesome indie/experimental rock. As it turns out the lead singer of Stardeath and White Dwarves is Dennis Coyne, the nephew of Wayne Coyne of the Flaming Lips and Stardeath also calls Oklahoma City home. While the family ties may certainly help push the band, they don’t really need the help. They’re a solid act that I would highly recommend.

Back Door Slam @ Revival Tent

This was another act that I had no knowledge of before seeing them on stage. Anyone who digs Eric Clapton, Robert Cray or Jimi Hendrix’s Band of Gypsies would be foolish to miss an opportunity to see them. I’d never heard of lead guitarist Davy Knowles before Saturday, but his guitar playing should no longer be kept a secret.

Apollo Sunshine @ Sun Down Stage

These geek rockers are one hell of a strong band. Jumping from groove-funk to indie pop effortlessly (and sometimes even in the same song) the band members move from instrument to instrument and style to style like flipping channels on a remote. You’d think that the result would be a bit unsettling and nerve racking, but the composition of their songs is such that it just makes good sense, and good music.

Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise @ Sun Up Stage

I’ve been a fan of Robert Bradley’s Blackwater Surprise for more than a decade, but I’ve never gotten to see him live. As I was walking toward the stage, I heard the opening notes of his song “Once Upon a Time” and my walk quickly turned to a run. I got there just as he began to sing the first chorus and the great, great line, “I remember Marvin Gaye, singing, ‘Let’s Get It On.’” Seeing the blind Bradley smiling, hunched over his keyboard and belting out that tune with such soul and feeling was magical. As the end of the set approached, he played another one of my favorites by him, “California,” and both he and the band nailed it. As I strolled away from the tent, I laughed to myself thinking about what would happen if Bradley was suddenly able to see. I mean, does he know that these soulful-ass guys he’s playing with are a bunch of white boys? I was even surprised, and I’ve seen pictures of the band before!

Blackalicious @ Revival Tent

There’s not too much to say about Blackalicious. Chief Xcel and Gift of Gab are phenomenal entertainers. Gift of Gab is so damn smooth in his rapping it’s amazing. His lips were almost blurring from rapping so quickly, but he was crystal clear in his delivery and made it seem so damn easy. It was a great set to catch.

Courtesy of photographer James Allison www.jamesallisondesign.com

Buckethead @ Sun Down Stage

Poor fucking Buckethead. It’s already got to be hot enough under that damn fried chicken bucket, but during his set he was staring right into a sweltering setting sun. He must have been sweating his extra-crispy ass off. Buckethead is an amazing talent. His fingers look like they’re each five feet long and the guitar is like putty in those massive meat hooks. But, since he plays alone to a soundtrack, his set did get a bit stale. Even though he shreds and even though he has that whole creepy bucket and robotic movement-thing going, watching someone shred for an hour can get a little old. And the late afternoon sun didn’t help. I ducked out about halfway through and headed back to the Revival Tent.

Courtesy of photographer James Allison www.jamesallisondesign.com

Arrested Development @ Revival Tent

I’ve seen these guys several times before and they never fail to be entertaining. Anyone who knows anything about Arrested Development knows that they’re subtle and smooth in their rhymes and anything but subdued on stage. Speech, Sister Eshe and Tasha LaRae, are three awesome performers. Eshe has never spent a calm moment on stage, but this day she was particularly keyed up, throwing herself from one end of the stage to the other. Unfortunately, though, it was almost too much this day, as her dancing kind of took away from the music itself. It was still entertaining as hell, but it was a disappointment to be distracted from the tunes themselves.

Galactic @ Sun Down Stage

Cake was supposed to play this time slot, but travel plans forced them to switch with Galactic. I know I’ll probably get attacked next time I walk through Boulder for saying this, but honestly, I don’t get Galactic. Everyone in the group is an incredibly talented musician, but to me, it just doesn’t translate into anything I want to listen to. After 10 minutes of watching them, I get bored, as I don’t think they provide enough rewards. Some bands are excellent at building to climaxes and rewarding their audiences. Galactic can build for sure, but when you get there with them, it just doesn’t pay off.

The Flaming Lips @ Sun Down Stage

This was my main impetus for attending the festival. I think the Lips are genius, but have only had the opportunity to see them once before, so I was very excited and prepared for this set. Yes, the Flaming Lips sets are the same time and time again. True, Wayne Coyne doesn’t have the best voice ever. But, I think that these guys are one of the most crucial live acts touring today — a must see on so many levels. The Lips’ have been bringing naked-ness back to summer festivals and during their cover of Led Zeppelin’s “Song Remains The Same” a half-dozen or so naked ladies were on stage dancing and frolicking like good hippies should, amidst the largest confetti shower I’ve ever witnessed.

Rolling Stone once listed the Flaming Lips among one of the “Top 50 acts to see before you die” and I wholeheartedly agree. Their stage presence is unparalleled. Their light show is better than Pink Floyd’s. Their crowd interactions are infectious. Spending an evening under the stars with the Flaming Lips with a head full of mushrooms is something that everyone should experience at least once. I’ve already re-listened to a recording of the set and it still stands up as awesome, even in a sober state. It was most certainly the highlight of the festival.

Courtesy of photographer James Allison www.jamesallisondesign.com

Day III

The day started off warm and grew to hot, but because of constant high winds, it never really got as hot as it could have. Things had started to dry out by now and while there were still muddy spots throughout the grounds and in the tents, for the most part, it was as if the storm never happened at all. I left my campsite and traveled all the way over to the other side of the festival grounds, probably a good mile or two, to get a shower. I’ve never been to prison, but I now have a decent idea of what showers in jail are like — without, of course, the impending violence and gang rape. The showers were the low-light of the festival; small, cold as hell and devoid of anything resembling privacy. Keeping clean at Wakarusa, I suppose, is not a priority.

Garrett Nordstrom Situation @ Prairie Stage

Having showered in seconds, I found myself with time to spare and sat down in front of the Prairie Stage for this Kansas City Band. I had never had a situation with Garrett Nordstrom before, and I will not be seeking one in the future. Simply put, this bar band was boring and a sad opener for Great American Taxi.

Photo by Brian F. Johnson

Great American Taxi @ Prairie Stage

This set proved to be the Colorado-crowd reunion set of the weekend. When I saw the leopard-print hat of the Cheesecake Lady come into view, I knew the Coloradoans would soon follow and sure enough, more than a handful turned out to support the Nederland boys. Never ones to skip the built-in benefit of having friends around, Vince Herman and company welcomed a few folks to the stage, including Brian Shey on tambourine and Herman’s son, Silas, who ripped a blistering acoustic guitar solo.

Papa Mali @ Revival Tent

The mud from the day before had turned to a thick paste in the Revival Tent. It was still messy, but not as gross or slippery as the day before. Papa Mali’s set helped pack that paste down as a large crowd gathered under the D.I.A.-like tent for his set. Mali’s technique, soul and overall sound is impeccable. He commands attention on stage. However, despite all of those pluses, the set lacked a true punch. Nothing was bad at all, but after a while it got a bit drab, for lack of a better word. I think that Mali is simply more suited to venues like the Fox, than the big festival crowds.

Porter, Batiste and Stoltz @ Sun Up Stage

I only caught one song by PBS. It wasn’t them that made me walk out of the tent. It was simple scheduling. But, in fact, it was easy to walk away from them, as I’ve seen them before and knew that they’d nail pretty much anything they played.

Photo by Brian F. Johnson

Leftover Salmon @ Sun Down Stage

Colorado reunion number two! When I heard that Leftover Salmon was reforming last year to play select shows, I was honestly nervous about the phone-in factor. If they weren’t 100% back together, would they just wing every show and kick back, I wondered. Well, I’m happy to report that the phone-in factor is not an issue. Vince Herman was coming off a three-week tour with Great American Taxi and obviously tired from the road, but as soon as he strapped that guitar around his neck it was like he’d been relaxing for weeks. Leftover’s as strong as ever as a unit onstage. They may all be involved in other projects, they may never practice, but they don’t just phone it in. They’re the quintessential festival band. They ripped through a number of their classics as well as some Bill Monroe and John Hartford tunes in the late afternoon sun.

Courtesy of photographer James Allison www.jamesallisondesign.com

Dr. Dog @ Sun Up Stage

I skipped out a few songs early from Leftover Salmon to make it over to see the Old 97s, but on the way, I got sucked in to something completely unexpected – Dr. Dog. This Philadelphia-based five piece is a great blending of indie pop, psychedelic rock and hard rockin’ bar band. Stumbling upon them was as rewarding as finding a stack of cash when you’re flat broke. I only stuck around for two songs, but was thoroughly impressed and would be happy as hell to see them again.

Old 97s @ Revival Tent

Old 97s is a band that everyone says I should like. Well, I think “everyone” is full of shit, because I don’t see anything great, or really anything even that good about them at all. I walked in half way through one of their tunes which wasn’t awful but far from impressive. The next song was one I recognized, but don’t know the title to. It seemed like there were some communication issues going on, as the band a couple times, sort of lost their rhythm. But the end of the song was the clincher for me. Lead vocalist Rhett Miller and lead guitarist Ken Bethea looked at each other with furrowed brows as they attempted to find the final notes together. They failed to do so. With a crash, the band botched the ending of the song, and that was enough for me. I may give the Old 97s one more chance at some point, but I’m pretty much over them.

The sun had gone down and I was getting weary, so I headed back to the campsite to relax and have a couple beverages. As the evening progressed I was tempted to turn in and call it a night, but was feeling guilty about it. Despite the lack of energy, I couldn’t get the words of Johnny Drama, from HBO’s “Entourage,” out of my head. “I am not a pussy. I am not a pussy.” I didn’t want to be either, so I mustered to make it over to the Sun Down Stage for what would be my final set of the weekend.

STS9 @ Sun Down Stage

I’ve never been a fan of Sound Tribe and, unfortunately, this set wouldn’t change my mind. I had enough “medication” left to get out of my head, but had I taken all of it, I still don’t think I would have gotten into this performance. Maybe my mind was already made up before I reached the stage, but I gave them what I thought was a decent shot, and just couldn’t get into their chemical-based heavy jam, and the almost intimidating bass. There were fire dancers in the crowd, who made for a really cool sight to see, but it still wasn’t enough to engage me.

Encore:

After a bit, I called it quits and headed back to the campsite. On the way, there was this hill I had to walk down and a little tiny ditch I had to cross, with just the slightest embankment, and I do mean slight. It took all of my effort to get up and over that little thing. I was spent, had all the music I could handle and though there would be more sets on Sunday, I knew I’d be well into my trip back down I-70 by the time the music started. I did not learn until later that rain came back to Wakarusa on Sunday. The biggest reason to stick around for music that day was Emmylou Harris. At the last minute, however, Harris cancelled, so in hind sight I was right in leaving early.

Bottom line, is that Wakarusa is a well-put-together festival. It operates seamlessly to the fans, and gives enough musical variety to keep it consistently interesting throughout the weekend. Their ability to re-group and carry on after the storm of day one was impressive to say the least and if they keep booking the strong acts that they have, the festival could grow into one of America’s great summer festivals. But, next year I will bring my own golf cart to get around.