So, as I've probably noted elsewhere, I've taken a shine to bluegrass and americana music since moving to the Shenandoah/James River valley area. Friday, I'm planning to attend my first "festival", with a pretty good lineup on tap Friday night (Amanda Cook, Pitney/Meyer, Nothin Fancy). Curious whether others have done the "festival" thing before, and interested in any pointers, reactions, etc.
The festival scene...?
- Thread starter Aardvark86
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Make sure to wear flowers in your hair, you're going to meet some gentle people there.
I have nothing of value to add aardy but as a guy who once worked at a concert venue its hard to have a bad time listening to live music.
( Dont mind the poor engrish)
I have nothing of value to add aardy but as a guy who once worked at a concert venue its hard to have a bad time listening to live music.
( Dont mind the poor engrish)
Where is it at? Nothing to add other than we did a festival last year and the venue was huge. Tons of people, limited seating, great lineup.
True dat...live music is the best, and I've had a great time at shows the past couple of years that often involve someone I've never heard of, just actively listening and enjoying the music.
yeah, an old cycling buddy who used to go to bluegrass festivals when he was younger told me that woodstock had nothing on an average bluegrass festival in terms of drug use.
Always interesting folks at a festival. Great for people watching. The live music is just a bonus.
Take water if it is allowed, unless you don't mind paying prices that leave you feeling violated.
Take water if it is allowed, unless you don't mind paying prices that leave you feeling violated.
Soooo....naturally, we have our own local pronunciation (byoona vista), just as Lexington Kentucky has its own local pronunciations (Vair-SAY-lees road)
And yes, it actually has a stunning view as it is at the footsteps of the Blue Ridge Parkway/Appalachian Trail, and the venue is along the Maury River.
To each their own. Yes, drug use has always been part of the live music scene. You want the good times to keep going right?
Time and a place for everything. Smoking a joint and enjoying a couple of hours of music is one thing. Getting so messed up you dont remember it was just an excuse to do drugs.
Maybe you have me fooled but I dont think you are going to have to worry about that. Enjoy Aardy.
We too have a Buena Vista. That one is fairly straight forward.
We often confuse people with Mad-drid(Madrid) and Ill let you gamble on the pronunciation of What Cheer, IA
Yeah, concerts are pretty much the exception to my ordinary life in the valley, where the usual and "refreshing" rule is that "If you smell a skunk, chances are it's ACTUALLY a skunk."
For my part, I'll probably take a small flask of Courage and Conviction bourbon barrel aged (a local product), or maybe even a little pre-mixed Huckleberry Manhattan.
If that's going on while the sun's still up, now I'm actually a little nervous about what it may be like after it sets...
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I imagine for a BG festival you can bring a lawn chair and a cooler. If that's not the vibe you can always throw them back in the trunk.
I've been attending music festivals for 40 years. They of course vary based on genre. Bluegrass/Americana (a lot of what we see) are usually very chill. Bring a blanket/chair (as allowed) if you are doing general admission and make a home base. Chill with beverage of choice. If multiple stages, visit the small ones for younger/ up and coming bands. We have been to Merlefest in NC many times and its probably similar. There are some amazing musicians that come out of the woods of NC, VA, and Tenn for these shows.
There's two local free festivals/series I like to go to in Omaha. One is a latin music festival in South O next to the Kroc on 30th and Y. The other is a soul/R&B focused series in North O at Miller Park on 30th/Reddick.
Both always have like 1 person that is dancing/hula hooping in the front row while everyone is sitting, despite the vibes being completely different.
I have to say, I've been truly stunned at how easily accessible and pervasive great live music is, from people you've heard of, up and down the I-81 corridor.
If you've never been to Merlefest you should go. There are groups of people (attendees) standing around under trees playing bluegrass or old traditional songs and the musicianship is amazing. Its people that probably play every night in their living rooms. Now, there are attendees that are probably inbred, but they are harmless.
This is what i'm most curious/hopeful to see. When I lived in Arlington full time, in my neighborhood park on Sunday afternoons, they used to have what could best be described as "pickup bluegrass" where maybe 2 or three dozen players would just show up in the park and start working on stuff together in little groups. I didn't realize until recently what a big scene the dc area used to be for BG - would not surprise me if there were known commodities at those get-togethers.
Sadly that evaporated overnight when my neighborhood association "leaders" decided they'd try to start charging them for using the park, so they could finance renovations to the little clubhouse there, so they could start charging people to use the clubhouse. Bastards.
There's a great music park in north Florida on the banks of the Suwannee River; we go to at least one or two festivals there every year. The park has a ton of RV sites with electric & water, but also has 100s of acres of wilderness for rustic, tent camping. They have one coming up in a few weeks that we usually go to that is primarily bluegrass/Americana. Main acts this year are Trampled by Turtles, Sam Bush, Leftover Salmon, Peter Rowan. Donna the Buffalo plays multiple shows each year.
One of the things I enjoy is walking around the campground late-night, after the stage shows are done; there's always a lot of people up, playing music around campfires - including one main area where a lot of the featured musicians end up hanging out & playing until the early morning.
Main tip - multiple day festivals are a marathon, not a sprint. Don't over-indulge the first night & end up feeling like crap the next day. If it's a camping festival, walk (or bike) the campground after the stage shows end.
One of the things I enjoy is walking around the campground late-night, after the stage shows are done; there's always a lot of people up, playing music around campfires - including one main area where a lot of the featured musicians end up hanging out & playing until the early morning.
Main tip - multiple day festivals are a marathon, not a sprint. Don't over-indulge the first night & end up feeling like crap the next day. If it's a camping festival, walk (or bike) the campground after the stage shows end.
Thx! It is indeed a multi-day festival with on-site camping, but I'm out of town for the first day. Would have enjoyed seeing some of the Thursday headliners -- Rhonda Vincent, Authentic Unlimited, Grascals. Will definitely try to walk the site a bit afterwards.
Been to Merlefest perhaps fifteen times over the years including the very first one in '88. Emmylou Harris was a late addition that year. They had a flatbed trailer in the field that they played on and we sat on the ground. I'm not sure anyone expected what was coming.
We've seen James Taylor, Pete Seeger, Etta Baker, the Avett Brothers, Willie Nelson, Molly Tuttle, Billy Strings, Marcus King, Allison Krauss... Steve Martin played with the Steep Canyon Rangers one year. Bonnie Raitt was the headliner a couple of years ago
. And we were there for the monsoon weekend a few years back when they got about 10" of rain Friday and Saturday.Hot Damn the '88 show had a hell of a lineup!Been to Merlefest perhaps fifteen times over the years including the very first one in '88. Emmylou Harris was a late addition that year. They had a flatbed trailer in the field that they played on and we sat on the ground. I'm not sure anyone expected what was coming.
We've seen James Taylor, Pete Seeger, Etta Baker, the Avett Brothers, Willie Nelson, Molly Tuttle, Billy Strings, Marcus King, Allison Krauss... Steve Martin played with the Steep Canyon Rangers one year. Bonnie Raitt was the headliner a couple of years ago
Yeah definitely spend some time at the smaller stages with the up & comers. 10 or so years ago I caught a couple of shows of a young guitar player that was really good. Billy Strings.
I went to the Sick New World Festival in Vegas earlier this year to mainly see Korn and System of a Down.
I suspect your bluegrass festival will be a VERY different environment.
I’ve seen videos of Tyler Childers on a tiny festival side stage just crushing it. So many artists start out this way. Never know who you will see
Greetings from BV! There is more medical equipment here than an Atlantic City casino and I’d guess I’m about 60% of the size of the average person here.
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Double A: You may find this surprising verging on difficult to believe, but San Francisco has a pretty large bluegrass festival every summer in Golden Gate Park. It draws hundreds of thousands of attendees over the course of the weekend when it goes on.
Here is a link to this year's Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festive Lineup:
https://hardlystrictlybluegrass.com/headline/2026-lineup-announcements/
The moving force behind the creation of the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival was Warren Hellman (1934–2011). [1]
Hellman, a prominent San Francisco investment banker, venture capitalist, and avid banjo player, founded the event in 2001. Originally called "Strictly Bluegrass", the festival was envisioned by Hellman as a completely free, non-commercial gift to the city of San Francisco. [1, 2, 3, 4, 5]
Over the years, he strictly rejected all corporate sponsorships to ensure the focus remained entirely on the community and the music. Following his passing in 2011, his heirs and the Hellman Foundation have continued to fully fund and sustain the annual festival in Golden Gate Park
Saw Billy at a local venue pre-pandemic for $25. It's generally viewed as one of his last small-space performances before he blew up. Just a few years later, he sold out the 14,000-seat local coliseum for two nights and now that place is too small for him.
On a different note, we went to see him in Greensboro back in April and ended up leaving early. It was insanely loud and had almost zero bearing on his roots - it was a jam-band performance similar to Grateful Dead.
So Friday was a fun evening. I liked that most of the stuff leaning pretty traditional. Caught a bit of Dave adkins, who covered some old Dave evans ruff really well. Then “fast track” who were pretty straightforward. Chosen road leaned heavily into gospel. Introduced some shaker style a capella stuff by asking if there were any baptists out there then Methodists (quieter), then Presbyterians (back row), then Pentecostals (WOOO). Never did get to papists.
then the host band nothin fancy, who been together for decades and were quite versatile. Closed the evening with Pitney Meyer, who I really liked.
was really surprised at how many campers.
then the host band nothin fancy, who been together for decades and were quite versatile. Closed the evening with Pitney Meyer, who I really liked.
was really surprised at how many campers.
You didn't fall out of a tree & paralyze a chick, did you?
Festivalgoer paralyzed after man falls from tree and lands on her while a band was playing
Festivalgoer paralyzed after man falls from tree and lands on her while a band was playing
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