Back to the Farm!

Hello again and thank you, as always, for keeping up with all things InTents!

It’s been a crazy couple of weeks for this festie kid, but it’s nice to be back in the swing of summer shows and sunshine. A few weeks ago, I ended up on an impromptu weekend tour with the MC Sparkplug crew that ended up being one of the best weekends of the Promo Tour so far. I, Tony Z, & Lanie, along with our friend Kristin, headed up to Fort Wayne’s CS3 for the Plug’s Friday gig with the Afrodisiacs and, another of my personal faves, Dan Dickerson. The show was great. The Afrodisiacs have an amazing mellow sound with great control and harmonies. Dan Dickerson, as usual, blew my mind with incredible loops and his magical harp. If you haven’t done so, check him out at myspace.com/dandickersonharpcondition! MC Sparkplug put on an awesome show of their own and ended the night with positive energy and good vibes.

The Sparkplug Crew

After the show, we all headed back to Dan Dickerson’s for some late-night food & fun. At this point, I must say that Dan and his leading lady, Mikila, were the most amazing hosts and treated us fantastically. We were, and still are, insanely grateful for the hospitality we were treated to and still can’t thank them enough for all they did. If I ever decide to skip town and leave it all behind, you will probably find me at Dan Dickerson’s house eating falafel and getting lost on the intergalactic space bus.

Okay, back to the tour…from Fort Wayne, we headed up to Flint, MI for the Plug’s show at the Loft. We were all really excited to see the Covert Operation’s crew and the Flint family. Tony and Lanie ended up owning the night after the other acts cancelled, so it felt like a private Plug Party. Dallas and Kedree from Covert both joined in with the Plug and kept the heads bumping and the bodies moving well into the night. Both nights were filled with lots of fun, great people, and amazing music…definitely worth giving up my “off” weekend.

My plan was to hit up the Cosmic Railroad Family Gathering in Janesville, WI the following weekend, but a series of unfortunate events kept me close to Muncie. I did, however; spend quite a bit of time driving, so I had a chance to catch up on some tunes. My CD of choice, you may ask? One of several Wuhnurth 08 demos; I happen to come across it while cleaning out my car and was stoked to hear it again! With Wuhnurth 09 less than a month away, I can’t even begin to explain how excited I am for this year’s show. James Nimmer, founder of Wuhnurth, has set up a killer line-up complete with past favorites and some new names that are sure to knock your socks off. Kyle Hollingsworth of String Cheese Incident as well as Cornmeal , Pnuma Trio, Future Rock, Roots of Creation, and Rev. Peyton’s Big Damn Band will all be rocking out this year in addition to the return of bands such as MC Sparkplug, Sweet Japonic, Daphne Willis & Co., Midwest Hype, Fresh Hops, and UV Hippo. Wuhnurth 09 will take place September 11-13 at the Waterbowl and you can get your pre-sale weekend pass for $30 which includes camping. Check out Wuhnurth.com for the complete line-up and info on how you can help out with this year’s event!

My most recent travels landed me back at Freedom Farms in Poland, IN for the Revolution Music and Peace Festival. I showed up Saturday afternoon and things were in full-swing. Alex from Herm Productions did all the lighting and sound which brought the whole place to life and made the music that much better.

Herm is all business!

Fourth Street Fusion out of Ohio blew me away with their amazing blend of psychedelic funk. Check them out at myspace.com/fourthstreetfusion to see what you think! Another new favorite of mine is Mellow Fellow Factory. I had heard a little from them before that night, but something about hearing them in the open space of Freedom Farm really made me dig their take on experimental rock. Go to myspace.com/mellowfellowfactory and see if you can hit up a show sometime…it’s worth it! The next act came as a bit of a surprise for a hippie fest, but everyone seemed to have an open mind about it. Krista, pop/rock star signed to J Records, scored a top spot on the line-up and I was pretty interested to see what she had to offer. I was surprised that I actually liked it. I don’t really consider myself a “music snob,” but a pop star at a hippie fest just didn’t seem to mesh in my mind. Her sound still didn’t “fit” with the rest of the bands, but her voice is solid and she even raps a little which added some fun to her set. It was also a great transition into the MC Sparkplug set that immediately followed. As Tony & Lanie took the stage, Herm did what he does best and lit up the entire stage as well as the surrounding trees with a plethora of shapes and colors. He was on-point with every beat and in-sync with every move they made.Check out Tony & Lanie's sound and schedule at myspace.com/mcsparkplug. I caught myself, more than once, standing with my back to the stage watching the shapes in the trees while the music took me away.

The Plug set...killer lights!

If you ever want a pure professional with an amazing talent for staging, lights, and sound, get ahold of Alex through hermproductions.com...he's pretty incredible if you ask me! By the time Covert Operations set up for the final slot of the night, the energy was up and everyone was ready to jam. Covert started strong and kept the vibes rolling for 45 amazing minutes.Check out a little of what Covert can do at myspace.com/covertopslive.

Dallas from Covert...my fave!

At that point, the local authority shut down the main stage. The crowd and the band were a bit disappointed, but the fun didn’t stop there. Local folk group, Bob & Priscilla set up for a beautiful acoustic set. They’re sweet, a little twangy, and well-composed. It definitely mellowed the mood a bit, but only enough to bring on a chilled-out atmosphere.

Bob & Priscilla

After that, Derrick Howard took over with his loop-acoustics and provided background music that pacified the all-night crowd as well as those that were spent and ready for some R&R. I ended up gallivanting around for a few hours, talking with old friends from festivals past and new ones as well until I headed back to my tent. I headed out kind of early the next day, but was really happy I was able to return to Freedom Farm and spend time with a few folks I hadn’t seen for a while.

Miss Lanie & Kadence

As for what’s next, I’m not positive of anything other than Wuhnurth in mid-September. There will definitely be shows before then, so be sure to check back often!

Until then, stay positive and enjoy the sunshine!

music.love.KG.