Music

Another beautiful festival this year. Spent more time playing this year and less time taking pictures so you may want to head to the festival site or links below. Highlights included scary clouds that never did much but killed the heat, Del (as usual), Sierra Hull blowing minds both at the dance tent with Bela Fleck and her big stage set, Bela Fleck and Chris Thile playing something that was definitely not bluegrass… I don’t know what it was, the Wood Brothers getting the party started and Del McCoury and David Grisman just playing tunes together in front of a lot of people. Cool.

[Thursday]
[Friday]
[Saturday]

Michael Daves, Brittany Haas and Noam Pikelny played through Orchids and Violence inspiring anyone who ever tried to play June Apple to go home and practice.

Touring in support of his new album Upland Stories, Robbie brought with him a band of Nashville giants Shad Cobb, Todd Phillips and Pete Finney to an appreciative but sparse crowd. Sigh.

Greg Klyma seemed genuinely awestruck to be opening for one of his heroes. I know he converted a new fan here. Kevin Maul provided solid backup.

Doing his highly entertaining one man band routine complete with loops, incidental trumpet, fast-paced lyrics and foul-mouthed monologues.

Two sets, one quiet covering their new album, one loud covering 30 years of groovy feedback drone. A pleasure to hear them in a smaller venue again.

Mr. McMurtry played through most of Complicated Game and his “greatest hits” to a reasonably full house with a too chatty crowd. In case you were wondering, he still remembers all the words to Choctaw Bingo. Michael Eck and Sten Isachsen opened.

Gabriel Kahane opened with humor, humorous music and serious music from his album Ambassador. Then five virtuosos with five glasses of whiskey making the complex look easy. Does it make me a groupie if I go to Bearsville on Monday…?

TU Review here.  I would only add that a 12 piece band in the Hart theater did not need that level of amplification. The only room for their fff was a prison of white noise. But what do I know, I’m old. Get off my lawn.  Highlight was Susan Tedeschi playing with the quartet; musical guitar solo, amazing voice.  Deva Mahal opened with a giant voice of her own.

Disparate solo sets from Mary Halvorson and Colin Marston.  Mary Halvorson covered original arrangements of compositions ranging from Noel Akchote to McCoy Tyner from her latest solo record Meltframe.  A treat to see her technique and technology in person.   Colin Marston bathed the room in computerized synth pad heavy on major seconds and sevenths, then manipulated piano improvised anonymously (who was that woman?) using distortion and loop pedals.  A two handed tapped bass solo closed the set.

Topping the extraordinary musical week  in the Capital District which included Fred Eaglesmith at Helsinki, Ray Wylie Hubbard at the Hangar, the Alvin brothers blew the roof off the Hollow.  Holy crap.