I Just Read About That…

[DID NOT ATTEND: July 31-August 2, 2020] Newport Folk Festival

There’s very few festivals that I’d like to go to, but Guster’s On the Ocean seems like a lot of fun.  It’s kid friendly (but there’s still adult things to do).  The band is very participatory and they curatea  weeknd’s worth of fun all in a pretty chill atmosphere.

My wife says that we might not like the other people there, which is true–Guster fans near us tend to be kind of partiers, but I still think it would be fun.

But not this year.

Here’s what was on the docket.

Friday, August 11th

GUSTER & CASEYMAGIC

Enchantment Under The Ocean Dance

Dress up in your most weird/wonderful prom-themed attire.
We’ll have a DJ, photo booth, cocktail weenies, and a set from Guster.

On The Ocean kicks off at 1PM on Friday with the release of the Bissell Brothers x On The Ocean beer. Drop by their Thompson’s Point Taproom (38 Resurgam Pl) to grab a can, or a case, and get early access to On The Ocean merch. The On The Ocean merch pop-up will run from 1-4PM, but the beer will be available all weekend at Bissell Brothers, The State Theatre, and Thompson’s Point (while supplies last).
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Then it’s off to The State Theatre for the official start to On The Ocean, the Enchantment Under The Ocean Dance. The evening features a photo booth, cocktail weenies, performances by Caseymagic and Guster. Everyone is encouraged to dress up in their most weird / wonderful / fancy prom themed-attire. Awards will be distributed accordingly.

Saturday, August 12th

Saturday features four bands at Thompson’s Point and a chance to hear the new Guster album.
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The band will be spinning the yet-to-be-titled-or-fully-sequenced album at the Bissell Brothers Taproom from 2-3:15PM. Capacity is limited so arrive early.

The musical lineup for Saturday at Thompson’s Point includes sets from Guster, Bahamas, Madison Cunningham, The Ballroom Thieves, and Brooke Annibale. We’ll also have food trucks, a kids zone, live merch screen printing, face painting, and some other ideas we’ll come up with at the last second. Keep an eye out for Casey who will be out in the crowd performing closeup magic between sets.
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Raging Brass will be there to greet everyone as they walk in the door at 3PM, and festival opener Brooke Annibale will take the stage at 3:30PM.

I haven’t heard of Brooke Annibale.  She is a folk singer who started writing songs in high school, but hasn’t done much lately.  Her voice is quite nice
I thought I knew The Ballroom Thieves, but I clearly thought they were someone else.  This band is Calin Peters and Martin Earley. For the last decade the band has focused on an energetic and dynamic live show that features a powerful quartet of searing vocals, drums, bass, electric guitars, and more recently synths.  They seem to play fairly gentle folk music
Madison Cunningham has a song (“Hospital”) that gets a ton of radio airplay by me and I love it.  Evidently it is not her biggest hit by far.  She’s got a pretty, folky sound although “Hospital” feels a bit more offbeat which I like.
Bahamas is a Canadian band (technically just a guy, Afie Jurvanen).  I have heard them do a live show and liked it.  Although when I listened to them recently I realized I didn’t like them as much a I thought.

All in all a mellow night On the Ocean.

Sunday, August 13th

Our first time doing two days at Thompson’s Point!
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Guster will close the weekend with a Keep It Together full album set, plus other favorites. Shakey Graves, Lucius, and Maine’s Oshima Brothers will also be performing today. Food trucks, kids zone, merch screen printing, will all be back for Sunday,

Oshima Brothers are new to me.  They seem to play gentle folk music.  Here’s their blurb on Spotify: hi it’s sean + jamie japanese italian brothers from maine we write + record + produce + mix our songs film + direct in depth music videos + play shows we love to dance + cook + swim + we know how to tie our own shoes thanks for listening you’re v fantastic xooo
Lucius is a band I’d love to see.  I swear it might have been worth driving up on Sunday just to see Lucius and the Keep It Together set.
Shakey Graves is an American Americana musician from Austin, Texas. His music combines blues, folk, country, and rock and roll.  I’ve been hearing about him for along time, although I don’t really know his stuff–and don’t really like what I’ve heard.

Doors on Sunday open at 3PM and the show ends around 8:45PM so you can make the drive home and be ready for work on Monday morning.

Huh, given the music, it’s almost like I’d rather go just for the events and not the music.