Headstash

Festival Website: http://www.summercampfestival.com/

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This years weather offered a sharp contrast to the blistering heat and overpowering dust of Summer Camp 2010. Entering the gates to the Thursday pre-party, festivalgoers were met with rain and cloudy skies. The rain eventually subsided and the weather remained cloudy and cool with the occasional appearance from the sun on Friday and Saturday. The grounds were muddy throughout the weekend after sporadic showers.

People were awoken to heavy rain and incredibly strong winds on Sunday morning, leaving the Sunshine Stage area underwater and walking paths transformed into slip n’ slides. Eventually the rain and clouds gave way to sun and the warmest temperatures of the weekend, making for a pleasant Sunday evening after an unpleasant morning.

The muddy conditions left many fully loaded, two-wheel drive cars helpless from getting stuck on their way out of the parking lot.

Five Highlights

Narrowing this weekend’s musical performances down to five was an extremely difficult task given the wide variety of great performances. Further, conflicts were inevitable and I surely missed out on some other musical highlights. Headliner’s moe. and Umphrey’s McGee were on top of their game all weekend and countless other artists put on memorable performances.

Umphrey's McGee - Photo Credit: Sarah Walls

Umphrey’s got right down to business with a jaw-dropping “Prowler > 1348 > Red Tape” featuring some incredibly tight “Jimmy Stewart’s” (Umphrey’s terminology for improvised sections).

After finally taking a break, the chords of “Pay the Snucka” began, sending the crowd into a frenzy. “Snucka” went through its various sections before briefly erupting into Rage Against the Machine’s “Bulls on Parade” before settling back into “Snucka.”

“Mulche’s Oddessy” ended the set and included a funky, bass-driven middle section with Ryan Stasik at the helm. Second set highlights included “Miss Tinkle’s Overture > Higgins > Miss Tinkle’s Overture > Higgins” and a stellar version of “Rocker Part II.”

Brendan Bayliss introduced a new song, titled “Hourglass,” which was met with positive responses from those in attendance. The set ended with an exceptional cover of Radionhead’s “National Anthem” with Big Gigantic’s Dominic Lalli adding his saxophone to the mix.

moe. Late Night in the Red Barn. moe. came out of the gates firing on all cylinders with a huge version of “Dr. Graffenberg” followed by an equally monstrous “Bullet.” What came next was undoubtedly the bust-out of the weekend, with the boys playing the reggae version of “Letter Home” for the first time in over a decade. Transforming the slower paced song into an upbeat, danceable version, the reggae “Letter Home” also featured an extensive and exciting composed section.

After some technical difficulties forced bassist Rob Derhak to abandon his four string in exchange for his five-string, the near 30-minute “Timmy Tucker” had the entire barn on their feet and defenseless from getting down. The “Big World > Ricky Marten > Time Ed > George” segment was quintessential moe., with Chuck Garvey’s guitar mastery on full display during the Latin-themed “Ricky Marten” and Jim Loughlin’s superb xylophone skills highlighted during “Time Ed.”

Lotus Late Night in the Red Barn. Red Barn sets at Summer Camp require an extra ticket that for the past few years have sold out within minutes online. The sets are often the most talked about and epic of the weekend and Summer Camp 11 proved no different.

While Lotus’s day set showcased the bands electronic stylings, their late-night Red Barn set highlighted the more progressive, post-rock side of their unique sound. Guitarist Mike Rempel showed his incredible versatility, effortlessly transitioning from hypnotic grooves to shredding guitar work in a matter of moments. Lotus’ set went until well past 4:00 a.m. and was a perfect way to reinvigorate a crowd that was exhausted from a full day of music.

Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe Sunday Night. With most of those in attendance heading over to the Moonshine Stage for Bassnectar, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe offered an excellent alternative for those looking to get funk’d up at the smaller Starshine Stage. Denson showed off his saxophone skills and was accompanied by a tight band that delved into infectious funk with hints of reggae. KDTU was a perfect change of pace from the heavy sound of Widespread Panic beforehand and moe. afterwards.

The Wood Brothers Late Night Set. After four days of great music and minimal rest, the Wood Brothers late-night set at the Campfire Stage acted as a fitting ending to an incredible weekend.

Oliver Wood’s soulful vocals were the perfect complement to the rootsy bass playing of brother Chris. The addition of a drummer beside the Wood Brothers added a whole new dimension to their traditionally acoustic sound.

With the large amounts of people coming on Thursday, opening the gates a little earlier would have eased congestion and frustration among festivalgoers. Those who opted for the VIP weren’t allowed into the festival grounds until around 1:00 p.m., leaving many waiting in line for hours.  Those who weren’t in VIP were subjected to extremely long lines to exchange tickets for wristbands as well as lines to enter the festival. Hopefully next year they decide to open the gates a bit earlier simply to make things run smoother.

Also, the mud.

moe. Bassist Rob Derhak at the Soulshine Tent - Photo Credit: Will Duff

iCrab Eyes. With Summer Camp featuring more electronic acts then ever before, moe. tried their hand at the electronic game with a version of “Crab Eyes” played entirely on iPads. Watching the various members of moe. get down on their iPad instruments was a sight to behold as all five stood in a line in the front of the stage.

Soulshine Tent Acoustic Sets. Previously unannounced sets by moe. and Jake Cinninger and Brendan Bayliss of Umphrey’s McGee were pleasant surprises. Umphrey’s set included an acoustic “Nothing Too Fancy” and moe. treated fans to rarities such as “That Country Tune” and “Blue Eyed Son”

“Lake Chillicothe.” While people were expecting the rain, nobody could quite anticipate the toll it would take on certain parts of the festival grounds. The Sunshine Stage was a large collection of muddy lakes that would make a sandal disappear in a heartbeat if you weren’t careful. There were whole areas in prime locations in front of the soundboard left empty because of the unforgiving mud.

While the festival experienced its largest attendance to date, it did not feel unusually crowded and everyone had their fair share of space at most of the shows (Bassnectar, STS9 and Widespread Panic being the few exceptions). Most of the congestion from stage to stage was due to constrictions from mud and water as opposed to sheer overcrowding.

With such an eclectic lineup drawing people from all different reaches of the scene, there was healthy mix of young, old, festival rookies, veterans, moe.rons, Spreadheads, Umphreaks, Bassheads and everyone in between.

Perhaps the best part about Summer Camp is the laid back vibe once you enter the gates. You can move around the festival grounds freely without any additional checkpoints. As long as you weren’t doing anything stupid or egregious you’d have no issues and could enjoy yourself however you felt fit.

 
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“Enjoy the weather because Sunday's going to be hot as balls!” – Brendan Bayliss during 30db's set on Thursday. Given the Hurricane-like weather most of Sunday, it's a good thing Bayliss isn't a weatherman.

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