Here’s the thing about Hipnic: It’s NOT a music festival. Hipnic is a vibe and it’s a vibe shared by everybody that makes the drive down (or up) to The Fernwood Resort smack in the center of Big Sur. It’s a state of mind that needs to be refreshed, as a plant needs to be watered, once a year. While the weekend is hosted by The Mother Hips, a cornerstone band in the northern California music scene, and FolkYeah! Events, it is also a weekend built by fans not only of the Mother Hips but anyone that shows up to appreciate music, the dynamism of nature and fellowship with like-minded folks. It’s a no-frills weekend. There isn’t a frickin’ Ferris wheel or VIP section that gets you more than someone else but there is a taco truck and hot showers. Hipnic is a psychedelic campground, with the Big Sur River running right through the middle of it and a stage in a meadow that awaits a song. Those that come to the festival MAKE the festival – each person contributing to the overall thing. This year we got a big tent to cover us from a massive rain event that arrived Saturday and did not relent for 16 hours. It came down in buckets at times, but that did NOTHING to dampen spirits – it only emboldened.
Hipnic XI that took place May 17-19, 2019 is a bunch of little, fan-driven events, within a larger music setting. There’s a bottle share on Friday and all you need is a couple cans or bottles to share and a cup. There is a happy hour each day in which all you need is that same cup and someone will make a cocktail for you. There’s also one of the most competitive chili cook-offs on the music scene today – the smack talk can get fierce but the reward (a grand prize of two tickets for next year) makes it all worth it. Hipnic is something at which you arrive with zero expectations because you want it to happen organically the surprise is the stoke. The magic unfolds with your tent on Friday morning and blossoms with the sun everyday after that (except for that pesky 16 hour storm this year). It’s the event where parents can truly let their kids GO and roam, make friends that may last a lifetime and garner seminal memories that could very well shape the adult they will grow to be. You can float down the river or decide to go see a band. You can run the 63 merciless steps up to the tavern for a late-night barnburner set in a sweaty little room or dig on a Grateful Dead dance party at site 15. Whatever you choose to do you’re always free and easy, wandering your way through a canopy of California Redwoods that seemingly sway to the music right along with you.
Yes, the music is the jewel in this little happening’s crown. This year boasted Jonathan Richman (2 sets over the weekend), Robyn Hitchcock, The Coffis Brothers, Elisa Randazzo, The Causal Coalition, Sonny and the Sunsets, Sensations, Little Wings, Extra Classic, The Tim Bluhm Band and other heady, dream weavers chosen as much for how their music fits the vibe as they are for their talent. And the musical moments that these bands produce can be over the top cool. The Casual Coalition’s interpretation of The Band’s Music from the Big Pink as a case in point. They faithfully played the record to the elation of a very stoked crowd. And there was Scott Law and Ross James’ Cosmic Twang set that was so hot many of us did not notice that Ross was gone (I’m lying, Ross, we ALL noticed). And then there were the three Mother Hips sets (1 electric set on Friday and Saturday nights and 1 acoustic set on Sunday). Eleven years the Hips have hosted this festival, and eleven years they have played multiple sets a weekend and all three of their performances this year would have to settle in many fans top ten all time list. That’s where this band is now, standing on the eve of their 30th anniversary and not sitting back or mailing it in but CHARGING! They are vibrant again and vital, they’re taking risks not only in their playing but their song choice.
There were too many special moments to write about them all here but the auditory SLAP of that “Mountain Time” opener on Friday night or that triumphant, deep set return after a long absence of “Magazine” – a version that had to have clocked in at a shade under 15 minutes was everything that psychedelic rock should be. There was the “Chum”, slow and precise, the swirls of Eisenberg’s Hammond work in “Transit Wind” and the well-picked but totally surprising cover of Dylan’s “The Man in Me”. And to cap it off, the meaty tease of The Rolling Stones’ “Satisfaction” sandwiched in a searing “Can’t Sleep At All” that left fans holding their heads in disbelief – these were the moments that reminded us of why we gather, why we devote so much time and treasure to seeking out these affirming moments of our lives.
And it could be seen on every face, heard in every shout or the staccato smack of every backslap. Hipnic XI was a magical year. It was the year that we, all together, beat out the rain – almost dared Mother Nature to give us more (we didn’t though and thankfully she did not) and danced all the way through it. Old friendships were strengthened, new friendships were forged, and we rolled out eyes wider for the experience, hearts stronger for the love of our people and our music – full and ready to face the days between XI and XII. Thanks, as always, go to The Mother Hips for giving us our soundtrack, Diana Ballantyne and the Fernwood Resort for giving us a home (and that indispensable tent this year), and Britt Govea and FolkYeah! Presents for giving us the weekend to do this again and again and again. This thing we love has carved out a place in our lives for which so many will do all in their power to stop everything in their lives and make the time to attend this special weekend without question. We can’t wait for more, bring on XII!
