Allison Russell, Dustbowl Revival, Rayland Baxter, Guster & More Highlight 2022 Green River Festival (FESTIVAL REVIEW/PHOTOS)

The 2022 Green River Festival was another resounding success. This 2 ½ day, 3 ½ stage festival, that takes place at the Franklin County Fairgrounds in Greenfield Massachusetts, has quietly become one of the best “small” festivals in the country. Every year, the festival does a great job booking some of the finest indie, folk, and roots rock acts around; but what really makes this festival so special is the degree that which it creates and strengthens the community.  

Now, we get it. Many readers come to a music magazine, primarily to hear about the bands that played, not the vibe of the festival; we’ll get to that in a minute. For those who want to feel what the festival is like, keep reading, we’ll cover that later.

Father John Misty

Friday the festival runs from 4:30 – 10:35 pm and only features ten official acts. This gives the campers and vendors time to set up tents and get into the swing of things. There are a few more “secret” sets (announced for those who download the app) held at the Green House (a small residential house designed and built by eleven Greenfield College students and which will be donated to a local family in need.) 

Although all the Friday sets were enjoyable, the four that stood out were Galactic, Los Cafeteras, Ali McGuirk, and Guster

Galactic brought their New Orleans brand of funk to the Pioneer Valley. Currently, they are being fronted by Angelica “Jelly” Joseph and their energy was palpable as they cruised through their 75-minute set with a mix of “shake your ass” instrumentals and vocal numbers. They are the most musically generous band this reviewer has ever seen. Case in point, towards the end of their set, they invited the Funky Dawgs Brass Band, a local group that opened the festival to join them on stage. When the Funky Dawgs tried to stand off to the side, Galactic insisted they stand front and center, and were appropriately microphoned so the crowd could hear them. They played a funk medley with support from Galactic, who made sure each Funky Dawg was featured on a long solo. That doesn’t happen with almost any other band in the world. Furthermore, the band members seemed to be just as excited, exchanging virtual and physical high fives, after each solo. To top it off, when the horns finished with their solos, and got back into formation to finish off the number, Ben Ellman, immediately noticed that the Funky Dawgs saxophone player couldn’t get to a mic, so Ellman bent the mic attached to his own horn over to the Funky Dawg’s sax so he could be heard. 

Galactic

Aside from demonstrating that they are the most generous band on earth, Galactic proved they are land in the top tier of reigning funk bands in the land. They also established that there aren’t enough sandbags in all of New England to keep Stanton Moore’s drum kit from rocking, although the Green River stagehand who got his daily workout during that set did his best.

Las Cafateras, a band based in the Los Angeles area, closed out Friday’s Deans Bean stage with a fun set of Mexican-influenced jazz, funk, and soul. They got the audience involved quickly and before anyone knew it, the entire crowd was dancing and singing along with gusto. At one point, Hector Flores, their frontman, implored the crowd to join in by saying, “my mother always told me that it is easily forgivable to sing off-key, but what is unforgivable is to sing without soul”. The audience got two clicks louder and the show was off and running. The six-piece band appears to be in constant motion as the three main vocalists alternate and collaborate on songs.  Flores’ raspy and heartfelt vocals play nicely against Denise Carlos’ beautifully silky voice. It certainly added to the party atmosphere that the band instantly created.

Ali McGuirk played one of those “secret” sets at the Green House and nearly set it ablaze. She is looking forward to putting out her second record, the first on the Signature Sounds label. Most of her comments were focused on the Supreme Court’s overturning of Roe vs. Wade and the resolve to put in the hard work to reclaim women’s rights to their own bodies. She accompanied herself on electric or acoustic guitar as her strong voice belted out her poignant songs. When she tours to support her new release, you should definitely go see her.

Ali McGuirk

Guster closed the main stage to a happy home state crowd. To these ears, their music falls into the cracks between indie rock and folk-rock, but it is undeniable that their spirit falls on the rock side of both those genres. Their main keyboard player couldn’t make the gig, so they had a friend who is a classical pianist sit in and she was more than up to the task. Their co-lead vocalist, Adam Gardner, kept checking in with her to let her know that she was “killing it”, which felt sort of adorable because she seemed far from flustered. As a closing act, they knew their place and played a number of their more upbeat songs, many from their 2019 release, Look Alive, and sent their attentive fans merrily off into the New England night.

Saturday was a full and hard day at the festival with acts starting at noon and running until 10:30 pm. The crowd faced cloudless skies and temperatures in the low 90s.

Love Crumbs started the day off with a really fun folk-rock set. Although they have only released two songs “Ellipses” and “Cavalcades”, they filled out the rest of their set with smart covers and guest appearances that felt natural and honest. The star of the band is the voice of their lead singer, Ali McTavish, who has just enough gravel in her voice to sound urgent without disrupting the vocal quality.

Rayland Baxter

Rayland Baxter played the main stage as the sun finally began to go down and the temperature started dropping. That didn’t stop the band from bringing the temperature back up. They are an unusual band in a lot of ways. If you had to put them in a box, one might say that Rayland Baxter is a sweet-voiced singer-songwriter who writes and plays meaningful ballads. However, there is a lot more to the band. First of all, the drummer sets up at the front of the stage and plays facing the rest of the band with his back at a 45-degree angle to the audience. He seems to focus almost entirely on the bottom end of the kit with a snare that is the deepest sounding snare this reviewer can remember hearing. Additionally, he and his lead both play Telecasters, but they couldn’t sound more different. It is almost as if there is an invisible edge to all of his songs. 

The penultimate set on the Dean’s Beans stage was a full-on Afrobeat party hosted by Kaleta & The Super Yamba Band. The horns, bass, drums, percussion, keys, and guitar blended amazingly with the lead singer’s vocals to produce an all-out dance party. It is virtually guaranteed that those wearing fitness trackers met their goal on Saturday due primarily to Kaleta & The Super Yamba Band.

However, the most inspired set of the night was turned in by Katie Pruitt who mesmerized the crowd with her raw energy, powerful lyrics, passionate songs, and forceful expectation of acceptance, community, and social justice. She spoke and sang of inclusion and being accepting of people with a ferocity and spirit that was spellbinding. One of her last songs was “Loving Her” which speaks of throwing off the bonds of worrying about what other people think and emerging as her proud and authentic self. Her voice is strong and beautiful and seems to convey exactly what she feels with no loss of fidelity.

Lake Street Dive

Lake Street Dive closed the main stage with another great performance. Whether they are bouncing through an afternoon gig or going all sultry and sophisticated in the evening, they hold their audience and get them rocking. Other standouts sets on Saturday were put in by Steve Poltz, The Dip, Ripe, Cha Wa, Matthew Fowler, and Prune – they are all worth your time, attention, and support.

Sunday brought another hot and cloudless day to the Green River Festival and another solid roster of folk, roots, and Americana artists. Again, there were no skips in this lineup which kept the hot and melty crowd moving from stage to stage despite the heat. 

Western swing veterans, Asleep At The Wheel, played a strong 75-minute set. The band has undergone a lot of changes since its founding in 1969, but the one thing that has helped keep them consistent is their deep-voiced lead singer, Ray Benson. Benson sounds as though he could be as comfortable announcing a baseball game as he is leading this blues and western swing outfit. He was joined on vocals by Brennen Leigh, who opened the main stage with a set of her own. Together they wrung the last dance steps out of an already danced-out crowd.

Meanwhile, on the Cider House stage, Gaslight Tinkers were performing the same magic trick by somehow creating enough energy to transform a crowd of worn-out bench sitters into a pack of ravenous merrymaking frolickers. Their Celtic/Caribbean/Cuban/Bluegrass mashed-up style was an instant recipe for revelry.  

Asleep at the Wheel

Dustbowl Revival played two sets, one official and one “secret”. Although they have also had a number of lineup changes, including the departure of their co-lead singer Liz Beebe, Zach Lupetin, and Ulf Bjorlin still maintain the feeling of the band while newcomer Lashon Halley’s vocals help fill in the gap. The songs have thoughtful lyrics engulfed in fun supporting music that feels like a party that is being expertly steered in the right direction. 

As good as all of the talent was over the weekend was, no show drew more praise, tears, and love than Allison Russell’s 65-minute set on the big stage. She was surrounded by a band of great musicians, but Russel’s voice and playing stood out in an effusive, but undeniable way. She played almost exclusively from her Grammy-nominated album, Outside Child, and tied each song together with the triumphant story of her emergence from years of physical and familial abuse.

But do not be mistaken, there is no emphasis on her journey so to be pitied, but rather, to shine a bright light on the spirit and strength she found in herself and her community to emerge triumphant. She beamed as she told the crowd, “If you told me then that I could be this happy and feel this loved, I would have never believed it. So, if any of you are struggling, don’t give up. There is more strength in you than you know!”

Allison Russell

The five women who joined her on stage all front their own musical projects, yet they seem to revel in each other’s company and truly form a collective to tell Russell’s story. Her message of hope and community is so powerful, her concert should be “required reading” for all young people, especially those who feel like they don’t matter enough to the world.

That’s the story of a great weekend of music. However, what makes the Green River Festival so special is really the sense of community. There are two types of festival-goers, those who sleep in regular beds and those who sleep on the campgrounds. The community starts with the volunteers and extends to the campers. The nice thing about the festival is that the campgrounds are on the same site as the festival. Campers can walk to and from their tents as they please. Some bring only the bare essentials, a tent, a sleeping bag, and a change of clothes or two while some set up very elaborate compounds. 

The festival is swarming with volunteers decked out in turquoise Green River Volunteer shirts. Once you are on-site, the festival is a sort of sanctuary. Although it takes place in an agricultural fairground with a trotter racetrack, its simple red barns and buildings and expansive greenery feel more like the 1940s than the present day. All of the surfaces are softened and it is one of the few festivals where going barefoot is a real option. And the festival adds a cute touch by naming areas after its performers – like the Father John Misting Tent and Lake Street Drive is one of the streets in the camping area.

The main stage is divided into three sections: one area for standing, one for sitting in low-backed chairs, and a third area designated for sun shades and umbrellas. These rules are followed without resentment and enforcement is unnecessary. People talk with their neighbors, both at the stages and in the campgrounds, and it is not unusual to walk away with new contact information of your neighbor each day. The festival seems full, but never overcrowded. There are rarely bathroom lines or come to think of it, lines of any kind. 

Dustbowl Revival

There is certainly magic during the day, but there is a different kind of magic that happens at night. Once the bed-sleepers go home and the campground lights up with respectful revelers of all kinds. The campgrounds are teeming with friends who have met at this festival over the years and get in early to set up their multi-tent compounds. People are welcoming and often invite you into their camping area for a drink, a bite to eat, or just a place to sit and exchange highlights of the day. One pair of longtime festival-goers, Johnny and Glen, go so so far as to create a community that they lug in and set up an entire bar called the Night Crawler Saloon complete with monogrammed wooden bar stools and midnight snacks. Folks walk by, get invited into their amazement, and hear “stop by again real soon” as they reluctantly depart.

That is the kind of magic that you get at the Green River Music Festival every year and it is this reviewer’s opinion that the world would be a better place if we could all experience it at least once – but make your plans soon for the last weekend in June 2023, because it is sure to sell out again next year and make sure to introduce yourself.

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One Response

  1. Enjoyed the article ( and pics) about the Green River. Ali McGuirk was wonderful as usual and Guster is always more fun than I expect. Disappointed not to see The Wolff Sisters up there. Consistently one of the best Americana bands around and their live shows never disappoint.

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