Performances from Umphrey’s McGee, moe., Jane’s Addiction, YMSB, Greensky Bluegrass, Primus and many more will be broadcast as part of iClips’ Summer Camp Music Festival webcast.
Words: Ryan Maher
Photos: Tammy Wetzel
Ah, Summer Camp. Last year you turned 10, this year you had quite the growth spurt at 11. Attendees quickly realized as they lined in that they’d be camping in tighter quarters with many new neighbors, as record numbers made their way to Chillicothe.
[All photos by Tammy Wetzel]
Thankfully mother nature gave us a break by ending the early rain in time for a dry load-in. The bands and crew weren’t so lucky at 5AM when they got their orders to evacuate due to severe weather. The rains had left some mud and chilly temps in their wake, but the upside would be no dust storms coating the bodies and lungs of the masses this year.
Jake Cinninger rolled out with his old South Bend band, Ali Baba’s Tahini for a fun set that featured the raunchy humor of Karl Engelmann paired with Jake’s guitar chops. Their cover of Tom Petty’s Running Down a Dream had a dark chant of “Smoke pot, Smoke pot, Everybody smoke pot” for kicks. Wavy Dave from Cornmeal also lent his jaw harp skills to a ditty.
READ ON for more from Tammy and Ryan about Summer Camp…
The summer festival season kicked off in earnest this past weekend with moe., Umphrey’s and friends throwing down at Summer Camp, the Biscuits invading Colorado, Furthur headlining a three-day fest and the indie world coming together at The Gorge for Sasquatch! We’ll have more detailed accounts of Bisco Inferno and Summer Camp later this week, but for now we wanted to start recapping the major moments from Memorial Day Weekend.
At Summer Camp in Chillicothe, IL, moe. peppered their sets with the debut of five originals and plenty of guest spots throughout the weekend. Ivan Neville, Danny Barnes and Brendan Bayliss all sat in at one time or another during moe.’s six sets and Zappa Plays Zappa was the latest participant in moe.’s full band segue tradition on Sunday. Umphrey’s also welcomed plenty of friends to the stage all weekend including pedal steel guitarist Mike Rackey, Brainchild’s Roy Ponce and Jesse Clayton of The Macpodz. Mad Dog’s Dirty Little Secret horn section – featuring trumpeter Jennifer Hartswick, saxophonist Chris Neal, trombonist Brent Sanders and trumpeter Mike “Mad Dog” Mavridoglou – joined the band at various points during Saturday’s sets.
Videos: G-Love – Booty Call, Slightly Stoopid – Collie Man, Avett Brothers w/ G-Love – The Fall, The Macpodz w/ Jake Cinninger – School Days, The Avett Brothers – Paranoia in B Major, Umphrey’s McGee – Glory, Slightly Stoopid – Wiseman,
Never ones to miss an opportunity for a sit-in, Gov’t Mule brought out Chuck Garvey for a cover of Traffic’s Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys, Al Schnier for a take on Loser by the Grateful Dead as well as Danny Barnes and Jeff Austin for the Stones’ ballad Wild Horses. Other guest spot highlights were G Love on harmonica with The Avett Brothers for The Fall and Jake Cinninger making the rounds by sitting in with both Dumpstaphunk and The Macpodz.
READ ON for a batch of Summer Camp Festival setlists…
Back in April, iClips revealed that this coming weekend’s Summer Camp Festival would be among the festivals the company would be webcasting as part of The Couch Tour. Today, iClips has posted the schedule for the webcasts and we’re stoked to see that sets from HT faves Umphrey’s McGee, Gov’t Mule and moe. will be broadcast from Chillicothe.
So far, it appears that three moe. sets and five Umphrey’s sets will be shown at various points throughout the weekend. READ ON for a look at the complete Summer Camp Webcast schedule…
While the festival season has grown in recent years, most see Memorial Day as the official opening weekend. Traditionally, many of the festivals on this weekend were smaller, local options but this year we add another large festival to the mix giving fans more options for music over the long weekend. Just don’t forget the weather can still be a little cool & unpredictable so make sure you don’t forget that extra sweatshirt & rain gear!
[Photo by Jeremy Gordon]
FurthurFest
For those of you out on the West Coast (or willing to travel) Furthur has you covered with their inaugural festival at the Calaveras Fairground in Angels Camp, CA. Furthur, which brings together Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, will play 6 full sets over the weekend each covering an entire Grateful Dead album making this the perfect choice for Deadhead’s young and old. Saturday will see American Beauty, Workingman’s Dead and Anthem of the Sun, while Sunday will cover Blues for Allah, Aoxomoxoa and Terrapin Station. Hot Tuna, Jackie Greene and Larry Campbell as well as other GD friends and family will be joining in over the weekend to round out the line up. Tickets start at $125 with a VIP option available. READ ON for more…
