Blissfest, GRAM on the Green, American Wi-Fi, Bermudas: The Weekend Photo Gallery (July 13)

From Harbor Springs to Kalamazoo, West Michigan throttled up music from folk to blues to hip hop, captured in images at Local Spins — plus a recap of part of Blissfest.

 

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The world lost a couple of iconic players this week: jazz bassist Charlie Haden and punk drummer Joey Ramone. Influential in their own spheres, these were musicians at different ends of the spectrum and will be sorely missed by fans in those polar opposite realms.

Mid-summer’s musical marvels boasted nuggets from different ends of that spectrum this weekend, too, from the folk-driven, acoustic power of Blissfest near Harbor Springs to the blues-infused magic of the Kalamazoo Blues Festival.

In between, there was the hip hop opening to the outdoor GRAM on the Green concert series at the Grand Rapids Art Museum, with Rick Chyme, Molly Bouwsma-Schultz and Punksuhate, singer-songwriters Tony Lucca, Tyler Hilton and Anna Rose — followed by Atlanta’s Gareth Asher & The Earthlings — at Seven Steps Up in Spring Lake, rock’s American Wi-Fi revving up The Pyramid Scheme, followed the next night by the CD-release show for pop-rock’s Valentiger, and garage rock’s Bermudas and Paucity firing up Mulligan’s Pub in Eastown. (Jackson Browne wrapped up the weekend on Sunday at Meijer Gardens; click here for the Local Spins review and photo gallery.)

But for the first time, Local Spins was at Blissfest, so here’s the report from David Specht.

MUSICAL BLISS AT THE 34th ANNUAL BLISSFEST

Featuring acts from as far West as New Mexico and as far East as New York, the 34th annual Blissfest Music Festival sold out on Saturday, and perhaps more surprising, managed to stay dry throughout much of the day.

Held once again at the Festival Farm just north of Harbor Springs, the three-day celebration of music, art, culture and community boasted three stages and more than 50 performing artists. With the scattered clouds above ready to burst at the seams, thousands of Blissers indulged in a bevy of shows from dawn until dusk.

A TOUCH OF WEST MICHIGAN

While it’s no secret that many flocked to the rural northern Michigan festival grounds to check out the legendary acts present this year – from New York’s Donna The Buffalo to renowned jam band Rusted Root and singer-songwriter Todd Snider – Grand Rapids-based artists were certainly not overlooked.

Kicking things off for West Michigan performers was progressive blues band Fauxgrass on the third stage with their signature boundary-pushing style, incorporating elements of jazz and jam into their set, and to top it off a bit of new material.

Just as the sun began to set DarlenYa took the third stage, sharing an adventurous and unpredictable collection of pieces that only the truest of fans could have predicted. From chanting to yodeling to animal noises, the eclectic vocalist and musician brought a sound that Blissers would not hear elsewhere the entire afternoon.

Of course, musicians weren’t the only ones that made the three-hour trek from Grand Rapids to bask in a weekend of bliss. One such festivalgoer was Daina Puodziunas, a dance instructor who attended the festival for the tenth time this year. On top of the “sense of community” found at the annual gathering, Puodziunas is passionate about the live music that is showcased.

“My favorite method of creative expression is free-form dance outdoors, which is what keeps me coming back,” Puodziunas said. “The music here is great; you feel it in your body and watch your body react.”

FIRST TIME’S A CHARM

According to Executive and Artistic Director Jim Gillespie, organizers sought to bring back successful artists from previous years while also seeking out fresh names to add to the lineup. One first-timer that made its presence known was Lansing-based jam band Joe Hertler & The Rainbow Seekers, jamming without lead singer Hertler in the afternoon in order to rest his voice for an evening performance.

“Wow this is fun for us,” said saxophonist and vocalist Aaron Stinson. The six members packed tightly into the tiny third stage, making their improvised jam session that much more intimate. “We don’t get to do this very often, and now we’re about to get a little dirty.”

While the crew’s first set had a decent sized crowd on their feet and smiling ear to ear, the evening appearance proved to be even more of a success, drawing hundreds to the tent-covered stage for their funk-infused pop-rock jams and fueling a roar of cheering heard throughout the festival grounds.

“I keep saying how great it was to play at Electric Forest this year, but to be honest I’m enjoying this even more,” said Joe Hertler during his band’s 7:30 p.m. set. The seven-man ensemble, featuring everything from a saxophone to a harmonica, performed at Electric Forest Music Festival just weeks prior to Blissfest.

Amongst other first time Blissers were Memphis-based quartet Star & Micey and Syracuse’s Andrew & Noah Band, both appearing on the main stage on Saturday.

HIGHLIGHTS

With nearly 100 separate sets on Saturday alone, it’s tough to determine what the highpoint of the day was, but a few happenings that stood out include:

– Six-piece bagpipe-driven group Tartanic, performing what they donned “hip-hop with bagpipes” only after announcing that their set was officially clothing-optional.
– The Brown Rice Family with a soulful, in-your-face hip-hop show at the second stage in the evening.
– Donna The Buffalo packing the tent-covered second stage for a late night set as the rain began to pour.
– Rusted Root’s performance on the main stage, drawing thousands to the dimly lit hillside for some evening grooving.

Blissfest photos by David Specht and Brian Haik
Valentiger, Rick Chyme, Punksuhate photos by Tori Thomas
Bermudas, American Wi-Fi photos by Anthony Norkus
Gareth Asher photos by Kevin Reedy
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Email John Sinkevics at john@localspins.com.
Copyright 2014, Spins on Music