Forced to move from Hart due to a miscommunication regarding use of the property, the organizer has quickly shifted the first-time festival to eight acres of rural land outside Fremont.
Cold Creek Rock: Devin & The Dead Frets are part of this Michigan festival’s debut. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
With Michigan providing such fertile ground for music festivals, it seems new music gatherings spring up around every corner and during every season.
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But at times, that ground proves rocky.
Cold Creek Campout, a free one-day music festival, originally scheduled to take place on Oct. 22 near Evans Lake in Hart, has relocated to Fremont after the owner of the initial property revoked the use of the grounds on Monday night, six days before the event.
Organizer Cameron Strong said a miscommunication between the tenants and landlord of the property, as well as a misunderstanding of the festival’s size led to the venue predicament and the festival’s relocation.
The festival will now take place at Brandon Wheaton’s property, an eight-acre rural plot at 380 N. Baldwin Avenue outside Fremont, amid a rolling field and surrounded by sprawling cornfields. Gates will open at 11 a.m. Saturday, with music beginning at noon.
Cameron Strong
“I chose this because it’s still an outdoor venue; it might not be a lot but it’s enough to hold everything,” said Strong. “I believe it’s a perfect surrounding…the fall colors are gorgeous around the field.
“They just decided they had enough room and would love to help us out. It’s super short notice but I’m just overjoyed that I’m able to pull this off.”
The new location will include space for parking, an open field for activities and a centralized stage where band’s will perform.
Described as a “grass-roots celebration,” the idea of the festival was cultivated over a number of years. This summer, Strong solidified the lineup and began promoting the festival, garnering a sizable following of nearly 800 individuals on the event’s Facebook page.
“I had the idea for Cold Creek out of the sheer love for music,” Strong said, praising the event’s “amazing” lineup of rising West Michigan acts. “It kind of grew more and more over the course of the last year. I started Cold Creek as a way to show everyone what West Michigan has to offer.
Hannah Rose & The GravesTones (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
“Specifically this year, I decided to throw the inaugural year on my golden 22nd birthday and have decided to put it on free of charge completely provided by me. I want to give everyone that wants a chance to see these bands the freedom of seeing them. It will be a lot smaller than most (festivals). I want to provide an intimate friendly setting where musicians and patrons alike can get to know each other throughout the day.”
The day-long music gathering that starts at noon Saturday boasts an impressive lineup of nine West Michigan artists: Hannah Rose and the GravesTones, Devin and The Dead Frets, Desmond Jones, Good Folk, The Smokin’ Dobroleles, Drew Phoria & Friends, Cosmic Knot, Eric Engblade and Flexadecibel are all scheduled to perform.
Food vendors listed for the festival are Fat Cats Sweets and Treats and Lynette’s Cooking Truck, while featured artist booths include Psychedelic Eyes Photography, Tee’s Dyes, Sacred Expressions and others.
“We are still stoked to play,” said Devin Weber, of Devin and the Dead Frets. “I’m looking forward to the line-up and I expect there to be a strong sense of community, especially since we all just went through this whirlwind of uncertainty.”
Engblade said he’s hoping fans will still turn out, despite the 11th-hour venue switch. “I’m glad he (Strong) found a venue willing to host it — someone’s house in the country with enough land to make it happen — because I’m hoping people will still be able to come,” he said.
Copyright 2016, Spins on Music LLC
