Saturday’s 12-hour marathon at Grand Rapids’ Intersection boasts sets by K. Jones & The Benzie Playboys, Drew Nelson, Fauxgrass, Madcat Midnight Blues Journey and other roots music stars. See the full lineup.
Returning Favorites: Northern Michigan’s K. Jones & The Benzie Playboys rev up dancers as well as listeners at Winter Wheat. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
Though the bitterness of winter has blanketed the state, the sounds of summer will make their way to Grand Rapids this weekend for the eighth annual Winter Wheat festival.
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Madcat Midnight Blues Journey (Photo/Anna Sink)
Taking place at The Intersection, the day-long showcase of regional acts is hosted by Michigan’s non-profit Wheatland Music Organization, a coalition that serves as a regional music resource and aims to preserve traditional music.
Every summer, the organization stages one of the region’s biggest folk festivals, Wheatland Music Festival, a sprawling weekend of roots music and art in Remus.
Winter Wheat takes the show indoors, featuring 12 hours of music from 13 Michigan acts on two stages. Tickets are $20 in advance, $25 at the door and $15 with a valid school ID. Doors open at noon Saturday at The Intersection.
The 2017 Schedule
Winter Wheat started as an effort to extend the life of the thriving summer festival scene into the dead of winter. Many of the same artists, organizers and even the dance floor will travel to Grand Rapids this weekend to tide over festival lovers till the warm weather returns.
Playing Winter Wheat once again is K. Jones & The Benzie Playboys, a Cajun-infused supergroup from Benzie County. The band maintained a busy schedule last year, performing a number of concerts around the country and are already booked for Michigan festivals such as Buttermilk Jamboree, Bayou on the Bay and Porcupine Mountain Music Festival for 2017.
“The Playboys take pride in putting on a great dance performance. It’s a great way to warm up the winter,” said Mark Stoltz, who sings and plays washboard in the group which also released a new album in 2016. “Seems like it’s always a challenge getting to the gig in a winter storm, but we love it. We love coming to Grand Rapids. It is such a cool city.”
Stella
In addition to K. Jones & the Benzie Playboys, Winter Wheat performers include Fauxgrass, Cabildo, Drew Nelson & Hwy. 2, Mark Lavengood’s Bluegrass Bonanza, Olivia Mainville & the Aquatic Troupe and many others. See the full schedule at right and tune in to Local Spins on WYCE (88.1 FM) at 11 a.m. Friday when Drew Nelson will be an in-studio guest.
Akin to its summer counterpart, Winter Wheat also provides plenty of opportunities to hit the dance floor, with clogging, square dancing and Cajun dancing.
But despite hours of music and dancing, it’s the communal environment and chance to reconnect with other music lovers that proves the weekend a memorable one, Bear Berends, a guitarist for the Blue Water Ramblers, 30-year veterans of Wheatland.
“The best part about Winter Wheat is that you not only get 12 hours of great traditional music and dance performed by some of the best local artists in the genre, but Winter Wheat also brings all your Wheatland pals out from around the state,” he said.
“It becomes a reunion of sorts for all those that support the programs and gatherings of the Wheatland Music Organization. And we get to do it in the center of our own hometown, Grand Rapids.”
Dance Hall Fun: Winter Wheat features square and contra dancing. (Photo/Anthony Norkus)
Copyright 2017, Spins on Music LLC
