N. Michigan’s inaugural Hoxeyville Skies fest unfurled impressive sets amid a weekend that also saw tour stops by Steel Wheels, Andy Frasco and The Replacements’ Tommy Stinson. Photo recaps and more.
Lighting Up the Skies: Grahame Lesh and Hoxeyville Skies did that and more over the weekend in Wellston. (Photo/Anna Sink)
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For those reveling in the robust sets of performers at last weekend’s inaugural Hoxeyville Skies Music Festival in northern Michigan, it was like a little piece of the original, much beloved Hoxeyville fest had returned.
With crowd-inspiring, Grateful Dead-invoking jams from headliners Grahame Lesh & Friends and ekoostik hookah — along with regional stars such as Luke Winslow-King, Peter Madcat Ruth, Airborne or Aquatic, The Smokin’ Dobroleles and Sweet Dee & The Wild Honeys — the two-day festival in the midst of the Manistee National Forest west of Cadillac had all the markings of once-upon-a-time Hoxey gatherings, with a hippie-flavored milieu, campfire jams and an uplifting but laid-back attitude.
Even Kalamazoo-bred guitarist Dave Bruzza of progressive bluegrass heroes Greensky Bluegrass — which once served as the “house band” for Hoxeyville back in the day — was on hand to perform with the Michigan super-group Airborne or Aquatic while also sitting in on drums with Lesh and his band.
Airborne or Aquatic: A crowd-pleasing, all-star affair. (Photo/Anna Sink)
One attendee called the Lesh set “super cool with lasers projecting from the back — like old-school Hoxey. I cannot believe this Grahame Lesh set is three hours. I love my Grateful Dead people out here. And for people who don’t know every single Grateful Dead song, the fire spinning on the side stage offers another thing to watch.”
The young musicians in The Mitten Pickers, Winslow-King’s set with guest Peter Madcat Ruth and the Saturday night set from Airborne or Aquatic were just some of the weekend highlights amid a festival that doubled ticket presales from last year’s Truckin’ Into Hoxey event on the same site.
For performers, the weekend held a special vibe, too.
Sutton, leader and guitarist for Sweet Dee & The Wild Honeys, said there was a “buzz around camp. People were pumped. The new management seems to really be making an effort to regain credibility and integrity within the music community and I think they definitely have done that.”
Dee Sutton (Photo/Anna Sink)
She added that the festival had security and a medic on site in lieu of the recent violent incident that occurred at Blissfest in July.
“The owners themselves said they have been visiting and consulting with other successful festivals to see what is working for them so they can continue to improve upon and create a fun, safe Hoxey for all festivalgoers,” Sutton said.
“They also said they will be amping up their kid activities for next year and will be in a good spot to do that as they continue to expand. … I’m really excited to see how Hoxeyville Skies grows. They seem to be doing things right.”
The long-running Hoxeyville Music Festival last took place in 2024 after a 22-year run.
PHOTO GALLERY: Hoxeyville Skies Music Festival in Wellston
Photos by Anna Sink
TOMMY STINSON, STEEL WHEELS, ANDY FRASCO & MORE
Iconic guitarist and songwriter Tommy Stinson — who first made his mark as bassist with the influential Minnesota rock band The Replacements in the 1980s — may have put it best as he chatted amiably with a crowd of devoted fans at Grand Rapids’ Tip Top Deluxe Bar & Grill on Sunday night.
It was a declaration that could have applied to other shows across West Michigan over the weekend — including Andy Frasco & The U.N.’s romp at Warner Vineyards with the Kitchen Dwellers and Grand Rapids’ Desmond Jones, and Steel Wheels’ tour stop at Bell’s in Kalamazoo, with West Michigan’s Kyle Brown & the Human Condition opening.
“The whole purpose of this is to have fun and make people forget about the BS happening out there,” Stinson remarked to cheers of approval.
His performance at the intimate West Side club covered a lot of bases, including a solo set that featured yet-to-be-released material as well as older songs such as “Match Made in Hell,” a duo set with violinist and singer Karla Rose, and a full-band set with Seattle post-punk/indie-rock band Little Venom.
Stinson jokingly called it all “Tommy Stinson’s Traveling S–t Show,” though officially it’s billed as a tour celebrating re-release of 2011’s “One Man Mutiny.” Sunday’s Grand Rapids show was the only Michigan stop on the tour.
Those traveling across West Michigan over the weekend could also have reveled in Frasco’s tour kickoff with a new band on Friday night at Warner Vineyards in Paw Paw and Sunday’s Kalamazoo tour stop by roots/Americana’s Steel Wheels at Bell’s Brewery Eccentric Cafe.
Browse photos and a video from these shows below.
PHOTO GALLERY: Tommy Stinson, Karla Rose, Little Venom at Tip Top Deluxe
Photos by John Sinkevics
(Full-band photos courtesy John Crissman, Jack Leaver)
PHOTO GALLERY: Steel Wheels, Kyle Brown & The Human Condition at Bell’s
Photos by Derek Ketchum
