The inaugural northern Michigan festival held amid the Manistee National Forest last weekend brought out national and regional stars. Get the recap, browse the photo galleries at Local Spins.
Shooting Stars: Both on stage and in the night sky at last weekend’s Hoxeyville Spring. (Photo/Chelsea Whitaker)
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It’s wholly apropos that the first-ever Hoxeyville Spring music festival would unfold just as Michigan kicked off its “Great Lakes and Fresh Water Week.”
After all, the lineup for the festival in the midst of the Manistee National Forest featured the likes of Leftover Salmon, Sweet Water Warblers and the Airborne or Aquatic super-group, led by Michigan environmental activist and guitar wiz Seth Bernard who called attendees to action to protect the Great Lakes and the state’s sacred tribal land.
Oh, and just for good measure, water came down in the form of plentiful rain on Saturday — midway through what organizers and festivalgoers called an entertaining inaugural celebration (complete with late-night jams) hosted by Hoxeyville Presents.
Sweet Water Warblers: Hoxey favorites. (Photo/Anna Sink)
“It was pretty solid for a first round,” said Jake Robinson of Hoxeyville Presents. “I don’t have finals from the team yet, but it definitely ran smoothly and met our expectations.”
Performance highlights included the aforementioned “house band,” Airborne or Aquatic, which unleashed sets on Friday and Sunday nights.
“They played all the hits,” said Local Spins photographer Anna Sink. “They were super rock ‘n’ roll. It felt so good to see Seth (Bernard) and Luke (Winslow-King) up there together leading the jams.”
Colorado progressive bluegrass mainstay Leftover Salmon didn’t disappoint either, following Airborne or Aquatic on Sunday to close out the festival by getting attendees dancing nonstop, including a fan on crutches.
Fellow Local Spins photographer Chelsea Whitaker said the splendid weather on Friday and Sunday — along with an early set by singer Hannah Rose Graves — kept folks on their feet, with South Carolina indie-rock band SUSTO impressing fans with its Southern rock and country twang.
“The vibes were energetic and chill. With only one stage and longer set change times, everything felt a bit more relaxed than the (August) Hoxeyville,” she said. “I do think they could’ve had more things to do between sets, though.”
Check out the photo galleries from the weekend in the woods below.
PHOTO GALLERY: Hoxeyville Spring 2024
Photos by Anna Sink
Photos by Chelsea Whitaker
View more Hoxeyville Spring photos here
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