The O-town Scene - Oneonta, NY
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/31419
Jamming, Dancing, Hippies LiveLIVE! Music & Arts Festival: playing all weekend long Story by Ned Brower Photos by Genevieve Pedulla It was billed as the first liveLIVE! Music & Arts Festival, so don’t call it Kris Hauser stands on a handmade Eiffel Tower model. He helped erect the miniature tower for the Dirty Paris performance, which closed the festival Saturday. “Headyfest” anymore. The event was organized by the creators of Headyfest, the annual party that grew from a backyard kegger to a multistage music festival. The name change came about to legitimize the festival and reflect the increasingly professional approach its organizers have taken. The new name also brings the festival under the banner of liveLIVE!, a music production company started by the founders of Headyfest — Trevor Dunworth, Dan Votke, Dan Sternstein and Nate Roberts. At 4 p.m. Friday, May 6, as the first band was scheduled to begin, Votke scrambled with his volun- teers and interns to put the final touches on the stage they erected and frantically run the final cables to the sound system at the country setting in Oneonta known as The Blowdown. Beer sales officially started at the same time, shortly after bartenders arrived. The smoky pork aroma from Mad Dog’s Big Top Barbecue was filling the air, and just like a good barbecue the week- end was off, low and slow. It was a beautiful, sunny day and no one noticed or cared that things were starting off a few minutes late. Emily Greenburg (left) and Amanda Siedner sit on a blanket near camping sites Saturday. 16 O-Town Scene May 12, 2011 As campers set up their tents and more attendees drifted in, the music started with a trio of local acoustic acts. The Spectacular Average Boys (which I happen to be in), opened with a handful of fans at the front of the stage. The golden-voiced Micah Resney was next, followed by the Horseshoe Lounge Playboys. The next band up began what would be a theme throughout the festival; jam bands that I could not tell apart. As one band started, I took my guitar and wandered off with the Horseshoe Lounge Playboys. Standing in a circle outside their camper, I got to join in playing some tradition tunes and original songs of theirs. When it got too dark to follow what Randy Miri- tello was playing, I headed back to the main stage. I was afraid I had missed Future by Now, the act I was most looking forward to that night. Future by Now had not gone on yet, but I would not learn this until later. There were no clocks. There was no posted schedule. There was no way for me to know what bands were playing when. I asked around the crowd, but as far as I knew, the band that was onstage could have been the same that took the stage after HLP. When Andris Balins and Blake Fleming of Future by Now began to set up, I realized what had saved me from missing them. Only one stage was being used, although there is a permanent stage built just across the bar. That, combined with the fact that the schedule of bands did not include any changeover time between acts. The next band up found a way around this schedul- ing problem — while Future by Now was still onstage, the members of Jimkata began bringing drums and amps behind them, setting a few things up onstage and waiting with their gear. After checking out Jimkata’s electro-pop, I did what any rational person did and went to bed. There were plenty of irrational people around the festival, staying up all night, dancing to DJs and shouting through the campsites to “come play!” with them. Continued on Page 17