Festival concerts shine bright with star-studded lineup
SANDPOINT - Eclectic? Check.
Fun? Check
Progressive? Check
This year's Festival at Sandpoint's lineup is also among the most balanced and fun among the summer music series' 33 years.
With groups ranging from Arlo Guthrie to Vince Gill to Wilco - as well as up-and-comers like Lake Street Dive, The Devil Makes Three and Trampled By Turtles - this year's Festival is the best yet, said Festival at Sandpoint Executive Director Dyno Wahl.
"We have fans which span the generations and sometimes it's difficult to find something that will appeal to everyone," she said. "This year, we've struck the best balance we've ever had between names people know to musical treasures to undiscovered gems."
This year's Festival will be held Aug. 6-16, showcasing eight nights of music under the stars.
The season lineup serves up an eclectic blend of classic favorites and progressive artists with headliners Arlo Guthrie, Ziggy Marley, Vince Gill, Lake Street Dive, Trampled By Turtles, The Devil Makes Three and Wilco, as well as supporting stars and local favorites including Jonatha Brooke, Maw Band, The Barefoot Movement, Troy Bullock, The Ballroom Thieves, Vetiver and Owen & McCoy
Arlo Guthrie, Vince Gill and Wilco promise to deliver great shows; however, the "sleeper concert" that everyone will be talking about is Lake Street Dive.
Wahl said the group popped onto The Festival's radar through an article in Rolling Stone magazine, which named the group among its "10 artists you need to know." Then a video of the group's rendition of Jackson 5's "I Want You Back" of the group singing on a street corner in Minneapolis went viral on YouTube.
"That's one concert that everyone will be talking about and if you miss it, you'll be sorry you missed it," Wahl said.
Every year, Wahl said, she wonders if The Festival will be able to repeat its success. That nervousness continues even as the lineup starts to gel.
"The insider feeling is a lot of anticipation and excitement about this season," she said.
With "the finest,friendliest venue around," The Festival is able to deliver a top-notch, unforgettable experience that not only has fans coming back, it has artists excited to play The Festival.
An example? Vince Gill - Wahl said she'd always wanted to have the country legend play The Festival but they never could afford his fee. This year, however, Gill decided he wanted to play venues he had never played and was willing to take less money to do so and heard from friends The Festival was a not-to-be-missed venue.
"His agent reached out to us, and of course we said yes," Wahl said.
Other concerts sure to please the region's music fans are The Devil Makes Three and Trampled by Turtles, two of the hottest progressive bluegrass groups out there, as well as Troy Bullock and Owens & McCoy, a pair of opening acts with local ties. Bullock is beginning to make noise on the Nashville scene and Owens & McCoy - still students at Sandpoint High School - all call Sandpoint home.
The Family Concert will feature a new twist this year, an all-local youth orchestra being formed with the cooperation of several local groups of Spokane Orchestra maestro Gary Sheldon.
2015 Festival at Sandpoint lineup
* Thursday, Aug. 6
- Opening Night celebrates American folk music treasure Arlo Guthrie.
As a singer, songwriter and lifelong social activist, Guthrie carries on the legacy of his legendary father, Woody Guthrie. Though he is best known for being a musician, singer and composer, throughout the years he has also appeared as an actor in films and on television including his best known role in the film Alice's Restaurant (1969), whose title song is also his best known along with "City of New Orleans" and "Coming into Los Angeles."
From his musical roots at Woodstock to famous collaborations with everyone from Pete Seeger and Ramblin' Jack Elliot to Judy Collins and John Prine, an evening with Arlo bridges political, religious and social gaps and displays a continued life of inspirational songwriting and service to all.
Singer, songwriter, guitarist Jonatha Brooke returns to The Festival to open the season. Her 2008 album "The Works" is a masterpiece that pairs her original music with the previously unheard lyrics of Woody Guthrie's lyric journals. All tickets are $44.95.
The Festival's popular brew tasting tickets are available for $10 - which includes a commemorative pilsner glass and premium microbrew tastes. The brew fest starts when gates open at 6 p.m. Concert starts at 7:30 p.m.
* Friday, Aug. 7 - The Festival welcomes back Grammy Award-winning reggae and world music icon Ziggy Marley, who headlined the music series' first dance concert in 2008.
The oldest son of the late reggae legend Bob Marley and Rita Marley, Ziggy was born in Kingston, Jamaica, and grew up accompanying his father to recording sessions, absorbing the sights and sounds of the reggae music scene. He formed the Melody Makers in 1979 with his musical siblings, touring the world and netting three Grammy Awards. His 2006 solo release, "Love is My Religion," and 2013 live album, "Ziggy Marley: In Concert," both garnered Grammy Awards for Best Reggae Album.
From his earliest days, he has been guided by his keen social awareness and driving compassion, earmarks of his work and his journey. His message, clearly evident in his music, is one of friendship, finding oneself and a unifying devotion to love.
Maw Band, an infectious, acoustic driven rock band hailing from Victor, Idaho/Jackson, Wyo., will kick start the evening. All tickets are $59.95, with an additional $1 for each ticket sold going toward Ziggy's charity, U.R.G.E., a nonprofit organization that benefits a wide range of charitable children's causes in Jamaica, Ethiopia and other developing nations.
Doors open at 6 p.m., concert starts at 7:30 p.m. This is a dance show and The Festival venue will be configured differently for this concert to allow for an increased dancing/standing area in front of the stage. There will still be adequate sections for blankets, low chairs, high chairs and reserved patron and sponsor seating, as well as seated availability in the grandstands. The dance venue map can be viewed online at FestivalatSandpoint.com.
* Saturday, Aug. 8 - Country Music Hall of Fame singer-songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Vince Gill headlines a Super Country Saturday show with special guests The Barefoot Movement and Troy Bullock.
Vince Gill first gained fame as the front man of the country rock band Pure Prairie League in the 1970s before embarking on a stellar solo career in 1983, where his talents as a vocalist and musician have also placed him in high demand as a guest vocalist and a duet partner.
Gill has recorded more than 20 studio albums, charted more than 40 singles on the U.S. Billboard charts, and has sold more than 26 million albums. He has been honored by the Country Music Association with 18 CMA Awards, including two Entertainer of the Year Awards and five Male Vocalist Awards. Gill has also earned 20 Grammy Awards, more than any other male country music artist. A member of the Grand Ole Opry since 1991, Gill was inducted into the Nashville Songwriters Hall of Fame in 2005 and earned his star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame in 2014.
The Barefoot Movement, award winners at the 2013 Telluride Bluegrass Festival, draws from styles of bluegrass, folk, acoustic rock and Americana. With original songs, impressive instrumentation and interweaving harmonies, this band converges old and new into a style all its own. Troy Bullock is a high-energy country performer who has lit up stages in Nashville and Las Vegas and now calls Sandpoint home.
All tickets are $54.95. Gates will open at 4:30 p.m. and the music starts at 6 p.m.
* Sunday, Aug. 9 - A day of musical fun for the young and young at heart as The Festival presents its Family Concert: "Season's Greetings" (as in Vivaldi's Four Seasons!) featuring the Festival Community Orchestra and Sandpoint's Studio 1 dancers.
Favorite pre-concert activities include the Instrument Petting Zoo (where kids can try out various instruments with guidance from high school musical mentors), an animal petting zoo, pony rides, clowns, face painting, games galore and the popular Parents' Corner where moms and dads can take a break from the chaos for a complimentary mini-massage. All tickets are only $6.
Activities begin when the gates open earlier this year at 2:30 p.m. and the musical performance starts at 5 p.m.
For information on auditioning for the Festival's Community Orchestra, please visit our website www.festivalatsandpoint.com.
* Thursday, Aug. 13 - If you're a fan of Pink Martini and Norah Jones will fall hard for the indie pop, jazz and soul band Lake Street Dive.
The unique and talented group whose tagline is "two girls, two guys and whole lot of feelings," consists of Rachael Price (lead vocals), Mike "McDuck" Olson (trumpet, guitar), Bridget Kearney (upright bass), and Mike Calabrese (drums), who met while attending the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. Although they are now based in Brooklyn, N.Y., the band was named after a street with many dive bars in Olson's hometown of Minneapolis, Minn. Influenced by classic pop and swing era jazz, Calabrese explains: "We want it to sound like the Beatles and Motown had a party together."
Their infectious, reinvented covers of "I Want You Back" (a YouTube sensation!) and "Rich Girl," and fresh hits "You Go Down Smooth" and "Bad Self Portraits," prompted Rolling Stone Magazine to cite them as Ten New Artists You Need to Know: "Launched as a country-jazz experiment ... Lake Street Dive has evolved into the hardest-swinging pop quartet since Manhattan Transfer."
The Ballroom Thieves will get you grooving with their captivating melange of acoustic styles, exploring the basic constructions of folk and pop music while almost wholeheartedly rejecting its restrictions at the same time. "Dive Bar specials" will be featured in The Festival Bar "Conlan's" & Lakeside Lounge.
All tickets are $36.95. Gates open at 6 p.m. and the concert starts at 7:30 p.m.
* Friday, Aug. 14 - A double dose of the hottest progressive bluegrass music is coming our way for this co-billed concert experience with The Devil Makes Three and Trampled By Turtles.
The Devil Makes Three is an Americana band from Santa Cruz, Calif., blending bluegrass, old time, country, folk, blues, jazz, ragtime and rockabilly music. DM3's travels and travails serve as inspiration for their fourth album, "I'm a Stranger Here." With upright bassist Lucia Turino and guitarist Cooper McBean, guitarist/singer Pete Bernhard crafted a dozen tunes, part road songs, part heartbreak songs and part barnburners.
"There's a road that goes out of every town. All you've got to do is get on it," Bernhard says.
While most bands are propelled from behind by a drummer, TDM3 builds exuberant rhythms from the inside out, wrapping finger-picked strings and up-surging harmonies around chugging acoustic guitar and bass, plying an ever-growing audience onto its feet to jump, shake and waltz.
Trampled By Turtles is the hot, fast pickin' bluegrass/folk-rock band from Duluth, Minn. Band members list their varied influences as Townes Van Zandt, Bob Dylan, Neil Young, The Rolling Stones, Nirvana and Ralph Stanley. From Bumbershoot and Sasquatch to Outside Lands, Telluride and Austin City Limits, TBT has garnered national attention on the premier festival circuit. Their fifth release, "Palomino," maintained a position in the Top 10 on the Billboard bluegrass charts for 52 straight weeks. Their music has been featured on TV shows including "Deadliest Catch" and "Squidbillies," and they have performed live on "The Late Show with David Letterman." Their song "Alone" was featured at the end of the 2013 movie "The Way Way Back."
All tickets are $44.95. Doors open at 6 p.m. and the concert starts at 7:30 p.m.
* Saturday, Aug. 15 - Super Saturday stars experimental folk and alternative art rock band Wilco, formed in 1994 by the remaining members of the popular alternative country group Uncle Tupelo.
With lead singer Jeff Tweedy at the helm, Wilco draws influence from alt country, The Beatles, Beach Boys harmonies, classic pop and more. Known for their adventurous spirit and ever-changing sound, they've won two Grammy Awards, made multiple television appearances, and are wildly popular on tour. Joining Wilco on their summer tour, indie folk/jam band Vetiver is the longtime touring and recording project of San Francisco based performer and composer Andy Cabic, whose original music has also been featured on numerous TV commercials, documentaries and feature films.
Owen & McCoy is Sandpoint's homegrown rock inspired duo featuring Nate Owen on lead vocals and rhythm guitar, and Brenden McCoy on lead guitar and backing vocals. They write and perform original music and cover a wide variety of classic rock, blues and folk songs.
All tickets are $59.95. Gates will open at 4:30 p.m. and the music starts at 6 p.m.
* Sunday, Aug. 16 - The Festival season culminates with the Grand Finale Concert: "Viva Italia!" featuring the Spokane Symphony Orchestra, conducted by maestro Gary Sheldon.
The classical portion of the program will include "Roman Carnival Overture" by Berlioz, "Dance of the Hours" by Ponchielli and Mendelssohn's "Italian Symphony." Festival fans are also in for a special treat, a world premiere by jazz pianist Vadim Neselovskyi, who will perform at the concert.
Preceding the concert, The Festival will hold its annual "Taste of the Stars" wine tasting, is now the largest wine event of its kind in the state of Idaho and complimentary for all concert-goers over the age of 21 years. The summer music series' traditional fireworks finale, made possible by Avista Utilities, will close The Festival at Sandpoint's 33rd season in spectacular fashion.
This concert also serves as part of The Festival's 5th Grade Music Outreach Program, an educational mission that takes place in all elementary schools in Bonner and Boundary counties. Each fifth-grader receives complimentary tickets for themselves and two family members to attend a symphonic Festival concert. The recipient of the Festival's Music Scholarship will perform before the concert, and the winning bidder of the original 2015 poster artwork by Lucy West will be announced.
Gates open early at 4:30 p.m. for the wine tasting event. Concert starts at 7:30 p.m. Tickets are $39.95 for adults, $10.95 for youth 0-18 years.
Individual tickets to all shows are on sale now in The Festival at Sandpoint office, 525 Pine St., Sandpoint. Tickets are available for purchase online at The Festival's secure website: www.FestivalAtSandpoint.com. Phone orders may be placed by calling The Festival Office locally (208) 265-4554 or toll free (888) 265-4554. Visa, Mastercard, American Express, Discover cards, personal checks and cash are accepted. Tickets are also sold at all TicketsWest locations, or by calling 1-800-325-SEAT.