It’s about that time. September is just around the corner, and the summer festival season is almost at an end. With Summer Camp and All Good behind us, we’ve got one more music festival to see. One more to round out a summer of great festivals and music across the Midwest. Hoxeyville Music Festival (August 17 – 19) is in Northern Michigan, smack dab in the middle of Manistee National Forest. We covered Hoxeyville for the first time back in 2010, and we’re even more excited about this year.
The organizers have pulled together another great lineup. It’s a very Michigan artist focused festival, as you can see from the artist roster, and there are a couple of great national acts playing, too. Bruce Hornsby and the Noisemakers are headlining, and just for me, they’ve got two amazing post Grateful Dead bands playing – Bill Kreutzmann‘s 7 Walkers and the Mickey Hart Band. So if you’re anywhere near Michigan, you might want to take the time to check it out. Here are some of the bands we’re particularly excited to see.
7 Walkers
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ld5hKeZQGFo&w=560&h=315]
This is the band I’m most excited to see at Hoxeyville. Bill Kreutzmann on drums, with Papa Mali on guitar and vocals, and George Porter on bass and vocals. George Porter was a founding member of The Meters. He sings “Sugaree” here, and really belts it out. Papa Mali is a great guitar player from New Orleans. Together, these guys bring New Orleans funk and soul to the Grateful Dead sound.
Mickey Hart Band
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JFT2w9YGzcw&w=560&h=315]
Mickey Hart Band – “Brokedown Palace”
Here they are at All Good, doing a slow, soulful “Brokedown Palace”. And the video is great. Hats off to the videographer. As the song starts, he’s walking down the hill towards the stage, and stops by the tapers (in front of the soundboard) to capture the rest of the song. I don’t know what he was using to tape it, but he’s pretty steady all the way down the hill.
Greensky Bluegrass
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DCr-pItRqwg&w=560&h=315]
Greensky Bluegrass – “China Cat Sunflower -> I Know You Rider”
We’ve covered Greensky Bluegrass a couple of times here before, and they are always high on our list of bands to see at music festivals (they played at both Summer Camp and All Good this year). This video is from when we saw them at Hoxeyville in 2010. The Rhythm Devils played that year, too, and both Bill Kreutzmann and Mickey Hart joined them on stage for a stellar rendition of “China Cat Sunflower” into”I Know You Rider”. If you listen carefully, you can hear me yell “Mickey!” when Hart gets behind his drum kit. Yes, I almost wet my pants with excitement. That’s just how I roll.
Seth Bernard and May Erlewine
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dzipdd8y-ho&w=560&h=315]
Seth Bernard and May Erlewine – “Ain’t No Sunshine”
I was first introduced to Seth Bernard and May Erlewine at Hoxeyville in 2010. They were all over the schedule. As Seth Bernard and May Erlewine, Airborne or Aquatic?, Paul Hoffman vs. Seth Bernard, and probably a few other places, too. This clip is from a show they did at The Ark in Ann Arbor in 2011. Listen to May sing “I know, I know, I know…” and try not to fall in love with her voice. They represent some of the best musical talent in Michigan, and they are an integral part of what makes Hoxeyville what it is.
Paul Hoffman vs. Seth Bernard
Continuing on with the Seth Bernard focus, I would be remiss if I didn’t mention Paul Hoffman vs. Seth Bernard. Paul Hoffman is the mandolin player, vocalist, and one of the songwriters in Greensky Bluegrass. When we saw them at Hoxeyville last time, it was just the two of them on stage, greeting the morning crowd with some of their own tunes, and this rendition of Neil Young‘s “Cortez the Killer”. A must listen (sorry, no video!)
Paul Hoffman vs. Seth Bernard – “Cortez the Killer”
Airborne or Aquatic?
[youtube https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZCMly1uz1wY&w=560&h=315]
Airborne or Aquatic? – [No idea what this jam is called]
Airborne or Aquatic? is another Seth and May production. It’s sort of “supergroup” of Michigan players, and Hoxeyville is one of the few places they get together. It’s totally spacey, trippy music, as you can see from this video, which starts out with some spoken word stuff from Lee Sprague, Tribal Council Member of the Little River Band of Ottawa Indians. Should be a trip again this year.
I could go on and on here, highlighting all the great music you catch at Hoxeyville this year. But there just isn’t enough time. I’ll just say that I’m also excited to see The Macpodz, The Ragbirds, The Josh Davis Band, Naive Melodies (Talking Heads cover band!), and The Red Sea Pedestrians performing Abbey Road (regular GloNo readers are familiar with my unhealthy obsession with covers and cover bands).
Festival tickets are still available. You can grab them here. Hope to see you there!