Welcome to the pond

Good news and bad news. The bad news is I've decided to not go to the festival today because my feet are pretty sore from all the walking around yesterday. The good news is that I can listen to it on the radio, and that I'm going to recap yesterday for you all now.

The weather was not good to us on Saturday. It was cloudy all day, and rained off and on. It had rained the previous night, so the entire lawn was quite muddy. As a festival-goer, you just have to grin and bear it and take whatever you get.

I arrived about twenty minutes after the day started, got myself a BBQ chicken sandwich, and watched the Foghorn String Band. They're basically a bluegrass band, and quite a good one. I enjoyed the music, even if I was too busy eating my sandwich with the smallest mess possible. Next up was Martine Locke, an energetic woman from Australia who brought her acoustic guitar and, for one song, a mandolin. Her voice reminded me of Melissa Etheridge and she did a pretty good set. She played to the crowd a lot, posing like a rock star.

After that was Timothy Hull, another acoustic guitarist. I only caught part of his set because I was wandering around watching other musicians. One thing I love about the folk festival is how musicians that aren't on the official schedule will find a place to set up and just play for people. These performances are very impromptu and usually draw pretty good crowds. There's a real connection between the musicians and the audience. That's probably because there's not much difference between the musicians and audience. We're all people, and some of us just happen to be good with instruments.

Among the impromptu performances I watched were a group of people playing Celtic music on guitar, fiddle, banjo and flutes and whistles. I really enjoyed them and watched them quite a bit. I also caught a really wild and interesting jug band. There was a guy playing a homemade bass made from a wash tub, stick and rope. Another guy was playing washboard, and the most interesting guy was playing an f-hole style acoustic guitar. That guy was something you only see in Eugene. He was wearing a vest over a brown plaid shirt, and a fancy hat. He had long black hair and a big beard and a VERY large nose ring. I really wish I had a picture of the guy, because my description doesn't even come close to telling how quirky this guy looked. He kept breaking guitar strings between his blues and folk-inspired tunes.

After I wandered around a bit, I caught the last part of Timothy Hull and then watched Mike Barnett. Mike played acoustic guitar and brought with him a guy on drums and a guy on electric guitar. Mike's a black man and would put little raps in his songs once in a while. I thought that was quite interesting and surprising for a folk musician. He played a good mix of socially-concious songs and other songs that I just can't describe. He was very good and had a good connection with the crowd.

After Mike Barnett, I watched part of String Helix's set. They're a fairly new group with guitar, stand up bass, and accordion. Then I wandered around a bit more before I went for dinner.

After dinner, I settled into a spare chair under a tent to watch the headliners for the evening. The Sugar Beets are a famous local band that's been together for fifteen years. They got their start at the University and come to the festival almost every year, it seems. They were definitely the highlight of the day for me. They played some pretty long jams and gave the crowd a good groove for dancing. Instruments used included drums, guitars, fiddle and keyboards. They definitely played the music I enjoyed the most during the day, and I loved watching them.

The last act of the night was Aphrodesia. They're an 11-piece Afro-beat jazz and funk band. That's how I would describe them, at least. I enjoyed their music, but not as much as I could have because it was dark, cold and rainy. I'd have enjoyed it more if I wasn't so miserable. Still, they played very well and made the crowd happy. I stayed for about an hour to see them, and then I went home.

I did have an enjoyable time watching the music this year, but overall I'd have to say this was my least favorite year of the festival since I've been going. I just enjoyed the years past more, mainly because there was more of an eclectic mix of musicians. What I did enjoy this year, though, were the random musicians appearing unofficially between the stages. No matter what, I always enjoy going to the folk festival. Good music and happy people, and no entrance fee. What could be better?