River's Edge Music Fest

I admit, I haven't been doing a very good job on keeping up with the blog this summer.  You might think "Well, she's not working, so she should just be posting all day!"  Oh how I wish, but the reality is, I've been unpacking from moving, applying for many many jobs, and have been out of town repeatedly.  So, that's why I'm a bit behind.

Here's something from a few weeks ago.  I went to River's Edge music fest in St. Paul.  It was on Harriet and Raspberry Islands, which is just a gorgeous, convenient setting for a festival. 

The first day Mark, my brother, and I went.

The first band I was excited about seeing was Motion City Soundtrack.  I love them, enough said.  However, by this point I'm not very up-to-date on their newer music, so it might end up being one of the last times I really try to see them play.

This is as close as I got to a picture with Justin.  Oh well.  I've got a few to remember him by.

We hung out on the beach a bit.  Those rocks were loose and I nearly fell into the river.

Next we watched the Scissor Sisters.  Holy cow.  They were incredible.  A few years ago I had tickets to see them, but wasn't able to go to the show and was totally bummed.  I thought I'd never get the chance to see them again... but I did!  I danced so much and left satisfied.

It wasn't quite Jason's scene, but he was great about it and stuck around for the whole show.
Here's what I heard from my family after he told them about the show:


Mom: So, who was that band you saw that Jason said sounded like the Beegees?
Me: The Scissor Sisters.
Mom: How many sisters are there?
Me: They aren't sisters...
Dad: Well, how many women are there?
Me: There's only one woman, the rest are men.
Dad: So, they're not sisters, why the scissors then?
Me: Um...
Uncle Al: Maybe they're barbers!

Tool closed out the night and high school Karen was happy.  We were pretty far from the stage, so I barely saw Maynard, but the intense videos sufficed.   Afterwards we caught the free shuttle back to the bar down the street from my apartment.

The next day Mark and I headed back to the island mid-afternoon for another day of music.  It was pretty steamy out, and shade was limited, so we did our best to find any spots out of the sun.

Fabric wristbands seem to be the new paper-less ticket option for concerts, and I love it!  It's a lasting souvenir that can be saved and maybe sewn into something when I accumulate enough.  What do you think of them?

We headed to the silent DJ stage for a while.  It was a pretty cool concept: two djs on stage, no speakers, headphones for a $10 deposit, and a button to switch between the two djs.  When you're done listening and dancing, return the headphones and get your $10 back!  I will admit though, if you walk by without headphones, the people dancing in silence do look pretty hilarious.

Then it was time for the Flaming Lips.  Typical show from them- confetti, dancing Dorthys, Wayne Coyne in a bubble.  It was great but I think I would've enjoyed it more had I not seen them just last summer at a very similar show.

And then, rounding up the night, Dave Matthews Band.  Decent show, but we didn't stay for all of it, as we wanted to catch our free shuttle again and Mark had jury duty the next morning. 

This event is contracted to happen for three more years, so I think it could be something with a lot of potential for the area.  Here's what I think will help make it successful and what they did right this year:

1. The music:  Sure DMB, the Lips, and Tool are big bands, but let's face it: none are exactly at their peak of popularity.  Each day drew around 25,000 people while the island has the potential to hold 45,000.  A bigger band at the height of their popularity (Mumford & Sons or Skrillex anyone?) would pull that crowd.  Also, more local stuff!  I'm pretty sure Polica and MCS were the only local bands in an area fiercely proud of their scene.  
2. Bathrooms:  Seriously, toilets make or break a festival (more on that in my next festival post).  River's Edge did it right!!  There were lines at the port-a-potties by the stage, but if you walked two minutes farther- rows of clean empty bathrooms.  Awesome.
3. Beer: Yeah, beer was expensive.  I expected that.  Unfortunately, the only local beer on tap was Summit at $9 a pint.  24 ounce cans of standard domestic were $10.  Surly would have been perfect- local, pint sized, and in cans.  Harriet Brewing, Fulton, and Rush River would have also been great to have on top.
4. Stages: The two main stages on Harriet Island had staggered performances and the one on Raspberry Island had continual music with no sound interference.  Very good.
5. VIP: VIP areas were way over-planned.  You'd walk past a fenced-in, shaded area with bean bag games, liquor service, and tables with no one there, while hoards of sweaty non-VIP-ers struggled to find shade.  Unnecessary use of space.

So there ya go!  Maybe I'll see some of you there next year!

Bella Fiore

So, it's been nearly a month since we went to Bella Fiore, but here's how we spent our lovely long weekend:

1.  Napping!  I love napping at festivals so I can keep my energy up.  The first full day was pretty cold and gloomy, so I didn't mind curling up on a blanket with Mark for a few hours.

2.  Hydrating!  We brought LOTS of water with.  It's no fun to have a super hot day, no water, and super long lines at the vendors, so we made sure we had extra water with and carried it around at all times.

3.  Hanging out with our camp!  We had a big, fun group, and a view of the stage from our area, so we got to hang out there quite a bit. 

The whole group:

4. Um, music!  There were three stages to see, so we were bouncing around a lot, depending on who was playing. 

Our friend brought this little toy with that provided hours of entertainment for us and passers-by.

Big Gigantic

5.  Taking in the scenery.  It's such a lovely park, so it's fun to explore, even if you've been there lots of times, like I have.  You never know when there will be a perfect sunset or fire-spinning or just a great crowd vibe!

Not pictured:  the rain storms on the first and last night.  We'll just pretend our tent didn't flood and we weren't sleeping with damp bedding all weekend. 

A good chance of rain...

We leave for Bella Fiore today and I can't wait.  I've been going to Harmony Park (this lovely campground in the middle of nowhere) for years, but I haven't been to Bella since the first year it started, and this is it's 6th year!  I can't wait to see how the event has evolved...

Here are some of my favorite pictures at Harmony from the past, a few are from the first year of Bella: Bella Luna, 2007.

Fire dancers, Project Earth, 2009

Project Earth, 2009

Project Earth, 2010

Bella Luna, 2007

Project Earth, 2011

Bella Luna, 2007

And right about here began my love for Trampled by Turtles. I consider this proof of my undying affection for Dave Simonett.

Lake Geneva, Project Earth, 2009

Bella Luna, 2007

Project Earth, 2011

Pre-storm clouds, Project Earth, 2010

And, even though Mark and I have each been to Harmony Park many times (and even at the same festivals!), this will be our first time there together! So that's fun!

MWMF

 

We spent this past weekend away in Winona, MN for the Mid West Music Festival: three days of music, beer, food, nature, and otherwise exploring a town we weren't too familiar with it. 

Disc golf on our first afternoon.

the 4onthefloor

The first night we saw Charlie Parr, Rogue Valley, The Feelin', the 4onthefloor, and a bunch of others. There were so many venues it was hard to figure out where to go at any given time, but once we got the layout of the downtown area it was smooth sailing.

 

The next day we went on a hike and then to the Winona Earth Day festival for music, snacks, and free seeds from some of the vendors. 

 

The town and lakes below the bluffs.

We missed the llama obstacle course.  Bummer.  I think it was probably awesome.  But we did see some good sidewalk chalk art, Koo Koo Kangaroo, and laid on a blanket in the grass in the sun!  I also got some rad wire earrings from a vendor that I will definitely be wearing daily.

We spent a lot of time looking for good food.  Our first hunt for breakfast was a brutal disaster that wound in bad food from a chain, but later we found a few good coffee shops with great vegetarian food. I wanted to hit up a local donut shop that had rave reviews from the only person I knew who lived in Winona... nearly 30 years ago, but it happened to be closed the day we tried to go. 

The weekend ended with a Kimya Dawson- you know, from the Juno soundtrack and whatnot.  It in a Masonic center and everyone sat on the floor.

Well, that's just the start of summer festival season... I can't wait for more!

How it goes, how it goes.

We went to Caroline Smith and the Goodnight Sleeps on Saturday. I love her so much and it just so happened that Mark's friend's band was opening the show. It was an early show and we got right up front for Caroline, so that was awesome. If you've never heard of her, you have to give her a listen. She's mind-blowingly talented and so incredibly beautiful. I swoon when I see her and you probably will too.



Not sure why this is filmed in front a McDonald's, but I have faith in my girl and assume it is not an endorsement.