Saturday morning at Infinity Downs Farm, the home for LOCKN’ Festival, started off gorgeous once again. With a slight breeze under partly cloudy blue skies, the weather continued to be nothing but perfect. Holly Bowling opened up the morning over at Terrapin Porch with her easy-on-the-ears piano before Rockn’ To LOCKN’ winners, Mighty Joshua, kicked off the day with upbeat reggae, getting the crowd involved in the music with heavy interaction and spreading joy and positive vibes out to the venue. This band started the morning off on a high note.
Nashville-based Los Colognes kept the good vibes of the morning strolling along into early afternoon with a set that finished up with a cover of Bob Dylan’s “It’s All Over Now, Baby Blue.” Unfortunately, The Suffers had to cancel their early afternoon set due to travel conflicts reaching the venue. This unexpected change allowed other acts to add 10 to 15 minutes to each set to make up the difference. Pigeons Playing Ping Pong busted into their set crammed with energy, as fans streamed onto the field to catch their show. The jammy melodies got fans up and grooving without hesitation. “Melting Lights” had everyone in the venue pumped up to eleven. The cover of  The Talking Heads’ “Psycho Killer” went into a psychedelic spin around the notes before cranking right back into intense vibes as they continued their set.
Barefooted Keller Williams opened up the Main Stage in the late afternoon. His guitar was covered with stickers reading Make America Love Again, Virginia Is For Everyone, and Ain’t No Time To Hate. Whistles and plenty of string slapping took place throughout his set. He dropped bombs by switching over to bass at one point, then looping the notes only to add guitar, drum, and percussion beats, throwing in off-the-cuff vocals on top of the whole musical mix. In a nutshell, his set was stacked with surprises and unexpected tones, giving the audience one hell of an exceptional show.
Greensky Bluegrass began playing as they turned to face the audience, and what a crowd they had waiting for them when the stage came to its resting place. It was their debut performance at LOCKN’, and they did not disappoint. Early on in the set, each musician took a turn kicking out serious jamgrass on their instrument, showing off their mad skills to fans. Their set included a smoking performance of “Not Out Of Control” and a tease of “Terrapin Station” before kicking into full gear with “Living Over,” only to be followed by a tender version of “Room Without A Roof” sung by guitarist Dave Bruzza. The group closed with a kickass version of Bruce Springsteen’s “Atlantic City.”
The rotating stage turned right into Australian-based John Butler Trio’s “Cold Wind.” Magical tones and free flight guitar rhythms eased into “Anything.” After Butler spoke a few kind words that we are all one and love is the way—in response to Charlottesville—they broke out their new tune “Bully,” which could not have spoken more appropriately to the current times. He then performed solo on stage with his acoustic to play “Ocean,” which he stated was “a song about peace and love.” The remainder of their set was in a class all by itself, leaving the audience jaw-dropped from their outstanding performance.
The top-notch sets continued, this time with John Fogerty taking charge. The setlist was stacked solid with Creedence Clearwater Revival tunes. “Born On The Bayou” and “Suzie Q” ripped up the stage. Fogerty then shared that after he went home from being on the road with Janis Joplin, he wrote the song “Who’ll Stop The Rain.” All the hits came out to play including “Lookin’ Out My Back Door.” A sick drum solo took charge towards the end of the set before rolling into “Have You Ever Seen The Rain.” He finished up with “Proud Mary.” It was one of the hottest sets on Saturday.
Widespread Panic flipped around on stage and burst into Buffalo Springfield’s “For What It’s Worth.” Their highly anticipated set was two hours of tightly wound, nonstop jams that included “Fishwater,” “I’m Not Alone,” and “Blue Indian.” Following their epic performance, late night music continued on the Relix Stage with Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, featuring special guest Bob Weir for five songs. The energy was explosive after he left the stage, with the Grateful Dead guitarist then returning for Almost Dead’s final song of the set and encore. You can read more about Bob Weir’s sit-ins during Joe Russo’s Almost Dead’s Saturday LOCKN’ set here.
Throughout the weekend, every act has been throwing back and channeling the peace and love Woodstock vibe due to recent events in Charlottesville. Once again, for fans who can not attend the festival, a free LOCKN’ stream is available, courtesy of Ben & Jerry’s, Airstream, and YouTube, in conjunction with Relix and Headcount. Viewers are encouraged to make a donation, with proceeds going to the Heal Charlottesville Fund. Funds raised will go towards assisting local residents seeking trauma counseling, supporting victims involved in the car attack who need help with their medical expenses, and towards helping law enforcement to prevent future attacks. Click here for more information regarding donations, as well as how to link up to the live stream.
Words by Sarah Bourque
Photos by Sam Shinault Photography
