The Gathering of the Vibes 20th Anniversary in Bridgeport, CT last weekend was nothing short of a success. Although the festival originally started as a celebration for Jerry Garcia’s birthday, the Gathering of the Vibes has developed its own identity over the last 20 years, no longer simply a reincarnation of the Grateful Dead scene that once was, and proves yet again why it is a must-go-to festival for any and all Northeast heads. Aside from the stellar lineup, the festival is placed along the enchanting Long Island Sound with a tide that ebbed and flowed often, allowing festival-goers (Vibers) to either take a relaxing dip in the water or walk ankle deep into the Sound and enjoy the views. The merch-tents outlining the perimeter of the Main Stage area brought Shakedown Street right onto the concert fields instead of deep in the camping areas. Side acts such as Primate Fiasco and The Funky Dawgz Brass Band provided extraneous music all weekend throughout the campgrounds, and, as is tradition, the Ferris Wheel was there for all to enjoy.
The festival started off to a HOT start on Thursday in regards to both music and weather. Hayley Jane and the Primates brought the energy for the early arrivals, and Ryan Montbleau certainly gained a fan or two with his laid-back, but impressive set. Vibes veterans Strangefolk (with frontman Reid Genauer celebrating his 20th anniversary at Vibes) hit the stage right as the nasty weather rolled in—but that was not enough to stop the party. The VibeTribe rejoiced and soaked in the wet air while Strangefolk ironically belted out the Grateful Dead classic “Here Comes Sunshine”. One of the more underrated performances on Thursday came from Nashville natives Fly Golden Eagle. The band brought a unique sound that transcended any specific genre. Fortunately, I was able to talk with their keyboardist Mitch Jones who hinted towards collaborations with Brittany Howard of Alabama Shakes (close friends of theirs from Nashville) in a supergroup known as Thunderbitch—be sure to look out for it this coming fall! The other surprise performance of Thursday came from North and West African band Bombino. Their blend of good ol’ American rock’n’roll guitar-playing along with their African-drumming brought high energy and had the crowd bouncing nonstop. The first day of Vibes finally wrapped up with the Dark Star Orchestra set, as is tradition. After a smoking “Help->Slipknot->Franklin” and a particularly well sung “Blow Away,” Melvin Seals joined DSO for some Grateful Dead and Jerry Garcia Band classics such as “That’s What Love Will Make You Do”. Late night with Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe brought the heat, as he always does.
Friday in Bridgeport started off early with an exceptional performance by Twiddle [stream it here]. One of the strongest sets by the band included live art-work on stage, puppet-work by Ryan Dempsey, and a version of “Carter Candlestick” that left the crowd with arms raised and faces melted.
David Gans provided Vibers with a chance to cool off by the water as he played an enchanting “Terrapin Station” on his acoustic. The rare lineup of Robert Randolph’s The Word was an always pleasant treat. Despite the rising temperatures Sharon Jones & The Dap Kings shined brighter than the sun up on the main stage while bringing high energy and even higher vocal ranges. The Tedeschi Trucks Band performance directly into Greg Allman was welcomed by fans old and new and provided a wide range of music from Susan Tedeschi’s soulful ballads to Greg Allman’s plethora of classic songs. Greg’s samba/latin feel from percussionist Marc Quiñones provided a different portrayal of Allman Brothers Bands hits that the crowd soaked up wonderfully.
Faces of Gathering of the Vibes: 20th Anniversary Edition
Friday night’s big performance was just that—BIG. String Cheese Incident welcomed Old and In the Way legends Peter “Panama Red” Rowan and David “Dawg” Grisman, Blaine Sprouse on fiddle, and Chris Pandolfi on banjo channeling his inner Jerry Garcia. Playing an all-acoustic first, SCI graced Vibers with such classics as “Panama Red”, “Catfish John”, and “Lonesome Fiddle Blues” before closing with a heart-warming performance of “Ripple”. Although a quieter set than most, this one was certainly one for the ages.
Following this was arguably the highlight from the entire weekend. SCI, a band that rarely graces the east coast with their presence, brought the HEAT for their second set with fan favorites “Rhythm of the Road”, “Dudley’s Kitchen”, “Stop Drop Roll”, “Round the Wheel”, with “Desert Dawn” bookending the entire second set. The encore of “Restless Wind” was the cherry on top.
The late night performance by supergroup Electron covering all Pink Floyd songs was a welcoming surprise and kept the party going into the late hours. And when I say late, I mean LATE. Todd Stoops and Jason Hann’s highly anticipated Oktopus hit the stage around 4 am and provided such surprises as Gubb from Twiddle on bass as well as a raging late-night (early morning?) performance. Stoops, per usual, wowed audiences with his playing abilities (the guy’s hands looks like a slinky playing that keyboard!), Hann pushed the band as far into the abnormality as possible, and Gubb somehow didn’t miss a beat despite never rehearsing with them.
Todd Stoops And Jason Hann Debut New Project Oktopus W/ Members Of Twiddle & More
Saturday’s early morning performances of Kung Fu and Greensky Bluegrass kept the good vibes and even better music rolling. Deep Banana Blackout returned to Gathering of the Vibes yet again for a fun and funky set, but the real surprise of the day came from Brooklyn based band Moon Hooch. Their set can be described as somewhere between the Disco Biscuits and Miles Davis. Donning only woodwind instruments (although some were electric woodwinds) and a drummer, Moon Hooch wowed audiences with their unique self-described “cave music” and had everyone grooving hard and anticipating bombs from horn-players Mike Wilbur and Wenzl McGowen. Be sure to check this unique trio out. The Grateful Dead’s Bill Kreutzmann with his all star group Billy and the Kids provided festival goers with an intentional gift by playing a full setlist of Dead tunes that did not appear at any of the GD50 shows. So fans (like myself) that were itching for a “Ramble on Rose” or “Dancing in the Streets” in Chicago and/or Santa Clara were treated to wonderful renditions by this sublime lineup. The final song they played, the Beatles classic “While My Guitar Gently Weeps,” was a particularly nice outro. Warren Haynes and Railroad Earth brought the tempo down a bit and busted out songs from their new album Ashes and Dust while fan-favorites Turkuaz wrapped up the final show of the evening on the Green Vibes Stage.
Wilco’s two hour time slot seemed a bit daunting at first, but their set flowed wonderfully. Starting off a bit slow with their newest album Star Wars, the band soon found their groove and kept the music light and warm before erupting into noise-rock played on top of patient melodies that reminded me of a clash between Sonic Youth and Tom Petty. The highlight of the evening and most anticipated lineup of the festival followed directly after. The Seaside All-Star lineup consisted of Warren Haynes, George Porter Jr, Branford Marsalis, Joe Russo, Marco Benevento, and a guest appearance by Lettuce’s Eric Krasno on guitar. The All-Stars provided Grateful Dead tunes with a “Solomon’s Marbles Jam”, put a smile on every Phish (and Robert Palmer/The Meters) fan’s face with a patient “Sneakin Sally Through the Alley”, elated every music nerd with a Radiohead medley of “Karma Police > Paranoid Android jam”, checked ABB off the list with a wonderful rendition of “Dreams”, and played a personal favorite of mine, Traffic’s classic “Low Spark of High-Heeled Boys”. I think it goes without saying that this set kicked ass.
Warren Haynes Leads All-Star Jam Session At Vibes [Video]
The late night sets consisted of the guaranteed fun time group Lettuce and an extra late night performance by The Nth Power.
Despite being the last day of the festival, Sunday brought high energy and smiles all around. New Orleans all-time great Preservation Hall Jazz Band provided a full out dance party, and Zappa Plays Zappa brought all kinds of expected weirdness despite some sound tech troubles. Although they are not your typical jam-band, Weezer provided a roaring set and left all Vibers wanting more. Ben Harper wrapped up the festival with his peaceful aura and heartfelt music. Overall the 20th anniversary of Gathering of the Vibes was one for the ages and provided an array of diverse music amongst a captivating environment.
Words by Ben Fortgang, Photos by Patrick Hughes. Full gallery:
