Have you not gotten your full share of Vibes memories yet? Here are some photos from the last two days of the fest to satisfy your needs.
Day 2
Orgone was my morning jam on Saturday – with some nasty guitar solos by Sergio Rios and soul destroying vocals by Adryon de León. I’m pretty sure there was not one person in that crowd who could keep their feet from moving.
Barefoot Truth was on the Green Vibes stage next, sure to bring an interesting performance on their reunion tour. They kept up Orgone’s groove with some of their greatest jam pieces, “Mama’s Minstrel” and “Reeln'”. The Truth fans got everything they wanted – Wayno’s piano jump, Garrett’s childish smiles, Jay on slide guitar, Will’s wacky drum faces and even a little didgeridoo at the end. Not to mention guest guitar prodigy Jeffrey Howard delivering some seriously dirty solos.
Rodrigo y Gabriela was definitely a different choice for vibes, bringing in the Mexican flamenco-rock flavor to the stage. It didn’t stop the hippies from spinning around barefoot in the dirt. I myself stood jumping for a good ten minutes wishing I had taken that flamenco class last year so I could participate in the clapping.
Langhorne Slim & The Law was the country fix for the day. Sean Scolnick (or Langhorne Slim) drove the performance as he stepped close to the crowd pleading for them to forget the judgment and just full out groove with him no matter what they looked like. There was even a point when a crowd member yelled, “I’m taking my shoes off”. Sean shouted, “does that mean it’s dancing time?” and preceded to take his shoes off as well.
Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros is always a treat to see live, and to photograph for that matter. Alex Ebert jumps around stage like it’s nobody’s business – there is so much you can tell just by looking at his brown Tom-clad feet. He sent the mic to the crowd numerous times hearing from a man with a harmonica, a woman singing a verse from “Home”, a story about a sister’s love, and he even brought a young boy up on stage to sing with him. Was he drunk? Did he look like a well dressed homeless man? Maybe, but in the end that man delivers an emotional performance for everyone and that just can’t be denied.
Umphrey’s McGee definitely gave us one of the best sets of the weekend. Tempos jumped every minute making it hard to find that dancing beat, but totally worth the struggle. And hey, they said they were going to get weird with us; they certainly did.
Widespread Panic was a great option if you couldn’t handle the madness of Umphrey’s. A much easier listen but with just as much talent. The crowd was stacked all the way back to the fence for this one.
The much anticipated The Disco Biscuits with Mickey Hart & Bill Kreutzmann was quite the jam with bass so loud that my eardrums would currently be blown out if a kind photographer didn’t lend me her ear plugs. They did an interesting spin on James Brown’s “I Don’t Want Nobody to Give Me Nothing” with guest vocalist Greg Sharrod. Overall I thought their music was amped up a little too much – there’s only so many times I can listen to the same electro-funk beat until I feel it’s time to retreat to the campground.
Day 3
Maceo Parker brought some James Brown soul to Seaside Park on the last morning of the fest. Hearing his incredible p-funk/jazz skills shine on the sax gave everyone in the crowd a little flashback to the 60’s. That’s all we want at Vibes, am I right?
moe. was the last true jam band of vibes, and it didn’t stop them from giving a fully loaded performance of good grooves. The crowd was ready to shake it to one last jam sesh before the day ended with other outlets.
Ziggy Marley was definitely a crowd favorite, belting out his father’s number one hits. It was pretty difficult not to sing along.
The Funky Dawgz Brass Band traveled all around the festival grounds this weekend in between main stage sets putting on a nice winded performance by the sea. They ended a beautiful weekend on stage with Dispatch, getting everyone to sing “When the Saints Go Marching In” along with their instruments. You may even get to see more of the festival through their eyes in the coming days if you keep a look out…
Here’s a last little bit of Wavy Gravy to send everyone off to the end of vibes. Make sure you come back next year to hear the stories behind the pictures. They’re worth every second.
The final act of the festival, Dispatch, told us in the media tent that there was no pressure for them to close Vibes. If anything it took the pressure off because they were able to have the time to fully rock out to some favorites. And they were right – they delivered the best set of the weekend. Right off the bat they combined “Out Loud” into “Mrs. Robinson”, “Here We Go” and “Bats in the Belfry”, causing the crowd to lose their voices as they screamed lyrics. Jumping around stage, Pete, Chad and Brad proved to us they are still a family even after almost a decade-long hiatus. They brought special guests on stage like Stanley Jordan and The Funky Dawgz Brass Band to add even more spice to their set. Playing a good mix of tracks from their new album Circles Around the Sun and some older, more popular stuff, Vibes was happy to see off the weekend with these fellas. They took away the need for any other substance than the music. All we needed was some “Elias” and “Flying Horses” to leave vibes with a buzzing head and a happy heart.
“do what you want, take what you will, take it in like a southpaw, flip it on the grill” (Here We Go)
Is Vibes over? It never will be in our hearts. Stay tuned in the coming days for some special segments starring the people and the festival itself. Vibe on vibetribe!