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Go Yellow Team
Recently, The String Cheese Incident announced they’d be playing 3 days a Red Rocks this summer. A true treat for Cheese fans and Coloradans alike. With the other recent announcement of a band like Yonder coming to Summer Camp, I could’t help but pull this little slice of blue grass heaven out to show you all.
Earlier this winter, the Emmitt Nershi Band played at the Bluebird Theater in Denver. What a rip roaring good time that was! I was lucky enough to get a ticket to the show and it was packed in there. So many good vibes, so many good people. I love seeing all the people come together at the same time during the culmination of a song, just dancing away and yelling at the top of their lungs. And that is pretty much what we got at the Blue Bird Theater.
Honestly, it took me a while to come around to bluegrass, but now that I am I really love a good boot stompin. Billy Nershi was just going to town on his guitar, and he had a huge smile on his face the while night. It looked like he was having so much fun up there, I was envious. Drew Emmitt on the other hand switched back and forth between his mandolin and several electric guitars making them all sing sweet, sweet songs.
The night was wonderful, the show was great, and here is a little snippet of the show:
Hey Campers,
Last year, the Red team came up with some pretty amazing tshirt designs on their own. So this year, to make sure EVERYONE can support their team, we’re excited to announce that we are currently accepting submissions for each team’s Summer Camp Field Day shirt. There will be 1 winning design for each team (red, yellow, blue and purple). All 4 winning designs will be printed in their respective Field Day colors, so they must be a single color design. Designs can have no gradient or shading, and must all be original artwork. All submissions MUST include Field Day, 2012 and the name of your team somewhere on the piece. Other than that, creativity is encouraged, so have fun!
To enter, sign up for a CrowdTogether account and upload your design. All designs must be submitted by midnight on April 20th. Then, fans will have an additional week to vote for their favorites. The designs with the most votes for each of the four teams at midnight on April 27th will all be named winners and each receive a pair of 3-day passes and VIP upgrades to the 2012 Summer Camp Music Festival.
Entries that do not follow the rules will not be considered, and may be eliminated from the entries by the Contest Director at their discretion.
For questions about the contest, please email contests@summercampfestival.com.
So get designing!
Yours truly,
The Summer Camp Director
For those of you who don’t know, the foundation of any good music event is the street team. If you are on one, you understand what I mean. If it wasn’t for the people on the street, spreading the word, how would anyone find out about that concert? Now imagine putting together a festival…how many concerts are there? There’s got to be at least 50. And since that’s 50 times the size of one show, well we need 50 times the street team. So I implore you Summer Campers, get your street team act together. Go out to your community and tell them about summer camp.
Recently, I made a video for the Umphrey’s show that came through Denver. Check it out here and put something together of your own for Summer Camp.
Hey Campers,
Umphrey’s McGee will be playing at The Canopy Club in Urbana, IL on February 19th….the weekend after Valentine’s Day! So we thought, in the spirit of Valentine’s Day, to bring a Booth Love Photo Booth to the event for charity.
At the Summer Camp Field Day table you will be able to buy raffle tickets to win passes to Summer Camp, merchandise and more. Each raffle ticket will give you 1 photo in the Booth Love photo booth. The $5 from each raffle ticket will go to benefit the Champaign County Humane Society in Urbana. Fans will have from 8pm-12am to enter and snap their Booth Love photos. Winners will be notified by text message by the end of the show and can come collect their prize at the Field Day table after the concert.
For another chance to win, after the concert, the Summer Camp Facebook page will post an album of the photos taken throughout the night. Tag yourself for a chance to win one of 3 Thursday Pre-Party Passes!
This is a Summer Camp Field Day event so every raffle ticket purchased will count for points for the Red, Yellow, Blue and Purple Team. The team that raises the most money for the Champaign County Humane Society will win the Booth Love event!
The Champaign County Humane Society is funded entirely by donations from generous animals lovers. They need our help to continue the high standard of care they offer to homeless animals. Your donations will make a difference in the life of a dog or cat, puppy or kitten, rabbit or guinea pig.
Hope to see you at the Canopy Club and remember to buy a raffle ticket to support the Champaign County Humane Society at the show!
Yours Truly,
The Summer Camp Director
p.s. Have you seen the Booth Love video yet? It’s pretty badass….
What a way to start the New Years Run…Normally I see 1 band for 3 nights for New Years, but this one was gonna be different. Instead I’d be seeing 4 bands over 3 nights. One of those bands and one of those nights was one of the best New Year’s Eve that has ever taken place anywhere in the world, but more about that in a later post 
What I am here to talk to you about to day is a certain Mr. Troy Andrews, or as you may know him, Trombone Shorty. I am not super familiar with the brass band jam scene, but all I know is Trombone Shorty is the BEST trombone player I have ever seen in my life. On Wednesday and Thursday December 28th and 29th Trombone Shorty and his band, Orleans Avenue absolutely obliterated the Bluebird Theater in Denver.
I was lucky enough to know each of the 2 opening bands. The first night, Kinetix. The second night, the Fox Street Allstars. Wednesday night Kinetix was amazing, and to be honest, I was shocked. These guys were working with a new drummer and we all know that if the drums aren’t working, nothing is going to be working…to my surprise though, George, the new guy, not only learned the music perfectly (minus one hitch in the night…but hey, no one is perfect) but he CRUSHED IT!!! They sounded so good, they looked so good, one of the best Kinetix shows I can remember, and I’ve seen these guys about 150 times. Check out this sweet picture compliments of Kit Chalberg and Listen Up Denver, a great local music blog, check them out at www.listenupdenver.com
The second night was the Fox Street All Stars turn. Just another installation of a local band wreaking sonic havoc upon the souls of the unknowing…I know, that was little out there, but basically they played a heck of a show. Things are starting to come together for those guys…they are regular touring partners with the New Mastersounds, they continue to play great supporting slots at local venues, and they are about to get back in the studio to put another album together. Their new songs are awesome. Take it or Leave it is probably my favorite. It’s a super funky upbeat tune and the first lyrics are “I know you like to think your shit ain’t stinky, but it’s smellin’ pretty bad,” so you get the gist of what the tune is about. This show was phenomenal and their sound was a great fit for the Trombone Shorty crowd, so if you like him, check these dudes out. Here’s a couple more pictures, this time from Tim Dwenger at Listen Up…
Moving onto the star of both shows, Trombone Shorty and Orleans Avenue. Man, they were amazing. I would love to see these guys get a set a Summer Camp this year. So much energy so many influences. Sure it’s a brass band but they are influenced by jazz, hip hop, and they even do some light yamming. Even if you aren’t into this genre, you need to see these guys perform. I promise you won’t be disappointed. Thanks again to Tim Dwenger at Listen Up for some great shots!
Hey all,
Just a week after I got to see Roster and Kyle Hollingsworth, coming into town is Strange Arrangement. These guys are from Chicago and have played Summer Camp before. They played an awesome show at Cervantes Other Side and they were even recording for a DVD…I managed to get a copy of one of the song on there…Check it out here: Strange Arrangement – Sweet Love
Unfortunately I couldn’t sit down with them, but I did get to ask them some questions over email, check out their answers below:
THE INTERVIEW:
Jeff – Where are you from, individually and as a band?
Strange Arrangement – We are all from the South West suburbs of Chicago. Jim Conry is from Willow Springs, IL. Kevin Barry from Hinsdale, Joe Hettinga from La Grange, IL and Steve Sinde is from Burbank, IL.
J – Where did your band name come from, it’s usually a good story, no?
SA – Haha! We used to play together in High School and the name came from a very quirky friend Mitch Manz that thought the words just sounded hilarious. He also played Harmonica and percussion in the band and when we were trying to name the band all he kept saying was “No way!!!! Strange ArrANGEment!!! Plus, the name definitely fits the music. We reformed in 2007 and thought about a ton of different names but SA just stuck with us…
J – How long have you been playing together?
SA – Jim, Kevin and I (Joe) have been playing together since 1997. But went separate ways from 2000 until 2007 when SA was reformed in Chicago in 2007.
J – What festivals have you played before?
SA – We’ve played at The Big Up, Bear Creek, North Coast, Summer Camp, Hoxeyville, Rootwire, Shoe Fest and a lot of smaller regional festivals in IL, WI, IN, OH and MI.
J – What would you say your biggest show has been so far?
SA – Our biggest shows have been Bear Creek, Rootwire, Hoxeyville, Summer Camp and opening for Umphrey’s at the Canopy club and UM After show on the new years run last year at Kinetic in chicago. Also, the House of Blues in Chicago on the main stage.
J - I know it’s a rather vague question, but tell us a little about where you are at in your career as this band and what kinds of initiatives you are taking to continue moving forward…
SA – We are currently changing from a regional touring band into a national touring band. We recently have gone to Northeast, Southeast and Southwest markets and plan on returning to each of these regularly. We’ve recently expanded the production of our shows to include a light rig and will soon be releasing our live shows for download so wherever you are, you can get some Strange live!
J – Are you trying to get into Summer Camp? If so, what is that process like?
SA – Of course we want to play at Summer Camp! We love that festival! We keep playing heavily in the Midwest to keep spreading the gospel of Strange Arrangement
J - Anything you’d like to add to tell the fans of SC music festival?
SA – We are playing a Jam Productions show in Chicago at Park West on Friday Jan 27. It’s a CO-Bill with Strange Arrangement and Greensky Bluegrass and Chicago Farmer opening! Definitely not to be missed! Our website is the best place to keep up to date on new announcements and show listings. www.strangement.com Our winter tour will be at least 25 shows so stay tuned and hope to see you there!!
Also, don’t forget to like us on facebook at http://www.facebook.com/pages/Strange-Arrangement/164640530689
What up Scampers?!?!!
This weekend I got to see an amazing show, the Kyle Hollingsworth Band, SOLD OUT at Cervantes in Denver! I must admit, I am a casual fan of SCI at best and I paid little attention to their side projects. Kyle Hollingsworth, however, is AMAZING and has opened my eyes…I once was blind but now I see…please don’t hate a wretch like me…
Well, Kyle was super funky and way more synthesizer based than I anticipated. I don’t know the names of his songs, but Michael Kang came out for a bunch and they were some awesome jams. I was way too into it at the time to pull myself away and get any footage, and for that I am deeply sorry. In any case, you can look up some clips if you like but I am telling you, you don;t need to. If the Kyle Hollingsworth band comes anywhere near you, go see him!
The same can be said for some buddies of mine, Roster McCabe. Have you hear of them? Well you will now. Roster McCabe are a great group of guys and are a well traveled band. They were opening for Kyle Hollingsworth at this show and I got a chance to ask them a few questions…You can see that below. I also managed to grab a video of them doing Fame by David Bowie with Kyle Hollingsworth. Check out the video and then check out Roster McCabe. They believe you should have some music in your life regardless of what you got in your pockets so you can download ALL their music for FREE at www.rostermccabe.com/
THE INTERVIEW:
Jeff – Hey guys, so thanks a lot for answering some questions, let’s start off with the basics, where are you from, individually and as a band?
Roster McCabe – Jeff is from Grand Forks, ND; Alex is From Brooklyn Park, MN; Drew is from Bloomington, MN; Mike is from Oconomowoc, WI; Scott is from La Crosse, WI. We all met in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area in Minnesota.
J – Nice, I always like to ask, where did your band name come from, it’s usually a good story, no?
RM – It is a great story, yes, but it is also a secret.
J – Haha all right, playing a little hardball, this one should be easier, how long have you been playing together?
RM – Jeff solidified our lineup in January of 2008. We started full time touring in 2009, playing 150 shows in 2009; 175 in 2010; and this year we’ll get to about 180.
J – Cool, and what festivals have you played before?
RM – We’ve played a couple big ones but we’ve also played a lot of really cool smaller festies that are definitely worth mentioning. The full list is: Summerfest, Harvest Fest, Shangri-La, Bella Music Fest, Midwest Fest, Rock the Vine, Bandit, Co. Fair, Ifdakamp, Browntown, Jam-Boree, The Family Reunion, Great Aberdeen Pigout, Cosmic Railroad Family Gathering, Prairie Grass, Engelbrechts Homegrown Fest, Jam for Jam, and this year we’ll be doing Wookiefoot’s Snowball Festival in January.
J – Well hopefully this year you can add Summer Camp to the list…Including all those festivals, what would you say your biggest show has been so far?
RM – It’s a tie between opening for Stephen Marley at Summerfest, Matisyahu at Shangri-La Festival, and a show we did this past Saturday at Cervante’s Ballroom in Denver with The Kyle Hollingsworth Band and Michael Kang. Kyle sat in with us for a rendition of David Bowie’s fame. Definitely a show we’ll remember for the rest of our lives.
J – All right, let’s switch gears a little bit, because I like to know more about the inner workings of bands and to see how that all goes, so, I know it’s a rather vague question, but tell us a little about where you are at in your career as this band and what kinds of initiatives you are taking to continue moving forward…
RM – We’re still a growing and changing band because we’re still so young. This is only our third year being on the road full time and we’ve changed A LOT in that short time. I’d imagine we’ll continue to change and evolve as time goes on cause we get bored easily. We’re constantly writing and re writing our tunes to get them to a point where we’re happy with them and to get them to the point where we think they’re good enough to share with people. We’re also constantly introducing new instruments into the band as we evolve. A most recent introduction is the use of Ableton Live to get some of the new stuff sounding as close to a DJ as we can while still playing all the actual parts. We’re never satisfied with where we’re at. We always want to sound tighter. We always want to reach new highs with our performances. We always strive to be a better band in every way possible and I don’t think that we’ll ever stop doing that.
J – So, are you trying to get into Summer Camp? If so, what is that process like?
RM – Absolutely. Summer Camp has been on our list for sometime. We think it’s a great festival with awesome people so yeah, it’s definitely something we would like to do. Really we’re just trying to grow as much as possible in Chicago and the rest of the area as possible to ensure that we’ll bring people to the fest. We’ve been doing a good job of that recently, so hopefully they’ll take notice this year.
J – Anything you’d like to add to tell the fans of SC music festival?
RM – All of our music is available for free on our website at rostermccabe.com/downloads and we’ve got a bunch of live shows on the Live Music Archive. To get a good feel for what we’re doing now make sure to get a recent show because like I said before we’re always changing – even if you listen to something from 6 months ago it won’t sound how we sound now. And if you guys dig what you’re hearing make sure to let the people of Summercamp know!
THE VIDEO: David Bowie\’s Fame by Roster McCabe feat. Kyle Hollingsworth
Hey Campers,
If you’ve ever been to Summer Camp, you know bandanas are an essential accessory. Which is why last year, we introduced the Summer Camp Bandana Design Contest, to determine which design gets printed and sold as the official Summer Camp Bandana! And we’re excited to announce that we are currently accepting submissions for the official 2012 Summer Camp Bandana!
Bandanas will be printed in all of our Field Day colors, so they must be a single color design (black and white, red and white, blue and white, purple and white, or yellow and white). Designs can have no gradient or shading, and must all be original artwork. You do not have to use our official logo, or include the dates or year of the festival, but you MUST include either “Summer Camp” or “Summer Camp Music Festival” somewhere on the piece. Other than that, creativity is encouraged, so run with it.
All designs must be submitted by midnight on January 27th. Then, fans will have an additional 3 weeks to vote for their favorites. The top 3 designs at midnight on February 17th will all be named winners and each receive 2 3-day passes to the 2012 Summer Camp Music Festival.
From the top 3 designs, we will select which design will be printed and sold as the Official 2012 Bandana, and THAT designer will receive 2 Super Deluxe VIP upgrades and 10 of their printed bandanas, on top of the 2 3-day passes (and all the glory!).
Keep in mind, fans will be able to vote on your designs as soon as you post them on the contest page, so there is definitely an advantage to posting your design(s) early!
Entries that do not follow the rules will not be considered, and may be eliminated from the entries by the Contest Director at their discretion. For questions about the contest, please email contests@summercampfestival.com. To enter, visit http://www.crowdtogether.com/2012-SC-Bandana-Contest.
So for all of you designers out there, start working on your entries now and make sure to get them in before January 27th! Good luck!!
Getting so excited for Camp!
Your Summer Camp Director
p.s. Happy New Year!!
I bet you are wondering who I am talking about when I say Dave…… well I am talking about the one and only Dave Matthews and I got my first Dave show ever at the Dave Matthews Caravan in Chicago and it was a Chicago experience to remember. Lets start with the waking up at 7 am and driving down to Chicago to make the Saturday set of the Caravan which was personally the day to be there with Cornmeal, Yonder Mountain String Band, moe., G Love and Special Sauce, and Umphrey’s McGee. Yes I know some amazing Summer Camp artists. Any who getting back to the haul down to Chi town. We left real early to get there real early. The acts all started early afternoon and I wanted to make it there in time for a group picture at the Summer Camp booth for the scavenger hunt at 4. Of course I dressed in all yellow to represent my team and I was ready for the 5 hour drive. It was a really nice day and a pretty quick drive until we arrived in Chicago around 1 and it all went downhill from there. We went to my boyfriend’s sister’s apartment on the north side of Chicago because that is where we were going to stay. We immediately dropped the car off hit the red line and started what turned out to be a 3 hour trip to
the caravan grounds all the way on the Southside of town. It sucked our train broke down, we couldn’t find a cab in that part of Chicago for the life of us and when we finally got to the end of the train destination we had to wait for a bus and take a 30 minute ride to the grounds. We were very discouraged when we got there and missed Cornmeal Yonder and my picture. Very discouraged but we made it in time to catch the last few moe songs and the rest of the acts from there which were G Love, Umphrey’s and of coarse Dave. Nothing else could go wrong and nothing else did. It was a killer time. I have to say I enjoyed the Umphrey’s set very very much. They played amazing songs we all love like JaJunk, In The Kitchen and Nemo and they rocked it. It also made me really happy to hear a couple
people talking behind me about how they had never heard the band and how much they really liked them. I had to turn around and put my two sense in and express my love for the band. We all know how much I love me some Umphrey’s .
After all was said and done it was time for the main man to make his appearance. I unfortunately have never seen DMB live and I had high hopes for my first show being it was my first and it was the DMB Caravan not just any show. Needless to say I enjoyed it much so. I got to hear one of my all-time favorite Dave songs Satellite along with the ever popular Crash. It was amazing. Who wouldn’t want a chill 3 hour Dave Matthews Band set at his own festival? We hung out in the back due to outrageous DMB fans up front, I’m sure if you have ever been to a Dave show you have experienced the carnage of Dave fans. That is why I call the man a dog, he hounds and serenades those ladies with that deep relaxing voice and with Jeff Coffin on his side you really can’t go wrong at all. Oh yes it was one for the books. The time it took to get there blew but the weather was perfect and the music was right, what can beat that?
Natalie Fletcher
Counselor In Training