One of the main reasons I love going to music festivals has always been the social interactions, and in this respect, the 15th Annual Summer Camp Music Festival did NOT disappoint.
Over the course of three beautiful days… Abraham Lincoln abolished me from slavery, I got to sit down for an interview with Jason Hann of EOTO, I enjoyed a Nothing Too Fancy Pale Ale with the guys of Umphrey’s McGee, and I was surrounded by individuals from all walks of life.
With 2015 being my first year acting as a Camp Counselor, I had plenty of opportunities to meet new people – between the neighbors camping near us, the other Camp Counselors I had yet to meet, and the heady folks everywhere preaching their enlightened good vibes, it was an incredible weekend of making new friends at Summer Camp. In fact, in my five years of attendance, this was the most packed with new faces and old friends I had ever seen Three Sisters Park.
Here are just a few of my high points….
As much as I try to cook at festivals,
nothing beats getting a meal made for you to stifle those drunken munchies. I grew up in a family that had an old saying “Food is Love,” and I fancy myself as a bit of a foodie. As such, one of my first stops when walking through the gate at Three Sisters is always Ćevapčići Chicago. This little gem of a food stand is always located at the back of the moonshine stage. Serving up little Ćevapčići spicy sausages grilled to perfection, then topped with a zesty red pepper and eggplant sauce, and fresh onions. I crave this year round, and it did not disappoint at Summer Camp 2015.
Another stop that I make each year when returning to Three Sister’s Park is Chester’s BBQ which is located by the Sunshine stage. Generally I sit down to a big old platter of BBQ nachos, corn chips smothered in cheese, pulled pork, jalapeños, and BBQ sauce, and wait for Umphrey’s McGee to play 40’s Theme as I gorge myself on smoked meats. This year Umphrey’s was not there so I did the same thing, but with Widespread Panic instead.
Finally one of my favorite stops is
Manolo’s Pizza & Empanadas as a quick snack located between the woods, campfire stage, and Vibe tent on the main Shakedown Street. If anyone has ever been to a show at The Canopy Club, this is the same business that is right next door.
This year
I was lucky enough to win entry to the umVIP picnic and Umphrey’s McGee set through Goose Island Beer Company in a stroke of random luck. Nothing screams intimacy like 100 Umphreaks packed into a sweaty church for a private set. I had been chasing Umph playing Q*Bert for quite some time, and sandwiched in between Front porch was fantastic. After the set I was invited to the UMVIP Picnic. Here I was able to talk with all the members of Umphrey’s and snag a few autographs. The picnic also featured a nice boxed lunch with different wraps and sandwiches, some fruit, pasta salad, a cookie, and most importantly – all you could drink Nothing Too Fancy Pale ale.
This beer is a collaboration between the guys in Umphrey’s, Rock Brother’s Brewing, Boulder Brewing, and Cigar City Brewing. I have to say as a beer drinker born and raised in Wisconsin, I love this beer! It has a light pale ale initial taste but with more of a wheat ale finish. This beer is something that although flavorful, is light enough to sit around all day drinking while listening to music.
Overall, the weekend at Summer Camp 2015 had too many amazing acts to put into one post, but few of the sets really stood out this year. First and foremost, Umphrey’s Mcgee amazed me with the six sets I saw, with the final set on Saturday being my favorite. It was so wild even MC Pumpernickel had to come out to “Regulate.”
Then, I finally discovered what everyone was “Tauking” about. Tauk from Oyster Bay, NY left me wanting more. I caught their set at the Campfire stage which was packed all the way back to the barn with people getting down to their cover of Nirvana’s “In Bloom.”
Finally, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe was possibly one of my favorite sets. I had grown up listening to Karl play with Lenny Kravitz and Greyboy Allstars, but this was my first time getting to see him live. The amount of energy that Karl was able to maintain on stage was phenomenal, and I was happy to see the crowd moving to some old school funk and soul.
Leaving Summer Camp Music Festival is always hard, but was even more so after this year’s 15th Anniversary celebrations. Hopefully all the fantastic new friends I met over the weekend have a wonderful Summer Camp off season, and possibly even come out to a show in Milwaukee where I work at The Miramar Theatre so we can catch up we anxiously await Summer Camp 2016.
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