Mountain Jam?

[edger]

I had a simply amazing time.

The weather could not have been better. It seems this festival has notoriously been washed out at least for one night on most occasions but we had fantastic weather from Thursday (which was calling for storms) right on through to late Sunday night.

The venue itself was fantastic. Rolling green lush mountains...opted to go with car camping and ended up with a spot right beside the treeline on a reasonably flat incline. Ground was very soft for sleeping on and easy to pitch tents. I am sure some folks were forced to camp on very steep inclines but there was a reasonable amount of free space to be had if you were unsatisfied with where you were allocated. Might have involved a trek with a wagon but the resort grounds were vast with lots of trees between ski runs (where folks were camped).

Up top of the mountain there is a flowing river along a really cool hiking trail. We somehow stumbled upon the scenic route on the way back to camp after Tedeschi Trucks which was extremely well "timed" for our head-space and ended up being an adventurous little frolic through the mountains. There was a whole other world up there with quite a number of people who obviously put some more effort into hauling their gear up to camp in paradise for the weekend.

One of the ski lifts was also fully operational all weekend and for five bucks you could ride for about twenty minutes or so above the entire festival through the mountains, beer and smoke in hand. It was serene.

The music was incredible. DSO and Umphrey's kicked things into high gear for a Thursday night. A great way to start things off. Perma smiles all around.

Friday I didn't get my act together early enough to catch Antibala's first set and opted to get prepared for a long day of incredible music ahead. Kicked the day off with Robert Randolph and the Family Band and then moved down nice and close for Trampled by Turtles who delivered a set that was one of my weekend highlights. Actually ran into the band the night before at the ski lodge/bar. Seemed like really down to earth guys that humbly handled a saucer eyed compliment that I couldn't resist passing along. Their fiddle player slays me.

The Avett Brothers was also a weekend highlight, especially given Mr. Bob Weir got up on stage to join them. I find their stage presence a little pretentious/overly dramatic sometimes, but I'll take it given it all seems to be part and parcel of their genuine passion.

Bobby & Ratdog were fun, although it certainly verged on the absurd at times...especially second set. Something was in the air. At one point Bobby walked off stage mid song and a very spaced out looking Jay Lane started singing a chant that went something like "cell phone video do, do, do...cellphone video Scooby dooby doo"... This went on for quite some time and took place after what seemed like a fairly lengthy set break. I felt like they almost lost some momentum there but to be fair they had just some out of what for me was a blissful run of Dark Star>Miles Davis cover> Terrapin. They redeemed themselves after with a Standing on the Moon. During first set the definite highlight was when Jonathan Wilson (LOOK HIM UP) joined Weir on stage for a groovy West LA Fadeaway. In truth for whatever reason when Warren joined them it didn't really seem to go anywhere.

Late night Friday I split it up between Antibalas and Beats Antique. Sound wise I preferred the former, but BA had a pretty cool visual spectacle going on and the woman's presence is very commanding.

One of my festival highlights came on Saturday with Blitzen Trapper. It was my second time seeing them. What a fantastic band. Their lead singer is totally raw. The whole band has a very catchy funky swagger. Can't wait to hear what they churn out next. Their latest album is great.

Sister Sparrow didn't end up grabbing me like I thought they were going to. Tweedy played a very sleepy set, but that was ok for the time of day...quite pleasant actually and a good time to just sit and take a load off. Caught a bit of Jonathan Wilson's set. Really wish I could have stuck around for all of it. He's made a new fan out of me, but I had to bow out early to take a little nap before gearing up for the night again.

Damian Marley's powerful voice carried well over the hills, I recall pleasantly fading in and out of consciousness from my tent throughout his set. It was comforting.

In truth I wasn't always the biggest fan of Tedeschi Trucks (despite loving trucks and being continuously blown away by Susan's voice). I always found his playing was a little stifled under that line-up, but they certainly seem to be evolving and gelling and stretching it out. Their set was fantastic. His tone is second to none. I skipped out on them last year at Vibes to rest up. I won't be doing that again. I had been sensing an evolution of their live show over Sirius satellite as of late and that certainly seems to be the case.

Utter shannanigans ensued that night. There were about 15 Canadians in total (that I know here and there from the scene) and we all just laughed and laughed til we fell apart that night. Gov't Mule was merely a backdrop for me. I wouldn't say I'm the biggest fan...not sure anyone in our crew was. But that provided us with the opportunity to just enjoy each other's company a little more instead of being entirely wrapped up in the music. I was holding out for late night with Jackie Greene. Admittedly by the time we got there my perception was not exactly crystal clear. That's all a bit foggy...I do remember someone in the (indoor)audience smelling like they had decided to forgo the porta-potties and set themselves free. Not so liberating for everyone else... I didn't bother with Pretty Lights.

Sunday started off with my first and only gentle breezy gondola ride above the beautiful festival grounds all while listening to Anders Osborne. He is fantastic. This was followed by a really floaty, psychedelic set from the Chris Robinson Brotherhood. They are hands down one of my favourite bands out there right now. I hope they have many years ahead. MacDougall is a sonic wizard. No words really.

Skipped out on Michael Franti to pull ourselves together and make it back in time for Allman Brothers. I thought they started out lacking a bit in energy, but then they ripped it as time went on and dusk set in. Just an incredible crowd of young and old. We had one little youngster beside us just ripping it on his little toy guitar. That made me miss my boy all the more. They ended with a nice little visual tribute to Duane. To be honest I thought the show seemed a little short, and we were all a little puzzled as to whether they were going to do a second set, or at least an extended encore. It all seemed to end a bit abruptly. But that may have been my head-space...they probably played for about two hours in hindsight. Gregg's voice was strong. That was heartwarming to hear.

Couldn't have asked for a greater crew to share this weekend with. Big thanks.

[phorbesie]

Awesome! Sounds like such a fun time

[Velvet]

Yep, awesome!

[mark tonin]

Thanks for the review edger, wish I could have joined that crew!

[edger]

Next year dad. Next year

[c-towns]

Mountain Jam Festival came under scrutiny from fans last year, after it was reported that over 50 attendees were arrested, with state troopers and law enforcement vigorously patrolling the festival's attendees. While the festival addressed some of these concerns when they posted their initial headliners listing, an official statement speaks to the complete changes at this year's Mountain Jam:
 

This is Gary Chetkof, co-owner and founder of Mountain Jam. I’m writing to address some issues with our own hired festival security and local police presence at Mountain Jam.
 

I am, first and foremost, a lover of live music. I’ve been to countless music festivals, both large and small, all over the world, and I know exactly how I want to be treated when I attend these events. At Mountain Jam, my mantra has always been to treat attendees with the same level of respect that I expect when I attend festivals. I am as upset as you are about the overzealous security searches that have taken place in previous years and I realize that we have let you down. I can assure you that we are bringing in the right security team this year; one that will focus on keeping the peace and protecting the safety of our attendees while respecting your personal space and privacy. That is of the utmost importance to me and I am going to personally monitor the gates along with some of my key staff, to ensure that our new “peace keeping” team acts appropriately.
 

We have also heard stories of local law enforcement officials busting Mountain Jam attendees for smoking weed and, in some cases, appearing to “extort” money by requiring their use of ATMs in order to pay fines. While these stories are rare, they are most certainly a misuse of police resources, and we are working very closely with local officials to address these types of reports and to make sure that frivolous busts are not made at our festival.

At every major music festival, state police as well as emergency service personnel, require a local headquarters to operate from. Law enforcement’s #1 priority is to ensure public safety and they are a great resource in times of emergencies. At our festival and at others, officials also often set up a temporary court room in order to quickly process those folks who are brought into custody. Local law enforcement point out that for minor infractions, it is in the best interest of the patron to be processed quickly, on-site, and to be released back into the festival to enjoy the rest of the weekend rather than having to be transported to an off-site facility miles away for processing and left to find their own transportation back to the Festival. In this scenario, we (the festival) are caught between a rock and a hard place and ultimately we decided it would be better to keep our patrons on-site. We continue to believe that we are making the right decision on this, but we are open to hear your thoughts too.
 

We are doing our absolute best to ensure that both our on-site security and local law enforcement do not get in the way of your wonderful experience with us at Mountain Jam 2015. We devote our entire year to working on the Festival and making it the best it can be. It sickens me to know that some of our MJ Family have been mistreated and we are working hard on correcting this. We ask for your continued support of our efforts to provide you with four incredible days of music and revelry in one of the most beautiful, natural festival settings in foothills of the Catskill Mountains. If you have issues or concerns, we have established a dedicated e-mail box that I will constantly monitor before, during and after the Festival - security@mountainjam.com.

Thank you and we hope that 2015 will be a great year for everyone and that we can celebrate together in peace and harmony.

 

Peace, Love & Music,
Gary Chetkof
Founder/Co-Owner
Mountain Jam Festival

[edger]

Hmmm...wasn't my experience at all

So far they have announced The Black Keys, Gov't Mule (featuring Dark Side of the Mule) and moe. as headliners

[HaMike]

Mountain Jam Lineup:

The Black Keys
Robert Plant
Alabama Shakes
Gov’t Mule
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
moe.
Michael Franti & Spearhead
Big Gigantic (late night)
Rebelution
Joe Russo’s Almost Dead
Railroad Earth
Lake Street Dive
Trigger Hippy
Benjamin Booker
The Wailers
Rusted Root
Nicki Bluhm and the Gramblers

Shakey Graves
Jon Cleary
Budos Band (late night)
Dopapod (late night)
Amy Helm & the Handsome Strangers
Hurray for the Riff Raff
Larry Campbell & Teresa Williams
Marco Benevento
The Mother Hips
Nikki Lane
Sons of Bill