Bloom Heavy River Romp 2012
Review, Photos, Interviews with Split Lip Rayfield, Hot Buttered Rum & more.
July/12 #2
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Thursday
Schlafly and JamBase banded together with a group of dedicated organizers to create a legendary bluegrass festival in the foothills of the Ozark Mountains. Southeast Missouri local weather reported that temperatures hit 107 degrees across the region on June 29 & 30. Guests and musicians cooled off in the Castor River that conveniently ran next to the Arrowhead
Campgrounds. Yonder Mountain String Band, Hot Buttered Rum and The Del McCoury Band made their Bloom Heavy debut this year. Split Lip Rayfield, Dirtfoot, Cornmeal and The Big Idea returned to the River Romp with a talented list of up-and-coming artists from all over the country. The festival opened the gates to the campgrounds on Thursday for a Pre-Event
Party featuring a group of rising stars in bluegrass music. Taylor Park, a festival organizer confirmed that the festival set an attendance cap for 2,500 guests, but came close to seeing 3,000 people total. This year the festival organizers at Bloom Heavy paired up with a fine cast of musicians to put together the festival’s unique Bluegrass Ball. There were a crossover section of non-traditional
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ClusterPluck Set List - 06/28/12 Mr. Moon, Sugar & Lace, Fire In The Night, Drivin’ On, Storms, Hidden Acres, Barstool*, Shaker of Fun, Pirates/My Girl, Love Will Find A Way, You Can Write My Song, Mine O’ Mine, Shady Grove, Laundry Line, Mutiny
bluegrass fans that mixed with a group of traditional bluegrass supporters. A new section of acoustic music is slowly emerging in the Midwest, and this festival did an excellent job of expressing that movement. License plates from a variety of different states filled the parking area of the festival early Thursday afternoon. Old and new friends collectively met on shuttle
rides that transported them from the parking area to the campground section of the festival. After guests setup camp, they tested the waters in the nearby river. The waterway provided a refreshing oasis to the dry condictions in the area. Water streamed against the banks of the river, as Clusterpluck started their first set of the weekend on the Main Stage.
ClusterPluck :: 6:05 - 7:10 PM Music started a little late on Thursday, but once the sound crew got things straighten out, the 2nd annual River Romp was underway. ClusterPluck was the first band up on Thursday. Their set was surprising refreshing despite the heat. St. Louis is the home base for the band, and they were
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excited to bring their style of upbeat, hillbilly music to the Bloom Heavy event. Leah Osborne plays in the band Boom Tops with Justin Torres. She sat in on washboard for their steamy set. The band sat down, and shared with us on how they beat the heat on and off the stage. “You don’t really feel it’s that hot till your done playing,” Chris Rader said. “It’s kind of like drinking on a boat, you don’t realize you’re that drunk, till you get off the boat,” added Derek Rutter. Bassist, Justin Torres talked about how reviving it was being able to hang out with the band in the river following their set. ClusterPluck rekindled a cover tune by the String Cheese Incident titled ‘Barstool’ for the Bloom Heavy audience. The band hung out and celebrated their youth with the friends from all over the country in the Castor River after their performance.
Elemental Shakedown :: 7:30 - 8:30
Head for the Hills :: 11:10 PM - 12:40 AM
Elemental Shakedown produced a homegrown style of traditional bluegrass in the late afternoon hours on Thursday. A sizable crowd developed around the Main Stage. Dust clouds started to form over the audience. There were a large number of campers that were excited to be out of the sun, and in front of a stage listening to live music. Alyssa Avery plays fiddle in the group, and added an intoxicating layer of sound to the string band’s live performance.
Fort Collins-based, Head for the Hills continued to take their nontraditional hill music to different altitudes around the globe. The band has been recently winning over crowds nationwide with their transpiring form of Colorado bluegrass. Their set attracted a large crowd, and an even bigger dust storm. As the temperatures begun to drop; the festival nightlife started to take shape with florescent hula-hoops, tiki torches, lazars and massive amounts of music fans dancing like crazy to HFTH. After their recent performance at the Telluride Bluegrass Festival, the band was rested and ready for the Bloom Heavy community. Known as being a dark-horse act, HFTH showcased their unique, polished approach to the music scene late Thursday night.
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They rocked an acoustic version of ‘Blue Orchid’ by the White Stripes during their set. It fueled the audience with an additional boost of energy. The band also did performed a cover of ‘Owner of a Lonely Heart’ by
Yes. It showed off the band’s ability to have fun, and unique style to deliver great songs consecutively throughout their set. Check out videos from their set via the Crescent Vale YouTube Channel. Head for the
Hills recently released a live album titled “Live” and can be found via their main website at: http://headforthehillsmusic.com/live/. The Big Idea performed after HFTH, and closed down music on Thursday night.
Head for the Hills
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Friday
Cabin Fever :: 12:30 PM – 1:30 PM There was a scheduling conflict on the Arrowhead Stage early Friday. Honey Suckle was unable to make it on Friday, but local favorites
Cabin Fever filled in of the group. Matthew Caldwell, production manager at Bloom Heavy talked about meeting one of the band members of Cabin Fever in a local food market. He mentioned that the musician
was wearing a bluegrass shirt, and conversation just started to flow. Cabin Fever performed a gospel set of acoustic music on Friday, and held another set of soul music later in the weekend on Sunday morning.
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The Whistle Pigs
The Whistle Pigs :: 3:35 PM – 4:30 PM As the sun beat down on the festival, The Whistle Pigs kept things cool on the Arrowhead Stage. They kept the festival spirit going with a special sit-in guest on fiddle. Alex Pape, accordionist for the band was sporting a new, clean-
cut look that Banjo Joe referred to as his “Hollywood face.” Joe also used the time in between songs to cut jokes with the crowd. The band’s first set of the weekend was peaceful, mainly due to the shaded area surrounding the 2nd stage. Bands rotated on stage as campers took full advantage of the nearby river
to relax in during the live sets of music. The Whistle Pigs also performed as a trio the following day on the Main Stage. There were fewer people out for their second set, but Banjo Joe made it worth the time in the sun with their friendly style of Americana music from southern Illinois.
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The Travelin’ McCourys with Adam Aijala
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The Travelin’ McCourys :: 4:50 – 6:00 PM Temperatures started to hit record numbers on Friday throughout the entire area. Sweat poured from the faces of the vast majority of guests and musicians in the midday hours. The Travelin’ McCourys stepped up to the challenge of performing in the extensive heat, and produced a scorching set of traditional bluegrass. The band’s hometown is in Nashville, TN, but they seem to do a lot of living on the road. It was my first time seeing the group live on stage, and it was impressive to see the band take on their own style and sound, but they stilled paid tribute to the legends of the past. Rob and Ronnie McCoury lined up with Jason Carter and a few other special guests for The Bluegrass Ball later
that evening. They also joined Del McCoury on stage for his headlining set. The group recently released a new album
with Keller Williams titled “Pick” that is available in stores and on iTunes.
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“Have you ever danced with a gypsy women in the pale moonlight?”
The Del McCoury Band The Del McCoury Band :: 8:40 PM – 10:10 PM A special rush of anticipation filled the crowd before the renowned performance by The Del McCoury Band. Re-energized music lovers gathered around the Main Stage for the largest dust cloud of the weekend. Guests stomped
their blues away during the hard core set from the band. They performed some of classic tunes like ‘Nashville Cats’ by John Sebastian and some wicked cover songs by Bill Monroe. Each song that they played had an authentic layer of sound developed by the countless years of playing music together. Del joked about the massive amount of bugs on stage,
but overall he looked thrilled to be performing in front of the Bloom Heavy crowd. Beautiful guests flourished the dance area next to the Main Stage as Del and his sons were picking and grinning with style on stage. The moonlight provided a natural source of light, as the skies continued to stay clear throughout the night.
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Yonder Mountain String Band Set List - 06/29/12
Dawn’s Early Light > Cuckoo’s Nest, Troubled Mind > 20 Eyes > Troubled Mind, Don’t You Lean On Me, Girlfriend Is Better > Funtime, Rabbit In A Log, River, Polka On The Banjo, Spanish Harlem Incident, Looking Back Over My Shoulder, If There’s Still Ramblin’ in the Rambler (let him go) > Kentucky Mandolin > Boatman > If There’s Still Ramblin’ in the Rambler (let him go) Thanks to leatherface at PT for the set list.
Yonder Mountain String Band :: 10:50 PM – 12:55 AM The good times continued to roll; Schlafly beer continued to flow and the Yonder Mountain String Band was ready to captivate the audience. Their sound crew dialed in the sound system for the historic set. Paul McDonald, a festival organizer spoke about sending the band
an offer and hoping for the best earlier in the year. He said that it was a dream come to when he found out they agreed to perform at the event. The band shared a similar level of excitement when they hit the stage late Friday night. Jeff Austin welcomed the crowd, and mentioned how it is an honor to be sharing the stage with Del McCoury one night, and Split Lip Rayfield the following
night. The band rolled out a premium set of pioneer rock for the sweaty fans. One fan rallied against the heat and banter from the band in a panda bear costume. It was comical to hear the band crack light-hearted jokes at the out of control guests. They mixed comedy in with their banter and string music with modern-day rock music throughout both of their performances.
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Panda
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The Bluegrass Ball The Bluegrass Ball :: 1:30 AM – 2:30 The highpoint of the weekend was during the Superjam early Saturday morning on the Main Stage. It felt like an imaginary moment as musicians continued to fill the stage. Bryan Horne, bassist for Hot Butter Rum joined his band mate, Erik Yates on banjo on the left side of
the stage. Allie Kral and Kris Nowak, members in the band Cornmeal, linked up with their drummer JP Nowak for the special occasion. Rob and Ronnie McCoury invited Jason Carter up to join the festivities, and Jeff Austin held down a section of the vocals and picked like the wind on his mandolin. There were powerful moments through-
out the set. The crowd seemed to really get into the rapid execution by the two fiddle players, Jason Carter and Allie Kral. Ronnie McCoury and Jeff Austin fired away at their mandolins during the momentous concert. Fans were begging for more as the bluegrass allstar band concluded their set.
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Cornmeal - Late Night Cornmeal :: 3:30 AM – Sunrise The climate at nighttime was the perfect setting for a live performance. Temperatures hit around mid 70s, and there was no rain. Chicago-based Cornmeal returned to the Bloom Heavy River Romp with an excellent late night performance. Dirt and dust collected over the crowd Saturday morning. The crew did a great job of mixing in their techniques during The Bluegrass Ball, and then turned around to put the classic Cornmeal touch on their set. The band continued to play deep into the night. After a full day of music, my day ended around 4:30 AM.
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Saturday
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The Big Idea The Big Idea :: 12:30 PM – 1:35 PM The Big Idea is one of the few bands that have performed at all of the Bloom Heavy events so far, and they were ready to get back in front of their local community. Cape Girardeau, MO is the bands current base location. They brought an upbeat, Americana blend of folk and bluegrass to the Arrowhead Stage on Saturday afternoon. The band also performed a late night at the Main Stage set on Thursday.
The New Old Cavalry The New Old Cavalry :: 3:10 PM – 4:30 NOC forges traditional bluegrass with cosmic country and Americana from Bloomington, Indiana. They performed a terrific set on the Arrowhead Stage the day before. On Saturday the band performed with Nat Keefe from Hot Buttered Rum sitting in as a guest. The group performed ‘White House Blues’ and ‘Sweetheart, I
Beg You To Come Home Tonight’ with Keefe on the Main Stage Saturday. Keefe talked with us about helping produce The New Old Cavalry’s latest album “Carry Me Out This Way” near San Francisco. “They came out to California, and they camped at a state park outside of Fairfax California. We recorded for two weeks, and it was off the hook,” Keefe said.
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“We have finished recording the new album, and we are working on the last bits of packing. It will be out in the next month or so. The title is going to be self-titled as“Hot Buttered Rum” and will be in stores soon.” -Nat Keefe p. 20
Hot Buttered Rum Hot Buttered Rum :: 5:35 PM – 6:30 PM San Franciscobased, Hot Buttered Rum resurfaced to the Main Stage on Saturday after performing the day before. The band is scheduled to have a new album coming out in the next few months. They performed a new track off that album on Friday, and a covered The Talking Heads song ‘Take Me To A River’ to connect with the River Romp crowd.
Saturday’s set included a themed set of Beatles music. Aaron Redner, performs fiddle and mandolin in the group, and he shared some insight on the band and their influences. “I had a great time last night watching the Del McCoury set. That band is a bunch of bluegrass Jedis up there. I learned so much watching Jason Carter on fiddle, Ronnie McCoury play mandolin and seeing Del sing. The festival
season is all about going and seeing your friends in other bands. It helps you grow as an internal student and as a musician. I can guarantee you Jason Carter can play you every famous fiddle riff pre 1960. You gotta be somewhat of a historian and a disguised thief to be a good musician these days,” (laughs) Render said. Nat Keefe also provided some insight on the band’s unique approach to performing music together as a group. “We have got into this tradition of every New Years we are doing two nights at a place. So, on the 30th we will do a set of all covers. We are not the biggest tribute band in the world. We have always kind of geared our thing towards original songs, and I think that’s our biggest strength. I think it’s really good to get into the songs, style and songwriting of a different band,” Keefe said.
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Split Lip Rayfield
Split Lip Rayfield :: 9:05 PM – 10:40 PM Americana heros known as Split Lip Rayfield made their third appearance in front of the Bloom Heavy community on Saturday night. Eager fans gathered around the Main Stage area for the band’s headlining set. They have performed at pervious events, and
was ready to perform on stage. Wayne Gottstine, Eric Mardis and Jeff Eaton talked together before their set on what music they enjoy while traveling, and how they have progressed as songwriters over the years. “We listen to the radio a bunch. Usually when we drive through Missouri, and like this neighbor, Jeff will give
us a history tour of his life as we pass through,” Gottstine said. Eric Mardis mentioned that there was a tendency in the early days to rush musically, and then it just became apart of it. The band stated that they have new music ready in their tank, and they appeared to be motivated to sharing it on stage.
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Yonder Mountain String Band
Yonder Mountain String Band :: 11:20 PM – 1:30 AM Guests returned to the Main Stage area for a second night of mountain music with some of the best in the business. YMSB broke out their latest version of ‘Snow On the Pines’ and mashed it together with
a twisted take of ‘Follow Me Down To the Riverside’ during their second set. They encored with a soulful ‘My Gal’ to end their expansive set. Yonder Mountain showed off a few of their latest tracks, and mixed in a few older tracks that created one of the last dust storms of the weekend. Carrie Nation and the
Speakeasy closed down the music for the weekend. Their set may have been late Saturday night, but it was a worthwhile performance. The festival went over really well for its second year in production. It will be intriguing to see what the festival organizers at Bloom Heavy have in store for next year.
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Produced by the Crescent Vale Network
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