Green River Festival recap

By Seth Mitchell

Who would have thought that a family friendly festival - complete with children’s tent and a train - could actually rock?  Green River Music Festival in Greenfield, MA blew all preconceptions from my mind.  Now in its 24th year, the Green River Festival, which is held on the sprawling campus of Greenfield Community College, has had time to work out the kinks that plague most music festivals.  Great performers, shows that actually start on time, plenty of bathrooms and an air conditioned shuttle to transport festival- goers from the free parking lots can even make up for the lack of any on-site camping (though there are plenty of nearby state and private campgrounds, and even a few hotels).   

Families and children made up the majority of the crowd, and led to its overall friendly “mom and pop” atmosphere.  Umbrellas, chairs, and blankets took up 3/4 of the field, but allowed for those intrepid enough to actually sit on the ground or -gasp!- stand for a set to catch even the largest acts from the first or second row without any trouble.

Musical highlights of the weekend included:

A set by North Carolina bluegrass veterans Chatham County Line.  The well-dressed string quartet, who have released five albums over the past 7 years, brought huge cheers from the western MA crowd.  Their foot stomping fiddle and banjo playing brought an uncommon intimacy to the early Saturday afternoon that set the tone for the rest of the festival. 

Chatham County Line bring their folk-bluegrass to the main stageThe Felice Brothers, one of my most-anticipated sets at Green River, didn’t disappoint.  These rag-tag folk-rockers (complete with cut-off t-shirts and bandanas) mashed southern rock into bluegrass and folk in a way that would make Dylan or The Band proud.

James Felice rocking the accordion with the rest of the brothersDavid Wax Museum, one of the most energetic and entertaining acts out there, were the only performers of the festival (that I saw, anyway) to get a standing ovation large enough to warrant an encore- at which point the surprised festival planners wisely ushered the band back onstage.  Playing in the side tent, David Wax Museum whipped the crowd into a dancing frenzy with their Mexicana/folk-rock mix, with a sound so unique that the only relatively apt description would be a hybrid of Calexico meets Elvis Perkins.  David Wax (the band’s namesake) has a smile and stage presence that recalls Josh Ritter, and with such diverse influences and instruments as donkey jawbones and upright basses, his talented “Museum” seems poised to break through to new audiences. 

David Wax Museum amongst the crowdI have to admit that as a Green River virgin I entered the weekend with a pessimist’s before-realized fears for remote location festivals (anyone else remember the ill-fated Shangri-La festival of 2008? No?) 24 years in, and only 2 hours from Boston or Albany, all fears for Green River were unfounded.  This festival will continue to survive based on the locals alone.  While it is obviously a different beast than, say, Bonnaroo, that difference is a positive one.  Low key and laid back, but also festive and much more manageable.  And probably the best thing about the Green River Music Festival?  With only two stages and intelligent scheduling, you can actually see all the bands that you drove so far for.