Some Top Moments (for me) from the 2014 Newport Folk Festival

It's hard for me to pick out my absolute Top 5 or 10 favorite sets from this year's Newport Folk Festival since my plan for this year was to keep mobile and seeing as many acts as I can see even if it meant leaving a set early or showing up late to another.  But what I can share is some moments from the festival that will stick with me for awhile.

-I didn't get to see Lucius's whole set.  I really wanted to but Deer Tick is one of my my favorite bands.  I showed up late to Deer Tick to see as much of Houndmouth as I could so leaving them early wasn't an option for me.  But as soon as they were done I, for the only time all weekend, legit ran over to the Harbor Stage and was able to catch the last few songs of Lucius.  They closed with Two of Us On The Run which was one of the best moments of the festival for me.

-My friend and I were at the bathrooms at the Quad Stage when Jack White walked by.  There was a group of three women who just said hello (in a non-intrusive way, to their credit).  Jack White said hello back without breaking stride.  He then turns around and takes a Polaroid camera out and takes a selfie with the three women and gives it to them.  I hung around to see how the picture came out.  It made those three women's festival.  The one person whose festival wasn't made was the 4th friend who just came out of the Port-A-Potty to the sound of her three friends waving the picture over their head yelling "You'll never believe what just happened!"

-With all the collaborations that happen at the Newport Folk Festival you are going to see alot of unique versions of songs played.  As a big Deer Tick fan getting to see Lis Isenberg come out for Friday XIII was a treat.  Seeing Deer Tick be on the main stage for the first time playing such a live rarity was something I'll never forget.

-I've been in to Ryan Adams since roughly 2003.  I was 25 years old and was really taken with the song playing over the opening sequence for the movie Old School.  I stayed around for the credits and found out that it was To Be Young (Is to Be Sad, Is to Be High) by Ryan Adams and that's when it started for me.  Musically I was a fan.  I bought up all his albums as they came out but everything I ever read about him made him seem like I dude whose music I could enjoy but not someone I would not want to hang out with.  This year's festival was the first time I've ever seen him live and he obviously won me over musically but the best thing for me about hit set is that we saw a guy who was funny and with a personality.  The moment for me was the Michael McDonald impression.  Out of all the sets I planned on watching at the Newport Folk Festival this year, the one I did not plan on laughing the most during was Ryan Adams.

-After Jenny Lewis, whose set list was "festival flawless¹" by the way, the plan was to high tail it to the Quad Stage to see as many songs from Lake Street Dive as we could before heading back over for Band of Horses.  So in a hurry my friend and were hustling back to the Fort Stage.  We passed the Harbor Stage just as Robert Hunter started playing Ripple.  Stopped me in my tracks.  It was very moving to see and listen to.  I can comfortably say that it was my favorite moment of the festival.  Two minutes one way or another and I miss that.  I feel very lucky to have caught that.

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1 Festival Flawless - playing a set list that is accessable to a crowd of people who might not be familiar with you're entire catalog. Opposite of a "Festival Clueless" set list. An example being The Black Crowes 2008 Newport Folk Festival set.^↩

2014 Newport Folk Festival - Ten Songs I'd Love To Hear

 

Picking only 10 songs that I want to hear over the course of what promises to be a great full three days of music was a silly exercise.  A silly exercise I chose to do:

In no particular order:

Our Demons - Ages and Ages

I'm not going to lie.  I've only been listening to Ages and Ages since April 22nd at 10:13am which is about a minute after the Newport Folk Festival announced them.  Since that time, Divisionary is easily on my Top 5 most listened to albums.  They have a lot of good candidates for the song I most want to hear from them but I think this one will really have the audience clapping along...and it's going to be awesome.

Take Me To Church - Hozier

I've been singing this song to myself at least once a day ever since I heard it even on days where I don't hear it.  I have a feeling that if you want to see Hozier's full set at the Harbor Stage then you are going to have to get their early.  I anticipate a crowd to big for the Harbor Stage to handle with the way this song is taking off.

Slow Motion - PHOX

There are a few PHOX songs I'm really looking forward to hearing but how could I not be most looking forward to the one with a clarinet solo!  I used to hate the clarinet.  I wanted to play saxophone in elementary school but they didn't have any left so I got stuck with the clarinet, hated it and dropped it as soon as I could.  If only Slow Motion was around back then maybe I wouldn't have been so quick to dismiss the instrument.

Heavy Bells - J. Roddy Walston & The Business

I've only been going to the Newport Folk Festival since 2008 but I've never been able to hear anything from the Harbor Stage while standing over by the Fort Stage.  I'm pretty sure that Heavy Bells could be the loudest song ever played at the Harbor Stage and I bet those people waiting at the Fort Stage waiting for Shovels and Rope to come on are going to be able to hear this.

Casino(Bad Things) - Houndmouth

I love From The Hills Below The City.  There is not a skippable track on it but this is the songs I always turn up a little bit louder when I hear it in my car.  I couldn't be more excited for this set.

Two of Us on the Run - Lucius

Turn it Around and Hey Doreen might be the songs that will get the crowd up and moving around but I just think Two of Us on the Run will just be a pretty thing to hear at Fort Adams.

You Go Down Smooth - Lake Street Dive

I've told anyone who will listen to me that if can listen to this song and not  at least start tapping your foot, you're probably dead inside.  There is a lot to look forward to for this set but I can't in good conscience head over to Band of Horses without hearing this.

Big House - Deer Tick

I could pick a bunch of songs from these guys I can't wait to hear.  I went Big House because of the stage.  Maybe at the Quad Stage I pick something, else but there is something about this song that I just want to hear permeate out into Narragansett Bay.

Alone In My Home - Jack White

Since the day it came out I have devoured this album.  Like most of the artists who have songs on this list I could have picked a ton of songs I'm looking forward to but I really enjoy this one.  I loved what he did with it on Conan and I'm looking forward to seeing it live for myself. 

La Cienega Just Smiled - Ryan Adams

The one problem I have about seeing a Ryan Adams show is that he has such a big catalog of songs to play that trying to pick one single song you want to hear is tough to do.  La Cienga Just Smiled has long been one of my favorite Ryan Adams songs.  Gold is now 13 years old(!!!) and many albums ago so I know the chances are slim I'll hear it, but my 22 year old self is still really hoping for it.

Navigating the 2014 Newport Folk Festival

It's my third year doing my "Navigating the Newport Folk Festival" post (see 2012 and 2013 here).  So that's enough of a sample size for me to officially dub it my "Annual Navigating the Newport Folk Festival" post.

Like every Newport Folk Festival lineup it's very, very deep.  After reading my last two years of these posts(in which I realize that actually planning this is an exercise in futility), it looks like I'm going to be doing a lot more zigzagging around Fort Adams and splitting sets than in years past.

So I'll be getting new comfortable walking shoes and seeing if I can execute this plan:

I'm driving up from Long Island on Friday morning so my hope is that ferries and traffic all cooperate but assuming I'm there for the gates opening I think the move for me might be hitting up the Tretorn Backyard while taking in some Mandolin Orange.

The first band I'm excited to see is PHOX at 1:50.  Their iTunes Festival album joined me on a lot of bike rides the last few weeks and I've been listening to their first studio album a lot since it came out a few weeks ago.  If there is time I would like to hop over to the end of The Devil Makes Three. 

I've been in to Jenny Lewis from Rilo Kiley to Jenny and Johnny to her solo stuff.  But this is where it gets tough.  I'm looking forward to this set but I will probably bail towards the end to see Lake Street Dive.  You Go Down Smooth is a song I feel like I need to hear played live.  If I hear that before 4:45pm then I will probably high tail if from there over to Band of Horses. 

After Band of Horses the priority is obviously Ryan Adams but in that window of time between their sets I'm going to try for a few Jimmy Cliff songs over at the Quad Stage.

I'm thinking about starting Saturday at the Museum Stage before heading to the Quad Stage to see The Oh Hello's.  I'm always on board with seeing a band that has a lot of pieces on stage.

After The Oh Hello's it gets crazy.  I'm probably going to the Harbor Stage for J. Roddy Walston and The Business, leaving before the end of the set to check out the end of Benjamin Booker, watch a few songs from Shakey Graves before settling in for Houndmouth.

This brings me to the biggest conflict of the whole festival for me.  The Houndmouth/Deer Tick/Lucius trifecta is just brutal.  I really wanted to see as much of Houndmouth as possible which will probably have me showing up to Deer Tick a little late (which as my #2 favorite band on earth is shocking and annoying).  I'm seeing Deer Tick that night at the Newport Blues Cafe so I'm hoping that lessens the sting.  Finally, I've been listening to Wildewoman a ton so I'll high tail it over to the Harbor Stage and hopefully see enough songs to be satisfied. 

From there it's over to Nickel Creek for a bit and then to Puss N Boots before settling in for Jack White.

My early Sunday priority is Ages and Ages.  I'm been loving Divisionary these last few weeks.  Looking forward to them a lot and it looks like I'll be able to relax and catch their whole set without clock watching.  After them I'm open to Caitlin Rose or The Lonesome Trio so I'll make that a game time decision.

Since I probably will not have gone to the Fort Stage beer garden yet, maybe I'll take in the rest of Thao & The Get Down Stay Down from there and wait for Dawes to come on.

Now for my second biggest conflict of the festival.  Dawes into Hozier into Hurray For The Riff Raff.  I love Dawes live.  I've seen them a bunch of times now which today probably doesn't work in their favor.  I'm thinking as long as Dawes doesn't close with When My Time Comes and plays it at least a few songs from the end I can split Hurray For The Riff Raff and Hozier.  I'd really like to at least see Take Me To Church if I can swing it.  That song has been in my head non-stop.

From Hurray For The Riff Raff it's going to get back to zigzagging around the Fort.  Conor Oberst to Trampled By Turtles to Jeff Tweedy to Rodrigo y Gabriela.  Although there is a chance I'll get hung up at the Harbor Stage listening to Lucero so I'll end up splitting the two sets before going over to check out the last hour of Mavis.

If that doesn't sound like the best three days a person can have then I don't know what does.

Ultimate Newport Folk Fest Playlist

Somewhere in between my 300th and 301st time listening to Carly Rae Jepsen's "Call Me Maybe" to please my wife and 3 year old son, I realized that I needed a new playlist to get me ready for the summer and the slowly encroaching Newport Folk Festival. As we've discussed before, the lineup this year is STACKED, so coming up with an abbreviated playlist was no easy feat. But, I have tackled impossible tasks before, so I knew I could do it again. And I did. So if you're going to the Folkfest this year and can't figure out how to get through the next 2+ weeks, download these tracks immediately and it will help you manage. And if you aren't going, download these tracks anyway and may God have mercy on your soul for being so foolish to miss this event.

Navigating the Newport Folk Festival

I've been looking forward to seeing the Newport Folk Festival schedule with both excitement and dread.  I'm on record as saying this is the best festival lineup I've ever seen, so obviously I was going to have to make some tough choices I didn't want to make.  But after finally seeing the schedule, it's not THAT bad.

A few months ago I made a Top 5 bands I want to see at Newport list and although it's nearly impossible to stick to a plan, here is how I'm going to try and navigate the Newport Folk Festival and how I'm going to try and see them all:

11:30am - 12:15pm
Being that I'm going to be getting two kids ready to go to the festival and we'll have to set up our spot at the Fort Stage I'll probably be starting my day with some Brown Bird as we set up and then shooting over to the Harbor Stage for Apache Relay.  I've been listening to their American Nomad album a lot leading up to the festival and I'm really enjoying it.

12:30pm - 1:30pm
I'll probably try to stay at the Harbor Stage for the beginning of Spirit Family Reunion.  If nothing else, from what I heard of them so far, my 2 year old will stomp and clap along with them.  I will leave to head back to the Fort Stage for The Preservation Hall Jazz Band for the rest of their set.  I've seen them a few times already and they are a lot of fun.  And I'd imagine we'll be getting our first of many Jim James sightings during that set.

1:40pm - 4:20pm
DAMN YOU NEWPORT FOLK FESTIVAL!!!! This is by far the most painful part of the weekend.  Deer Tick was my #2 band I want to see at NFF but I really want to see Alabama Shakes.  With two young kids coming this year I'm not going to get to see Deer Tick at the Newport Blues Cafe or that would have made my decision here a little easier.  But alas, I'll be high-tailing it from PJHB to see Deer Tick from 1:40 to 2:15 and then booking over to Alabama Shakes for the remainder of their set.  That's probably the best I can do there.  Honey Honey gets the shaft here from me but luckily it looks like I'll have another chance on Sunday.  Immediately following Alabama Shakes I'm going to hop back and forth between First Aid Kit and Sharon Van Etten.  And honestly, my goal is to at least hear First Aid Kit do Emmylou and Sharon Van Etten do Leonard.  If I can pull that off before going to see Dawes then I will high five myself.

4:25pm - 6:05pm
From Dawes I'm heading over to see Blind Pilot.  Last year I tried to keep popping back and forth through the tunnel between the Harbor and Quad Stage to see Head and the Heart and Middle Brother.  I might do that to catch some Iron and Wine.  I have a longer history with Iron and Wine but I'm leaning Blind Pilot these days.  After those two sets I'll probably try and catch 10-15 minutes of the Guthrie Family Reunion before getting back to the Fort Stage.

6:05 - 7:30
MY MORNING JACKET!!!!

11:30am - 1:40pm
After setting up again for the day I'd like to hop over to the Harbor Stage.  I've been listening to Deep Dark Woods on Spotify and I'd like to see them as well and make my only appearance at the Museum stage for Honey Honey for a few songs before trying to catch the last half of Trampled By Turtles.

1:40pm - 3:00pm
Definitely want to see The New Multitudes.  I'll see their whole set and then catch the tail end of Charles Bradley.

3:00pm - 5:15pm
The second worst conflict of the weekend for me.  The hop to the Fort Stage to the Quad stage is not easy enough to risk going from Charles Bradley to Gary Clark Jr and back to Head and the Heart so I might have to skip Gary Clark Jr. entirely unfortunately.  I want to see as much Head and the Heart as I can but them and Of Monsters and Men overlap by 10 minutes.  So being that I did see three songs from Head and the Heart last year, I'll probably ditch out on the end of them to go see Of Monsters and Men in their entirety.

5:15pm - 7:30pm
If the situation presents itself I'd like to see some Conor Oberst but I might just be content to head over to the Harbor Stage and lock down my spot for Tallest Man on Earth.  From there maybe I'll catch a little Jackson Browne if my kids are cooperating after what will be a long weekend for them.  Catching a water taxi before the rush might out weigh trying to hear The Pretender.

I'd put my chances of executing this plan at close to 0% but it's still going to be fun to try.

Counterpoint: Bob's Newport Folk Festival Top 5

After reading, Keith's blog regarding his top 5 for this years Newport folk festival, I thought it best I add my two cents. Admittedly, I was very disappointed this year when Keith announced that he would not be able to attend New Orleans Jazzfest . To me, that is the festival to end all festivals and although this years lineup wasn't as stellar as years past, I was still greatly looking forward to acts such as My Morning Jacket, Bon Iver, Iron and Wine, & jazz legend Herbie Hancock. I had planned on going to the Newport Folk Festival anyway, but I thought I had missed my opportunity to see MMJ & others in a festival setting this year.

Boy, was I wrong. When the NPFF lineup was announced on March 1st, I was floored. Not only did it match the Jazzfest lineup (which is hard to do because Jazzfest has 7 days of music compared to Newport's 2) it far exceeded it. That is precisely why this festival sold out by mid April (the event had only sold out once before, which was last year in early July) causing many in the Schildt family to wonder why they waited so long to get tickets. So without further adieu, here are the 5 acts I am most looking forward to at this years ridiculous lineup.

Honorable Mentions: Blind Pilot, Deer Tick, Punch Brothers, Alabama Shakes, Iron and Wine

5. Of Monsters & Men - This could easily be my number 2 or 3 if they had hit my radar screen a little earlier. But their 4 song EP followed by their full length "My Head is an Animal" instantly makes them a top 5 for this year. Keith is right in suggesting that Of Monsters and Men are tailor made for this festival. I expect them to blow the proverbial roof off.

4. Jackson Browne - This is a tough one, because currently my interest lies more in seeing bands like Blind Pilot or Alabama Shakes over someone like Jackson Browne. That being said, I grew up a HUGE Jackson Browne fan, and unlike many other iconic singer songwriters of his generation, I feel Browne isn't past his prime. And to me, there is no better setting and venue to see JB, than at the Newport Folk Festival at Fort Adams. Early prediction is that "These Days" or "Late for the Sky" to close out his set on Sunday might will be an epic festival memory.

3. The Head and the Heart - Much like Keith, I was very torn when TH&TH were scheduled opposite Middle Brother last year. I chose the opposite path of my blog collaborator and spent most of my time with the Seattle powerhouse and I never looked back. TH&TH were by far the highlight of last years Newport Folk Festival for me, and my only regret is that I witnessed the epic performance alone. After the festival I missed several chances to see them play sold out shows in New York and Philly, so this year, I am praying that there are no schedule conflicts and I get to enjoy them in their entirety with my festival crew.

2. Wilco - Despite being slightly separate from the actual festival by playing the Friday show, I am extremely stoked about Wilco. I haven't seen them live in I would guess 7 or 8 years, and since then they have added significantly to their catalog with standout albums "Sky Blue Sky" and last years "The Whole Love." The atmosphere will certainly be different than the weekend portion, but in a way I am glad they are playing by themselves. There are so many songs I want to hear them play, I am excited that they will have an extended set to do it.

1. My Morning Jacket - I will agree with Keith on this one without a doubt. They are the best band I have ever seen live, and this festival will give MMJ fans a little something different when they play half of their set acoustic. I cannot wait to see what they decide to rock out too and what they decide to "folk up" for the festival. Jim James is obviously a huge supporter of the NPFF (he is 1 of 5 on the Folk Board Advisers) and I couldn't be happier that he has participated in 3 of the 4 festivals I have been too.

My 2012 Newport Folk Festival Top 5

I was planning on sitting this Newport Folk Festival out. My second kid is going to be born in late May so with two kids and one of them being two months old it seemed easier to be home-bound this summer. The morning the festival was announced I got a text message from Bob (the other contributor of this blog) saying: "Do yourself a favor and don't look that the Newport lineup." Of course I looked and I honestly believe that this is the best festival lineup I've ever seen and there was no way I couldn't try to make this happen. My wife didn't need a lot of convincing and by the end of the day we had our weekend passes and our hotel booked.

I look at the lineup every day wondering how they are going to schedule all these acts that I want to see without there being some major conflicts so I've taken to trying to rank them in order of who I'm looking forward to seeing the most

Barely outside the top 5: Alabama Shakes - I've been hearing Hold On for a few months now but I picked up their new album and been checking out their performances online. I've been loving it so far and I wouldn't be surprised if I made this list in two more months if they wouldn't have forced their way on to it.

5. The Tallest Man on Earth - There are a few bands on this list that I may like better than TTMOE but since I got into The Wild Hunt album a year and a half ago I thought he was tailor made to play at Fort Adams. Even though I probably consider myself more of a Dawes fan than a TTMOE fan (spoiler alert...Dawes are not in my top 5), I'm looking forward to this guy and that venue in a big way.

4. The Head & The Heart - Last year was one of the most difficult festival conflicts I've ever had to face. The Head and The Heart were at Newport last year as well but they were opposite Middle Brother. I was planning on splitting the two sets but only ended up hearing three TH&TH songs. I have no regrets because Middle Brother was awesome but I'm not going to miss TH&TH this time around.

3. Of Monsters and Men - If you asked me to make this list two months ago these guys would not have been on it (not like anyone asked me to make this one). I posted about this album in early April so in the interest of not being redundant. Check it out here. I can't listen to this album without imagining seeing these songs live at the Newport Folk Festival

2. Deer Tick - I was not overly familiar with Deer Tick last year. I got in to the Middle Brother album in preparation for the NFF last year and ended up loving it and branching out in to Deer Tick, Delta Spirit and Dawes off of that. My friend ended up getting tickets to the Newport Blue Cafe one night where Deer Tick was taking up residency for a few nights. When we walked in it felt like we crashed a party. Since that time I've listened to Deer Tick probably more than any band between last NFF and this upcoming one. This time I'm looking forward to feeling like I was invited to the party.

1. My Morning Jacket - No brainer. The best live touring band out there as well as my favorite band. As a matter of fact, it was the 2008 NFF that got me in to them to begin with. Jim James played a solo set that year and he was the "man of the Newport Folk Festival." He was coming out with She & Him, Calexico and you'd see him all over the place checking out different acts. Two months later I saw MJJ for the first time as a band in Philly and this NFF will me my 12th.

Think about the fact that I had to leave bands like Dawes, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, New Multitudes, Conor Oberst, Sharon Van Etten and Blind Pilot off the list. Those bands would make for a great festival themselves.

Also, check out my Spotify playlist for acts playing at this year's Fest:  Newport Folk Festival 2012

***Addition***-In case you missed it, Bob wrote his companion list: Check it out