I'm going to diverge from the theater world for a bit to tell you all about my favorite music event of the year: Storyhill Fest. This was my second year attending this lovely little gem of a folk music festival in the beautiful wooded lake country of Minnesota. I enjoyed the fest so much last year that there was no question I'd be back. It's a wonderful respite from the world and a nice transition from summer to fall. To borrow the tagline from Woodstock, it's two days of peace and music. Top musicians from the folk community in Minnesota, Austin, and around the country gathered to share their music with each other and the audience, both from the stage and around the campfire. Nine singer/songwriters joined the main event, local duo Storyhill. The fest is small and intimate with a community feel, and the musicians seem to be having just as much fun as the attendees. All of these artists write their own songs, and each has a unique sound and style. Some of them are old friends, some just met, but they play and sing together beautifully. It's really a wonderful variety of music that I will be having fun listening to in the coming weeks and months.
Click on each artist's name to be taken to their website, where you will find information about how to buy their music, when and where to see them perform live, and more fun stuff.
John Elliot
Most of the artists in this year's line-up were new to me. That's true of the first artist to perform on day one - John Elliot. John grew up in Minnesota and now lives in L.A. Several of his songs are about that idea - going home, missing home, remembering where you came from. Some of his songs are funny and crazy, with lyrics like "my mom is a dog" and "I left my grandpa for dead," and some are poignant and will make your heart ache a little. Some are both. In one song he named several members of the '87 and '91 World Champion Twins, a surefire way to win my heart (Frankie V!). He's very charming and entertaining, and sometimes his songs turn a little angry too. I walked away with a $5 download card for his new CD plus lots of extras - a great deal!
Andrew Pressman and Raina Rose
The next artist to perform was Raina Rose, accompanied by her fiance Andrew Pressman on upright bass (he also accompanied many of the other artists for all or part of their sets). Raina has a sweet voice reminiscent of folk singers from the 60s. I particularly like her Jewish/Unitarian/gospel song "Let Me Down Easy." Raina and Drew's next production is the baby they're having soon. :)
Anthony da Costa
John and Raina regularly perform together along with Anthony da Costa. They did a set together on day two under the name "Elliot Rose da Costa" (aka "Beggars and Mules"), in which they took turns singing one of their songs while the other two backed them up. But back to Anthony. He's surprisingly young for someone so talented and so comfortable on stage, and who's already released five solo albums. He's a college kid (he's currently attending Columbia University in NYC), but his sound is much more mature than his age. He writes great songs and has more of a country or country-rock sound. He also played the electric guitar behind many of the other artists, which I didn't think was allowed at a folk music festival, ;) but somehow it worked! I just downloaded one of his CDs and I'm listening to it thinking, this guy is 20 years old? Unbelievable. I'll be keeping my eye on this one.
Ellis
I first heard Ellis on the dear departed MPR Morning Show a few years ago (which, incidentally, is where I first heard Storyhill, so thanks Dale and Jim Ed!). I was captivated by her sound so I bought a few of her CDs, but I'd never seen her perform live. It's a whole different experience. She performs with such joy, it's infectious. She talked about making an effort to cultivate wonder and possibility in her life, and that's evident in her music. She sings a lot about being present and slowing down and enjoying your life as it is right now. And she has a laugh that can't help but make you smile, which is the effect that her music has on me too.
Peter Mayer
The penultimate performance of day one was Peter Mayer. I've been a fan of his for many years and seen him in concert several times, and even talked about him here. So I was excited when I found out that he'd be joining the fest this year. He was his usual storytelling, obsessively tuning self. Which is to say, wonderful. There's no pretense with Peter; he's real and present. He sang my favorite song, "Holy Now," along with several other selections both silly and profound. I was disappointed that he didn't make it out to the campfire; his songs are so perfect for a campfire. I was hoping to hear one of his classics like "Yukon Sally" or "Camping Round the Sun" in the campfire setting, or maybe "Bountiful" with everyone joining in for the hu-nana chorus. Maybe next year.
Day one ended with a nice long set by Storyhill, followed by an even longer time of sitting by the campfire listening to the day's artists trade songs and stories. But more on that later. On to day two. (By the way, there's lots to do at the camp when the music stops - hiking, swimming, kayaking, all the usual Minnesota fun.)
Carrie Elkin
Carrie Elkin is the one (scheduled) repeat performer from last year's fest, and I couldn't have been happier about that. She is perhaps my favorite find from last year. She has a powerful, clear, gorgeous voice. She's this tiny little thing, and she opens her mouth and just blows me away. She had Andrew, Anthony, and Raina on stage with her for most of the set, but ended it with a solo, a cappella, unplugged performance of "Amazing Grace" that was just stunning. In addition to her considerable musical talent, she also was an entertaining emcee on day one. And she wears super cute dresses. She'll be performing at the Landmark Center in St. Paul on Sept. 16 with her lover (as she likes to say) Danny Schmidt. Danny's an amazing songwriter, a poet really, and Carrie has a voice like no other. If you're free that night and in the area, you really should check them out.
Andrew Pressman, Anthony da Costa, A.J. Roach, Raina Rose
I first heard A.J. Roach sing at the campfire at the end of day one, but didn't get the full experience until day two. He has this crazy weird brilliant voice that I can't even begin to describe. Our day two emcee, J Matt, said it best - mesmerizing. Something about it just draws me in. His songs are kind of dark and twisty; at one point he asked the audience, "is this too weird for you?" It's just the right amount of weird for me. I listened to his most recent release, Pleistocene, on the drive home, which features a haunting song I first heard at the campfire, "The Poet."
Tom Murphy and Connor Garvey
Next we had a "surprise treat." Connor Garvey, who was at last year's fest, wasn't on the line-up for this year but just couldn't stay away. He stopped by after a gig in Duluth the night before and sang a few songs from his just released album Where Ocean Meets Land. He's another one whose music just makes me happy when I listen to it. Anthony demanded that Connor sing "Soul on the Line" at the campfire, which turned into a sing-along. He almost lost control of the song when everyone wanted to keep singing the chorus even when it was time for the bridge! He's coming back to Minnesota this fall and will be performing on October 22 at the Ginkgo Coffeehouse in St. Paul.
Anthony da Costa and Grace Pettis
Grace Pettis has a lovely voice, and writes really thoughtful, beautiful songs. She's another young one, and she sounds youthful and hopeful, but also plaintive at times, as in the song "Haley's Comet," which she wrote about her parents' divorce. She's from Alabama, but like a lot of people in this group, has spent some time in Texas. She wrote a beautiful song called Abilene inspired by the name of the town. Grace has won a few up-and-comer songwriting awards, so she's one to watch as well.
Ray Bonneville shares a label with Carrie Elkin and Storyhill - Red House Records, based in St. Paul. They recently released their second tribute album to another Minnesota folk singer, Bob Dylan. Ray and Storyhill are both featured on A Nod to Bob 2, and it's fabulous. I think it's safe to say that Ray is the veteran of this group, and it shows. He has a rootsy, bluesy sound and was switching back and forth between multiple different guitars and harmonicas. He sings his story-songs as if he's lived them.
Chris Cunningham and John Hermanson, aka Storyhill
I could listen to Storyhill all day every day and never tire of it. I don't know why that is. Maybe it's their gorgeous harmonies (as Garrison Keillor said, they're "setting a new high standard for male duet harmony"). Maybe it's the songs they write that capture a specific place or feeling. Maybe it's the camaraderie that Chris and Johnny share from singing together since they were kids. But whatever it is, they have won over a legion of loyal fans, of which I am only one. They played for about 90 minutes or so at the end of each day, singing old favorites (even a few I'd never heard, being a relatively recent convert) as well as selections from their newest CD Shade of Trees. On the second night Johnny gave the audience permission to sing along, which was all I needed to join in (especially after a few beers from an excellent local brewery). Too many favorite songs to mention, but "Steady On," their anthem (as Chris put it), is always thrilling to hear. And a little bit sad, because it always signals the end of the concert. But in this case, the end wasn't the end. The music continued at the campfire.
There's something about campfires. You can just stare at the fire and get lost in it. I find that there's also something wonderful about the unamplified human voice. It's always my favorite moment of any concert if the artist puts the mic down to sing a song. So when you combine a campfire and the human voice, magic happens. The musicians gather around the large campfire, with festival attendees behind them (although the divide is blurred at this festival in general and at the campfire in particular). They take turns singing, usually something they've written but occasionally covers. Passing guitars and capos (a word I learned last year) around the circle, backing each other up on guitar, mandolin (Tom Murphy was another unscheduled attendee and can play along with anything), harmonica, or vocals. The night sky overhead was littered with stars that you never see in the city, and the call of the loons on the nearby lake mingled with the music. Magical. There's no better word to describe it.
I'll leave you with "The Storyhill Band" singing a Storyhill song, "Sacramento." Chris and Johnny are joined by Andrew on bass, Anthony on electric guitar, and the sirens Raina and Carrie on vocals. To see even more videos from Storyhill Fest, including a clip from the campfire, visit the Cherry and Spoon youtube channel. And if you don't have any plans for next Labor Day, consider attending Storyhill Fest 2012. It's not 100% for certain yet, but my fingers are crossed that they'll be back. And so will I. Steady on.
While this blog will mostly focus on theater in the Minneapolis/St. Paul area, I did warn you in my Origins post that I might occasionally write about music. This is one of those times. I spent labor day weekend at StoryhillFest - a folk music festival in the Brainerd lakes area of Minnesota (one of my favorite spots on the planet, by the way). The festival is named after one of my favorite groups, Storyhill - two guys, their guitars, great songs, and beautiful harmonies. They gathered around them some of the most talented singer/songwriters/musicians I've ever seen in one place. This is only the second year of the festival in Minnesota (they've been doing it longer in their native Montana), and as the very capable and witty emcee said, it has to be one of the best kept secrets in Minnesota. If people knew what great music was being made here, they'd be turning people away. I hope it's successful enough to continue for many years, but I also hope it never gets so big that it loses it's intimate community feel.
In addition to Storyhill's performance each evening, nine other artists performed at the festival, only one of whom I had heard before, and all of whom I enjoyed. I managed to limit my initial CD buying to four, although I think there will be a few more to come in the next few days. Here's a short summary of each artist, click on their name to be directed to their website.
Connor Garvey was the brave first artist to take the stage on the first day, when the camp chairs were only half full. He had two musicians with him - Tom Murphy on mandolin and Jeff Mitchell (who also sang lots of great songs at the campfire) on electric guitar. Connor's website says his "songs are like placing folk-funk guitar and ukulele, soulful vocals, and paradoxical metaphors in a juicer - you've never tasted it before, but it's intriguing and delectable so you have to keep drinking." What more can I say? Except that his songs are hopeful, funny, and thoughtful, and I found him completely adorable. I didn't buy his CD the first day, trying to pace myself, but in the end I couldn't resist his youthful charm and red hair. By the way, Tom is an amazing mandolin player and at the campfire he could play along with anyone on any song, even if he'd never heard it before!
Next up was Carrie Elkin. I knew before her first song was over that I would need to buy her CD. She has a voice so clear and pure that, combined with her insightful songs, it cuts right to your soul. I love that her voice is so powerful she actually had to back away from the mic at times, otherwise the sound system might have combusted with the sheer power and passion of her voice. Following her was her partner in life and, sometimes, music, Danny Schmidt. They both sang back-up for each other in addition to several solo songs. Danny is an amazing songwriter; my favorite was about a broken stained glass window, which he called "a humanist story in a church song." It's an amazing piece of songwriting; I want to study it like a poem.
The last act before Storyhill was Anais Mitchell, accompanied on some songs by Rachel Ries on percussion and keyboard and Jefferson Hamer on electric guitar. Anais has an amazingly indescribable voice, so I won't even try. See (hear) for yourself:
I just downloaded her newest CD Hadestown, "a folk opera based on the Orpheus myth and set in a post-apocalyptic American depression era," which I find very intriguing. Rachel is also a talented singer/songwriter; she and Anais recorded a lovely little EP called Country.Storyhill concluded the concert part of the day, and after that everyone moved over to the campfire. I'll talk about both later, but the interesting thing to note is that my first impressions of the next day's artists were singing around the campfire, which is kind of a nice way to first hear someone.
Day 2 was the day of Johns. The first one to take the stage was John Mieras. The interesting thing about John is that he doesn't really look the part of a folk singer, he just looks like an average guy. Which he is; he recently quit his 9-to5 job to do what he really loves - music. So when he took up the guitar at the campfire I thought, who's this guy? And then he started to sing, and he just blew me away. He has a really pretty voice, especially in the upper range. I bought his 7-song CD partly because I like his voice and songs, and partly because I want to support him in continuing to pursue music.
Justin Roth was the only other artist besides Storyhill that I knew before the festival. He performed during a service at my church a few years ago, and I so loved his song "Shine" that I bought the CD. Turns out I like his new stuff even better, so I pre-ordered his upcoming CD (my four CD total is growing daily). He's an amazing guitar player and had led a guitar workshop earlier in the day. As you can see in the below picture, he played an entire song on the neck of the guitar. I didn't know you could do that! He's also a very talented and clever songwriter and a great singer.
The next artist was another John - Johnsmith. Again, I'm not sure I can say it better than his website: "Johnsmith is a Bard. The role of the Bard in every society is to hold up a mirror to that society, to convey and reveal - through the mysterious alchemy of music and words and performance - the secret inner language of the heart." I think that applies to all the artists at the festival, but especially to John. He sang a really lovely song at the campfire called "Safe Home," which he wrote while in Ireland and very much reminded me of my trip there.
Taking a break from the Johns, the next artist was Meg Hutchinson. Another lovely voice and beautiful, thoughtful songs. One I especially liked is called "The Gatekeeper" and is about someone who works at the Golden Gate Bridge and has the task of stopping suicide attempts, which he does by asking two questions: "How are you feeling?" and "What are your plans for tomorrow?" She joked that her job is to write cheerful songs about depressing topics. I'm not sure I'd say cheerful, but uplifting and inspiring, yes. Hers is one of the four CDs I bought at the festival.
How can I describe Johnathan Byrd? He's a character, just look at his photo below! Not everyone can pull off orange pants, cowboy boots, and a cowboy hat, but he can. His music veers a little bit more towards country, and his songs can either be funny or heart-breaking, or anywhere in between. The last song I heard from him was as he was leaving the campfire on the final night to drive to Chicago. I don't remember exactly what it was (I was up way past my bedtime so it's all a little foggy), something about a pony I think, but I do remember it was achingly lovely.
And now we get to the main attraction and reason for the festival - Storyhill, aka Chris Cunningham and John Hermanson. They met as kids in Montana and have been making music together ever since (with a few interruptions). They went to college at St. Olaf and Johnny still lives here in Minnesota, so I think it's fair that we claim them as our own, or at least share ownership with Montana. ;) I first heard of Storyhill when their self-titled CD was released on Red House Records a few years ago. They played it frequently on the dear departed MPR Morning Show with Dale Connelly and Jim Ed Poole (aka A Prairie Home Companion sound man Tom Keith). It was the gorgeous harmonies on the song "Give Up the Ghost" that convinced me to buy their CD, and once I listened to that I was hooked. I've seen them a few times in concert since, and I knew if they were organizing this festival it was going to be great. I was not wrong! I don't know what else to say about these guys, very talented individually and together. And obviously with a great ear for talent, judging by the people they invited to their festival. Here's a video I recorded of one of my favorite songs, especially when performed live, "Steady On." I think they're contractually obligated to end every concert with this song. ;)
Chris and Johnny on stage:
After the day's concerts were over, all of the musicians headed over to the campfire (which was conveniently located next to the lodge where I was staying). This was definitely the highlight of the weekend. It's one thing to listen to a CD, with everything cleaned up and auto-tuned (although there's less of that with folk music), another thing thing to hear someone sing live, but to hear the unamplified human voice is something really special. Whatever concert I go to, if the artist puts down their mic, it's always my favorite moment of the show. There's just something so raw and beautiful and primal about it, especially in the light of the campfire. I can imagine that hundreds of years ago, on that very spot, Native Americans were sharing songs and stories with each other in that same way. Maybe I'm still sleep deprived from two nights in a row of staying up past 1 am, but it was a truly magical experience. I think the artists did it as much for themselves as the attendees, and I felt like I was pressing my nose to the glass and watching these musicians in their element. The only thing close to it that I've experienced was when I was in Ireland, and you go to a pub in a small town and the entire town shows up, all taking turns sharing their music and a little part of their soul. That's what this was like.
I think what I love most about StoryhillFest is that it gave me a new source to find great new musicians that I love, something I've been missing since the Morning Show was cancelled. I have a great deal of admiration for and more than a little envy of people who make a living doing what they love, whose work is their life's passion. These people are modern-day troubadours, traveling the country and sharing songs and stories. I can't wait until next year to discover more new favorites!
Next up was 
The last act before 
Taking a break from the Johns, the next artist was 
How can I describe 
And now we get to the main attraction and reason for the festival - 
