Nateva/High Sierra Festival Previews

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By: Dennis Cook, JamBase Associate Editor

As the summer festival season rolls on, JamBase looks ahead to 4th of July weekend with helpful links and considered suggestions for two major gatherings, one in the East and one in the West.

Nateva Music & Camping Festival

Maine hasn't had a gathering like the inaugural Nateva Music & Camping Festival before. A more intimate cousin to big boys like Coachella and Bonnaroo, Nateva is a three-day (or four if you count the Thursday night warm-up with Gypsy Tailwind, Lettuce and Lotus) jam-happy event, July 2-4, at the 100 acre Oxford Fairgrounds, which are just a couple hours from Boston and 45 minutes from Portland, Maine. With headliners moe., Grizzly Bear, The Flaming Lips, Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi, STS9 and festival closers Furthur, this is set to be an auspicious debut.

Nateva organizer Frank Chandler told the Bangor Daily News today, "It's all about creating this little temporary community that is centered around music. It's uniquely intimate, since we’ve capped ticket sales at 15,000. It's not like other festivals, where there are just thousands upon thousands of people. We don't want anyone to feel overwhelmed. That was always the goal."

Sounds like a good mindset and game plan for a fine festivarian experience. And here's a few pointers of our own for your listening adventure.

1. Greensky Bluegrass :: Friday :: 12:05-1:05 PM :: Main Stage 1
There's a curious, compelling mixture of roughneck energy and brainy sophistication to Greensky. They dabble in bluegrass ways but have just as much in common with the rowdy cleverness of early Ozark Mountain Daredevils and fellow contemporary rules breakers the Punch Brothers. They're also super swell when they take things down a bit, making folks lean in and plucking heartstrings as efficiently as their instruments.

2. The Heavy Pets :: Friday :: 5:30-7:00 PM :: Port City Music Hall Stage
There's no dirth of ambition in the Pets, who proudly wear the "jam band" tag in an age where it's increasingly less cool. If groups played with as much fire or snaking imagination as this Florida outfit then it might not be on the slide. The Heavy Pets have built a fan base the old fashioned way, i.e. through tireless touring, which has sharpened their chops and grown their catalog extensively. The lines between rock, reggae, electronica, soul and prog get blurred nicely in the Pets, who just released their self-titled sophomore album in May.

3. Crash Kings:: Saturday :: 3:15- 4:15 PM :: Main Stage 2
Dirty ass rock 'n' roll rarely happens without guitars, but there's wonderful exceptions like the Crash Kings, a trio with serious whomp that's got keys as their primary assault weapon. Throw that on top a rhythm section that reminds one of a robust young Zeppelin plus a singer with the raw energy of young Rod Stewart and you've got good times. Our guess is they'll bring it hard in this afternoon set.

4. Nate Wilson Group :: Sunday :: 1:15-2:00 PM :: Port City Music Hall Stage
Melodic hard rock has few better allies than former Assembly of Dust keyboardist Nate Wilson and his fine Group, who in more than a few ways nod back to the original Jeff Beck Group with AOD guitarist Adam Terrell burning hot front and center on many pieces (though the guy has a Gilmour-like subtlety, too – definitely one of rock's under-sung greats). What the NWG has over the competition is super strong songwriting that scoops out the yummy parts of rock and serves them up in a really appealing way. JamBase awaits the follow-up to their killer debut impatiently.

5. Moonalice:: Sunday :: 1:45- 2:45 PM :: Main Stage 2
Moonalice delivers good ol' hippie freak rock with a genuine love of festival type folks, you know quality weirdos who like to kick down a door of perception or three but wanna boogie a touch as they break on through to the other side. This rising West Coast group is working on being a national concern and this is a chance for our East Coast readers to get a taste of what we've been enjoying in the Bay Area for a spell.