California’s Guitarfish Music Festival 2016: Bohemian Frolicking & Fun At 5,640 Feet

Words & Images by: Alan Sheckter

Guitarfish Music Festival :: 07.28-31.16 :: Cisco Grove Campground :: Cisco Grove, CA

Consider if you will placing a multi-day music festival with captivating jammy bands of psychedelia, funk, folk, soul and rock varietals in an expansive campground in the middle of a deep alpine forest, with clear cold waters of a major river cascading by. Add the final ingredient, a joyful, colorful cast of adventurous attendees with a bohemian lust for fun and frolic. And there you have it – the setting for the multi-day Guitarfish Music Festival, presented for the sixth time on the last weekend in July high up in the mighty Sierra Nevada. And oh, the weather! While daily high temperatures for Sacramento and other northern California valley communities average around 95 degrees in late July, the mild daytime and very cool overnight temperatures added to the weekend’s pleasure.

There, at an elevation of 5,640 feet where for many months a thick blanket of snow typically covers the landscape, a diversified musical itinerary of about 30 acts was led by ALO (conscience-expanding pop/funk/jazz songs and jamming), The Greyboy Allstars (funk/soul/jazz featuring Karl Denson and Robert Walter), Orgone (muscular funk ‘n’ soul), Lyrics Born (“funk 4 the future” hip-hopper), Sister Sparrow & The Dirty Birds (Arleigh Kincheloe-led soul and rock), Joy & Madness (irresistible party rock and horn-filled funk), Wheeland Brothers (fun loving, Sublime/Slightly Stoopid-reminiscent reggae/funk/rock) and Hamsa Lila (trance grooves and performance art).

Virtually every band/performer either voiced or showed, via non-verbal communication, an appreciation for the setting and the vibe. The large backstage area, with its couches, snack tables, beverages and glittery marine decorations invited conversation, laughs and mutual camaraderie between acts that rarely get to cross paths on their individual touring circuits.

Unlike many summer fests with camping facilities that are too cramped or too hot, it was a pleasure to spend time in the middle of the day to relax, cook or even to nap, without breaking a sweat. In addition, Guitarfish campsites are Cisco Grove campsites, which is to say, they are large, each with a table, fire pit, parking spot, and plenty of room for tents and generally spreading out. The cascading Yuba River offered nourishment and renewal to all, and if anyone wanted to explore beyond that, in the morning before festival activities reconvened, the adjacent Rattlesnake Road climbed five miles and an additional 2,000 feet to snowmelt-fed Fordyce and Sterling lakes.

Special musical “discoveries” included a brilliant performance by Dirty Revival, a seven-piece Portland, Oregon-based soul outfit with commanding beats and brass led by the muscular, soulful vocals of Sarah Clarke. Another Portland product, Crow And The Canyon, turned heads with their appealing brand of bluegrass-y roots/folk. ALO front-man Dan “Lebo” Lebowitz, who was back for the sixth time, also introduced a lot of folks to the songs and jamming of the newly formed Doobie Decibel System, in which Lebo plays with some Bay Area musical icons including Roger McNamee, Jason Crosby, Pete Sears and Jay Lane.

Named after an actual guitar-shaped fish species, the festy loosely emanates “Guitarfish Adventures,” an “epic eco-musical fish tale” book that features a music-making, conservation-minded school of sea creatures. Jimmy Leslie, a guitar slayer who authored the book in 2011, deserves props for his energy and festival presence with Jilly Leslie & The Flow, leader of an acoustic jam session of water-topic songs, and finally as Trickey Frets of the tribute band, The Allmond Brothers Clan.

Most of the music delivered from two neighboring main stages at a naturally converging spot at Cisco Grove called The Fish Bowl, which featured a large carpeted (for dust reduction) dancing and viewing area between them. Overhead, shade cloths helped filter the sun during the day and provided an artistic canvas for light shows at night. One path leading away from the stage areas offered enticing food choices, as well as gourmet coffee and Lagunitas beer on tap, and another footpath contained assorted artisan offerings.

From daylight to late night, the dance floor was open and thriving, with groups playing on alternating stages, and each band getting at least 90 minutes of stage time, allowing them to musically stretch out. The grounds also included a pavilion for yoga, a Family Camp equipped kid-friendly activities and a stage that offered music by such performers as the Banana Slug String Band (who did a kick-ass version of “Tide Pool Boogie,”) the Element Brass Band and Katdelic. The Jank, a 35-foot Burning Man-conquering mobile stage art car, equipped with a stately chandelier and two boom extensions for aerial dancing, anchored a small fest stage area of its own dubbed Janky Town. A costumed Guitarfish Diva Ball also occurred, however, its 2 a.m. start – two hours later than scheduled – was out of logistical reach to many.

There are bigger festivals to be sure, but this still-intimate festival has a strong organic community spirit running through it that makes it ripe for forming lasting friendships.

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