Hangtown Music Festival Announces Last Minute Lineup Changes

This weekend (October 20 – 23), the sixth annual Hangtown Music Festival, the event formerly known as Hangtown Halloween Ball, will be held at El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville, California. Today festival organizers have announced a pair of lineup changes that features two one-of-a-kind ensembles.

As recently reported, bassist Chris Wood underwent emergency surgery. While the MMW and Wood Brothers bassist is healing nicely, he will not be able to perform at Hangtown. Thankfully Hangtown organizers have put together a pair of impressive formations to replace those scheduled sets. Kirk Joseph of the Dirty Dozen Brass Band (tuba) and Will Bernard (guitar) will join MMW’s John Medeski and Billy Martin to form Medeski Martin & Mad Skillet. The quartet is a hybrid of Medeski’s Mad Skillet ensemble and MMW. Look for the foursome to perform a dynamic mix of Medeski Martin & Wood tunes and hard-hitting grooves.

Additionally, Hangtown ’16 will host a set from Oliver Wood with Jano Rix & The Hangtown Allstars. The performance will find Wood Brothers members Oliver Wood and Jano Rix joined by Ric Robertson of The Rondo Rigs on bass. The trio will present a mix of Wood Brothers’ favorites and beloved classics along with several guests including vocalist Nicki Bluhm, multi-instrumentalist Joe Craven, Railroad Earth fiddle player Tim Carbone and members of The Infamous Stringdusters.

“It takes a village to replace one single bad-ass when we’re talking about Chris Wood,” said festival spokesperson, Paige Clem. “We’re a bit blown away to have so many amazing musicians step up to the call on short notice. Chris will be greatly missed this weekend, but we’re expecting some pretty magical moments from the musical pairings we have in place.”

Hangtown ’16 will also feature three nights from host band Railroad Earth as well as performances from Nahko and Medicine for the People, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe performing Prince’s “Dirty Mind” featuring Angelo Moore from Fishbone, The Infamous Stringdusters, Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers, Incidental Animals featuring members of SCI, ALO & TAB, BoomBox, Steve Kimock & Friends featuring Jeff Chimenti, Bobby Vega, Lebo, Leslie Mendelson & Wally Ingram, Pimps of Joytime, Carolyn Wonderland, The Brothers Comatose, TAUK, Twiddle, Dead Winter Carpenters, Pink Talking Fish, Horseshoes & Hand Grenades, Whiskey Shivers, Euforquestra, Gene Evaro JR, Achilles Wheel, Kate Gaffney Band, Gipsy Moon, The Kitchen Dwellers, Rabbit Wilde, The Drunken Hearts, Ideateam, Swamp Zen and Joe Craven.

Late Night Shows feature Boombox and Steve Kimock & Friends on Friday, October 21; The Infamous Stringdusters and Horseshoes & Hand Grenades on Saturday, October 22; Incidental Animals and Twiddle on Sunday, October 23. Tickets are $26 for Friday and Saturday’s shows and $24 for Sunday’s concert.

4-Day Passes for Hangtown are on sale now here with prices set to go up to the gate price tomorrow (October 18). Ticket options include 3-day Adult Passes, Teen Passes, Kid Passes and SupernaturALL VIP packages.

Hangtown Music Festival 2016 Lineup

• Railroad Earth x3
• Medeski Martin & Mad Skillet
• Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe performs Prince’s ‘Dirty Mind’ featuring Angelo from Fishbone
• The Infamous Stringdusters
• Oliver Wood with Jano Rix & The Hangtown Allstars
• Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers
• Incidental Animals
• Boombox
• Steve Kimock & Friends
• Pimps Of Joytime
• Carolyn Wonderland
• The Brothers Comatose
• TAUK
• Twiddle
• Dead Winter Carpenters
• Pink Talking Fish
• Horseshoes & Hand Grenades
• Whiskey Shivers
• Euforquestra
• Achilles Wheel
• Gipsy Moon
• The Kitchen Dwellers
• Rabbit Wilde
• The Drunken Hearts
• Ideateam
• Swamp Zen
• Joe Craven