The JamBase List | 10 Aims Of Inaugural Phases Of The Moon

One of this year’s newcomers to the festival scene is the Phases Of The Moon Music & Art Festival, which takes place at Kennekuk County Park in Danville, IL September 11 -14. The event was put together by Sam Shear, who has taken his past experience at such festivals as 2010’s Furthur Festival at Mountain Aire, the 2008 installment of Outside Lands and Electric Forest to put together an event “by festivalgoers for festivalgoers.”

“When we started this project, we pulled together a focus group consisting of festivalgoers and music lovers of all ages. We asked them what they liked in a festival and what they did not like. What is essential and what isn’t. We also asked questions like what are their favorite artists and what kind of music do they like. We worked hard to use that input as a “road map” in building Phases of the Moon Music & Art Festival,” Shear told us about the process of booking the event. How did Sam come up with the name? “My family has always had a strong connection with astronomy and the Moon has always been a huge fascination. The idea that the Moon pulls on ocean tides and our human emotions is incredible feeling. We wanted to tie in that power and energy with music, nature and community. So Phases of the Moon felt like a natural fit.”

Shear was looking for the perfect place to stage his event, when he received a call that changed everything. “We spent many long months driving up and down the Midwest looking for a beautiful park with a centralized location and almost more important, great community support and backing. We reached out to a few different places and one day I received a call from an extremely friendly woman by the name of Jeanie Cooke the Danville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau. She told us to come down to her city and check out some of their amazing parks. We drove down, and we stopped looking…Kennekuk County Park is absolutely amazing and i can’t wait to share this beautiful park with so many people!” Sam explained.

One of the sets we can’t wait to see is the “Lunar Landing Conspiracy” set, which will be curated by and features the members of String Cheese Incident. We pushed Shear for details and he wasn’t budging, “We have some really exciting ideas in the works for LLC. I can’t give away to much, but the SCI guys are an amazing group of individuals and are going to put together one spectacular, multi-sensory concert experience. We are working out the final details and can’t wait to get them out there to the public!”

With that in mind, we’ve asked Sam to share 10 aims or goals of the inaugural Phases Of The Moon. Take it away, Sam…

1. To create a festival with an identity of its own. One that people want to attend year after year because of the unique experience it offers.

2. To create a balance between The Art community and Music world.

3. Build a community where people are mindful of each other and treat each other with respect while having a fantastic time.

4. Facilitate growth through sustainable workshops and conscious artwork.

5. To create an environment for musical artists that will foster inspiration, collaboration and Improvisation on stage. We are hoping for many memorable musical moments via collaborations. (i.e.: Lunar Landing Conspiracy)

6. To establish Phases of the Moon as an iconic festival that will grow and expand with a variety of music and art.

7. To create a festival that hits on all 4 fundamentals we base Phases of the Moon on; feel good music, awe inspiring artwork, a strong sense of community and a collective conscious.

8. “Leave no footprint behind” After working with the people at the park for over a year we have come to love and respect the park as much as the people who work there.

9. When people look up at the moon on a starry night, we hope it will recall the great experience they had at POTM. (“Full moon tonight, I wonder how many more days till Phases”?!)

10. Be able to produce Phases of the Moon Music & Art Festival for years to come.

The Phases Of The Moon lineup includes headliners The String Cheese Incident and Widespread Panic, along with Tedeschi Trucks Band, Gov’t Mule, Leon Russell, Galactic, Robert Randolph & The Family Band, Chris Robinson Brotherhood, Jackie Greene, Railroad Earth, Vintage Trouble, Donavon Frankenreiter, Sam Bush Band, Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers, Martin Sexton, Anders Osborne, Leftover Salmon with Bill Payne of Little Feat, Kung Fu, The California Honeydrops, Toubab Krewe, Mingo Fishtrap, Futurebirds, Artist-In-Residence David Gans and many more. The festival takes place in Danville, IL on September 11 -14. Tickets are available via the event’s website.