Saturday at Candler Park, a day full of concerts and… general festival vibe. Candler Park is a smallish park “in-town” Atlanta, surrounded mainly be residences. It’s walkable for many, a short ride-share away for others and convenient to Atlanta’s light rail system, Marta. So who comes? Everyone. And there’s a place for them. There’s those that like a day in the park with friends, sitting on blankets, drinking beverages of choice and chatting the day away. Others come dance, with or without others. More still come to get lost in the music – whether they’re at the front or hanging loose at rear tables, under the tree shade or soaking up the skin. And it’s all ages, from the almost elderly down to strollers with infants (with ear protection).
The festival is beautifully arranged. There’s only one stage, and there’s plenty of food options, souvenirs, arts/crafts vendors, alcohol sales and, of course, restrooms. Top tip: The Pickle Food Truck. Get the Grilled Chicken & Green Chile Quesadilla and fear not any regrets.
The recurring theme from the bands was of the festival feel good variety, which could be summed by be grateful what you have, life is short and make the most of every day.
My day started with CBDB, a Tuscaloosa, AL band who play “joy funk.” The band featured their own flavor of crowd pleasing music, their strength the same as many of the other bands – good lyrics, great rhythm and brass. Add on some great guitar and keyboard solos, and there you go. A crowd pleaser. Like many of the bands, their live album, Live Deebs, Vol. 1, is a great sampler.
Cha Wa brought a different level of energy to the festival, not to mention a busload of band members. They’re from New Orleans and sound like it, unafraid to drop a few Saints/Falcons taunts without mentioning the name of either team. The band pointed out that they weren’t wearing “costumes” but traditional garb for their Mardi Gras Indian tribe, which take roughly a year to make. There’s a different beat and feel to the music, as one would expect from New Orleans. The songs generally reflect the band’s view of street life, consistently presented in an uplifting, celebratory way. Their Grammy nominated Spyboy is a good place to start for a modern flavor of New Orleans music.
A few conversations on the way in suggested that Twiddle was the band that many came to see. They hit all the jam band prerequisites – jazz, rock, funk or anything they might want to play, along with some blazing guitar and keyboard solos. Twiddle impressed. It’s a talented band, great melodies, nice changes in rhythm/feel, and featured consistently great guitar solos. Definitely a band to catch whenever or wherever they’re around.
If Twiddle had an expectant crowd, then Trouble No More double downed on that. Featuring the duo lead guitarists Brandon “Taz” Niederaur and Daniel Donato, the band brings all the elements to cover not just the Allman Brothers Band music but the expectations of the ABB fans for extended blues jams. No disappointments here, buttressed by solo highlights from pedal steel guitarist Roosevelt Collier and keyboardist Peter Levin. My personal favorite was “In Memory of Elizabeth Reed.”
The Disco Biscuits closed the festival. Their set sequed from one song to the next, shifting rhythms as they went along. The band’s name is slang for several recreational drugs, and the curiously minimalistic lighting left plenty of room for the audience’s visual interpretation of the music.
Mixing electronic beats and rock, the band delivered on “trance fusion” through their set. It was a nice change from the bluesy predecessors at the festival and a completely different vibe. Long live the scorching guitar solo, however the music gets labelled.
