The 17th annual All Good Music Festival & Camp Out brought to
Thornville, OH one of the best line ups of the
summer July 18th-21st 2013.
During the four days, there was something for everyone
throughout the festival grounds. From the music on stage
to the charity events going on off stage, All Good not
only cares about giving great music to the masses but
also taking care of the communities that surround the
festival grounds. Since the days of shows at Buckeye
Lake, it is nice to see the festival keeping to the
traditions of showing the world the Midwest has a lot of
heart. For only the second time in its 17 year existence
All Good was held in Legend Valley and after
being held there for the first time last year, the
promoters promised to have all the kinks worked out from
last year; and boy, did they deliver!
Thursday night brought one of the best starts to a four day music
festival in the modern era. John Scofield Uberjam
brought back together John Scofield, Andy Hess, Avi
Bortnik, and Adam Deitch. The Uberjam was a great
tutorial on how it should be done. When these four
powers combined it was as if you were in the midst of
masters of their craft putting on an exhibition. Those
who showed up for music Thursday received a buffet of
music from a wide spectrum. One great aspect of All Good
is that the two main stages are side by side and as soon
as one band is down on one stage, the band that is next
starts playing immediately on the next stage, which
allowed for a Toubab Krewe, Papadosio, Lettuce
sandwich after the uberjam. The headliner for Thursday
was Yonder Mountain String Band and they did not
disappoint. “Left Me in a Hole” was a great song from
their heart, and the “Two Hits and the Joint Turned
Brown” encore was great because it represented the one
genre that was not on showcase Thursday night, reggae.
Beats Antique closed the night in a way only they
can. During their set overheard through the crowd were
people saying they were forgetting to dance because
there was so much stuff happening on stage. Beats
Antique brings with them a diverse background that
does not just cross genres but creates their own. It is
easy to get hypnotized in the theatrics of Zoe Jakes’
belly dancing, along with the intense drums and even the
violin or banjo.
Spirits were high for Friday since they were raised so much by the music
Thursday. The Reverend Peyton’s Big Damn Band
brought their Delta blues to the main stage Friday
afternoon and did not let up the entire time. It was
nice to see them not holding anything back. At one point
the Rev. demanded everyone hold up their beer for a
communal chug and they explained that one should always
make sure their shoes can do two things, run from the
police and kick ass. What is not to love about a band
that brings to the attention that Wal-Mart is killing
the country store, and their mom makes the best fried
potatoes? The next band that impressed me with their
originality and creativeness was the Everyone
Orchestra. Conducted by Matt Butler the
orchestra was made up of an all-star line-up and got
back to what the jam scene is all about, improvisation.
Relying on the crowd to participate during their set
they brought a sense of musical genius that is far ahead
of its time; everyone lucky enough to be part of their
set were all smiles and obviously having fun. Friday had
some rain come through that shortened some sets a little
bit. The Stepkids used their shortened set to
show off their talent. Their psychedelic soul was a
great mid-day treat with their song “Sweet Salvation”
showing just how much creative juice the band has.
Vince Herman leading the polyethnic Cajun slamgrass
super group that is Leftover Salmon brought to
the masses their unique style that one cannot help but
full in love with. The shortened set does not do a band
such as Salmon justice, but their cover of John
Hartford’s hit “Up on the hill where they do the
boogie” was perfect, with the hills of Ohio being
the backdrop behind the stage. After Salmon was a band
that was a pleasure to be introduced to: Nahko &
Medicine for the People was just what the doctor
ordered, and it was so refreshing hearing their message
of peace and standing up for what is right. This band
gave out all their energy while they were on stage, it
was such a treat to see this band so genuinely into not
only what they were saying but also in making sure
everyone was having fun while they were doing it. It was
a special event to have the John Butler Trio come
from Australia to come play at All Good this year. There
is so much passion and heart in his lyrics and stage
presence one cannot help but get caught up in the
emotions of his lyrics. It was great watching the fans
out in the crowd try and match his energy, and it was an
honor to be able to witness Roosevelt Collier
come out to join the John Butler Trio for the
most epic version of “Zebra”. Promising to literally
entertain the shit out of everyone, Les Claypool
brought his band Primus to late night Friday the
only way he knows how, in your face and holding nothing
back. Calling himself an All Good veteran and bringing
up the point that we live in a good age where we can
catch paper bags on fire, send them into space and shoot
lasers at them, he of course had to point out even
though his kids think he is lame, he is still ‘the man’
for being in the intro of the television show South
Park. The late night showcase Friday night was the band
Moon Hooch, and if you did not know about this
band prior to their set, you just may have walked away
thinking it was the best band of the weekend you never
knew about. Tim Walther is an American success
story and a man who knows how to throw a successful
music festival. Tim hand-picked them to play last year’s
All Good and by giving them a late night set at this
year’s All Good, Moon Hooch was truly able to
showcase their talent. Consisting of just a drummer and
two saxophones, the band created a dance party for those
who made it to the Grassroots stage that they will never
forget.
Superhuman Happiness was the only band that was able to play
their full set without the rain cutting it short
Saturday. This supergroup is made up of caring
individuals who just want to share their love of music
with the masses. I was lucky enough to sit down with
them for an interview after their set and you can hear
it in our interview section; their song “See me on my
way” is a great way to be introduced to this band. The
next band that was set to play only got to play one song
and was kicked off stage due to weather. Fruition
is a band out of Oregon, and I was truly looking forward
to catching their set. I was fortunate to interview them
the day before. They were not able to finish their set
after the rain, but be sure to check out my interview
with them in the interview section as well. The Rex
Jam brought out what All Good is all about, helping
those that need it. Throughout the grounds there are
stands that have the profits go to charities such as
local animal shelters or fire departments, but during
the Rex Jam folks were walking around the crowd
collecting money for local schools. The money raised
during the Jam went to help provide instruments for
children who wanted to be in bands. With so much funding
being cut from schools for art, The Rex Jam is doing
what needs to be done throughout the festival scene.
Grace Potter is bringing a fresh take on what a
leading lady in a band is. Backed by her band The
Nocturnals, Grace has it all: beauty, brains, style,
and dare I say grace. Her songs are so powerful and her
lyrics are inspirational. The place came unglued towards
the end of her set when Bob Weir came out to join
her for the Grateful Dead’s “Friend of the Devil”.
The Infamous Stringdusters are a gift to mankind.
Their gritty take on high country bluegrass was an event
that was cherished by those that caught them between
Grace and Furthur. Due to the rain earlier in the
day and to make sure Furthur was able to have
their complete set be played, the Stringdusters
unfortunately were given a super short set. I commend
them, though, for raging the entire time they were
given. Furthur came to All Good to show the rest
how it is to be done. Hats’ off to the sound engineers,
because their set sounded as if it were performed in
Bobby’s Tri Studios. It was magical from the time they
took the stage to the time it was over. It was almost
like the boys were toying with us; they would take the
song we all love and know, and slow it down out of
nowhere, then speed it back up, just to see if we
noticed. “Feel like a stranger>Cryptical
Envelopment>Dark Star>St. Stephen>The Other One>Dark
Star”; then just when your head was about to explode, in
comes the most pristine version of “Stella Blue” to tug
at your heart strings and get your feet back on the
ground. The name Pretty Lights says it all and at
All Good he brought his A game. It was enjoyable just
sitting on the hill and watching all the pretty lights
from a far. It is awesome how much light up toys have
come along in just a few short years. Watching the
entire crowd and stage from the hill you could see just
a plethora of visual candy.
Sunday is always bitter-sweet at a festie. Though you know there is
another great day of music in store, once it is over it
is back to reality for most. The Revivalists
started Sunday off right. With lyrics of modern times
and truth you cannot help but enjoy this band. With
Dave Shaw leading the group this front man is one of
the most under rated lead singers in the industry.
The Marchfourth Marching Band had a set on Saturday
but were really able to showcase their talent during
their set Sunday due to the fact that there was no rain
to shorten their set. The marching band may have been
one of the hardest working bands all weekend; they could
be found thoughout the grounds taking their show though
out the venue. The Ragbirds made their entire set
in spite of their lead singer Erin Zindle being 8
months pregnant. Erin’s voice in front of the band
behind her truly makes for a one of a kind experience.
Keller Williams with the Travelin’ McCourys
closed the festival proper. Playing songs from their
album Pick along with covering songs from pop
radio, one could not help but dance to the special
versions of these songs that only Keller and the
McCourys could create.
Late night Sunday after most folks headed home, those
still around the venue all met up for an impromptu drum
circle/ fire spinning session. It was really nice to
have been a part of the special occasion with everyone
trying to get in some last minute memories of what was
one of the best All Good’s to date. It was so nice
seeing this years All Good go out of its way to secure a
good time was had by all in attendance and guarantee
there was something for the children of all ages. If you
have yet to experience what All Good is all about, I
highly recommend making sure you make it to All Good
2014.
Written by: Tyler Muir
Edited by: Rosemary A.W. Roberts
Photos by: Keith Griner -
FULL ALBUMS
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