Post Festival Season Blues (noun plural but singular or plural in construction) \ˈblüz\
Post-Festival Season Blues: a feeling of sadness or depression that overcomes one at the end of festival season
: an overwhelming feeling of monotony and nostalgia for the sensational musical experiences of the past festival season that often induces feelings of sadness and loss
As the summer comes to a close, music aficionados can feel the post festival season blues creeping around the bend. Fortunately, the beginning of September not only brings with it the crisp, cooler air, but also the perfect cure for this nostalgic musical epidemic. Music fanatics from far and wide will be gathering at Camp Minglewood in Hancock, NY to reunite with their beloved Chill fam in the annual celebration of Catskill Chill, the most personal yet prestigious music festival of the year. Not only does this festival boast an exceptional artist line up, but it also offers free yoga classes, an open mic stage, incredible facilities, and a close community of old friends and new acquaintances that will turn into your extended musical family. Catskill Chill will be taking place on the weekend of September 5th-7th and, despite the festival’s smaller scale; it will be the epitome of this summer’s festival season.
Although many of today’s festivals are associated with raging, going hard, and/or getting crazy; after a summer of wiling out it can be just as rewarding to take some time to chill, or more ideally, Catskill Chill. Camp Minglewood is the perfect place to do this. It’s located on a beautiful setting alongside a private lake in the Western Catskill Mountains and is bordered by the Delaware River. The camp is located at 350 Bouchoux Brook Road in Hancock, NY. That’s just a few miles from 97 South right near the Pennsylvania border, between Monticello and Binghamton, NY and only 120 miles from New York City.
Catskill Chill may be modest, but it lacks nothing in its artist line-up, hosting the most talented artists from a variety of genres and catering to all types of musical taste. At Catskill Chill you will find all of the talent that you see at the larger events without the enormous crowds, so you will never have a problem dancing your way right up to the front of the stage. With headliners such as Yonder Mountain String Band, The New Deal, and Lettuce, we will be sure to jam out, get hyped, and funky. Then, of course, there will be performances from up and coming bands such as Nahko and the Medicine for the People, the growing flock’s favorite Pigeons Playing Ping Pong, other performers from the Royal Family including Break Science, Alan Evans’ Playonbrother (performing an original and Cream set), the Eric Krasno Band, Philadelphia’s own Cocktail Party Phenomenon, and Twiddle jamming out on an original as well as a Dead set! There are so many cool performances that will be going down for all excited ears and happy feet. You know there “ain’t nothing like a P-Funk party because a P-Funk party don’t stop” and Shwikus will be bringing the P-Funk party fun to this year’s Chill. Of course Brownie will be returning playing his DJ set as well as with Electron, the Philadelphia based super-group. Turkuaz will be giving us some of their original music as well as a highly anticipated Sly and the Family Stone set and we can’t forget Shpongle (Simon Posford’s DJ set), as he is a crowd favorite.
Instead of the typical festival’s Thursday start, the music at Catskill Chill will begin on Friday afternoon, catering to those music fans that work Monday-Friday jobs. Although the parking lot and campground open at 9:00am on Friday, if you can’t get out of work for the afternoon sets, you’ll still be able to get to the Festival in time to see night performers take the stage. Aside from partaking in some afternoon yoga classes with Andrea Giacomozzi and Jamie Harris, or trying your talent with singer/songwriter host Dan Collins at the Open Mic Stage, where you can actually become a part of the performance, you can also stroll through the Farmers Market, which boasts local, fresh seasonal produce, and the impressive artisan Vendor Village (the Chill fam’s version of the festival’s Shakedown Street.)
The Music Vibes is extremely excited to see several of our favorite performers coming to Chill! Expect to see us getting “bleaah” with The New Mastersounds as we dance our feet off to their upbeat music, enter the dragon with some Kung Fu funk, break it down with Dopapod as we become the creatures that we rightfully are, get down with our funky selves at Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, and dance the night away with an inspiring set from Marco Benevento. One band we are highly anticipating is Connecticut natives, The Breakfast, which includes some of our favorite musicians from Kung Fu, such as guitarist Tim Palmieri, bassist Chris DeAngelis, and drummer Adrian Tramontano. We’re not only stoked to hear this hard-hitting jazz-rock experimental group but we can’t wait to check out the band’s keyboardist, Jordan Giangreco. We’re excited to follow up with The Main Squeeze after watching their incredible performance last summer at Equifunk as well as their set at this year’s Gathering of the Vibes where Consider the Source and Primate Fiasco also wowed the crowd.
Whether posting up in one of Camp Minglewood’s cozy cabins, their common and VIP campgrounds, or even in the RV area, you will be sure to experience the warmth and closeness of becoming a part of the Chill fam and sharing your passion for great music and dancing. Even with its lineup of incredible performers, Catskill Chill has still managed to remain one of the most affordable Festivals on the East Coast. You can purchase a general 3-day camping ticket in advance for $165 or for $185 at the gate; or pick-up a VIP upgrade for an additional $215. The VIP pass includes:
- VIP Exclusive Viewing Lounge and platform at the Main Stage
- Private VIP daytime BBQ and performance by Dopapod on Sunday September 7th.
- Private VIP cash bar at the Main Stage featuring discounted beverages and complimentary snacks
- Picturesque Lakeside VIP Camping, a short stroll from the Main Stage
- Exclusive VIP restrooms
- Swift VIP Festival Entrance
- VIP Parking in nearest lot to the main stage
- Golf Cart Shuttle Service to whisk you and your gear to your campsite or cabin upon arrival on Friday (9:00 AM to Midnight), and for your departure on Monday (8:00 AM to 2:00 PM)
- One (1) 2014 Catskill Chill Commemorative T-Shirt
- One (1) 2014 Catskill Chill Commemorative Poster
- One (1) Commemorative 2014 VIP Laminate
Speaking of VIP status, Rob Compa from Dopapod, who will be performing at the private VIP barbeque on Sunday September 7th told The Music Vibes a little bit about his excitement for returning to this year’s Catskill Chill. Rob expressed his feelings about this unique festival saying, “I honestly can’t say enough about how special of an event Catskill Chill is. We really do look forward to it all year. We play plenty of great festivals, but something about that one makes it feel like more of a family reunion than a gig. I guess since all of our best friends in other bands are usually driving all over the country all the time and we don’t get to hang much, Catskill Chill feels like a special place where we can converge together and celebrate how cool and special our jobs are. I also feel like that festival is designed for up and coming acts. A lot of great musicians that need to be heard and haven’t gotten into enough people’s ears yet get that opportunity at Catskill Chill.” Even the musicians partaking in this festival know how to chill hard with fam and look forward to annually returning to this musical family. Compa exclaimed, “We’ve got a few special treats up our sleeves for the year. Aside from our regular set, we’ll be cooking up some pancakes for everybody on Saturday morning, so keep an eye out for us and don’t spoil your appetite! Secondly, we’ll be playing a VIP barbecue set on Sunday, which will be a blast. Musically, who knows what we have in store, but I’m sure that with so many great friends there you can count on some inter-band collaborations.” Pancakes, a VIP barbeque set and some potential stellar collaboration on the horizon! This festival just keeps sounding better and better . . . are your ears getting excited yet, or also your bellies in that case?
Another wonderful aspect of Catskill Chill music festival is that it supports a happy and healthy environment, which is enforced by the green team on staff for this event. This force of nature’s justice composed of caring and environmentally aware individuals will be handing out trash and recycling bags to all campers. There will also be trash and recycling centers strategically located throughout the camping and concert grounds. On behalf of Camp Minglewood and the Chill fam, we would like to keep the environment and the campgrounds clean, so we ask that everyone assist in this mission by disposing of all trash in the proper bins and pocketing/throwing out all cigarette butts.
We’re not the only ones fervently awaiting this year’s Chill Fest. . . The Music Vibes had the privilege to touch base with some of our all time favorite musicians who will be performing at this year’s event. Pianist and local Catskill resident, Marco Benevento, expressed his excitement for playing locally in the mountains saying, “I’ve been living up in the Catskills now for a few years, so it’s great to be playing a festival right here in my backyard. We’ll have our new record, Swift, coming out a few days after the festival too, so everyone can expect some new tunes that we’ve just been starting to play out live.” Be sure to keep your ears on his new tunes and your eyes out for his upcoming record, Swift! You can check out one of Benevento’s new video’s here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WxIPkKInygA
Additionally, after playing their late night set at Gathering of the Vibes, Karl Denson and his Tiny Universe has made their way to the Catskill Mountains to help the Chill fam get FUNKed up at this intimate music gathering. Sharing in the anticipation, Karl Denson exclaimed, “We’re excited to be playing Catskill Chill this year. It’s a super tasty line-up, all about the music, which are our favorites festivals to play. Not to mention we get to hang and play music in the Catskills in the month of September, which is just a beautiful time to be up that way!” Check out this video of Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BHn8p4rqVLQ& and listen to their song “Sure Shot” https://soundcloud.com/karldenson/sure-shot to help yourself get pumped up for this epic upcoming musical extravaganza!
I can tell you from personal experience that there is no better way to spend one of the last weekends of the summer than at Camp Minglewood with the Chill fam. Friday September 5th through Sunday the 7th will be a musical experience that you will never forget! It’s time for you to chill out; so remember, the Chill fam will be waiting to get groovy with you this September. This event is highly anticipated by both music aficionados and artists alike and is one of The Music Vibes’ favorite festivals of the summer. Come kick it with The Music Vibes and the Chill Fam at Camp Minglewood to close out this festival season with some incredible music and good friends; ain’t no better cure than that!
Full 2014 ARTIST LINE-UP:
Yonder Mountain String Band with special guest Allie Kral
The New Deal
Lettuce
Electron
Shpongle (Simon Posford DJ Set)
Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe
Papadosio
The New Mastersounds
Dopapod
Kung Fu
Particle
Break Science
Nahko and Medicine for the People
Marco Benevento
Orchard Lounge
Eric Krasno Band
The Breakfast
The Heavy Pets
Twiddle x2 (Original & Dead Set)
Turkuaz x2 (Original and Sly & The Family Stone Set)
Alan Evans’ Playonbrother x2 (Original & Cream Set)
The Nth Power
American Babies
Consider the Source x2 (Electric & Acoustic Set)
Aron Magner & Tom Hamilton: Acoustic Again
Brownie (DJ set)
Brock Butler Acoustic
The Main Squeeze
Roots of Creation
Jen Durkin & the Business
Pink Talking Fish
FiKus
Pigeons Playing Ping Pong
Tauk
Cosby Sweater
The Mantras
The Manhattan Project
The Primate Fiasco
lespecial
Wyllys
Eastbound Jesus
ShwizZ
ShwiKus plays P-Funk
The Alchemystics
Fat Mannequin
The Hornitz
Flux Capacitor
Skytree x2
Subset
Business Casual Disco x2
Driftwood
SOLARiS
Funktional Flow
MUN x2 (Electric & Acoustic Set)
Cocktail Party Phenomenon
Speakerbot x2
The Jauntee
Mister F
The Chronicles
The Fritz
Tall County
Formula 5
FESTIVAL LINKS:
www.CatskillChill.com
ww.facebook.com/CatskillChill
Twitter + Instagram: @CatskillChill | #Chillfam
Preview by Rebecca Wolfe
Photography by Rebecca Wolfe and Mia Jester
Check out The Music Vibes review of 2013’s Catskill Chill
Check out The Music Vibes review of Dopapod at the Stanhope House
Check out The Music Vibes interview with Todd Stoop from Kung Fu at last year’s Catskill Chill
Check out The Music Vibes review of Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe at The Blockley
Check out The Music Vibes review of Marco Benevento at The Blockley
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