Sound Check Music Blog

Music On The Mountaintop 2011- DAY 1

It was a beautiful afternoon in Boone, NC, and festival patrons began gathering on the grounds, full of anticipation.

The first band to take the stage was a local three-piece by the name of Swift Science.  Their quick tempo, bass thumpin’, guitar chopping, formulation was a more than excellent way to get things started.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

This was the first time this band had ever played MOTM and lead vocalist/guitarist J.D. Rust shouted “we’re really excited to be here.” From there this rock/blues threesome jammed out some crunchy melodies. Simultaneously, the folks there to hear them play laid their own tracks, as they grooved to the good vibes the trio was selflessly sending.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Next up were The Mantras. This band took stage on the largest of the three stages and prepared for lift off. This was about the time Mother Nature made her presence known.

But not to be outdone, these boys kept the vibe alive with their high energy rock/funk/thrash mix as the rain cooled the crowd. Showcasing their talents with the likes of extra spicy improvisational jams. The signature sounds flowed as swift as the rain from each instrument played by this talented and versatile group.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Organized and complicated riffs, carried by guitarist Keith Allen, exposed his uncanny ability to liquify the electricity catapulting  from the fretboard of his six string. This in turn erupted into a syrupy sauce of mindbending notes that completely stunned the crowd.  As the intensity he brought increased, so did the energy levels coming from the crowd, to about a 5.9 on the richter. Keith stayed on the stage for half of the set with Native Sway.

Rain or shine…

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Now taking the main stage is Sol Driven Train…

The sweet and sexy sultry sounds of SDT melt the rain down to a foggy mist that canopy’s the mountain treetops. The clever combination of trumpet and sax swirled with the vocal sweetness that is Soul Driven Train, flows off the stage like hot lava.

Joel Timmons, lead vocalist and guitarist, dressed to the nines in  a “ripened stripened” watermelon suit complete with seeds and all that defines what this Train is all about–great music, great fun and great people. Playing numbers from their new EP “Watermelon,” along with a mix of other SDT favorites, they always command attention.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Those velvety notes from Russels’ saxaphone are like little pieces of heaven floating around just waiting to be caught. Rusty’s basslines reverberate out of the speakers boisterously and are piggy-backed with Wes’s drums. This laid a solid foundation for Ward, Joel and Russels’ jazzy smooth melodies. These boys are more fun than a train full of sliced watermelon. Catch them if you can.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

To top things off for the night, Railroad Earth brought the house to an all out rumble as devoted fans stomped it out old school style. Shakin’ it down to the exhilarating and unmistakeable sounds of one of the most progressive bluegrass bands on the circuit.

The tremble of Andrew Altman‘s doghouse bass sent reverberations through festival soil. The crowd had grown to spectacular size despite the inclimate weather.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Banjos, dobros, and mandolins a plenty–while an assortment of percussion flavors, guitars, horns, flutes and fiddles illuminate those very sounds–resulted in the perfect recipe for a celebration of bluegrass music in its most modern attire.

From the traditional songs of their older tunes to the new and more experimental ones, this performance was one of the best acoustic sets ive seen in a very long time!

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

Coming straight from Red Rocks last week, the guys were on the money. Tight and strong notes echoed all through the hills of North Cackalakee…  Todd Sheaffer‘s vocals accompanied with the angelic whine of Tim Carbone‘s fiddle– which has been said to be imperceivable to various breeds of dogs–resulted in a close to perfect performance.

As we all know hurricane Irene spread her wrath up and down the east coast over the whole weekend. Our location was certainly by no means under any danger, but the mountains of North Carolina proved to be a bit impervious to what she was bringing. The rain on Friday seemed to be going nowhere. But either were the crowds.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog

The first day of the festival was nothing shy of a success. More and more people came out to support the festival and its cause. The campground had become full of people anxious for what the next day would bring.

As night had shown her full glow, I checked in with my Editorial Team and then it was time to regroup. Time to get out of the rain and into some dry clothes. What a great day! Thank you Music On The Moutaintop. I cannot wait to tell you all about day two.

Photo by Bart Snead | Sound Check Music Blog