Graphics by Susannah Lohr/Photos by Stephen Tonti
Each year, those seeking a weekend of (mostly) chill escape, amazing music and delicious seafood all descend upon Newport, RI for the annual Newport Folk Festival, and 2013 was certainly no different. Packed with families, old hippies, young souls and lobster aficionados, Fort Adams State Park was a beacon for relaxation and a stellar lineup of bands. Like the last several years, the festival was extremely well run and left little, if anything, to be desired. From solid food vendors to controlled levels of crowding and good entry/exit organization, this festival has truly become a well oiled machine — not surprising given the over 50 years since the event’s inception.
So, without further ado, we give you a quick recap of the festival, including some top moments and a ton of photos to make you feel a bit more like you were there.
The Setup: Taking place in and around Fort Adams, the festival combines great music with an absolutely breathtaking view of the water. While many attendees will stand and walk from stage to stage, a good number of people will actually bring blankets, chairs and coolers to camp out in front of the main stage or at the back of the Quad Stage inside the fort. With only one additional, smaller tent stage in the mix, navigating from set to set is a pretty easy proposition and catching every band on the lineup is actually a realistic goal.
The Weather: With the exception of Friday’s showers, which moved from a slight drizzle to legitimate rain over the period of a few hours, the weather at Newport was pretty perfect. Hovering in the low to mid 80s on Saturday and Sunday, the temperature was basically perfect for a day spent outdoors.
The Crowds: While there are definitely a lot of people crowded around the stages, the subdued feel of the festival really prevents any claustrophobic attacks. Not to mention, the incredible view of the water offers the perfect escape from the large mass of people. Overall, though, after experiencing the intensity of Bonnaroo, ACL or Coachella, this is pretty much a walk in the park.
Food Options: Though the food selection isn’t enormous, what they do have will definitely hit the spot. The always enjoyable pizza option, burger stand and delicious taco selection were extremely popular throughout the weekend. Grabbing the award for most geographically relevant and tasty, though, were the lobster rolls (an expensive option, but well worth the cost at least once during the event).
Not Your Festival If: You need to have a crazy time to enjoy a festival — simple as that. Newport is for music and decompressing, not experimentation (leave that for the others).
Best Rant: Father John Misty is certainly known for making jokes at the audience’s or event’s expense, though often they’re so funny, he’s immediately forgiven. Thrown into the mix at Newport, was a long-winded jab at Honest Tea, which (to paraphrase) he said was incredibly refreshing to see after years and years of tyrannical, unethical tea company rule — not to mention their name is a pun for “honesty”.
Best Story Time: Beck had everyone laughing as he described the culture of “protest songs” performed on the streets in the early ’90s (of which there were…none). He reminisced with the audience about busking and barely gaining the attention of passersby — that is, with the exception of a little girl who seemed to enjoy his music. Given his genre-spanning, well-respected career, hearing that story was amusing to say the least.
Most Intimate Set: Taking cues from their namesake, the members of Spirit Family Reunion do a fantastic job of making their performances feel like a small, family gathering. With members crowded around a single mic in the front of the stage, they clustered in a small circle, taking turns on vocals and expertly playing off each others energy. Their crowd may not have been the absolute largest at the festival, but it was certainly one of the most engaged and inspired.
Most Nostalgic Cover: The Lone Bellow have a pretty deep repertoire of covers that take you right back to your Jr. High dance. To the delight of Newport’s crowd, they busted out a beautiful rendition of Edwin McCain’s “I’ll Be”, earning a huge number sing-a-long points. Special Bonus: at a set they played later that night, the band also broke out “Always Be My Baby” by Mariah Carey and Brian McKnights “Back at One” — emotions were running very high.
Most “Newport” Arranged Set: Putting aside his looping pedals, Andrew Bird performed a more traditional folk set with two other acoustic members and special guest Tift Merritt. Though I did miss his usual looping antics, the adjusted performance actually made me appreciate how absolutely incredible his vocals truly are (not that it’s overly difficult to notice).
Most Surprising/Non-Surprising Collaboration: Though The Decemberists weren’t technically on the bill this year, both Colin Meloy and Black Prarie (comprised of the rest of the band) were performing. In a fun, but not altogether unsurprising twist of fate, the whole group took the stage during Meloy’s set to play some Decemberists favorites.
Best Non-Folk Set: Jim James absolutely killed it at Newport this year. Running around the stage with his usual suit and swagger, he tore through songs from his most recent album, leaving the audience mesmerized by how beautifully each song was arranged. While the music didn’t necessarily feel at home within some of the other acts, I’ll wager that no one in that crowd minded in the slightest.
Biggest Winners: Hanging out around small children at Newport Folk is sort of like being near tiny versions of drunk people at every other festival. They run around, dance even when it’s inappropriate and often end up falling down. The benefit here, though, is that it’s actually endearing and cute rather than shameful and awkward. Kids are basically the winners at this festival — they’re clearly all having an amazing time.
Most Perfect Fest Moment: Though I unfortunately missed the beginning of Frank Turner’s set, I’m certainly glad that I caught the end. He managed to work the crowd into an absolute frenzy, passionately speaking about the unity and importance of a festival like Newport. To quote: “That’s a beautiful sound (referencing the crowd singing his chorus). Do you know what that is? That’s the sound of people singing together, which is a small symptom of what I’m trying to achieve with life, what we’re trying to achieve up here, and what I think everyone at this festival is trying to achieve. Which is not about a field full of drunk people shouting at each other over loud music. It’s not about that. What it’s about is different people from all the world with different ideas and hopes and dreams who came here today and left their baggage and their bullshit at the front gate, so that for a few days we are friends and we’re equals and there’s no stages, there’s no barriers, and we’re just gonna drink and dance and sing and have ourselves a good fucking time. That’s why we’re here!”
Andrew Bird
The Avett Brothers
Beck
Beth Orton
Colin Meloy
Father John Misty
Jim James
The Felice Brothers
The Lumineers
Tift Merritt
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue