Me and Music and the Shipyard Fest

I love music. lt's always been one of the things in life I could count on - losing myself in the sounds, the words, and the personality of the artists.  I especially love live music so naturally I attended the 2nd Annual Shipyard Festival in downtown Cape.  Awesome indy bands from Lebanon, Missouri (DAWSON HOLLOW), Athens, Georgia (WALDEN - played a nice, subdued cover of Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain"), Brooklyn, NYC (ANIMAL YEARS) and a local Cape band (RETRO CITY) that opened the two day music fest.  A little over a week ago, I didn't know how these eleven bands sounded.  Their introduction to my world was welcomed with open ears, a nodding head and dancing feet.  It's always great to have new music as I journey my way through this life adventure.

I left my Nikon at home since I didn't want to be caught up in taking photos, but I did capture a few pics with my iPhone.  A giant shout out to whoever selected these bands for the festival - 11 gold stars!

I had a time....

TIDAL VOLUME from St. Louis opened the 2nd day of the festival with a high energy setlist.  The beauty of live music is how the crowd and the artists interact.  Great start to such a fun day!

The Yard was sponsored by St. Croix Church who provided espresso and root beer floats for free!

BLACKFOOT GYPSIES was one of my favorites of the festival.  The charismatic singer in the red shirt had awesome energy - hints of Freddy Mercury and Mick Jagger with an independent focus.  He was so much fun to watch - I love unique artists.  I really enjoyed their way too short set.

LIZ COOPER and the STAMPEDE was such a fun band to sway with.  I really like Liz's voice - reminded me of a young Grace Slick.

Food is also one of my favorite things about concerts and I tried three items.  I loved the pictured Brat Burger from Mary Jane.  It was served on a pretzel bun with a pickled red onion and corn topping.  I also enjoyed the Godfather Focaccia sandwich from Gabriels.  I almost went back and got another one, but decided to try something different.  I should have went back for another Godfather - It was that delicious!

THE NEW RESPECTS was another highlight for me.  I really like "We Ain't Going Nowhere" and their sublime cover of The Beatles "Come Together."  It was also nice to see some diversity among the bands - I could have listened and danced all night to THE NEW RESPECTS!

A Community Message board was set up for festival goers to write positive messages.  I initially wrote "Curb Your Dog" then went back and added "Please."  Living and walking in downtown Cape, I noticed many pet owners don't clean up after their pets.  It's a positive message that if followed would create an even more beautiful downtown.

AMERICAN AQUARIUM had an folksy, laid back sound and message for the crowd - I can relate to their song "Crooked + Straight".  Another strong set of folky rock with a country vibe.

A playlist was created on Spotify called "Shipyard Music Festival 2019" which I started to listen to before going to the show.  COLONY HOUSE quickly became one of my favorites as I liked both their sound and the lead singer's voice and I was looking forward to hearing them live.  They did not disappoint.  A lot of folks want artists to sound on stage as close to their records as possible, but not me.  Yes, I want to be able to identify the song but I also want the artist to take the performance up a notch or three when playing it live.  COLONY HOUSE rocked it, took it up and I really loved it when THE NEW RESPECTS joined them onstage!  Awesome set!

JUKEBOX THE GHOST is a drummer, a keyboard player and a guitarist that created such a fun, upbeat sound with somewhat of a Queen vibe. I thought this before they played a beautiful cover of the classic Queen track "Bohemian Rhapsody."   Perfect sound to end a great day of live, independent bands that rocked downtown Cape, just a stone's throw from the river.|

When you end the day with tired bare feet, an empty beer glass, and music still playing in your head, you know it was a good one!  Hopefully there will be a 3rd Annual Shipyard Music Festival!  Just have it on another weekend than the Craft Beer Festival. (SMILE)