FMP 024 – Bridget Law and Tierro Lee
Ride Festival 2019
Recap
The 8th Annual Ride Festival backdropped by steep slopes of evergreens and aspens in downtown Telluride was filled with good vibes and great music. Everyone has their band, and for this crowd, it’s Widespread Panic. And Panic does not skip a beat. Mean solos and raspy, eerie vocals define this legacy band. Long jams fed a stellar ambiance in the crowd.
However, the Ride Fest is not just Widespread Panic. Take a listen to some of the alluring artists of the festival below and be sure to check them out on tour.
TYLER BRYANT & THE SHAKEDOWN
This band ROCKED, bringing a new generation of the rock genre to the forefront. It was rugged, raw, and dirty. Small town Texas-born guitarist/vocalist Tyler Bryant commanded the stage in the best of ways. Riffs of southern jam band, blues, and slasher rock were skillfully crafted in their music. Only in their 20s, this band is on the up. I wouldn't pass up the opportunity to see them live.
And who’s not a sucker for a little slide guitar?
PONY BRADSHAW
Pony Bradshaw, whew! This project, backed by singer, songwriter, James Bradshaw, has a honest, pure vibe. He has a beautifully smooth voice and haunting, intriguing lyrics. He kicked off Saturday afternoon right with his Americana storytelling. I really dug Pony Bradshaw, take a listen below.
Photos
FMP 011 – The Motet – Dave Watts
The Freio Music Podcast
Episode 011 - The Motet - Dave Watts
Other Podcast Episodes
FMP 010 – Aphasia
The Freio Music Podcast
Episode 010 - Aphasia
Other Podcast Episodes
Sonic Bloom Photo Recap 2018
Sonic Bloom 2018 Photo Recap
This year at Sonic Bloom the music was on fire as usual. Three main stages running until 2am and one stage running until sun-rise with music until 6am. The workshops begin at 8 am so there is really only two hours of 'off-time' per day all four days of the festival. The music and grooves transitioned seamlessly as different artists plugged in while others finished out their set. The main stage has a 'tween' stage, which if you are not familiar with the term is a small stage right next to the main stage and features short usually under 30min performances while the main stage undergoes a set change. This is the optimal way to transition on a large stage while maintaining the audience's attention and attendance.
With thee stages going simultaneously for 8 hours (with three stages that is actually 24 hours of live performances compressed in time and space within walking distance), which provides an opportunity for more musicians to be heard and benefit from the cross-pollination of musical audiences. The river ran dry but the music and shaded hammocks at the hummingbird stage provided a welcome mid day napping location. There is no shortage of amazing talent and the careful curation of musical acts that preform ensure a high threshold and a healthy diversity while still being true to the festivals electronic roots.
Photos will never capture sound so seek out good listen to new music. Click here to listen to live tracks from Sonic Bloom 2018.
Some more music the official Sonic Bloom Playlist on Spotify:
Gipsy Moon – FMP 003
The Freio Music Podcast
Episode 03 - Gipsy Moon
Other Podcast Episodes
ProJect Aspect – FMP 002
The Freio Music Podcast
Episode 02 - ProJect Aspect
Other Podcast Episodes
Sonic Bloom 2016
Sonic Bloom 2016 has a stacked lineup producing incredible performances too numerous to describe here. It is safe to say, “SonicBloom has become one of the best electronic music festivals in North America!” It is worth noting the international talent attracted to the base of the Colorado Rockies to share their vision, talent and art. To see the full lineup click here.
The mindfulness and vision to attract the top talent from across the globe, must be recognized and commended. The three official stages vibrated with historic house music. This festival is the nexus of the Colorado electronic music scene. The location is perched atop a beautiful space of land with the foothills of the Rockies to the west and windmill filled fields that go on to meet the eastern horizon. The festival has succeeded at curating a fertile ground for the world-wide cutting edge of musical maneuvering.
The sound systems are tuned to the valley and can bump through the entire festival grounds. The security is appropriately staffed and energetically aligned. The friendly faces can be found throughout the campgrounds, stages, in swinging hammocks, in high fiveing security guards, or the dancing chefs who happily serve nourishing food at reasonable prices. The ice, in high demand in the hot sun is the only noticeably overpriced product at $1/lb. The showers run at full capacity as people line up for their chance to clean off that layer of accumulated dust and dirt that is kicked up from all of the movement. The sunny and beautiful weather also brings with it the dryness enabling the dirt to turn to dust. The wind is welcome and the stream is an oasis for people looking to take a dip and cool off.

The unofficial or ‘renegade’ stages include tipis and camp sites stacked with speakers and subs. The colorful crowd and the apex of art have arrived to create an immersive experience that people are willing to dedicate four days to. Some of the crowd has traveled from across the continent to enjoy the this dreamed up reality.
This festival has become a small close nit group of people who are looking out for one another to form a utopic village for just under a week. The production continues after the last set as everything needs to return to its original order; stages must come down, lasers, lights, projectors, sound & lighting boards, 1,000’s of yards of electric wiring, speakers, microphones, instruments, and framework to name a few. The thankless work of setting up all of the stages and hauling in the gear was executed with time to spare and enough technology to entertain even the most avid of festival goers.
People in their ‘A-Game’ costumes come energetically into the festival entrance in groups. Everyone has made 10+ new friends and friendly neighbors. The exchange of ideas, paints, music and visual art permeate the mind of every attendee. One cannot help but be inspired by something of unique beauty.
Day in the Life; at Sonic Bloom:
Winds whip down the hills and across the plains. Dust moves in a hurried Eastwood direction. Every walk of electronic culture strolls through the grounds interacting with experiences, sonic vibrations and frequencies across the perceptible spectrum. Cars have been rolling in for over 12 hours at a steady pace filling up the campgrounds. The lucky and wise are nestled among the 6′ shrubbery whose neighbors are bushes and trees. My neighbors on the other hand-made the pilgrimage to SonicBloom from Louisiana. A tightly packed vehicle of four young energetic and enthusiastic beautiful artistic human beings. As a group, it does not seem possible to gather so many like-minded humans in a place to enjoy and thrive in a collaborative environment.
Friendly staff greet the goers. The hippy chicks and the electric glowers.
From the lighting to the sound, from the stages to the camp ground, there are smiles to go around. With the hammocks from Yammocks, and the beats from the peeps the festi is full of fun-loving music geeks.
Three stages of stacked sets featuring some of the top electronic acts from around the world. American electronic music lovers treat this event as an annual pilgrimage to discover and reunite with the music, people and source of creative energy that is the foundation of a festival. Creativity flows from the ornately decorated stages and sublimely composed tracks that suddenly take hold of the listeners and create a simultaneous bodily expression of enjoyment including but not limited to twerking, spinning, jumping, dropping, exploding or floating.
The breeze kicked up into a howl for Nightmares on Wax’s last song featuring one of the most recognizable guitar riffs around. The high energy Bonobo set was filled with masterfully woven bass lines pulsing through the night. The crowd can be heard cheering for miles.
The late night stages rage like there is no finality to human diurnality. The artists continue to stoke the flaming crowd into the next adventure and from one set to the next. The solitude of night embraced with the warmth of bass and faces.With the evolution of the performances, the pulse of the festival was amplified and magnified by the exemplified beat technique. The audible entertainment abruptly ended, with a slow retreating high pass filter that faded out for 15 min or more notifying the audience that the silent disco was starting. With headphones on, the party rolls on…
The nexus of Colorado electronic music counter-culture is here; at Sonic Bloom, on the beautiful property at Humming Bird Ranch.
Arise Music Festival
For its third year in a row, Arise Festival has united music lovers of all genres bringing an eclectic diversity of musical talent over the three day weekend in Loveland, Colorado.
It wasn’t just the quality performances across four stages that drew the crowd of over 5000 lovely people to the secret valley. It was the yoga, films, workshops, dialogues, live performances, and art that were enough to keep everybody smiling through the 90° days of Colorado sunshine. The week before the festival even began, the Permaculture Action Course brought people together for permaculture education and community building with a focus on catalyzing social transformation. The Polish Ambassador held his touring Permaculture Action Day at the venue with volunteers to actively regenerate biodiversity and natural resources. The family-friendly venue spanned over 100 acres surrounded by colorful mountains and festival-goers were treated with perfect weather and vibrantly stunning sunsets throughout the entire weekend.
At the elevation of 5394 ft. the thin air complemented crisp music of four music stages. The Eagle Stage hosted the largest of acts, sitting in a bowl and providing perfect views of the stage and down a valley of red-toned rocky mountains. Immediately next to that, was the Phoenix Stage which provided alternation in music to virtually never stop between the two stages. On the other end of the venue, the Area 51 Stage presented by TheUntz was dedicated to electronic music with 3D projection mapping, premium sound, and brought the dance party all day lasting through the night. The StarWater People’s Stage provided a constant array of music showcasing local talent that will surely become the next big names in Colorado. A stage dedicated to yoga in the Yoga Zone, rested on a hill above the festival grounds where people could embody their energies with leaders from all over the globe. During the hot days, the air-conditioned Big Sunrise Dome held films, intimate music and storytelling, and presentations.
This year, Arise continued to focus on uniting conscious music that aligns with the theme of conscious action, ecological activism, and social justice. Special guests were prevalent in nearly every act. In between promoting environmental awareness and expanding the gardens of Sunrise Ranch, The Polish Ambassador brought the largest crowd of the weekend with his funky smooth music that left attendees on an uplifted note for the rest of the weekend. Brooklyn based Turkuaz had the surprising highlight of the weekend blasting a mesmerizing set full of their unique take on funk with their powerhouse horn section and they’re beautiful singers. Earlier in the day, The ReMINDers raised faith in hip hop with Big Samir’s smooth flow complimented by Aja Black’s amazing voice. Not only did they rock the main stage, but the following day, they took over the Children’s Village playing a low key show for the kids and parents. Instruments were passed out among the children while other kids played on the hand built drums around the stage to join them in making music. Other musically talented people joined in to play saxophone and acoustic guitar; then kids danced on stage and even sang along side The ReMINDers. It was very heart warming to see a main stage act get intimate and spread smiles across all ages as they joined in on the music.

Saturday had a jam-packed musical lineup between the adjacent Eagle and Phoenix stages, allowing fans to never have to leave their spot. The non-stop music went from Nederland’s The Magic Beans, to the many musical styles of Ozomatli, to reggae’s finest Giant Panda Guerilla Dub Squad, to the rocking Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, then chilling out with Wildlight, ending with the soothing beats of The Human Experience. Joe Russo’s Almost Dead, formed by drummer Joe Russo from Furthur, brought many dedicated fans out to Loveland that night. With their rockin’ take on Grateful Dead songs, JRAD performed a highly energetic show that left the crowd wanting more. Those who missed them, should be sure to catch them in their next show. If it was possible to leave the continuous music at all, the Area 51 stage was packed with endless fun as well. The jamtronica trio hailing from Fort Collins, Skydyed fused electronic feels with funk, rock, and bass. Tnertle brought the Denver electro-funk before Defunk gave everybody a taste of his electro-soul beats.
The final day wound down with peaceful music across all stages leaving fans happily content before they head back to all over the country. Boulder reggae band Intuit brought their local captivating music to the Starwater People’s Stage. After playing to a sold out crowd at Red Rocks Amphitheater last week with Dirtyheads and Slightly Stoopid, Stick Figure continued the reggae vibes and graced us with their uplifting music. The large band Edward Sharpe and The Magnetic Zeros played a very enlightening show with lead singer Alex Ebert taking the time to preach love across the crowd. One of Colorado’s favorites, Mikey Thunder brought his fun-packed party to the Area 51 Stage before saQi performed his set full of mystic music sometimes backed by his soothing trumpet. Closing out the festival, Trevor Hall played his acoustic reggae to the loving crowd, bringing special guest singers and even a golden retriever to keep the feelings of peace spread throughout.

Overall, everything at the hybrid festival was incomparably flawless. Our journey, from beginning to end, was amazing in every way. Entering the venue with our cars was seamless, the festival grounds were immaculately clean, food vendors showed off their tastiest foods, and every single staff member and volunteer was genuinely helpful and kind. But it was the perfect camping, mind-opening workshops, earthbound yoga, and star-studded lineup over a weekend of beautiful weather that was one to never forget as we look forward to the next time we can all come together to experience what Arise has to offer.
:: A FreioMusic collaboration with Julien Deroeux & Duncan Lowder ::







