Clearwater Music Festival, Photo: Melissa Caruso
A quick hop on Metro North from the hustle and bustle of NYC will take you to one of the most stunning marvels located on the sparkling Hudson River. On the Croton Point Park fair grounds, a spiritual kindred of music and activism by way of Pete Seeger and Woody Guthrie lives. Deeply rooted in folk, Clearwater is unique to the festival scene in that when attendees leave, their stride is a bit more proactive; they are more socially aware, yearning to be part of something bigger than themselves. Installations of pop, rock and world music in recent have stirred things up in progressive fashion and with each artist’s support of Clearwater’s activism, positive change is in fact surmountable.
Come Saturday, Pete Seeger and Arlo Guthrie joined forces on “This Land Is Your Land” and it seemed as though every other performance would pale in comparison, but the energy and emotion remained all weekend; Bob Dylan and Buffalo Springfield covers from veteran performers were testament. Younger bands like Dawes and Deer Tick fared well with a generation-gapped crowd, bridging together the Neil Young and Nirvana years, and the plethora that fall between. Each band was happily welcomed by families, and for existing fans, the performances were beyond compare. Folk rock quartet, Dawes weaved through North Hills and their more recent Nothing Is Wrong; fan favorites included “Time Spent In Los Angeles” and “If I Wanted Someone” where dangling ivories frolic around manicured riffs. The latter track, laced with Tom Petty chords hooks immediately, only to be replaced by Goldsmith’s heart-on-sleeve lyricism.
Dawes' performance on the Rainbow Stage, Photo: Melissa Caruso
Relentless tours, collaborations and side projects, the folk/alt/rock motley known as Deer Tick do not rest on their laurels. During their set, a kid, face covered in chocolate ice-cream screamed for “Let’s All Go to the Bar,” but the entertaining debauchery linked to the track (in the video, a guitar is set on fire) seemed out of place at the dry festival so the seductive “Miss K” was employed, frontman John McCauley’s whiskey-coated vocals intact. The outlaw's love song, “These Old Shoes” will forever stand on its own plateau and a unique infusion of “La Bamba” was the perfect closer; each festival goer glad to have had stuck around. As crowds exited the festival, an acoustic band of friendly faces sang for peace and love and quickly filled everyone’s hearts.
John McCauley of Deer Tick, Photo: Melissa Caruso