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May 02, 2007
Redlands Music Festival anyone?
So, I finally had the pleasure of dirtying my toes and sweating through my clothes at the Coachella Art and Music Festival.
Driving there with another colleague and a few friends, we were grateful to find that press passes made things much easier. After hours of bumper to bumper traffic, walking through the long parking lots of hay and getting through the gate, had we not had press passes I don’t know if I would have made it.
At first I said it wouldn’t have been worth it without our press passes, but that was before I experienced Perry Ferrell’s new project Satellite Party as we entered through the VIP area.
And that was just the beginning.
I spent the day dancing to Stephen Marley, talking to artists and activists who had booths and exhibitions of information and art, and later being overwhelmed by the medling of lights and sounds that filled the Empire Polo Fields in the darkness of Indio.
The many smiling faces and the incredible jams being performed throughout the weekend made me think about the Local Music Scene.
Many of the bands at Coachella got lucky somewhere along the line, enabling them to play at venues such as this. But many of them started at coffee shops and bars and even their parents garages.
I have been toying with the idea of creating a Local Music Scene Festival for some time. It would be located at the University of Redlands Greek Theater or in Prospect Park; a two-day music festival hosted by the Redlands Daily Facts and Sun newspapers, featuring artists that have been profiled in each paper’s local music sections.
I would also like to invite local vendors to provide food and drinks and to also have a merchandise area with band t-shirts and CDs.
This idea is in the preliminary stages, but I am going to make it happen. It is time that Redlands bands have a festival to celebrate their work.
As I was watching bands like Circa Survive, The Jesus and Mary Chain and Amy Winehouse, I can’t help but compare their talents to my local favorites. A local music festival in Redlands would be just as entertaining without a long drive and a sticky atmosphere.
Keep looking for updates. Together we can make it happen.
Posted by Darcie Flansburg at May 2, 2007 03:00 PM