Saving Country Music’s Pickathon 2013 LIVE Blog

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Welcome to Saving Country Music’s 2013 Pickathon LIVE blog! We will out at Pickathon just outside of Portland, OR all weekend, leaving our thoughts, posting pics, and other bits of information from the fest all weekend.

Check The LIVE Blog below for comments, reviews, and pictures!

See The Complete Pickathon Lineup

See The Complete Pickathon Schedule

See The Pickathon Online Broadcast Schedule

pt11_band_BB401_brownThe 2013 Pickathon lineup includes names many folks are used to seeing around Saving Country Music, names like Dale Watson, Wayne “The Train” Hancock, Sturgill Simpson, Devil Makes Three, Caleb Klauder, JD McPherson, and many more. But the best part about the Pickathon experience is discovery of new bands. Somehow Pickathon always seem to put together the best combination of artists you already know and love, artist you’ve heard of before and want to check out, and artist you have no idea about but once you give a chance, make you a fan.

It’s also a great mixture between country, bluegrass, folk, rock, indie, jazz, Cajun, and everything else. The other unique thing about the Pickathon experience is there are multiple stages that each has its own specific character, and every artist that performs at Pickathon performs at least twice, and some three times. This makes it hard to miss someone you want to see, while the artists you really want to experience, you get a chance to see them in multiple settings. The Mountain View and Fir Meadows Stages are what you would maybe consider your typical big festival stages, except at Pickathon, you feel like you’re walking around in one big piece of art. The Woods Stage as it sounds, is out in the woods. The Galaxy Barn is like the intimate venue space where all the energy is captured between artist and crowd. And the Workshop Barn is where artists and patrons can interact and you can ask artists questions.

****LIVE BLOG****

***Please note, all times are Pacific Time. We won’t be offering a play by play of the entire fest, but will do our best to offer frequent updates.

Monday 12:35 PM: Thanks to Terry, Zale, the entire Pickathon crew, all of the hundreds of volunteers, all the amazing bands and artists that once again made the Pickathon the most enjoyable festival experience out there. Aside from getting pretty hot on Sunday, this year’s Pickathon had the best weather of any Pickathon I’ve been to over the years.

They continue to find creative ways to deal with people problems. Their use of projection screens for The Galaxy Barn and supplying monitors for artists and workers backstage kept you engaged with the music even when you couldn’t be right in front of the stage. One of the big concerns last year was dust, which you’re going to have at any festival. This year seemed to be an improvement, and this was probably helped by the weather leading up to and during the fest. Still more could maybe be done, but it was certainly better than last year. Their new performance space, the Pickathon Cafe was probably too much of a success to the point where it needs to be bigger. Instead of being a relaxed environment where people could sit, drink coffee and listen to music, it became like a bullpen as folks scrunched in to watch the music.

But aside from these very minor concerns, they continue to astound you in the forward-thinking and intelligent design of their fest, both in the grounds, and in the lineup and scheduling.

Two guns up!

***Sunday***Sunday***

10:15 PM: Welp folks, we have officially left Pickathon for 2013. Later tonight or tomorrow, we will post some final thoughts. Thanks everyone for following along!

8:52 PM: Bradford Lee Folk & the Bluegrass Playboys in the Galaxy Barn putting the “pick” in Pickathon.

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8:49 PM: Tift Merritt wins the award for “Best Guitar At Pickathon” 2013. It is  Gibson, probably B25. They started out cherry red, but fade to the color seen over time. The color might be my favorite part about it besides the holes.

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6:06 PM: The Felice Brothers tearing up on the main stage right now! Lake Street Dive and Caleb Klauder coming up in the Galaxy Barn.

6:00 PM: We’ve been running around like crazy, taking in as much music as we can before we have to leave town. Below is Leo Rondeau who played an inspired set earlier today in the Galaxy Barn. He had the folks dancing!

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4:07 PM: Bradford Lee Folk & the Bluegrass Playboys in the Galaxy Barn were real good. They have a a T-shirt that says, “Sex, Drugs, & Flatt and Scruggs.”

3:07 PM: This front man for The Builders and the Butchers reminds me of Austin Lucas. Not just because he looks like him, but because he sings straight from the gut.

2:55 PM: Foxygen canceled, so we’re getting a set by the Builders & The Butchers from Portland!

1:34 PM: Hanging out with Dale Watson’s band watching Leo Rondeau in the Galaxy Barn. That makes 5 Austin bands seen in 24 hours at Pickathon. Gift Merritt coming up on the live stream.

12:12 PM: Stuff to look forward to today: Leo Rondeau in the Galaxy Barn, Tift Merritt and The Felice Brothers out on the main stages, and if we hold out that long, Lake Street Dive and Caleb Klauder back in the Galaxy Barn! Shinyribs playing right now!

11:00 AM: After 10 PM at night, Pickathon shuts down its main stages and opens the Starlight Stage in the main field by the food court. Sometimes this is an intimate performance, but last night Kurt Vile & The Violators destroyed it on the Starlight stage. Cool band.

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10:53 AM: Some more followup from last night.

I want to hate Shinyribs. I really do. I saw them at the Lone Star Music Awards a few months back, and didn’t get it. Watching an old man with a rotund gut swinging around trying to be sexy and playing funky rock & roll just isn’t my thing, and his band looks like it is cobbled together from castaways from the Red Dirt scene (they’re good, but seem out-of-place). It’s just a silly concept that on so many levels doesn’t work. Hell they cover TLC’s “Waterfalls.”

But they have a big following that’s getting bigger, and I’ll be damned last night if they didn’t pull me in. Kev Russell just knows how to put on a show and make you enjoy the music for enjoyment’s sake. They had the Galazy Barn rocking. Great show. (Sorry for the cell phone pic.)

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10:34 AM: Camera found! Below is Cedric Watson and Bijou Creole from last night in the Galaxy Barn. Pickathon makes sure to represent all the different parts of the roots world, and you can’t do that without some Cajun music. Cedirc plays accordion and Cajun fiddle (cradling it in his arm, not under his chin), and sings in both English and Creole French. The girl playing washboard also sang a little bit. Good band!

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One cool feature they added this year was projection screens outside the Galaxy Barn. At night, the Galaxy Barn would get so packed, not everyone could see. Also this is where they normally have a fire pit, so folks can relax outside around the fire, and watch the music going on right inside.

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***Saturday***Saturday***

1:30 AM: Funny picture of Wayne Hancock from Hearth Music: http://instagram.com/p/ckTGrKQtD6/

12:35 AM: The Austin music scene is dead? With Shinyribs, that makes four top-notch acts from Austin that played Pickathon today.

Also, the Saving Country Music official camera is officially lost at the moment. Fault of a faulty zipper on the official Saving Country Music backpack. Maybe it will find its way back, but that piece of gear should have probably been put out to pasture a while ago. The worst part was losing the Cedric Watson photos and a few others. Got some other pics save on the phone, so we’re not dead in the water. We may procure a new camera for tomorrow.

11:00 PM: JD McPherson delivered once again. As much as the punk inside of me wants them to let loose even more, what is cool about JD is he goes right up to the line of punk, but never crosses it. Straightforward, no frills rock & roll, all analog, old school, and awesome.

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10:20 PM: Great Cajun music going down in the Galaxy Barn with Cedric Watson. Shinyribs from Austin is watching, ready to go on next. Devil Makes Three just finishing up on the Woods Stage. More pictures coming up!

9:35 PM: JD McPherson and band positively murdered it! Wow.

8:35 PM: Really enjoyed d Andrew Bird’s stuff with Tift and the band. His solo stuff come across as a little too self-indulgent for my tastes.

6:50 PM: Shakey Graves from Austin, TX is a really cool music specimen. Like fellow Austin musician Lincoln Durham, sonically he probably belongs in the underground roots scene. He’s a one man band who plays a suitcase for a bass drum, and bules-style fingerpicking guitar. But he’s grown up outside of those Deep Blues, or underground roots scenes, and if his crowds at a music festival outside of Portland are any indication, his name is getting out there quite well. Pickathon booked him in the their two smallest venues–the Workshop Barn, and the Pickathon Cafe, which is supposed to be a small little spot to relax, drink coffee, and listen to music. Both places were as packed as they could be. I don’t think Pickathon appreciated the draw of Shakey.

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6:45 PM: Some follow up from the Dale Watson set: He also said, “We love coming to Pickathon. Every year they seem to improve something.” He also played a new song “Jonesing for Jones” (or at least that’s the lyrical hook). It is a tribute to George Jones.

4:37 PM: We got Shakey Graves coming up! And don’t forget Andrew Bird & JD McPherson are going to be coming up on the broadcast starting at 7:20 PM Pacific!

4:30 PM : Dale Watson just put on what might be one of the best sets so far at this year’s Pickathon. I normally don’t think of Dale Watson as a festival guy. His haunt is more the honky tonks. But being used to playing for three straight hours at The Broken Spoke, or some other honky tonk in Texas, Dale can condense his set down to a potent hour of non-stop fun and country music. And the best part might be that he took time to do his silly Lone Star Beer bit, and a couple of other things to keep the crowd laughing. He went in depth about the whole “Old Farts & Jackasses” story, and explained Ameripolitan for folks. Excellent, excellent set in the Galaxy Barn, which if Pickathon had a honky tonk setting, that would be it.

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2:44 PM: Pickathon has a new performance space this year called the Pickathon Cafe. It is between the main field and the Woods Stage, right before you enter the woods around a gaggle of food vendors. Amidst the brambles are The Cactus Blossoms, a great neotraditionalist-style country band. They came recommended by “Lunchbox” down in the comments. Excellent stuff!

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2:40 PM: For those of you that missed Wayne Hancock on the live stream, here’s a couple of shots of him on the main stage. The second one is for the bass player’s sweetheart Gigi whose been watching the live blog. That’s Jimmy Karow on bass.

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2:36 PM: Tift Merritt was excellent. Another example of women leading country music in the right direction. Amazing band too, great listeners. Perfect, tasteful arrangements to her songs. Also loved her old Gibson guitar.

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2:25 PM: Look what just arrived a while ago on the Pickathon grounds! Bunch more pictures and info from around the fest coming up!

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12:00 PM: Remember all those pictures we saw from a recent Kenny Chesney concert and all the trash? Well Pickathon generates no trash. None. At all. Maybe a granola bar wrapper here and there, and that’s it. They have all reusable dishes. It’s also a great place to bring your kids, with dedicated kids activities all day.

11:00 AM: Things just getting stirring in earnest around the Pickathon site. Today we’ll be checking out Tift Merritt, Shakey Graves, Dale Watson, JD McPherson, and most importantly, some artists we’ve never heard of before. If you’re watching the live stream: You can find a link to the broadcast schedule above, but most notably don’t miss Wayne Hancock at 1:30 PM Pacific, then Andrew Bird at 7:20 PM, and JD McPherson at 8:40! And don’t forget, part of the Pickathon experience is discovery, so try and watch some folks you don’t know as well!

9:15 AM: No sleep ’till Sunday! We’re shaking the cobwebs out and getting ready to take in Day 2 of Pickathon.

First, some more pictures from last night. Andrew Bird on the Wood’s Stage was phenomenal. Maybe a little fey for some, but he’s a fiddling bluegrass maestro who has one of the best use of dynamics you will find. You also won’t find a better whistler in bluegrass. Joining him on stage for the set was Tift Merritt, who will be playing her own set of music today.

Since we arrived late to the show, we could only get far away and very close up, but hopefully it captured the vibe of a bluegrass show in the deep Pacific Northwest woods at night.

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Andrew Bird on Wood’s stage. Tift Merritt with her back to the camera.

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***Friday***Friday***

1:50 AM: JD McPherson tearing it up at the Galaxy Barn! Hope some of you are watching out there.

12:05 AM: Big picture dump!

Wayne “The Train” Hancock in the Galaxy Barn. Two lead guitar players, and a trumpet. One of the best bands I’ve seen him use outside of Austin. The younger guitar player is Zach Sweeny. Wayne shares him with Lucky Tubb. Zach continues to be one of the best, most unheralded guitar players out there.

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The Pickathon canopy over the main stage when it is lit at night.

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Devil Makes Three delivered a perfect set. They really deserved this headliner position. Over the last few years they’ve really polished up their live show presentation, and have become one of the most enjoyable bands to see. Simple and honest string music, with just enough of a punk attitude and kick.

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Members of the Foghorn String Band and Caleb Klauder Country Band administrated a country square dance in the main field after Devil Makes Three left the stage.

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11:00 PM: Been a crazy last hour and a half! Will be dumping down a ton of pictures here in a while. Devil Makes Three for those who missed it live, Andrew Bird, and much more. For those late night revelers, JD McPherson will be coming up on the live stream at 1 AM.

9:30 PM: I’ve seen Devil Makes Three go though some phases. They are on it more now than ever. They also gave a cool shout out to Sturgill Simpson from the main stage.

9:05 PM: Wayne Hancock just let out, heading over to see Devil Makes Three! Will post some more pics soon!

7:30 PM: Caleb Klauder just finishing up in the Workshop Barn, and we’re headed over to the Galaxy Barn to save our spot in front of the stage for Wayne Hancock!

7:22 PM: Pictures! Sturgill Simpson chopped his hair. So did the rest of the band. Pics from Pickathon’s Woods Stage.

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Lake Street Dive really killed it on the Woods Stage.

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6:20 PM: I didn’t think it was humanly possible for Lake Street Dive to be better than they were last year, but they are. They said they’ve had the best year ever last year, and it started with last year’s performance at Pickathon.

6:00 PM: Wayne Hancock coming up at 8PM, and for those watching online, at 8:50 you will be able to see Devil Makes Three.

5:45 PM: Shakey Graves was so packed, couldn’t get in. We’ll have to catch him at his next set tomorrow. Back at the Woods Stage to see the great Lake Street Dive. They were one of the biggest takeaways from Pickathon 2012.

5:00 PM: Watching Sturgill Simpson tear it up on the Woods Stage. No lead guitarist, it’s just a three piece.

3:20 PM: To wet your whistle a little bit, here is a video I took of Sturgill Simpson in Sunday Valley from Pickathon 2011 in the Galaxy Barn: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=RAtbG4l6AiE

3:15 PM : Here’s a cool video of how the main Pickathon grounds look from the air:  http://youtu.be/BL7yrB7PVjM

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