Friday, June 8th was the first full day of Bonnaroo 2018. While hardcore EDM fans were just beginning to take a nap in the hot morning sunshine, early bird music fans were waking up to a full day of activities. Centeroo exploded with life expanding massively with the opening of the main stage area.

Beanstalk Music & Mountains Festival has confirmed their return to Rancho Del Rio in the Vail Valley for 2018. Rancho sits along the banks of the Colorado River nestled into the Rocky Mountains just 2.5 hours west of Denver.

As Monterey woke up for day two of Cali Roots, there was a heavy overcast throughout the neighborhood. Thankfully clouds and thick fog are nothing new to reggae enthusiasts, and the festival proceeded without missing a beat. Day two was a day which focused on roots, both of Reggae and heritage. The artists that played Saturday had a much more thematic tie to family bonds, both those that we are born with, and the family we chose as we go through life.

The last day of a festival is always bittersweet, but fans came to the fairgrounds early to take in as much of Cali Roots as they could. Day three began as festival goers trickled in just as New Kingston wrapped up their sound check. Walking through the gates of the fairgrounds with this live music already playing earlier than usual proved an uplifting and exciting experience to the festival. Starting the day with New Kingston set a positive tone for the rest of the day.

Memorial Day weekend, Monterey Fairgrounds played host to the ninth annual, three-day reggae movement known as Cali Roots. In the three days, Grateful Web was at Cali Roots, there was one word we just kept hearing over and over again; “Homecoming.” From fans we met in the crowd to artists we spoke with behind the scenes, it seemed to be the magic word that everyone could relate to. But to say Cali Roots is a homecoming would be if anything, an understatement.

SPAC, the Saratoga Performing Arts Center is one of those venues that has always been a special place to visit. The concert shed is located in the State Park, a couple of miles from downtown Saratoga Springs, NY. Saratoga State Park is known for its healing springs. The waters are rumored to be magical. FDR bathed in these spring waters during the Great Depression as a treatment for his Polio.

After a successful tour together last year, classic rockers and long-time friends Steve Miller and Peter Frampton return on the road together again for some summer shows.

The temperature was perfect, and there was an early start to the night with the leader in British funk, The New Mastersounds. The Wales Ambassador, Eddie Roberts and his boys took the stage and wasted no time at all. Their flavor of funk is a unique, intricate, classy guitar-heavy instrumental sorcery. On this night, they even added a horn section to join them. As a side note, once at an ARISE Music Festival press conference that I was leading, I unexpectedly asked Roberts why he thinks that the tiny area of Great Britain produces so much brilliance in music, art, literature, etc. It was an idea that always baffled my mind how an area the size of Kansas can make so much beautiful art. His answer was brilliant. He responded after a pause with, “Misery.” Everyone in the room got a laugh, and one of my life long-burning questions was revealed. When their set came to an end after only 45 minutes, Roberts thanked the crowd and said that it seemed short, but that was because they are so used to often playing for 3 hours plus.

The 6th annual Spread The Word Festival, showcased some of Colorado’s most diverse and eclectic talent, spanning from ferociously fast picking and heavy-hitting bass decibels, to smooth funky jams and everything in between. Spread across five stages, Denver’s Fox Street Compound morphed into a psychedelic playground for fans to enjoy artists, food trucks and tunes galore.

Formula 5 embarks on their 2018 Summer Tour with stops at familiar haunts across the Northeast and North Carolina and featuring festival performances at Tumbledown and Adirondack Music Festivals, as well as their own Rock the Dock Music Festival on July 13. August will bring the band back to North Carolina for a pair of shows, as well as a Curveball pre-party in Watkins Glen on August 15, one night before gates open at Phish’s eleventh festival.

Formula 5 Summer Tour Dates