After the intense rains of the night before, everyone’s spirits were lifted as the second day of the 2013 Rhythms on the Rio Riverbank Fest dawned bright and clear. It helped having the Mojones from Creede, CO, cook up some intense blues first thing.

Resiliency marked the opening of the Rhythms on the Rio Riverside Fest this past Saturday. After the spring fires, the summer monsoons hit the region hard, coloring the Rio Grande with black runoff from the burn scars higher in the mountains and swelling the waters into a rushing torrent. More of those rains hit the festival late afternoon creating some scrambling between the sound crew and the bands and forcing festivalgoers under any available tarps and canopies.

Forty-six years ago, Jimi Hendrix took the stage at the Monterey Pop Festival and set his guitar on fire, ushering in a new definition of rock and roll.

Rhythms on the Rio Riverside Fest in South Fork, Colorado, constantly amaze me. Though a small festival, it rounds up some of the best talent in the region and manages to snag a big name touring band or two.

Nobody in the current concert and touring scene has done more to up the ante for music festivals and “happenings” than the String Cheese Incident. This should come as no surprise to some.  In addition to pioneering their own unique sound and instrumentation, the band has evolved with its fans over the years. They started their own record and ticketing companies to keep their CD releases and events reasonably priced and under their control.

Boston Calling Music Festival had a successful debut back in May, when bands and fans gathered within the city’s historic City Hall Plaza for two days filled with music and great vibes.

By the fireside glow of the happy hippie house I heard of the legend of the Whippersnap Music and Arts Festival.  It is a family friendly event of the new paradigm.  I have heard of the mobile stage that visits the campsites as a parade for the kids that maybe can’t play well with others or for kids that prefer the shade of their own campsites and their iPods rather than communing together at the main stage.  I’ve heard of a miraculous place where grandmas, mommas, babies and party kidz alike were togeth

After a successful 2012 debut, which featured a wide array of musical genres ranging from bluegrass to dubstep, Summer Set Music Festival makes its triumphant return to Somerset, Wisconsin in what is sure to be the one of the premier Midwest festivals this summer.

Sometimes I find it truly incredible how different each festival is. Sure, when you poke around in different genres you’re going to have a different vibe, but even within the realm of strings and grass, you’ll find the good and you’ll find the bad. Northwest String Summit at Horning’s Hideout in Oregon doesn’t exactly make it into either category. I think it stands alone in the “this is the most amazing, beautiful, compelling, warming, etc.

Planning is underway for Yonder Mountain String Band’s 8th annual Harvest Festival, set to take place at the majestic Mulberry Mountain from October 17-19th in Ozark, Arkansas.