toast's blog

Words by Nick "Toast" Roth. Photo by B "Cafe Con Leche" Gutierrez.

Our friends took a trip to the nearest Wal-Mart from Wakarusa on Friday. Gotta love Arkansas! Coming back, they appeared very refreshed. That's when they told the rest of us sweaty beasts about the nice and refreshing hour they spent wading in the Mulberry River. As the heat continued to beat us down severely, we knew where our Saturday was going to begin.

I woke up that morning to the Ketamine laughs next door, reassuring myself that I wasn't in the Mulberry already, but in a river of my own sweat. About an hour or so later we packed up the crew, some food and a grill, and headed down the mountain to our shady retreat for the afternoon. After a trip to the waterfall last year, and nearly going into heat stroke on the way back, the seven mile drive seemed like bliss compared to that hike. We were greeted at the river by several other festival goers, although the place had yet to become completely packed out. This was largely due to a lot of people being parked in for the weekend.

We spent the majority of the afternoon at the swimming hole, showering and taking in a scrumptious lunch with some new friends. The shower I took in the river beat the balls off of our solar shower, and I was rejuvenated and ready to take in another night of great music. With Widespread Panic headlining the night, I knew it was going to be a late night. Lots of Gatorade and water would be ingested through the day, hoping to make my night last just a little bit longer.
Read on for Saturday's musical feast after the jump.

Words by Toast. Photo by Café con Leche.

Another year has come and gone for the Wakarusa Camping and Music Festival, and this year was sure to bring several changes. One of the main changes that was immediately noticeable was the volume of attendees this year. I heard rumors of anywhere from 15,000 to 60,000 people were there. If I had to guess based off experience, I would say there were around 20,000. Regardless, it proved to be yet another year that was run flawlessly thanks to staff and festival-goers alike. Read on for Thursday's line-up after the jump.

One of the highlights of any festival is the atmosphere. It's almost a sub-culture that is hard to describe to anyone that has never experienced it. Wakarusa is no different, and with the attendance numbers sky rocketing, this year would be better than ever to people watch. Here are several photos of the sights, people and just plain madness that took place this year. Enjoy!

Check out the gang of photos, after the jump.

Yet another year of Wakarusa is quickly approaching. In it's seventh year since Waka's inception, this year looks to be bigger and better when it comes to attendance, music, activities and general madness. Although each year has improved upon itself, the move from Kansas to Ozark, Arkansas was the best possible thing that could have happened to the festival. Mulberry Mountain is a much more scenic and friendly environment.

Read about some of the bands that will be there after the jump.

Ahhhhhh. Another night at Bourbon Theatre. As always, I had arrived about 20 minutes late for the April 20th show in Lincoln, NE. Rushing to get into the venue, I was instantly greeted by a hard hitting performance by the excellent sounds of EOTO with an extremely crowded Bourbon in front of me. As many of you music lovers know, EOTO consists of Michael Travis and Jason Hann of the famed String Cheese Incident. Mixing together several styles of music, while lying heavily on electronic, EOTO offers a much different feel than there days with SCI, yet they attract many mutual fans. Switching up roles from their roots with Cheese, each show is promised to be %100 improvised, making each evening a new experience.

Check out some more pictures from the evening, after the jump

During my "musical revolution", electronic music was out of the mix completely. I had already opened my mind to several new genres of music, but electronic was out of the question. Perhaps it was my exposure to rave culture and house music in my younger years, but the simple thought of of synthesized beats brought illusions of scrawny kids in over sized clothing with candy necklaces, pacifiers, glow sticks and about every synthetic drug you could possibly think of. That combination was enough to make me cringe, and the fact that I now know CPR now and am in know way wanting to go mouth to mouth with a fished out geeker, may have also been a turnoff. That was until the summer of 2008, when EOTO came on the scene, and I was coaxed into it by ex Cheese members. Following that delightful experience, I hit up Rothbury that summer. With it's slew of music, electronic was in high supply, so I was able to seed through what I like, and what I don't. I figured out that my kicker was the ability for the artists to actually play their own instruments. As exciting as a guy and a laptop or turntable are, I can only take so much.

More words and pictures of the evening, after the jump

With spring quickly approaching, I have gone from stagnant to busy in the matter of a few days when it comes to music. One of the main reasons for this quick transition is the wonderful folks at the Bourbon Theatre and Rad Kadillac. The upcoming lineup at the theatre has me frequenting it multiple nights a week. Which I'm sure will begin to strain on my pocket in bar tabs alone. Oh well, you only live once. This last Wednesday was no different, with a co headlining tour featuring John Brown's Body and BOT favorites, the Toubab Krewe. JBB was new to me, but would prove as an excellent addition to the tour. TK, as always, would blow the minds of everyone present.

Read all about the evening after the jump.

Folk and bluegrass music is one of my favorite types of live music. The amount of precision and crispness involved with it has always amazed me. Being from the Midwest, my constant submersion in modern country music has caused me to develop an extreme disliking for it. This often prompts the question of how I love bluegrass so much by outsiders. In my opinion, the similarities end at the roots and origins of the music. Over the last several years, bluegrass has revived itself in the music scene. In it's wake, it has also spawned 'New Grass', a sub-genre of bluegrass modernly popularized by bands such as Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth and Leftover Salmon who are all seeing extensive festival time throughout the year, due to their acclaim. Cornmeal fits quite well in this category, and has exploded onto the scene after being lauded for their live shows and jam sessions. I was lucky enough to be in attendance when they played the Bourbon Theatre on April 3rd. Read all about it, after the jump!

Steel Train will be taking the stage on March 23rd at the handsomely remodeled Waiting Room in Omaha, NE. The show is only $10 and the beer is also reasonably priced, so for a great night of music on a budget, Steel Train would defiantly be worth taking in. For those of you who aren't familiar with the band, they are put into the indie rock genre. I see where they get that classification, but personally notice more of the 60's psychedelic and folk influence in their music, which is never a bad thing. And did I mention that they are praised for their live shows and jam sessions? All of these factors are sure to sprawl out on stage next Tuesday in a collision of decades sure to please the mind, body and soul. Opening for the New Jersey quintet will be It's True and Holly Miranda. Unfortunately, I will just be returning from SXSW and will be unable to make it, but hopefully some of you folks can!

Austin bound,
The Toastman

Philadelphia is no stranger to good music. Having produced great artists, such as G. Love, The Roots, Man Man, and the Disco Biscuits gives you street credentials in my mind. With my musical tastes often morphing, I find myself falling in and out of a lot of different bands. Dr. Dog is an exception to that, as I can't seem to get enough of them.

Read all about the show after the jump