Folkfest 2008( A repost from an older blog)
Sharon and I have attended the Edmonton Folk Music Festival a few times now and we have always had such a great time hangin out with our friends and discovering great new bands and styles of music. First of all, I'd like to thank our friends Tom and Kathy, Kirsty and Jack, and Trevor and Misty for introducing us to what is starting to become a summer tradition for us up here in Cold Lake.
For those of you who have not attended a festival like this, it is four days of some of the most diverse styles of music that you will see in one venue. Also there are smaller stages in which these artists come together to collaborate on each others music. It really is a magical moment when you see these musicians get together and create some wonderful music together. I should also mention that this festival is huge and that on any given day there will be over seventy thousand people there (better check my math but if you know the figures let me know).
Not only is the crowd immense, but Folk Fest has its own unique culture. The food, the loud outfits people wear, the crafts and cd tent are essential parts of the festival experience. However, the big social scene is in the beer tent.It is here you'll meet a lot of strange characters but it is great place to hang out and enjoy a drink and discuss the musicians you have listened to.
Anyways this year was another great festival and although we didn't attend as many of the workshops as we would have liked we had a great time. Luke Doucet and the band were good, Dan Tyminsky (of Soggy Bottom Boys fame) put on a good show. However some of the real high energy artists were Hawksley Workman, Jonny Lang, Peatbog Faeries, and of course Michael Franti and Spearhead. The closer for this year's festival was Chris Isaak, and man did he put on a show! He comes out dressed in a pink suit with sequins. His band played quite a few of Isaak's hits as well as doing some wonderful tributes to Roy Orbison. After the first encore, Chris returned in a mirrored suit and played some more songs for the crowd. We all had an amazing time. Big thanks goes out to Kim and Rick for securing the choice seats close to the stage for Sunday evening.<br><br>Folk Fest ends off the same way every year. At the end of the performance, after all the draws for the prizes, the artists and volunteers get on stage and everyone on the hill in Gallagher Park sings Four Strong Winds. It is really quite the sight to see all these people singing on the hill waving their candles back and forth, hugging and holding hands. Anyways if any of this sounds like a great time, then I invite you to join us on the hill for next year. Till then we'll update you for next year's blog.
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