Camper Van Beethoven

Decanting BottleRock 2014 before its return to Napa

Photos by Susan J Weiand // Written by Molly Kish //

BottleRock Napa Valley //
Napa County Fairgrounds – Napa, CA
May 30th-June 1st, 2014 //

After a rocky start to their inaugural year, BottleRock Napa Valley is back with an even bigger lineup of artists, vendors and something to prove. Distancing themselves from the legal woes of 2013’s dramatic aftermath, the festival is moving forward under a team of new, local management calling themselves Latitude 38 Entertainment. With roots in the community and genuine concern for the Napa Valley resident’s concerns regarding Bottle Rock, the team took on millions of dollars in outstanding debts and made promises that the 2014 festivities will provide a mutually beneficial boost for the local economy.

The festival will be running three days — Friday, May 30 through Sunday, June 1 — and tickets are available to purchase as a single day, three day pass, VIP, Platinum and group rate packages.

Each day’s line up is uniquely billed and arguably draws some of the largest and most genre-diversifying names currently touring. Although garnering some critical slack for the pronounced representation of late nineties buzz bands, there’s one undeniable truth that Bottle Rock has over every other Northern California-based festival for the remainder of the season…they won the bidding war for OutKast! The duo of André 3000 and Big Boi will be lighting up the Napa Valley Fairgrounds with one of the West Coast’s most anticipated tour stops of 2014.

Showbams recommends the following performances:

Friday:
-The Cure
-TV On The Radio
-Mayer Hawthorne
-Robert De Long
-Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe
-Railroad Earth
-Delta Rae
-Empires

Saturday:
-OutKast
-De La Soul
-Third Eye Blind
-No Age
-Weezer
-Blues Traveler
-Tea Leaf Green
-The Soft White Sixties

Sunday:
-Deerhunter
-Thee Oh Sees
-Black Angels
-LL Cool J with DJ Z-Trip
-Camper Van Beethoven
-The Stone Foxes

Check out a full rundown of the Bottle Rock daily schedule.

While general admission will gain you access to all of the festival stages, wine tasting tents and gourmet food court, if you’re feeling like dropping a few extra dollars, the VIP perks this year have significantly upgraded.

Beyond the parking, ins-outs, shaded bars and private bathroom areas, VIP ticket holders have an entirely separate area to catch live music with the addition of the 2014 VIP Lounge. The lounge offers comfortable seating paired with access to private food and wine experiences, available strictly to VIP ticket holders.

Platinum Passes take it one step further with on stage viewing spots, meet and greet opportunities, on-site concierge service, catering by Napa Valley celebrity chefs, premium cocktails/boutique wine selections and parking on the event site.

The opportunity to indulge in gourmet food, artisan spirits, craft beers and clink glasses with local vintners plays a unique role in the distinctive BottleRock experience. Unlike other festivals nationwide, the location of the fairgrounds truly allows for the community to showcase what they are known for worldwide on an incomparable scale. Highlighting elite members of Napa’s award winning food and beverage industry, concert goers are awarded the unique opportunity to meet and greet local celebrities, excited to introduce the fruits of their labor with the festival community.

Ultimately, BottleRock Napa prides its sophomore year on creating an entirely new and hopefully opinion-altering experience. Under new management, the festival is aiming to please! With a little bit of something for everyone, BottleRock’s eclectically impressive line-up, craft libations and finger licking festival fare, tickets are dwindling and rightfully so. Get on it!

Leftover Salmon JamGrass & FootStomp their way through Hollywood

Colorado jamgrass rockers Leftover Salmon stormed into Hollywood at the House of Blues and played a footstompin’ set of their unique blend of bluegrass and cajun infused rock. The band played one of the most energetic sets of music I have seen in a long time, and they did so with such easy flowing grace that it almost makes you forget that you are listening to very talented musicians.

Vince Herman, the guitarist, vocalist and overall bandleader, makes the crowd feel right at home with his infectious smile and witty banter, especially when he got things going early with one of Leftover Salmon’s newer tracks “Liza.” The song is off their latest album Aquatic Hitchhiker and is quite catchy. Herman does his classic ranting vocals that are both downright hilarious and really impressive.

Drew Emmitt is arguably Leftover Salmon’s most skilled performer, as he can play many different instruments including guitar and fiddle – although his main weapon of choice is mandolin, which he plays the hell out of. The band invited Jason Carter from the Del McCoury Band to play the whole set with them on fiddle, so Emmitt stayed on mandolin and guitar for most the night to my liking.

The opening band was Camper Van Beethoven, and their lead guitarist David Lowery is from the 90’s band Cracker. Lowery came out and played his most famous track “Low” with Leftover Salmon backing him. It was fun to see, but I was ready for some more footstompin’ goodness.

The rest of the set was the same high energy slamgrass that Leftover Salmon has made a living off of for over twenty years. A highlight of the show was the always fun “Zombie Jamboree,” which had the hollywood crowd in a frenzy. The instrumental title track “Aquatic Hitchhiker,” written by banjo player Andy Thorn, had me feeling like I was in circus for about five minutes. Leftover Salmon is just a plain old fashioned good time. Go see ’em live…Festivaaaall!!!