Indie-roots music festival distinguishes itself through children's, teens activities
To the casual observer, summer festivals are where youthful-minded adults go to let their hair down, bang drums in circles and dance with abandon to the sounds of rock, folk and hip hop musicians.
And they wouldnt be entirely wrong.
Much has changed, however, since the mud-drenched disarray of Woodstock and its even more chaotic 1990s follow-ups. Organizers of festivals such as Happy Valleys Pickathon are going above and beyond to provide family- and child-friendly amenities, activities and supervision.
As he prepares for the annual indie-roots music event, held Thursday to Sunday, July 30-Aug. 3, at Pendarvis Farm, Pickathon founder Zale Schoenborn is confident parents and children alike will have a carefree time.
I like to think of it as an entire summer camp of activities crammed into one weekend, Schoenborn says. If your kids cant run around and cant be safe, youre not gonna bring em, so thats huge. Then it comes down to, what are the kids gonna do when youve got em there?
All kids 12 years and younger accompanied by family are admitted free of charge to Pickathon. New to this years festival is a discounted Teen Ticket for kids ages 13-17 who attend the three-day soiree with their parent or guardian.
For the 1,000 or so children and adolescents expected at this years festival, Pickathon offers everything from kinder care supervision provided by Southwest Portlands Cedarwood Waldorf School staff to activities including face painting, arts and crafts, field games, nature workshops, childrens yoga sessions and much more.
Activities start around 7 a.m., and the schedule gets denser as the day goes on, building to six scheduled events going on simultaneously throughout the afternoons.
This is a life event for kids, Schoenborn says. My 11-year-old, Silas, literally runs around the festival with other kids, like a pack. He totally loves it, but not so much for the music.
As far as older children raised on computer screens, gaming and smartphones, Schoenborn finds the festival and its five stages provide enough aural and visual stimulation to occupy even the most digitally programmed youngsters.
Pickathon provides the ultimate live visual experience, he says. Its over the top, and kids tend to love that fact. My kid, who loves screens, doesnt see one all weekend. Most kids have an amazing experience where theyre able to disconnect, with no repercussions.
Consistent with recent years, Schoenborn expects about 3,200 paid attendees and an additional 2,500 volunteers, crew, artists and other unpaid guests to Pendarvis Farm. The farms bucolic mixture of sloping fields and shaded forest provides a plethora of atmospheres, with the woods encompassing an extensive camping area crisscrossed with a network of trails marked with color-coded lights.
As anyone whos spent even part of a weekend at Pickathon is aware, nothing about the event remains static for long. This year is no exception.
We have a laundry list of new things, both obvious and subtle, Schoenborn says. At every venue you will see a slight upgrade, functionally or design-wise.
The more noticeable changes include repositioning and design upgrades to the Starlight Stage near the food court area and relocating the experimentally designed Treeline Stage up the hill from its usual location.
Our goal is to make it more of a destination and not so much a pass-by stage, Schoenborn says, adding the Portland State University architecture department designed this years stage from a mass of paper tubes that connect together. No generic stages is a hallmark of pretty much every (Pickathon) festival.
Musically, Schoenborn cant recall a stronger cast of artists, many of whom he expects are well on their way to widespread acclaim.
This is my favorite lineup. Theres nothing I even made compromises on, he admits. Were so lucky. Its like having the Elvis of 55 different music scenes.
Theres something for everyone from young kids to grandparents, he adds. It will be mind blowing.
Musical lineup
Pickathon features a host of acts, including Ty Seagall, Langhorne Slim, Don Flemons (of The Carolina Chocolate Drops) and Tinariwen.
In addition to these acts, heres a deeper look at three must-see performers.
Viet Cong
11:20 p.m. Aug. 1 Galaxy Barn
2:50 p.m. Aug. 2 Meadow Stage
Sounding like David Bowie drinking an Iggy Pop, and drawing on Dandy Warhols, Psychedelic Furs and This Heat for inspiration, Viet Cong hails from Calgary, Alberta, and features Scott Monty Munro on guitar and synthesizer, Matt Flegel on bass and vocals, Mike Wallace on drums and Daniel Christiansen on guitar.
Touring to promote their eponymously titled debut record, Munro says such songs as Death, a driving, pulsating tune, go over well live.
Were a reasonably high-energy live band, and I think people enjoy that, he adds.
Sometimes he and Flegel co-write and sometimes the band as a whole composes songs.
Usually now someone will have a riff or a beat idea, and well all just jam it out until we have a few parts and then go from there, he says, noting the band enjoys noisy, droning, dreamy music.
This is just the kind of music we make when the four of us get together, he says.
The band has had its challenges one gig almost did them in.
Matt (Flegel) got electrocuted by the mic bad enough that he bled out his ears.
Like true artists, however, Viet Cong turned the experience into a song, namely Silhouettes, which alludes to the manic microphone incident.
Munro adds the band looks forward to Pickathon.
Some of my closest friends now are people that I met on the road, he says.
Quebe Sisters
5:20 p.m. Aug. 1 Tree Line Stage
2 p.m. Aug. 2 Lucky Barn
Few sounds are lovelier than the ones made by the Quebe Sisters, vocally harmonizing country swing fiddle-players from Texas.
Hulda, Sophia and Grace are all in their 20s, and hail from outside Fort Worth. Their fiddling has earned them kudos from such country stalwarts as Marty Stuart, who featured them on his TV show, and their voices got a push from Ricky Skaggs, who encouraged them to start singing after he shared a bill with them when they were still an instrumental group. Since then, theyve developed a sound akin to the Andrew and McGuire sisters.
We listen to a huge variety of eras of music, everything from now to the 1920s, Hulda Quebe says, noting the girls like jazz, bluegrass, Doris Day and Ray Price. Weve gravitated to some styles that tend to be more traditional, but thats where our tastes lie and acoustic music has a longer tradition than electric music.
Primarily a cover band, the women are now writing their own material, and are touring to promote their third album Every Which-A-Way.
The bands accomplishments include playing the Ryman Auditorium, former home of the Grand Old Opry radio show, in Nashville, Hulda says, adding that she and her siblings also enjoyed playing a concert with the Dallas Symphony Orchestra.
It was a pop series of all our music, she says. The entire auditorium was sold out. It was kind of an affirmation that were doing something right.
Summer Cannibals
4:40 p.m. July 31 Galaxy Barn
2 p.m. Aug. 2 Tree Line Stage
One of Portlands hottest bands, Summer Cannibals is putting just a little bit of ugly back into rock n roll.
Although I guess there can be some exceptions Im not really into pretty music, says the bands chief songwriter, Jessica Boudreaux, whos in the band along with Marc Swart, Devon Shirley and Jenny Logan. I think even though our songs are rooted in pop structures and melodies we try to keep it grounded in punk and rock and roll.
Boudreaux attributes her guitar sound to her influences, which include Black Sabbath, Mission of Burma, Ty Segall and Parquet Courts. Shes also a fan of fuzzy guitar tones.
Two fuzz pedals worth, she says. I try not to focus on tricks and showing what I can do, just write something that fits with the rest of the song.
The groups debut record is Show Us Your Mind and the group is already working on a follow-up, Boudreaux says. Although shes the chief songwriter, she prizes band input.
When I present a demo to the band I look to them to listen with a critical ear, cut down on parts that maybe drag on too long and add more interesting bridges and parts, she says. I write and arrange the songs but its not until everyone starts playing them together that they feel alive and I get really stoked on them.
Pick n grin
What: 17th-annual Pickathon, indie-roots music and arts festival
When: Thursday to Sunday, July 30-Aug. 3
Where: Pendarvis Farm, 16581 S.E. Hagen Road, Happy Valley
Cost: $250,weekend admission; $100, Friday; $110, Saturday; $100, Sunday
Parking: $65 for weekend, $25 daily; camping free with weekend admission
Info: www.pickathon.com