[Our fearless team, Ben Piper and Michael Spencer spent three days in beautiful Oxford, Maine, checking out the first (hopefully) annual Nateva Music Festival. With over 50 bands spanning genres of indie, folk, alt-country and reggae, the festival had a little something for everyone. Check out all our coverage here.]
I'm not one of those people who says regarding music taste, “I like everything, except country.” That said, I'm not a huge fan of contemporary country music. Alt-Country, on the other hand leaves the door open for vocals without yodels and lyrics without patriotism. I'm not terribly certain that the following acts qualify as Alt-Country, but they're close enough.
Best Act to See with Lame People: Jakob Dylan
I don't want to call Jakob Dylan's show boring. He came out and played some easy, friendly tunes with a bluegrass flair. He delivered the nice, ashen vocals we've come to expect. But honestly, I didn't know there was music made to be so easy-listening. One wonders: might it be too easy? It was one of those picture perfect sets – the supporting cast of musicians played their notes and hit their cues, but I was left wondering if Dylan was veiling any emotion at all behind those trademark shades.
Best Hair: Jackie Greene
I was drawn to the hyper-talented guitarist Jackie Greene's stage by his electric fiddlings over "Hey Jude" which was playing from the mixing board. You know a guy's legit when he can sell you during his sound check. He worked with a standard band set up: a bassist, fellow guitarist, and the type of drummer who looks like he's surprised himself with every snare pop on two and four. Greene's songs walked the line between soft southern rock and danceable pop songs. His tenor voice is clean, if slightly tinny, but it took on a smoky rasp when he lit up a cigarette and showed off his multi-instrumental skills on a beautiful old organ. In all, it was a solid set by a phenomenal musician with great fashion sense, but I'm not in any hurry to pick up his discography.
Loudest Bullshit: Drive-By Truckers
Now, on some level the Truckers can't help that they were mixed loud. But volume aside, their vibe struck me as a hoe-downy, honky-tonky permutation of deep-southern country music. And it was really, very loud. Next time I want to throw a rodeo with freshly deaf people, I'll think of these guys. I might've liked them more on the smaller stage, where the decibel level would have been reasonable and the expectation level lower.
Best Show to See with Your Girlfriend: She & Him
It is my understanding that the entire world loves Zooey Deschanel. The beautiful actress plays characters as sweet as sugar, and her voice embodies those same saccharine qualities. She and M. Ward hit the stage clad in plaid, and it was apparent that the two have managed to bridge their appeal to the diametrically opposed worlds of both hipster and hippie. I can't think of two places where flannel shirts are more abundant than Brooklyn and Maine. The dreamy sound achieved on She & Him's albums was duplicated live by saturating Zooey's floating vocals in rich reverb. Two female vocalists ooh-ed harmonies that hearkened back to doo-wop sensibilities, and fit perfectly into the framework of M. Ward's crafty songwriting. The show's energy level fluctuated from a spirited call and response chorus during "In the Sun" to a clunking couple of tunes amidst bass amp troubles, and then back again to airy tunes befitting of the 6 o'clock sunlight. Deschanel wasn't the most brilliant musician to grace the Nateva stage, but she has found a fine complement in M. Ward, and the music they make together provokes sentimentality without the schmaltz.
