The weather was perfect. They seem to manage incredible weather every year. We missed the first act, which everyone we spoke to that saw them seemed to love. All of the bands I heard sounded great and they all had their own thing going on. Foundation of Funk was funky. Galactic was funky and high energy that really got everyone moving (Ok, those two bands were semi similar in sound.). I'm personally more of a Hot Tuna Acoustic, Jorma solo, Jefferson Airplane fan, but Hot Tuna Electric performed well. Medeski, Martin, and Wood added an interesting blend of artistry. It was kind of experimental in parts that reminded me of ELP. Mike Gordon did his thing and was well received. The highlight of the festival, for me, was the Tedeschi Trucks Band. After a long day of sunshine and moving your body, the soulfulness of Susan's voice and Derek's guitar, and the other talented musicians and singers, pours over your body like a liquid blanket.
We enjoy returning to Mizner for this event every year. But, the venue does provide some quirks. You can pay extra and get seats, which I am sure is great, but then you have to walk back to the general admission section to see and enjoy the music with your friends, if they are without seats or their seats are not next to yours, at least at the main stage. It is one thing to see a two hour show and have separate seats, but it is another thing entirely for an all day event. Another issue is that people set down blankets in the general admission section. This is good and bad, really, and maybe one solution would be to have a smaller seated section. I get that there is money to be made, but, a good amount of the seats were empty and the general admission section is packed. Luckily for us, one of our friends got there early, around 11:30 am, and put down a blanket in a great spot along the walkway that separates the seats from GA. But, we had probably 20-25 friends attending. So, people came by to hang for a bit, but then they had to head back to their spot or find a spot somewhere because, obviously, that many people cannot fit on one blanket. Fortunately, we were all mostly able to meet up at the other stage and hang together as a group, which helps fill the void. But, also, at that point, people are going different places to get food and some people are hanging back to listen to the music while others head up front or look for shade. I do appreciate that if you get there early enough, there is plenty of free parking to be had throughout Mizner Park, along the streets and in the garages. I also appreciate that they allow people to go in and out of the venue until 5. As the day went on and the temperature started to drop, I headed to my car for some warmer clothes that I was thankful to not have to carry around the entire day.
For us, it was nice to spend the day enjoying the weather and sharing the time with friends. I always see people I have not seen in a while and it is a great day for hugs and hellos. We were able to hang, at some point, with most of our friends and everyone seemed to be having a great day. The festival seems to bring out good people with good vibes and we look forward to this event every year.