The Dirty River Boys
Story and photos by Mary Jane Farmer — Click on link at the end of this short review for lots of photos
This festival, Dia de los Toadies, played at Panther Island in Fort Worth Sept. 13 and 14, a great mixture of the best in several genres of music. Friday night was “almost acoustic” night, with the Toadies, James Hall, Will Johnson, and Matt the Cat trio playing. Then, Saturday it all kicked off with some rock n roll on two stages, followed by acoustic groups, blues, and again the Toadies.
One thing that impressed this reporter immediately was the staff, and how willing they all were to make it fun and workable, not just for me, (I tried to leave my “Don’t you know who I think I am anyway?” attitude at the front gate, after the two-hour trip from hometown to Panther Island.) A measuring stick for all festival staffs is and will be comparing it with that of the Kerrville Festivals. Fair? Maybe, maybe not, but the Kerrville Festivals staff sets the highest bar out there… a combination of “let’s all have fun, let’s nicely enforce and mind the few rules so we can all have fun, and let’s work our jobs with joy.” Those at the Toadies fest measured up to that, thanks especially to those at the check-in desk, Michelle, two great backstage security men, and a sound guy willing to let me use his chair and easy-up canopy.
Stage management was good. Two stages, close enough that some people sat in the middle of them and just moved their lawn chairs around when the music moved from one stage to the other. And that was with less than a 5-minute break. Sound was good, and broke all the rules that suggest that rock n roll music should bend your eardrums.
This reporter was there, primarily, to interview the Dirty River Boys. Colton, Nino, Travis, and Marco were incredible — I feel like I have some new good friends! Loved “Cush,” “These Machines Are Working,” and “The O’s,” and some guys in solid white whose band name escapes me now. That interview is being featured in the October issue, Buddy Magazine, to be distributed in early October.
Of course, took most of the photos of the Dirty River Boys, but here’s a few others, also, of the day. And watch the Live Music Calendar and the Festival Calendar for next year’s fest and a bunch more fests in between now and then.
For The Dirty River Boys’ pix, click here
For crowd, vendor, boaters, and other shots, click here
For a few other musicians pix, click here