Words by: Dennis Cook, Jake Krolick, Susan J. Weiand and Aaron Kayce | Images by: Jake Krolick and Susan J. Weiand

High Sierra Music Festival :: 07.01.10-07.04.10 :: Plumas County
Fairgrounds :: Quincy,
CA

Anniversaries are funny things. Often too much or too little is made of them, but High
Sierra 2010 struck a
lovely balance in celebrating its 20th year, occasionally acknowledging that they’d hit
two decades but mostly just
nailing all the elements that make this festival unique and so dear to the regulars that
return each 4th of July
weekend.

It’s tough to describe High Sierra to those who’ve never attended. On paper it makes
little sense to say there are
people everywhere – tents and RVs tucked into every nook and cranny of the Plumas County
Fairgrounds, spilling into
the woods and open fields surrounding every stage, building and port-a-potty – yet it
never seems overly crowded
or oppressive. In fact, High Sierra is one of the most peaceful, gentle, fun-loving
assemblages of humanity most of
us have ever encountered. Ebullient camaraderie is the general rule, so there are rarely
hassles of any kind. One can
walk right up to front of the stage at almost any set, and they’ll usually be met by a
smile, even if they’re just meeting
the person next to them. Rare is the walk through the maze of campers around the Big
Meadow Stage where one
isn’t greeted with a handshake or a hug or offered some form of constriction loosening
hospitality.

Yes, there’s a strain of high octane Cali hippie-dippie-ness but mostly the citizens of
this temporary city on a hill are
just hardcore music lovers enjoying the smorgasbord laid out before them. High Sierra
attracts folks with thoroughly
catholic tastes, able to fully enjoy the rowdiness of big stage headliners like Widespread Panic and
The Black Crowes
but equally able to
throw themselves wholeheartedly into the quietude of Dan Bern or the mesmerizing, rhythmic originality of Rubblebucket.

The 20th installment accentuated all the positives High Sierra has to offer. What follows
are some of the highlights
experienced by the JamBase crew as we quested after musical nirvana as America celebrated
its 234th birthday.
(Dennis Cook)

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7/1/10 – 7/4/10 – High
Sierra Music Festival
(Quincy, CA) View Photos

Continue reading for Jake Krolick’s highlights…

Jake Krolick’s High Sierra 2010 Highlights

Standout Moments on Thursday & Friday

Best Use of a Fretted Instrument
Both Nels Cline
Singers sets
in the Vaudeville Tent on Thursday and Friday were the place to be for some serious
shredding, but the early
afternoon set on Friday with guitarist extraordinaire Eric McFadden sitting in on a face melting “Maggot Brain” opener
was an axe lovers
dream. Speaking of great guitarists, by now you’ve probably heard of Big Light, and if
you haven’t then
you will. Singer Fred Trophy, bassist Steve Adams, drummer Bradly
Bilfulco and
guitarist Jeremy Korpas played in some capacity everyday at High Sierra, and beside
McFadden, who
appeared everywhere throughout the weekend, Jeremy “Swordfish” Korpas definitely popped up
on the radar of
guitarists who made you lose your shit. Korpas really deserved the accolades as he wailed
effortlessly at Big Light’s
sets, the White Stripes themed Guitarmageddon throwdown, the Gramble – where The Beatles
“I’ve Got a Feeling”
reigned supreme – and at a late night party at Camp Harry. Korpas has the patience of a
much older guitarist with a
confidence that allows him to shred effectively with any grouping of musicians. There
were extra cheers every time
he walked on stage and each performance the “Swordfish” was involved in was elevated to
new levels of
excitement.

Cult I’d Most Like To Join
Edward Sharpe & The
Magnetic
Zeros trouncing of the Big Meadow Stage on Thursday left more than one person
whistling “Home” on
Friday morning. The highlights of the show were the opening “40 Day Dream,” a stirring
version of “Desert Song,”
and Alex Ebert conducting a sing-along in the center of a seated crowd to finish.
The band may have
appeared a tad cultish but by the end of their set the audience was ready to drop all
worldly possessions and follow
their charismatic leader anywhere

Best Band BBQ
Widespread
Panic barbequed all
Friday afternoon before they tossed us some bones in the evening. A heated “B of D” into
“Worry” ended their first
set, which hinted that the band loved the unique H.S. setting. The second set secured
that notion and was jam-
packed with guests, starting with Eric McFadden on guitar for a meaty “Bowlegged Woman.”
John Bell
introduced Jerry
Joseph as
“the reverend” when he joined in for a rolling “Light Is Like Water” before Karl Denson added
saxophone for a
rowdy “Ride Me High.” Domingo “Sonny” Ortiz played a late “Drums” and was joined
by the illustrious
Wally
Ingram before good
papa Bell sung us out with the touching and apropos encore “Heaven.”

Most Fun Field Trip During The Festival
All visiting Quincy for the High Sierra Music Festival should take some time to explore
the Feather River. We hit this
beautiful landmark on Friday and were instantly impressed. It’s easy to find a swimming
hole just minutes from the
fairgrounds, and its cold waters are just about as refreshing as a full night of sleep.
It should also be noted that the
weather was perfect cold at night for sleeping and warm with zero humidity during the
day.

Community and Camps Shout Out
High Sierra is a wealth of good times that fit together like a well worked jigsaw puzzle
buried in some hidden chest
that comes out on a rainy summer day. The edges of this fest are all well worn and by now
all the people attending
know where they fit. Many of one’s best moments and memories come from the hard work of
the community and the
camps that moved your feet or blew your mind wide open with visual extravagance conjured
by this pack of pro
concertgoers. Where else do you get a Wookie Bingo game run through Twitter or a
trampoline 10-feet off the
ground and covered in lights? How about false eyebrows made to look like mini Fu-Manchu
moustaches or kickball
games with musicians sweating alongside campers at 6 am? Who else has a Hippie Bar where
you paid for a drink
with a joke or a dance or Kamp Kwitcherbitchen, where frowns were even frowned upon?
Where else are Red cards
and Yellow cards tossed at flagrant music fan fouls? Legendary Camp Harry threw its own
pirate/mojilto party and
two late night shows with Big Light and Surprise Me Mr. Davis. And let us not forget the tongue-in-cheek
mayoral battle
between Nathan
Moore and
Vince
Herman that included
campaign signs throughout the campgrounds. There were hundreds of camps and thousands of
creative freaks – I’m
impressed with you all for your freaky prowess.

Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers by Krolick

A Band I Need To See More
My age makes me less than a thought when CSNY and Buffalo Springfield hit L.A. and
wandered up into the canyon.
Perhaps that is what makes Nicki
Bluhm & The Gramblers so appealing. Since I missed the first coming I’ll be
damned if I won’t catch the
second. Bluhm was an early breath of fresh air on Thursday and Friday. She’s a stage
darling in the same way her
famous Laurel Canyon predecessors Jimmy Webb and Joni Mitchell were jangly social and
musical icons. Her easy
way with songs and smooth vocal delivery was more than enough to captivate the crowds, but
when you tossed in
Steve Adams‘ groovy bass and husband Tim Bluhm‘s gallant guitar strum into the fold there was something
incredibly desirable
about the music.

Standout Moments on Saturday and Sunday

Best Use of a Kazoo
Yes, Nathan Moore pulled one out at his solo set but it was a good thing he forgot the
whole bag. The act of
forgetfulness led to a stirring Surprise Me Mr. Davis cover of The Beatles’ “Honey Pie” at
around 2:00 am on Monday
morning at Camp Harry. The moment the bag of kazoos was handed out you just knew it was
going to be special.
The crowd participation and the smiles between Moore, Marc Friedman and the Barr
Brothers said
it all.

Hottest Late Night
Hindsight reveals that the better Mother
Hips set was on Sunday evening in the Vaudeville Tent with a four song finale that
would grow hair on a
bald baby (“Pacific Dust > Space > Turtle Bones > Hey Emilie”), but as a whole Saturday
night’s late night was the
hottest four band bounce of the entire festival. After catching Tim Bluhm and Greg
Loiacono with the Hips
on the East Coast I knew I loved them, but it took a trip to the West Coast to really see
them rock a proper crowd.
Saturday evening’s show was such a treat, with several highlights including “Jet Plane”
with Nicki Bluhm and Grambler
guitarist Deren Ney, “Been Lost Once” with TLG’s Josh Clark, and a
“Time Sick Son of
a Grizzly Bear with ALO’s Dan
Lebowitz. The follow-up was a fast bounce over to catch Fanny Franklin and
the L.A. crew
Orgone, who
established
themselves as a funk force to be reckoned with. The crowd’s energy during the end of
their set was really incredible
and steam poured out of all openings from the High Sierra Music Hall into the cool night
air.

Meanwhile Dr.
Dog was
flexing their muscles at the Funk’n Jamhouse as they ripped through almost their entire
repertoire, raging a version
of “The Ark” off Fate and paying special attention to “Shadow People” off their
latest album, Shame,
Shame. Toby Leaman (bass) and Scott McMicken (lead guitar) were wild
and energetic and
their changes left the crowd stunned. Guitarist Frank McElroy even climbed to the
top of his amp stack for
a leap of faith before finishing at around 3:15 am. This left just enough time to get in
to hear Karl Denson
tear it up on flute and sax as well as toss us a joke about Giuseppe Garibaldi. The
amount of steamy pizza flowing
around Denson’s funk down was obscene. I witnessed more than one patron dancing with a
hot slice held high in
their hands.

Vince Herman by Susan J. Weiand

Oddest Place To Find Sushi
The sushi guy next to the main stage making those delicious hand rolls in an “I am funkier
than you” tee was surreal.
The Widespread Roll was insane and included a wrapper filled with sticky rice, a smear of
wasabi, huge chunks of
albacore & mango, a spicy mayo spread and sprouts, all rolled to perfection for five
bucks.

Best Sporting Event Combo
Kickball into the World Cup games. The new trampoline bases, the costumed Space Man,
vevuzelas blown at 5 am,
and the World Cup games made it worth never finding sleep. But the best moment happened
on Sunday morning
when a piñata was tossed into the middle of the kickball field. When it was finally
broken open it was filled with
airplane bottles of gin and all heck broke loose.

Best Use of a Child On Stage
Marco
Benevento daughter
Ruby has gained some serious stage confidence since last year’s festival, and that showed
as she used dad as her
own personal jungle gym during his Trio’s set. Marco made the best out of the moment when
he took Ruby’s hands
and had her play the “Real Morning Party” to kick off the set.

The Well-Put Award
Nathan Moore summed up my feelings best on Sunday afternoon at his solo performance. To
paraphrase what he
said, “We are all out on the road day after day, each year just trying to hang on
patiently until we are back together at
High Sierra.” I thought about this notion the rest of Sunday and realized that this
festival never really ends; it just
goes into a different mode, one focused on reconstruction. The community that has
attended religiously for years,
reuniting friends, campsites and intense feelings will no doubt be planning what they can
do better for next year. It
takes all the little touches coming together over the 4th of July weekend to really make
High Sierra the incredibly
special experience it is.

Continue reading for Dennis Cook’s highlights…

Dennis Cook’s High Sierra 2010 Highlights

The Load-In
I have the good fortune of getting into the fairgrounds on Wednesday night, where only a
fraction of attendees are
about, setting up twinkling strings of lights and grilling while the first case of beer
ices down. This allows me a front
row seat for the main deluge Thursday morning when gates open and the majority of folks
pour in. It’s like a
colorful, pleasantly musky land rush – wild, hooting and excited as little kids on
Christmas morning. I pull up a chair
and sip coffee while all this beautiful humanity races past, hauling costumes, coolers,
hula-hoops and inflatable
beasts in red wagons, ready for adventure and eager to embrace their new neighbors with
open arms.

Tim
Carbone
The violinist for Railroad Earth and The Contribution
predictably played two
unshakeably solid sets with RRE and guested winningly with Cornmeal, Great American Taxi
and more, but just seeing
him strolling about always stirs great cheer. He’s earthy music in motion, and where he
roams there’s likely to be
something sweet being played, often by him since it’s hard to keep Carbone off a stage if
he’s got something to add.
And trust me, he’s always got something GREAT to add. White haired and worldly wise, Tim
is one of High Sierra’s
archetypal spiritual figures, emblematic of the many musicians here that are eager to
engage the whole of music and
wrestle it into new, exciting forms.

Guerilla Sets
For all the sanctioned stuff on stages, there’s nearly as much unofficial music making
afoot at HSMF. From campsite
pick-a-thons to lawn sets with portable amps, the players here exhibit a healthy
disrespect for order, allowing the
notes bubbling in their veins to rule them. Despite two Big Meadow sets, The Heavy Guilt
could often be
found rockin’ exuberantly near the food court, as thrilled to be laying down their grungy
goodness to a few
wandering souls as they were in front of a large crowd. And they were hardly alone this
weekend in carving out off-
program opportunities for themselves.

Thursday Highlights

1. Zach
Deputy – 1:15-2:30 PM
- Big Meadow
The Big Meadow Stage is, well, big, yet Deputy filled it effortlessly, picking and singing
like a young Bill Withers
transposed to a large, hirsute new honky frame. Zach’s looping prowess far surpasses
almost anyone out there – yes,
even the hallowed Keller – in terms of originality and more importantly, musicality.
While loops can come off as
gimmicky, they only serve the songs with Deputy and enable his one-man operation to
actually sound like a band.
He’s got swell tunes and plays guitar with intoxicating flair. While Nathan Moore may
have snagged top honors,
based on the word-of-mouth this year, Zach was definitely the Deputy Mayor by popular
consensus.

2. Rubblebucket
- 3:30-4:45 PM
- Vaudeville Tent
Brooklyn has another amazing band y’all need to check out. Building up from a foundation
drawn from roots reggae
and Afrobeat, Rubblebucket layered a crazed yet brilliantly woven hodgepodge of sounds
atop their gut level
rhythms. Like the finest original groups, there’s an internal logic that makes it all
work in a very immediate, flatly
exciting way. With female led vocals reminiscent of Bjork and Patti Smith, the group
swerves confidently – true
performers all who genuinely entertain onstage – on the prowl and sinking their sharp
incisors in at all the right
moments. Their Friday set was even stronger, inspiring their trumpeter/co-bandleader to
leap into the waiting arms
of the fevered audience, where he was held aloft to continue playing. Those enamored of
Yeasayer, Akron/Family,
Tricky and Antibalas are heartily encouraged to dig into Rubblebucket, easily my best new
find at HSMF 2010.

Surprise Me Mr. Davis by Jake Krolick

3. Surprise Me Mr. Davis – 11:30-1:30 AM – Vaudeville Tent
Suited up like friends at a wedding, SMMD unleashed all the magic and mojo that’s made
them a mainstay at High
Sierra for years. The combination of Nathan Moore, The Slip and Marco Benevento proved a
wondrous reminder of
how fun and fulfilling rock ‘n’ roll can be. Sure, they jam a bit but it’s the songs and
their scintillating delivery that
offer nourishing marrow to be sucked and savored. If Henry David Thoreau and Paul
McCartney had formed a band
it might sound a lot like Davis. And I had my personal high for the day at this set when
Moore ordered the backstage
masses onstage for a dance party during “Sisyphus,” passing out hugs and smiles as he
frolicked and enjoyed his
bandmates beside us. ‘Joyful’ is the word that most springs to mind with SMMD, followed
quickly by ‘holy’ (an
impression resoundingly confirmed by the closing “As Long As There’s One of Us Still
Standing” closer).

Friday Highlights

1. Nels Cline Singers – 11:15-12:30 PM – Vaudeville Tent
His lead guitar role in Wilco has raised
Cline’s profile higher than ever, but it’s in this formation one experiences the full,
devastating breadth of his genius.
Genius is a word I use VERY sparingly but witnessing the voluminous range and imagination
of Cline’s playing at this
set it’d be hard to argue against it in his case. Surrounded by ultra-sympathetic,
equally gifted collaborators
Scott Amendola (percussion, electronics), Yuka Honda (keys) and Devin
Hoff (bass),
Cline handily shattered preconceptions about instrumental music, raging in a way that
frightened some morning
listeners (one of my camp mate’s literally fled with terrified eyes during a particularly
noisy, disorienting stretch).
But, the ensemble was equally skilled at hushed introspection and bebop-ish interaction.
Overall, just bloody
stunning.

2. Dr. Dog – 9:30-11:00 PM – Big Meadow
When the last notes of this breakneck performance died away I muttered, “They make me SO
glad there’s music.” Dr.
Dog is surely a rock band, and all the Beatles, Band and Beach Boys references are apt, to
a point, but there’s
something way more primal and fundamental going on with them. Their songs address life
with unblinking honesty
and joyful engagement, understanding that light and shadow are a dance and then giving us
the melodies that
choreograph our constriction shattering gyrations. Song for song, note for note, nobody
played a better set this
year.

3. Jerry Joseph and
the
Jackmormons – 11:30-1:30 AM – Vaudeville Tent
Jerry J was in full-blown preacher mode during this anthem-upon-anthem rock extravaganza.
After playing several
acoustic-leaning sets, the snarling rock animal inside Joseph and his mighty bandmates
(bolstered with inspired
extra percussion by Wally Ingram) let fully loose inside the steamed up Vaudeville, the
tightly packed throng swaying
and leaping like a congregation lit up from within. While often overlooked, Jerry’s
guitar strangling was miraculous
this evening; the man is easily one of the most powerful, relentless guitarist alive.
Beneath the hot, swirling lights,
Joseph gesticulated and ranted like a man who’d crammed both Joe Strummer and Mick Jones
into his compact body
- a barefoot punk prophet and king of the motherfuckin’ disco, too.

Saturday Highlights

1. Pimps of
Joytime – 3:15-4:30
PM – Big Meadow
This set launched my repeated one word exhortation for the weekend: Hectic. The Pimps are
on the funk like ink on
paper, moving like calligraphy across the page where most make clunky block letters and
sign with a thumbprint.
Smooth but not too smooth, they captured the general bonhomie in the air yet kept things
dirty enough to be
credible. Clean funk isn’t really funk at all. Their dynamics alone set them apart from
the herd, with the whole band
able to blast hard and instantly drop down to a compelling murmur and back again.
Watching Brian J (vox,
guitar, keys), Clark Dark (bass, moog) and Mayteana Morales (vocals,
sampler, percussion)
groove along the edge of the stage one felt compelled to reach down deep for all the
Prince gymnastics they had in
their dance trick bag. All killer, no filler.

Black Crowes by Jake Krolick

2. The Black Crowes – 9:00-11:00 PM – Grandstand Stage
While a 20-year Crowes veteran like myself might have liked to hear more than one tune
from the band’s two most
recent albums (though “Oh Josephine” was mid-tempo ballad gold), this was a perfect
festival set, peppered with
bygone hits like “Hard To Handle” and anchored to material the band always plays well.
What’s highly enjoyable
about the Crowes at this stage is how wonderfully consistent they are. From the sound of
it many folks at High Sierra
hadn’t seen them since the mid-90s and were just about universally knocked on their tushes
by this performance.
The Crowes are one of the few rock acts one can mention in the same breath as Zeppelin,
Aerosmith, et al. and this
set ably showed why that is.

3. The Mother Hips/Dr. Dog – 11:45 PM-3:30 AM – Funk’n Jamhouse
Arguably the best late night combo this year – Pimps of Joytime opening for The New Mastersounds
on Sunday being
the obvious competition – the pairing of the Dog and the Hips was tangible proof that rock
‘n’ roll is anything but
dead. Both bands played a little outside their comfort zone, especially the Hips who
delved into some older fan faves
and welcomed Nicki Bluhm and sublime Grambler lead guitarist Deren Ney for a
mesmerizing, emotional
version of “Jet Plane,” a new Nicki tune that’ll appear on her forthcoming sophomore
album. So absorbing and
enriching were both bands that it was easy to settle into the moment and really experience
the music on a cellular
level. By the end of Dr. Dog’s headlining set I found myself leaping and spinning like my
3-year-old does when we
watch School House Rock and every song is greeted like his favorite.

Sunday Highlights

1. Poor Man’s
Whiskey – 12:00-
1:15 PM – Grandstand Stage
Shirtless in an Uncle Sam long coat, Eli Jebediah and the rest of PMW were a lively
reminder of some of the
very cool things about Americans and American music. Taking their cues from a wide
assortment of influences like
Old & In The Way, Woody Guthrie and Dr. Hook & The Medicine Show, Poor Man’s reminded us
that we need to live
our lives sometime and maybe this was the right day to dig in. Their music is a
celebration of the right things in life,
and they’re all phenomenal musicians to boot. By turns folksy and rockin’, they move
along rhythms that are hard to
resist and sling lines that you’ll find yourself quoting to your friends later. A 100-
watt stage presence and spot-on
knack for covers (they closed with Tom Petty’s “American Girl” in honor of the holiday)
further up the ante. I see a lot
of live music and can assure you there are few more charming, enjoyable groups going than
Poor Man’s Whiskey.

Allmond Bros Clan by Susan J. Weiand

2. The Allmond Bros Clan – 4:30-6:00 PM – High Sierra Music Hall
A tribute band is a tricky thing. Genuflect too much and you’re a boring recreation,
stray too far off the blueprint and
folks won’t recognize the source material, which is a central aspect to a tribute’s
pleasure. This Allman Brothers
homage led by Guitar Player Magazine’s Jimmy Leslie (who plays the Dickey
role) gets the balance
just right. Unlike the Grateful Dead, Beatles or Stones, few bands cover the Allmans
because it is a separate language
that swirls gutbucket blues with jazz sophistication. Just as most of us don’t speak
Esperanto, Allman-ese isn’t
common and it was exciting to see this large band teach themselves how to talk eloquently.
Unlike today’s ABB, the
Allmond Clan uses the At The Fillmore East era as their Rosetta Stone, and one
suspects their grasping at
these numbers mirrors the Allmans’ own during that time period. Simon “Eli Jebidah”
Kurth was a fire hose
of great guitar riffing as Duane “Sky Frog” Allmond, and stellar guest turns from Sean
Leahy, Josh Clark, Greg Loiacono and Lebo
added further air guitar heft to the session. PMW’s Josh Brough was also
murderously good as Gregg
“Allmond Boy” Allmond, attacking the organ and vocals with the gusto of a young Gregg.
Most of us weren’t able to
see ABB when Duane was alive but the hunger for that music remains. The Allmond Bros Clan
fulfills that appetite in
a way that honors Duane’s memory by really wrestling with this music in a quite alive way.
Festival bookers take
note: Don’t let the other guys get to this project before you.

Also worth mentioning that Simon Kurth also recently took over the reins with Guitarmageddon
and blew out the
doors on Friday with a White Stripes
focused performance. If Kurth is involved I can just about guarantee two things: It’s
going to be entertaining as hell
and the musicianship will make you salivate. Beyond that it’s best to trust his instincts
and go for whatever ride he’s
offering.

3. Carolyn
Wonderland – 11:30-
1:30 AM – Vaudeville Tent
With The Mother Hips delivering yet another unbelievably great set before her, it was
somewhat of a surprise that
Carolyn Wonderland captured my final slot for the weekend, but damn if the tiny Austin
blues belter didn’t take my
heels out from under me. I’m intensely picky about the blues and, like many grumpy old
men, feel that maybe the
best purveyors are no longer with us or not long for this world. I reject slick,
modernized blues, and thankfully
Wonderland and her on-the-money drummer and multi-tasking keyboardist (he provided
keyboard bass, too) dealt
in only the real stuff. Carolyn can shred mightily and her tone is gritty, loud and
impolite. Glorious! She’s got
compositions that sit well next to the Bo Diddley and the like in her arsenal, and she’s
got an odd, alluring stage
manner that draws you in but also makes you feel like she might cut you if you looked at
her wrong. She’s got depth
and her band swung like all get out. As perfect a nighttime ramble as High Sierra has
ever offered.

Continue reading for Kayceman and Susan Weiand’s highlights, plus some video
highlights…

Aaron Kayce’s High Sierra 2010 Highlights

1. Widespread Panic – Main Stage – Friday
Festivals aren’t always the best place to get one’s Panic on. Time constraints,
questionable sound systems and a
mixed bag of fans can often clip the band’s wings, as was the case the last time WSP
appeared at High Sierra in 1999.
But the festival’s 20th anniversary sparked an inspired two set affair that left hardcores
fully satisfied. Taking
advantage of the stacked lineup Panic welcomed a number of special guests including
guitarist Eric McFadden on a
dirty, sexy “Bowlegged Woman” that found bassist Dave Schools deep in a P-Funk
inspired romp,
guitarist/vocalist Jerry Joseph on his own “Light Is Like Water,” saxophonist Karl Denson
on an extended psych-funk
workout of J.J. Cale’s “Ride Me High,” and percussionist Wally Ingram on “Drums” and the
second half of “Surprise
Valley.” When the band closed the show with an emotionally saturated take on the Talking
Heads’ “Heaven” it was
not only a reminder of Widespread Panic’s power, but a nod to just how amazing the High
Sierra Music Festival truly
is.

2. Dr. Dog – Funk’n Jamhouse – Saturday Late Night
Dr. Dog’s Saturday late night set proved to be a huge slab of dark, psychedelic rock that
had a packed house of fans
freaking out and dancing wildly until 3 in the morning. Leaning heavily on material from
their latest release
Shame, Shame, the show highlighted the band’s remarkable evolution from lo-fi
indie-pop to gigantic,
confident rock. Though the new songs showcased Dr. Dog’s amazing songwriting, it didn’t
seem to matter what part
of the catalog they pulled from, everything was performed with razor sharp intensity and
executed to perfection.
From note one the band was locked in; every change was dramatic and full of force, every
harmony soaring, and the
jams thick with friction. For this writer, the band’s HSMF late night show elevated the
Dog from a really good band
with serious potential to one of the best live acts on the circuit. It shouldn’t be long
until we see Dr. Dog headlining
festivals.

3. Surprise Me Mr. Davis – Camp Harry – Sunday Late Night
For many High Sierra patrons, including a number of artists such as The Mother Hips’ Tim
Bluhm and Greg Loiacano,
Nicki Bluhm, Wally Ingram and several others, there was no better way to end the weekend
than with Surprise Me Mr.
Davis at Camp Harry on Sunday night. Set up guerilla-style between two RVs, this annual
tradition has turned into
one of the most highly anticipated sets of the weekend for fans of Mr. Davis, The Slip and
Nathan Moore (Surprise Me
Mr. Davis being The Slip plus Nathan Moore). The defining moment of the night came when
Davis took on The
Beatles and created the very appropriate “High Sierra’s Lonely Hearts Club Band” (The Slip
celebrated their 12th
consecutive HSMF this year) with shout-outs to High Sierra co-founder and close friend
Dave Margulies in place of
“Billy Shears.” With fans passing bottles and funny cigarettes to each other and the
band, the two hour set felt more
like a summer camp send-off than the conclusion of a major music festival.

Susan J. Weiand’s High Sierra 2010 Highlights

Carolyn Wonderland by Susan J. Weiand

1. Carolyn Wonderland – Vaudeville – Sunday Late Night
CW has played High Sierra three years now, but her closing set on Sunday night finally
cemented her place as HS
royalty. Fans were driven to tears and smiles by her ballsy playing and soulful singing.
She held the capacity crowd
in the palm of her hand. Many new Carolyn Wonderland fans were converted this evening.

2. Vince Herman’s Great American
Taxi- Big Meadow – Thursday
The self-proclaimed Mayor of High Sierra is a festie staple and to me, represents all
things High Sierra. He and his
Taxi bandmates kicked things into high gear with his “4:20 for 20 years” jam played at
precisely 4:20 pm, of
course.

3. The New Mastersounds – Camp Happiness – Friday at 4:20
Camp Happiness always throws a great happy hour party with crab cakes, gumbo, cocktails
and great people. The
New Mastersounds have played this annual party in the past and returned this year for a
get-down funk-athon. With
bandmate Joe Tatton playing a borrowed kid’s keyboard (with the notes conveniently
written on the keys),
the band delivered the funky goods. Mega dance party!

Honorable mentions: Rads late night; the Funkify Your Life, Horns a Plenty, Rads Pre War
Blues, Marco Benevento Trio,
and Allmond Bros Clan playshops; Kate Gaffney main stage; Orgone Big Meadow; Poor Man’s
Whiskey doing Dark
Side of the Moonshine.

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