Susquehanna Breakdown: A Family Affair
From the second you step foot into Susquehanna Breakdown you can sense it’s a different kind of festival, especially when being compared to its larger counterparts that also take place on Montage Mountain throughout the summer. Before even leaving the parking lot to go set up camp on the lawn of the main stage, families carting their little ones stop to say hello and reunite with friends from festivals past.
Friday kicked off at 6 pm with all sets going on at the smaller Breakdown stage. The Dishonest Fiddlers kicked off the festival, serenading festival attendees with their rustic bluegrass tunes. Even people who were still making their way up the mountain stopped with all their gear to take in the Pennsylvania natives putting on the first of what would be many amazing performances. Next up were Coal Town Rounders, who kept the Appalachian jams coming as they gathered around a single vintage microphone and warmed the crowd up for the legendary Larry Keel, who put on an incredible performance with his wife Jenny as the sun set on the mountain.
Mr. Keel left the stage briefly before returning with the boys of Cabinet, who made their first of many appearances of the weekend. Cabinet & Keel played through a variety of numbers from old Cabinet favorites such as “Old Farmer’s Mill” to Del McCoury’s “Mountain Song” and the Hot Rize classic “99 Years (And One Dark Day).” After a short break, Cabinet took the stage again to perform the first of three sets (officially) throughout the festival. The excitement of seeing their hard work manifest into a full-on festival with a packed crowd was very visible as they played through songs like “Home Now,” “Carry Me in a Bucket,” “Treesap,” and “Mr. Spaceman” before closing out the set with “Easy Wind.” Closing out the night was Flux Capacitor, who shifted the vibe to late-night party with their electrifying jams. Their set ended with Cabinet’s Dylan Skursky sitting in on bass for “Viola Lee Blues.” Day one was in the books, and I didn’t see one person head back to their tent without a smile stretching from ear to ear.
Saturday brought a light rainfall but nothing that could stop the Breakdown crowd from rising nice and early to get in a full day of incredible music. The morning kicked off with sets on the Breakdown Stage from Pappy, Kopec, The Far Future and FMO, all Cabinet side projects. Kopec was quite a special set, made up of Cabinet’s fiddle player Todd Kopec and his kids Jillian and Otis. They brought a fun energy to the morning, covering some classics such as “Come As You Are,” “Across The Universe” and “2,000 Lightyears From Home.”
Cornmeal opened up the Susquehanna stage with a powerful set that ended with an unexpected cover of Bowie’s “Let’s Dance,” which brought everyone racing to the front of the stage. The next group to take the Susquehanna stage was Cabinet for a special acoustic performance (that’s official set #2 for those of you who are keeping track). The band played through a few mellow songs such as “The One,” “Pine Billy” and “Old Time Songs” before treating everyone in the audience to what was definitely the most magical moment of the weekend: Cabinet invited all of their family and friends in attendance up on stage to sing CSN&Y favorites “Our House” and “Suite: Judy Blue Eyes.” I think it’s safe to say that there was not a dry eye in the entire crowd.
The next few hours were a whirlwind of amazing sets from The Infamous String Dusters, Driftwood, Cabinet, Fruition and Railroad Earth. Between The String Dusters covering Tom Petty, Cabinet introducing a SECOND drummer, Andy from the String Dusters sitting in with Fruition and Railroad Earth being, well, Railroad Earth, time flew by in what seemed like a matter of seconds. Before everyone knew it, it was time for Pappy to take the stage for the last time to lead the Pappy & Friends set which featured members of Cabinet, Fruition, Dishonest Fiddlers, and Coal Town Rounders jamming to classics like “Cocaine” and “Shady Grove.” The set went right up to the minute that Twiddle took the Susquehanna stage for the final set of the night and festival. They’re a band that always brings it, and this set was no exception. They kept the party going and feet moving well into the night, making it the perfect ending to what was a very perfect weekend.
A true gem of this festival was the unique VIP package. It of course came with the usual perks of paying a bit more, exclusive viewing areas, separate bars and a limited edition festival poster, but what truly set it apart was a special lineup of 15-minute sets from the top acts of the festival in an intimate setting backstage. The lineup for this was unique; JP & Pappy Biondo play Merle Haggard, Chris Kearney play John Prine, Biondo Cousins play CSN&Y (which turned into an extension of the family set on the main stage), Tom Graham play Tom Petty, and JP Biondo with Tim Carbone. That’s not something you can get at any other festival.
All in all, Susquehanna Breakdown is a festival in its own league: a small family-friendly environment that truly brings amazing planned and unplanned moments of magic in the form of music and experiences. This all wouldn’t be possible without the members of Cabinet, who don’t rest from the time they step on site to the moment the last note is played and do everything they can to create the best experience possible for their fans in their hometown. Susquehanna Breakdown has a bright future, and we can’t wait to see it grow.
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