We Advocate Safe Sets: Hometeam New Year’s Rally!
What are you doing New Year’s Eve?
That song asks a very important question — will you: sit home, brave the roads, or chill (OK, maybe warm) with your musical family at Maddox Ranch for the Hometeam New Year’s Rally? Join those best friends you have made through music Thursday, December 29th, through Sunday, January 1st!
Cody and Jenelle have 43 great sets of music lined up for you, and you don’t have to miss a note, thanks to side-by-side stages. Many of the sets throughout the weekend are an hour long, some 90 minutes, with two headlining sets two hours, as you can see from the schedule. There’s just no way you can get more bang for your buck.
THURSDAY
Music starts Thursday at 4 with Captains of the Frontier, an experimental rock band from Gainesville. Then Sean Maloney unveils this year’s Legacy Orchestra Collective, wherein he lassos all the excellent musicians on hand and bends them to his will. Boxcar Hollow’s roots rock and Americana are up next, followed by Gainesville’s rockers Locochino. Then Ajeva plays a set of originals (they’ll be back again Saturday).
Displace is proud to present their newest member, guitarist Josh Formanek. And Backup Planet returns to the scene of the crime: the first time they melted our faces at last year’s rally. They also brought their blistering rock and prog to Great Outdoors Jam in July.
Antelope, a Phish tribute band, is well stocked with Juanjamon, Matt Weis and more, and they play the midnight set. Holy Miss Moley, with the usual tricks up their collective sleeves, trail Antelope.
And a new feature has been added this year: late-night acoustic sets. Este Loves, Fuzzy Britches and Critter will host the first night, starting at 2 AM.
FRIDAY
More Gainesville rockers (sounds like a theme here) in the form of Gritt kick off Friday at noon. They recently played the River Rock festival in Tampa. West Palm invades courtesy of Guavatron, and somehow they’ll detach Russ Bowers from the soundboard/lightboard long enough to front his excellent Russ Bowers Isn’t Dead Yet. Critter comes back with his Copious Jones mates for a set of magic Atlanta rock.
It has been a great year for Flat Land with a big tour and release of Arrow to the Sun; they’re on at 4 PM. Next is a welcome reunion of the Corbitt Brothers. Isaac and Newsome opted for different musical paths, and we’ll be happy to see them together again. The Applebutter Express gets the next word or three; they too have a just-released album, Suitcase.
Florida’s got plenty of funk, for sure, but we are very excited to see Toronto’s After Funk, playing a Hendrix set (they’ll be back Saturday, too). Zach Deputy brings his one-man orchestra to the stage for your dancing enjoyment, and The Mantras export their tremendous North Carolina rock and prog.
Thank heavens Roosevelt Collier is back to throw down his Hometeam Getdown (starting at 12:30 AM), and Friday’s acoustic set features Harmonica Man & the Sawgrass Band and Oak Hay (with Fil Pate!).
SATURDAY, DECEMBER 31, NEW YEAR’S EVE!
Are you up at 10:30 in the morning? Joose hopes so and invites you to the Coffee Shop Sessions. ??????????????? has a half-hour slot next! At noon, the Brown Bag Brass Band (Orlando) delivers truth in advertising, followed by Ian McLeod’s outstanding jazz collective Ism, with McLeod’s vibes front and center. Then Mark Etherington’s Redfeather rocks out.
Groove Fetish plays great progressive rock; these Wilmington NC boys were great at… Great Outdoors Jam! Then Savi Fernandez and band will take us on a great trip to rock, Central America and the Caribbean. Ajeva next blows up a set of Santana, followed by After Funk, round two. The Juanjamon Band invites you to the party, unless, of course, they’re “knockin’ boots!”
Christian Ryan has put together another spectacular performance, this one the “Year in Revue.” They’ll feature music by Bowie, Prince, Emerson, Lake and Palmer and much more. Look for a special feature about this set soon.
Then The Nth Power gets to rock us into the New Year. They’ve had a tremendous year, with a great new album, Live to Be Free, and great shows all over, including Bear Creek Bayou and the recent A Feast of Funk and Soul Food at Spirit of the Suwannee Music Park. They cover the complete range from sweet soul music to overpowering funk. We’ll review the new album shortly.
Because your dancing legs still work, Asheville’s funk ambassadors The Fritz plan to keep you on your feet, followed by the gypsy swamp funk of Hometeam’s beloved Come Back Alice.
Your acoustic late-night hosts are The Applebutter Express and the Corbitt Brothers Jam.
SUNDAY, JANUARY 1!
We made it!
More Joose and Coffee Shop Sessions at 11:30 AM, more ???????, and then madness from Dr. Bacon, who dish out their Asheville funk with a side of crazy. The Heather Gillis Band is up next; she will captivate you with guitar, lap steel and vocals — and a great band. Leisure Chief has really boosted their profile this year, and we look forward to the quintet’s takes on funk, jazz, rock and soul.
Dennis Stadelman’s Sonic Stew can go from a whisper to a roar, and you’ll enjoy it all. Then Orlando’s The Groove Orient rocks the house; they just hosted two superb X-Mas ragers. And Uncle John’s Band has the honor of shutting down the 2016 Hometeam New Year’s Rally with their 7 PM set.
We will have more about the artists at large this week: Roosevelt Collier, Christian Ryan, Joe Marcinek, Mark Mayea, Sara Phillips and Isaac Corbitt.
Sit home? Nope.
Dodge drunk drivers and police stops? Are you kidding?
There’s only one logical choice. MusicFestNews will see you at Hometeam!
Find ticket information and more on the official festival website.
Thanks to Jimmy Rector and www.acceptedperspective.com for all of his outstanding graphics work and to Acid Flyers for their sponsorship and printing.
Thanks also to Naked Juice, Mobile Stage It, Receptor Sound & Lighting, Dunedin Brewery, and 81Bay Brewing.
One more round of thanks: Future Music Makers, Illumi-Nation Project/Rising Light, and Because of the Lotus.
Photographs courtesy of David Lee / Gypsyshooter and Joey Pye / Staged Right.