Courtesy of Maggie Friedman
By mid-afternoon on Day One, Soundside Music Festival began transitioning into Soundside Comedy Festival.
Strong gusts of rain and winds beat down on thousands upon thousands of festival goers, testing the endurance of both on-stage performers and the youthful crowd alike. Still, even Mother Nature’s best efforts to dampen clothing and spirits of audiences couldn’t quite stamp out the overwhelming sense of excitement buzzing in the moist air, a collective energy further strengthened by a setting of collective misery.
In an apparent effort to prevent hypothermia, clear ponchos were supplied by festival staff prior to the start of Grace Potter’s 4:00 P.M. set—appropriate outdoor fashion not unnoticed by the powerful singer/songwriter, who improvised a short acoustic riff spoofing off of the rain garments and accompanying gusts of water. “I applaud you all for standing there and looking so damn good in those ponchos,” Potter hollered.
Boyz II Men followed Potter up with an equally soggy and slightly more nostalgic set. By this point, the merch lines were hours long, spanning the width of the audience as people tried to buy more layers in an effort to fend off the cold. From under the dense blanket of wind and rain, the 90s boy band livened the dreary day with their vivacity, brotherhood, and matching white outfits.
Other performers leaned into the onset of New England fall as fitting ambiance, emphasizing greater meanings behind the alternative, rock, and indie tunes the Soundside ‘umbrella’ is known to feature. Headliner Noah Kahan seemed to be particularly fond of this tactic, joking about how the dreary atmosphere presented an ideal environment for his “depressing” music, and poking fun at the crowd’s stubborn joviality. “I don’t appreciate your positivity!” Kahan exclaimed to roaring cheers.
Indeed, opening act Rijah knows a little something about finding joy in spite of loss of circumstantial control. When asked what emotions first struck her upon taking the Soundside stage, Rijah confessed to The College Voice she experienced “a little bit of stress, but mostly excitement; stress only because we were trying to figure out some technical stuff. […] I saw some people that I knew out in the audience, like my family––I was so excited!” Initial difficulties, however, couldn’t shake the House in Tattoos singer’s calm demeanor. “We had to shorten the set unfortunately, [but] it all ended up working out.”
A third-year student at Berklee College of Music, this fast-emerging artist managed to attain the coveted opening spot through Berklee’s Popular Music Institute, capturing festival crowds with “a mix of indie-soul, pop and R&B” influenced by her roots. “I grew up in Jersey City [NJ], which is really close to New York…it’s just really diverse, and so I got exposed to a lot of other music that I’m sure has influenced my sound in the genre,” Rijah revealed. “I’ve always been singing, and I grew up in a really musical family…I have a lot of family back home in India that are also professional musicians…I think my family knew before me that I wanted to do music.”
She hopes playing at Soundside may fuel her career, allowing her to reach a greater base of would-be fans. “I just released my latest EP, so hopefully there are more listeners. I’m really excited to just continue working on more projects and releasing more music. I really just want to connect with my audience, and hopefully I found some people in this audience at Soundside today to connect with [who] will continue listening to my music!”
Day two brought about a sliver of sunshine, welcoming crowds to a promising afternoon filled with performances by Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors, Gregory Alan Isakov, Norah Jones, Teddy Swims, Bleachers, Greta Van Fleet and Jack White, among others. Concertgoers experienced an easy, carefree vibe, warmed by the camaraderie and exhaustion that go hand in hand with the final stretch of a packed weekend. In a testament to the culture Soundside organizers have helped to build, any perceived health incident was immediately brought to widespread attention by those onstage, ensuring the show did not continue until help was confirmed to be on the way. The festival was organized so attendees could choose between three different ticket experiences: general admission (GA), general admission + (GA+), and VIP. Those holding GA+ and VIP tickets were able to get even closer to the stage; with access to special viewing areas and lounge spaces.
The phenomenal Teddy Swims became particularly vulnerable with attendees, opening up about the end of a former romantic relationship, and sharing his thanks for the consistent love and support of fans. Following this latter statement, audiences clapped for minutes on end, restarting applause each time momentum began to slow. Swims fought back tears during a rendition of Some Things I’ll Never Know, delivering an emotional powerful ballad “hypothetically” motivated by his past relationship dynamic. “You know what I’m saying?” Swims rhetorically questioned crowds. We do, Teddy. We do.
Bleachers might take the cake as the top unexpected standout of the festival, carrying out one of the best acts of the weekend after being asked to replace Queens of the Stone Age just a couple weeks before the set date. Lead singer Jack Antinoff put on a live show unmatched in pure fun, quickly converting many who were unfamiliar with the band into dedicated fans. Antinoff acknowledged multiple times he was aware audiences had not specifically paid to see Bleachers perform, asking those watching to get up on each other’s shoulders in a demonstration of support. “And I felt it creeping up, and I put my hand on that B flat,” Antinoff shouted with excitement, repeatedly turning on and off the hum of sound.
Earlier in the day, Drew Holcomb and the Neighbors also inspired masses to jump up and dance, playing an authentic, slightly rock, slightly country sound appealing to a multi-generational demographic. Asked by The College Voice to provide a glimpse into the other side of the stage, lead singer/songwriter Drew Holcomb shared “Festivals are always pretty magical, just because you’re playing in front of a bunch of different people that may or may not know your music, and then you get to hear a lot of other artists…this [festival]’s pretty new, I think, and pretty well executed honestly, if you ask me. It’s a really great experience for the artist.”
Based on this seasoned musician’s calm demeanor, Soundside audiences may be surprised to learn Holcomb felt a host of emotions prior to stepping into the spotlight—including the infamous pre-performance jitters. “I always get a little nervous playing at festivals, just because you don’t know what to expect—but it’s good nerves, you know, like excitement. I’ve been in this for a long time, and I’m very grateful that it’s my job. This week—with all of the hurricane, and flooding, and stuff—there’s a lot of other things, other people walk into a lot of hard stuff, and so we’re at a music festival. Perspective wise, it’s like that’s all pretty fun.” His favorite moment of the set? “I think I really enjoyed—the first song we played is a new song that just came out a couple months ago that’s been received really well…that was really fun, and the crowd I think immediately kind of latched on,” Holcomb divulged.
The Find Your People singer has been busy over the past few months, balancing a new record with a tour and three young children. On the subject of said album, Holcomb states “both volume one and volume two were kind of inspired by getting back on stage with my longtime band coming out of the pandemic… there’s songs about family, there’s songs about relationships, there’s songs about trying to make our way in this crazy world. I’ve got a 12 year old, 9 year old, 6 year old, so you kind of get in your feelings sometimes about life going too fast.” Holcomb also opened up on the challenges of striking a balance amongst the hectic demands of creativity and family. “I try to bring my kids along [on tours]…sometimes the music suffers and sometimes the family suffers a little, and as I get older I try to make sure that the family suffers less than the music.”
Holcomb’s Southern roots extend to his band, whom he met in his home state of Tennessee. “…we [Holcomb and his guitar player] were literally living in the same neighborhood with each other and a few other guys that were playing in the band at the time, and we were like, we need a band name. We kind of played with a million different things and landed on The Neighbors—we’re neighbors, let’s be The Neighbors.” Nowadays, he seems to strive to be a bit of a good neighbor to all who come to see the band perform. “I honestly hope that we gave more than we got. Hopefully we gave people a good memory, and something they can take home, and take the songs home with them.”
To young musicians not yet in the festival phase of their career, Holcomb hopes to spread this sage advice: “Be yourself, nobody can be you, so don’t try to be somebody else. And then two, be patient. Patient patient patient. But also work really really hard while you’re being patient.”
Though many attendees were excited about the line-up, some concert-goers were still mourning the Foo Fighters, who pulled out of the event just a few days prior to the show. The band was originally set to headline the second day. One man wandered the venue in a t-shirt that said “Dave Grohl [the frontman of the Foo Fighters] disappointed his fans.”
Between sets, there were plenty of opportunities for festival-goers to participate in non-music related activities. Various nonprofit organizations set up tents amidst food trucks for people who were interested in registering to vote, signing up to donate blood, or Save the Sound through environmental volunteer work. A lively beer garden and wine grove were great spaces for those over 21 to meet new people and experience a reprieve from the audience. There were also plenty of water stations and food vendors to keep everyone’s energy up throughout the weekend. Soundside is certainly a marathon—not a sprint!
To anyone out there who may not have had the opportunity to experience this year’s festival, be sure to keep an eye out for updates regarding next fall’s lineup, which will likely be released sometime in 2025. Rock on, Connecticut! Thank you and goodnight!
