- Red Bull Music Academy’s United States of Bass - July 19, 2016
- Red Bull Sound Select: Adrian Younge, No ID, Joey Dosik - April 14, 2016
- LA Red Bull Sound Select: Stormzy, Lizzo, and Kauf - March 28, 2016
Over the past few years, I’ve been to music festivals across the country- New York, Las Vegas, Washington DC, Los Angeles etc. This past weekend however, I had the chance to attend the music festival that introduced me to music festivals: The Sacramento Music Festival.
Growing up in Sacramento there were two events I always looked forward to: the California State Fair, and the Sacramento Jazz Jubilee. Although the Jazz Jubilee had recently rebranded itself to be a bit more inclusive of different genres (hence the name change), it was still in many ways the festival I fell in love with as a kid.
We started our night strolling through Old Sacramento to the Freeway Gardens Stage to catch The Rhythm Vandals, an awesome Santana tribute band. Located underneath Interstate 5, one of the main freeways running through the city, there was plenty of room to get up and dance, and seating for a couple hundred. The Rhythm Vandals were spot on with their covers of “No One to Depend On,” and “Corazòn Espinado.” Playing through “Black Magic Woman,” The Rhythm Vandals executed a seamless transition into the Tito Puente tune made famous by Santana, “Oye Como Va.”
Next we headed to the Turntable on the Green stage near the California Railroad Museum. The biggest stage at the Sacramento Music Festival, we caught Friday night’s headliner, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue. I’d seen them perform once at a small theater venue in Malibu, which was great, but didn’t have the same party vibe that was there Friday night. Shorty and his band played an intricate mix of jazz, blues, rock and funk. Some standout tracks included “On Your Way Down,” and “The Craziest Thing.” Trombone Shorty showed off some of his circular breathing technique over a gritty blues groove, holding one note for almost two minutes. They even through in some James Brown and Ray Charles covers that made for a funky good time.
Finally we headed back to the Freeway Gardens stage for a set from the mainstay swamp music band, Zydeco Flames. With washboard and accordion thrown into the mix, this band has been a staple at the festival since I can remember. Their swinging fun covers of “I’ll Take You There,” and the New Orleans standard “Iko Iko,” had the party really going. There was even a conga line that traveled throughout the venue.
I can see why the Sacramento Music Festival was one of the reasons I fell in love with live music at an early age. Unlike a lot of other festivals that I have attended over the years, the Sacramento Music Festival is a festival for families; tickets were reasonable, and kids 12 and under got in free. That makes it so easy to expose young people to great live music, and looking back, I’m glad I was one of those young people. If I hadn’t been, well, I probably wouldn’t be here writing about music.
