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Read More In its third annual Rock the Vine series, Rock the Cause is joining forces with Compatible Technology International to help fight global world hunger.
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Rock the Vine is a music/wine tasting music festival in Stillwater, Minnesota. This is the third year hosted by the non-profit Rock the Cause organization.
The festival takes place just outside Stillwater at a winery, which is more or less like a large farm. So there is plenty of space. Weather-wise, it was the best you could ask for, in terms of festival weather. The sun was out all day and there were absolutely no shades, except for one lone apple tree. The smart/festival-savvy people brought their own pop-up sun shelter.
Food-wise there was only the Jamaican food truck, so it was pretty limited if you didn't like jerk or BBQ-style meat. There was also a popcorn and waffle truck.
The best thing was Rock the Cause provided free water and Vitamin drinks (which I have to say is pretty awesome; I've been to closed festivals where water costs $3 or more for a bottle). You can alternatively buy beer (or get free beer using the drink tickets) or $6 wine cups.
Most people didn't really show up until 3pm even for an all-day music festival. I personally checked in early at noon because I really wanted to see the first band (Lynhurst). I had previously seen the band when they were The Abdomen. For those who aren't familiar with the Abdomen, they are a family band with two brothers and their father. After they replaced their father with their sister (Mari) and moved to Los Angeles, they changed their name to Lynhurst (which is named after a Minneapolis park).
SOLID GOLD
solidgoldband.com
We've covered Solid Gold a few times and I've mentioned they are popular in the UK and drew comparison between them and recent hottie band Howler. But man, they can draw a crowd! You can tell because people were coming up to the stage to dance to their songs. This is a sight, because I've witness only people sitting around in the hot sun all day… then suddenly this happened!
They closed out their set with "Get Over It", clearly the crowd's favorite song.
The festival takes place just outside Stillwater at a winery, which is more or less like a large farm. So there is plenty of space. Weather-wise, it was the best you could ask for, in terms of festival weather. The sun was out all day and there were absolutely no shades, except for one lone apple tree. The smart/festival-savvy people brought their own pop-up sun shelter.
Food-wise there was only the Jamaican food truck, so it was pretty limited if you didn't like jerk or BBQ-style meat. There was also a popcorn and waffle truck.
The best thing was Rock the Cause provided free water and Vitamin drinks (which I have to say is pretty awesome; I've been to closed festivals where water costs $3 or more for a bottle). You can alternatively buy beer (or get free beer using the drink tickets) or $6 wine cups.
Most people didn't really show up until 3pm even for an all-day music festival. I personally checked in early at noon because I really wanted to see the first band (Lynhurst). I had previously seen the band when they were The Abdomen. For those who aren't familiar with the Abdomen, they are a family band with two brothers and their father. After they replaced their father with their sister (Mari) and moved to Los Angeles, they changed their name to Lynhurst (which is named after a Minneapolis park).
| LYNHURST myspace.com/lynhurstmusic It's got to be tough to be the first band on, of the | JOHNNYROOK johnnyrookonline.com Jonnyrook was a harder-rock band than Lynhurst's pop/rock. Their music wasn't really my thing, I ended up getting lunch and waffles while they play most of their set. One of the songs they did was called "Monday Through Friday" (the correct title is "M-F"). |
| FAREWELL MILWAUKEE farewellmilwaukee.com Kate & Lara really likes Farewell Milwaukee, which they've previously written about. Farewell Milwaukee is one of the artists featured in Cities 97 Sampler, so they were more than happy to play that song, "Always Be Your Man", on their set. I think they ended their set with "Get Scared". | HALEY BONAR haleybonar.com Talk to random people at the festival, most of them heard of Haley Bonar and was there to see her. Except they thought she should be one of the headliner, only she was early (3pm). She played a pretty solid set, from an old song, "Save a Horse, Ride a Cowboy" to a brand new song called "Bad Reputation". |
| WHITE LIGHT RIOT facebook.com/whitelightriot I've seen White Light Riot a few times now, and I never really know their songs. It doesn't really matter because they all pretty much rock. If you like that power brit-rock driving sound, this is the band for you. Everyone I know pretty much loves this band. They did a new song; I think they said it was called "Echo" or something. | HALLOWEEN, ALASKA halloweenalaska.com Halloween, Alaska is the last band on the bill (Savannah Smith and Old Soul, I am told played to VIP guests in a barn). I think they made the smart choice in having Solid Gold before the last band, as I can see from the crowd that they are slowing leaving the winery. This is a shame, considering that Andrew thinks they are a great band (although he did call their last album "Good band, fair album"). |
SOLID GOLD
solidgoldband.com
We've covered Solid Gold a few times and I've mentioned they are popular in the UK and drew comparison between them and recent hottie band Howler. But man, they can draw a crowd! You can tell because people were coming up to the stage to dance to their songs. This is a sight, because I've witness only people sitting around in the hot sun all day… then suddenly this happened!
They closed out their set with "Get Over It", clearly the crowd's favorite song.
Solid Gold at Rock the Vine 3, Stillwater (6/09/12) |
* The 700 number was quoted by one or the organizer who was referencing pre-sale numbers. Actual numbers was disclosed by Rock the Cause.
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