420 Sweetwater Fest: Keeping It Loud

Written by Jaya // April 29, 2012 // Music Category // 1 Comment

While walking to the Candler Park area of Atlanta from the Marta train on April 20^th, there are throngs of people heading in the same direction with smiles on their faces. We are all going to the same place: Sweetwater Brewing Company’s weekend-long music festival where they showcase their beers and provide a vibrant atmosphere for art and fun. The festival has been held since 2004.

Upon arriving at the festival, there are already hundreds of people enjoying the many vending booths before any music has started. There are companies like Bruster’s Ice Cream, Moe’s Burritos, Cascadian Farms Organic, and dozens of other national brands offering samples and discounted sales of their goods. There are also independent vendors that sell jewelry, small furniture and homemade food right next to the stalls of multi-million-dollar corporations.

“The attention they give to local vendors is one of the things that makes the Sweetwater [420] Fest so great,” said April, a 420 fest supporter. Although she did not have the funds to set-up a booth, she hopes to be able to sell her handmade jewelry at next year’s festival. “It’s kind of expensive to rent a space, but it’s such a great opportunity if you can get one!”

Local music is also a highlight of the 420 Fest, and Georgia’s own Perpetual Groove is the headliner for the opening night of the event, along with supporting acts Donna The Buffalo, The Mickey Hart Band, Soulive, and co-headliners Maceo Parker. I was lucky enough to arrive early and I got a chance to interview the band: Adam Berry (bass), Brock Butler (lead guitar, vocals), Albert Suttle (drums) and Matt McDonald (keyboards). I sat down in their private tent where they were getting ready to eat some Indian food from Atlanta’s own Bhojanic, located near Emory University.

The guys were very cool and laid back. I ask who has written the set list for the night, as it varies with each show, Brock said: “That man right there” as he points to Adam. They tell me that they try to tailor each set to the audience they are playing for each night, and tonight’s song choice is “mellow with some Southern stuff thrown in.” When I question them about the possibility of a new record being released any time soon, since their last album was 2009’s “Heal,” they tell me that new material has already been written. In fact, they debuted their newest song, “Violet Fang,” the night before.

They go on to reveal that they are extremely excited to play in Georgia again, and on April 28^th they will headline a show at the newly rebuilt Georgia Theatre in Athens. Athens has been their base of operations for several years now since they left Savannah, Georgia, the city where the group came together. Brock tells me that the “creative, musical” heritage of the city was the reason they made this decision, and there is a consensus among all the members that the city of Athens is where fans party hardest.

Though Perpetual Groove is by no means a very famous group, their popularity in the “jam band” scene is undeniable. Brock and Adam inform me that they are very excited for Amberland, the band’s own festival that they host annually at Cherokee Farms in LaFayette, GA. The event takes place during Memorial Day weekend, and the band headlines with three full shows, as well as music from other artists. This year other bands will include The Heavy Pets, Consider the Source, Moon Taxi and other bands from around the country.

Perpetual Groove’s performance was easily the highlight of the festival, setting it off with a bang. From excellent renditions of classic tracks like “Three Weeks” and “Lemurs” to the cover of “Pepper” by Butthole Surfers during the encore, it was an insanely fun time. The crowd went crazy for the whole show, cheering after every break in the music. Girls in the audience are hula-hooping, and almost everyone is dancing and singing along to the lyrics. My friend Rahel exclaimed after the show, “This was, without a doubt, the best set they’ve played since New Year’s Eve! Every Georgia show they do always kills!”

We want to thank everyone at Sweetwater and all of the other sponsors for putting on a great festival. The fact that it was free to the public and supported so many great companies brought even more positive vibes to the phenomenal experience. Until next year, cheers!

-Taylor Burns

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