Three days at Knox Farm

We spent 3 days at Borderland Music and Arts Festival in East Aurora last weekend and it was a great time. My favorite act of the weekend was Driftwood, which played the main stage early afternoon Saturday.

Getting a slot with four bands left to play early on Day 2 is a place easy to get lost in the shuffle but not when you are that tight, dedicated to your craft and true to the music.

Driftwood’s version of Americana/bluegrass would hold up in any era of the last century.

After they finished blowing us away we listened to the Heavy Heavy, Teskey Brothers and Band of Horses before Vampire Weekend.

Going into the weekend, I was most excited about Vampire Weekend but they somehow seemed trite, at least to me, not fully connected and a bit distant.

Sunday we watched the start of the Bills game before making the long drive to East Aurora just as the game ended. We watched a bit of Neighbor on the Homespun Stage before enjoying Trampled by Turtles and, finally Khruangbin to close out the day.

Trampled by Turtles is another band that fits in that friendly Americana/bluegrass space, warm, friendly, easy to listen to. Khruangbin closed out the festival with a slow, comfortable jam of mostly instrumental music, kind of as if jazz fusion met Enya with some middle eastern influence on the side. It felt like great come-down music that would be fun if I needed to study as it played in the background.

The tightly organized schedule featured three stages with hour-long sets for most bands. If you don’t like something, give it a minute, it will change.

In February, Beth and I decided to skip major travel this season, save a driving trip to Virginia for a wedding, and instead see lots of concerts.

The crown jewel of our show selections was Borderland in East Aurora. We went in the first year. I remember liking Dr. Dogg and Margo Price. That lineup also has Folkfaces, Ten Cent Howl and Leroy Townes.

Overall I was disappointed – 3 day passes cost $400 even at early bird pricing. Parking was another $53. Most drinks were $14 or more. There was hardly a food item to be found for less than $15. Over 3 days, that adds up.

The Split Rail stage didn’t have a single act we felt like watching. I don’t even know why it was there.

I think we would do it again but probably only for one day. Also, even though organizers say don’t bring food, we would. On the third day, the guard searching my backpack asked “what’s this?” “Pizza” I said. “We have been going broke all weekend.”

“I don’t blame you,” he said. “Food here is expensive.”