30-A Songwriters Festival - Reflections
Let me begin by saying that this is my first post, and that I have attended and enjoyed a number of amazing music festivals... including Telluride Bluegrass, Bonnaroo, Merlefest, and many other smaller venues.... AND that overall I enjoyed the performers at this first 30-A Songwriter's Festival.... and that as much as I enjoy the Alys Beach, Rosemary Beach scene... I prefer the funky side of Grayton Beach to all the others...
However, a few observations that the organizers might want to consider...
First, the venues themselves ... being ongoing commercial establishments whose goal was to sell food and drink and which in many cases had extremely limited space/seating/facilities might not have been the best choice... granted, to make this one work, it might have been the ONLY choice.... but still, it left much to be desired.... Many , Many people stood in line outside venues waiting to be admitted and never were.... I myself wandered into Stinky's Fish Camp to see a particular performer and was confronted with a LOUD full restaurant, big screen televisions blaring football games and 75% of the patrons seemingly conversing as if the Music happened to intrude upon their evening.... Valet parking at a joint like Stinky's ? at a music festival ?? where the audience was so loud and rude that you could barely hear the performers with football games on in the background ?? At Bud & Alleys during the day I spent a fair amount of time fending off waiters trying to hawk $10 glasses of wine and drowning out the roar of the table full of 50 something women behind me carrying on as if they were at a sorority party, drunk and generally acting like ill behaved drunks... or standing outside the SeaSide REP waiting for say an hour and half while various VIP's were secretly walked in the door right in front of me and the 100 or so others waiting in the cold.. and where I counted no fewer than 20 volunteers coming in and out of the venue....
Second.... due to the distance between many venues, if you decided to pick one spot and didnt like the music.... you were pretty much stuck for the night... you really have to ask yourself Do I want to drive 15 miles to a place I know nothing about , and wait in line for an hour and possibly never get in ?
Third, the Indigo Girls show at Alys Beach was a mess... I realize weather introduced unforseeable circumstances , BUT.... waiting in line for an hour and a half in that weather was unbearable.... and then to have all the drunk 50 somethings jabbing me with their monstrous reclining bag chairs that they insisted on jamming into a 2 foot square was equally unbearable.... TALKING TALKING non stop TALKING... It was as if these people... mostly locals from what I could tell... either had never been to a music festival, had no idea who the performers were or at the best no interest in the performers OR they were so drunk as to be unaware that some people actually came to hear music / see performers ... I can tell you the crowds at Bonnaroo are better behaved than most of the 50 somethings I saw and observed....
Fourth, the weather just flat out sucked.... That is no one's fault... it just happens but it was nearly unbearable and the focus on outside performance areas at many venues made it downright miserable....30-A festival organizers might have done a better job anticipating the weather issues , but I honestly dont know if this past weekend's weather was typical for that time of year.... If it is that unpredictable, then it might not be a good time for a music festival with many outdoor venues ?
Overall I give an A+ for the concept and idea.... and to the performers... I give a low C- to execution.... and unless I had reason to believe that next year's event planning changed dramatically, I will not return....
I give a D to the locals of 30-A that I encountered for not understanding that music is meant to be seen and heard and enjoyed...and is not another excuse for a cocktail party / loud annoying conversation..... Most of the time I felt like I had stumbled onto the set of an L.A.Housewives episode.... and in case I am not clear enough... that is NOT a compliment.
Great idea... poor execution..... and someone take a few minutes to clue in the affluent Housewives of 30-A that a "music festival" is a place to enjoy music... not get sloppy drunk or catch up on gossip..... No matter who you are or how much money you might have... It is RUDE to both the performers and the other festival attendees to talk during live music performances !
