Eighteen days is just long enough to simulate the feeling of an actual town, built of canvas and nylon and juniper and tin among the buffalo grass and live oaks—though short enough to push you back into the world with a new sense of purpose on your hero’s journey, to gather songs and return the spring to follow. It takes a week to adjust to singing until sun up every morning, and the days are too hot to think, so we sleep on the banks of the Medina River, in deep cypress shade, skinny dipping in the spring water between naps. I was honored to play the mainstage with Big Thief in 2018, after playing a lifetime of shows in the campground’s outdoor shower, in the meadow in a lightning storm, in a chicken coop atop a 1940’s International Harvester flatbed, in the staff kitchen scalded by the fryer, quietly in the Cureville massage and healing lean-to, and inside at least 500 RVs. I’ve shared bills with artists such as Dan of 1000 Songs, Slim Richey (“the most dangerous guitar player in Texas”), Lunchbox, Jalapeno, and Manky. Spider helps with security when he’s not culling wild hogs with a bowie knife for local ranchers. Writers such as Brian QTN, Steve Fisher, Steve Gillete, and Darlene Raven have helped raise me, with the patience and undying support that they show every writer who sits down at their fires. In the words of Carol and Ed Florida, “On the wings of song, newfound friends become family before long, we gather seeds to sow along the road we travel on, and fly to our harvest home in the spring.”
Kerrville is literally strung together with barbed wire, and after being canceled two years in a row due to Covid, they are completely broke and are on the edge of shutting down forever. If you have anything to contribute, please do what you can to save the Kerrville Folk Festival and the Quiet Valley Ranch through the donation page on their website. If they make it, we’ll see you there.
Cafe Erzulie (Brooklyn, NY)
By KeiyaA
Cafe Erzulie is a space centered in community and for that I’m grateful. I’ve spent many nights there, whether it’s to see jazz, shake ass to a fire DJ, or roll up in the beautiful backyard. It’s definitely a place that I can come and feel affirmed.
Hi Tone (Memphis, TN)
By Julien Baker
Before I was old enough to get into 18-and-up shows, I already knew about Hi Tone. It was the place for all the cool hardcore shows I wanted to see, and it’s a fixture in the scene, one of a handful of venues that remains consistent and hasn’t been repurposed or resold. What I value about Memphis music is its tenacity and resourcefulness, and I think Hi Tone embodies that in its own gritty way.
This picture is from a show I played with the band the Acorns, an artist from Memphis I grew up listening to and loving. Hi Tone hosts the yearly Pants Tour that Smith7 puts on, and they hosted the Za Fest early on. They make a space for Memphis bands to play music, and that’s extremely important to me.
Saturn (Birmingham, AL)
By Katie Crutchfield of Waxahatchee
I grew up in Birmingham, and when Saturn’s predecessor venue, Bottletree, opened in 2006, it completely changed my life. For the first time in my lifetime, cool bands and artists were coming to town frequently. It sadly closed in 2015, but with that came the opening of Saturn. It’s space/atomic age-themed, with a famously good green room that any band who has ever played there remembers fondly. It’s also across the street from Saw’s Soul Kitchen, which is probably the best BBQ in town. Tour can feel like such a grind, and they make it easy, exciting, and fun. They also did an amazing job of putting Birmingham on the map as a great destination for touring artists. I don’t personally have a picture of me playing there, but here’s me at soundcheck there in 2017 with my niece Lola.
