Thursday, July 30, 2009

Gathering of the Vibes thru Chris Paul's Eyes

http://web.mac.com/chrispaularchives/iWeb/Chris%20Paul%20Photography/Healthy%20Hippie%205.html

Tuesday, July 28, 2009

Camp Bisco by Katherine McNamara

Camp Bisco thumped with a kind of energy more explosive than that of just a few bands and a few thousand wily fans. No, Camp was zapped with a shot of magic that sparked with ease and spread with speed. If the Camp Bisco Potion had a set of instructions, they might have simply read ‘just add water’. But before the rain even came, our campgrounds were mired in muck. Dancing feet of Biscuits fans from across the states churned up a swampland. The Indian Lookout Country Club became a kind of whacked out cauldron in which a collective energy brewed. Like Frankenstein, what emerged took on a life of its own the moment we created it.

The music didn’t disappoint, the sky certainly didn’t disappoint, and somewhere between the muck underfoot and the perfect crescent moon lingered a vibrancy that could doubtfully be repeated. Although, it’s a tough call to make; if you’re getting Shpongled beneath a tent, amidst a prismatic light show, stuck ankle deep in mud - you’ve either got to struggle to wade out of there, or just become a part of that colorful, muddy, undulating sea. Thankfully, we all went with the tide and got a little weird.

The first night, that Thursday, the moon hung slender and low above us all in our little cove of musical abandon. I overheard one guy repeatedly shouting that we were all turkeys let loose of our cages, and although he was probably spun, he was also probably right.

But first – a word for the bikers– can you imagine a government force overseeing Camp Bisco? A positive alternative to the police; they were realistic in their expectations and helpful to the modern breed of gypsies that set up shop on their land. Nothing like a well kempt vigilante to make us criminals feel at ease. We should all be grateful for however these dudes came to have a country club, and for whatever possessed them to allow us a good romp on it. Because that sure as shit was no putting green.

It’s easy to mention a sense of Camp community in the abstract, but there were plenty of tangible instances of health and kindness at Camp Bisco. Let’s face it – Biscuits fans don’t always get the best rep in the scene, but a lot of what I saw contradicted that old Bisco kid conception.

Strangers Helping Strangers is an organization that sets up booths at music festivals and donates all proceeds to local food banks. The aim is to “feed the hungry, one concert at a time”, according to manager Donald Pearson. 100% of the proceeds go to maintaining the program and providing food for the hungry. The booth at Camp donated all proceeds to Schenectady Inner City Industries. Don was assisted by Amy Strawberry Mama, a volunteer who mines for crystals in Fonda, New York.

“The earth rewards us with these beautiful treasures, and then I get to bring them here and share them with everyone, and all for a good cause,” Amy said of her work with SHS. The booth sold Amy’s crystals, and also took donations from both bands and fans. The prize for the biggest donation was a meet and greet with the Biscuits.

Festival food is prime. Of course there’s always the deep frier, but there are plenty of healthy, green options as well. A vender called Vegetable Oasis was run by vegan musicians Terri Basilone and Amit Shamir. They play together in a project called the Violet Tongues and make a living serving healthy food at the music festivals they love to attend. Although not always possible on the road, the pair makes a concerted effort to buy locally when they can.

“I love going to music festivals,” says Terri, “it’s our own sort of activism, in a way, you know, living the way want and providing a service we truly believe in.”

Color war is a Camp Bisco tradition that conjures the cutthroat sense of vengeance you could never truly leave at your sleep-away camp of old. Rivalries are rehashed in field games that include races and volleyball matches. Teams even competed to gather the most canned goods for Strangers Helping Strangers. Color War participants took to the field in the wildest Friday rains. But like the rain, the Campland battle did more to unify than divide.

Orange team captain Greg referred to embracing one people and situations as larger theme that emerged from the competition. He mused that Camp Bisco 09’ was a place where “creative expression – whether it was through dance, color war competition, conversation or my Orange-inal Buddha Orange Team T-shirt design” paved a wide path for people get out there and get weird, without a second thought.

He felt no compulsion to comply with “a generic biscuit mold that doesn’t authentically reflect me.”

After all, it’s about fun and music; not your fitted – no matter how fly it be.

The vibrancy at camp was no doubt a result of the strange and varied brew that bubbled there. So from the Ivey League MBA just back from the financial district in Japan, to the crispy fried Colorado kid just crawling out of a Japanamation K hole (and I had the distinct pleasure of kickin it with both) people came out and got down for Bisco VIII.

Well done, Campers.

By Katherine McNamara

...and now the photos by Britt Nemeth












Festivus by Jane and Ben

It was wet and muddy as we arrived Friday, except for a few brief hours, the sky was dark- dropping rain on all of us pulling onto Pransky Road. Despite this, the prominent vibe was positive, full of smiles and helping hands. After all, this was the Manifestivus, year 7 of the Cabot, VT party led by Toubab Krewe on the family land of bassist Dave Pransky.

The message and energy sent from the stage throughout the weekend was clear: love your neighbors and have a damn good time! The Festivus community is open-minded, laid-back, and upbeat. This years Festivus had brilliant international acts such as Bubacar Diabate, Barrington Levy, and Oumou Sangare- who absolutely stole the show and many hearts on Friday night.

Saturday during the say, a window of sunshine came through and Festivus goers refreshed in the swimming pond, did yoga, learned drumming in a Toubab/Jeh Kulu workshop and picnicked at their campsites. We enjoyed food by the Irie Project- all vegetarian, local, rice and beans, tofu, spring rolls, veggie patties and pies. All of this before getting down to a 2nd night of Toubab Krewe- which turned out to be the groups most impressive set that we've ever seen.

Festivus was safe, diverse, global, and and awesome time. Two thumbs up!

By Jane Jarecki and Ben Lanza

...and now the photos


Wednesday, July 15, 2009

Healthy Hippie Magazine Meet and Greet at Gathering of the Vibes on July 25th

Press Release
July 15, 2009 11:00am
New York City/Burlington,VT:
The Healthy Hippie Magazine Meet and Greet @ GOTV Sat July 25 11am-12pm

The Healthy Hippie Magazine, creators, staff writers and contributors will be at Gathering of the Vibes in Bridgeport, CT for a quick meet and greet experience. They will be gathering at the Green Vibes Stage on Saturday July 25 from 11am-12pm so fans can meet many of their favorite writers and the Healthy Hippie herself, Taraleigh Silberberg.

The Healthy Hippie Magazine has over 30,000 readers throughout the US. This will be a great opportunity to meet the creators behind the words you have come to love. creators and contributors of the magazine will be on hand for personal questions, hugs, and signatures. What would be a Healthy Hippie event be without something yummy to eat? Healthy granola will be provided to start your day off and give you the energy you need for all the dancing and fun ahead at Gathering of the Vibes. Gathering of the Vibes has been an influential music festival in the northeast and the Healthy Hippie history, bringing together like minded loving folk who love life, friends and most of all music. There would be no better place to hold the very first Healthy Hippie Magazine Meet & Greet Experience.

The Healthy Hippie Magazine's mission statement is, "We live green, healthy, and happy lives full of love, art, and music. We inspire others to do the same." It all started with Taraleigh Silberberg's Healthy Hippie Tips and a few friends with a passion to get the message out. Now the Healthy Hippie Magazine can now be found nationwide with the desire of making this earth a better place to live.


The Healthy Hippie Magazine
Burlington, VT 05401
Ph: 917-756-0309
taraleigh@healthyhippiemagazine.com
www.healthyhippiemagazine.com
www.thehornyhippie.moonfruit.com

Thursday, July 9, 2009

Follow Camp Bisco on Twitter


http://www.twitter.com/chadavid

Are you attending Camp Bisco 8 this year and want to be updated on all of the happenings? Can you not attend, but want to know what is going on? Then follow chadavid on Twitter.

THE DISCO BISCUITS ANNOUNCE DETAILS FOR LATE NIGHT DANCE TENT AND MAIN STAGE SET BREAKS
AT CAMP BISCO VIII 3-DAY MUSIC & ARTS FESTIVAL JULY 16-18 2009

Camp Bisco Late Night Dance Tent Performers Include: Twisted Tent All Stars, Shpongle, Pretty Lights, Two Fresh, STS9,and DFA Disco Tent curated by LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy and Pat Mahoney

$75 Saturday Only Tickets Now Available!!

Mariaville, N.Y. (June 30, 2009) - The Disco Biscuits have announced the line up for the Camp Bisco VIII Late Night Dance Tent. Performances include sets by Twisted Tent All Stars, featuring Simon Posford, Raja Ram and Benjy Vaughn, Shpongle, Pretty Lights, Two Fresh, STS9 live set, and the DFA Disco tent curated by LCD Soundsystem's James Murphy and Pat Mahoney. The dance tent will feature lighting design by Music Matters to enhance the visual experience of the performances.

In addition to their performances, Flying Lotus, Ott and James Murphy of LCD Soundsystem will be lending their spinning skills during main stage set breaks on Thursday, Friday and Saturday night respectively. The Flying Lotus set will be a precursor to the Disco Biscuits Thursday night headlining slot..

The Disco Biscuits have confirmed the second round of performers slated for Camp Bisco VIII, the eighth annual three-day music and arts festival in Mariaville, New York this July 16-18, 2009. The 50 performer lineup at the multi-stage camping festival includes: The Disco Biscuits - All 3 Nights; Nas & Damian 'Jr. Gong' Marley; Asher Roth; STS9 (2 nights); Kid Cudi; Tractorbeam vs. The Perfume; DFA Disco Tent; Twisted Records All Star Tent; Chromeo; Bonobo Live; Dr. Dog; K'Naan; Younger Brother; Special Disco Version James Murphy & Pat Mahoney of LCD Soundsystem; Brothers Past; Pnuma Trio; Flying Lotus; Pretty Lights; Shpongle; EOTO; Holy Ghost; Orchard Lounge; John Brown's Body; Telepath; Boombox; Martyn, BioDiesel with KJ Sawka; AC Slater; Phantogram; MO2; DJ Haitian; Fort Knox Five; Dr. Fameus vs. DJ Drizno; Kill the Noise; Prometheus; Ott; Starkey; Bluetech; Indobox; BLVD; Two Fresh; Mixed Bag's Superjam; The Chavy Boys of London; Chronicles of the Landsquid; Roots of Creation; Joe Nice; Tuphace; Mike La Sage and the Stumbling Troubadours; Otherwise; Synewave; and Dirty Paris.

Camp Bisco VIII will once again be held at the picturesque Indian Lookout Country Club in Mariaville, New York. The venue will be set-up with two performance stages and a third late night dance tent. The Indian Lookout Country Club is located approximately 20 minutes travel time from Albany, New York, and sits on 200 acres of rolling, flat grass fields. The grounds come equipped with full bathrooms; which include flush toilets and showers, as well as 24/7 bathroom attendants. Festival goers will have access to a full bar on site and a general store, which sells almost every necessity for a comfortable and care free experience.
Camp Bisco VIII is now releasing a limited number of $75 Saturday-Only tickets, as well as the 3-Day tickets, available for $145 online at www.campbisco.net and 1-800-594-TXX, and at all FYE stores in New England and select outlets in New York state. VIP packages will be made available for an additional $250 per 3 day ticket purchase. Travel packages which include; a ticket to the event, 3 night hotel stay and unlimited shuttle service to and from Camp Bisco will be made available. 15 cents of every ticket sold will be donated to Trees For The Future, an organization that has been the steward of planting trees throughout the world since the early 1970s in an effort to remedy the effects of illegal logging and unsustainable land management systems on the world's developing communities. 50 cents of every ticket sold will be donated to Headcount Cents for Sense, a non-partisan, not-for-profit organization devoted to voter registration and participation in democracy. BE-Green ticket upgrades will also be sold for an additional $2.50. Funds raised by the BE-Green upgrades will be used to offset carbon emissions through the use of renewable energy sources.

Camp Bisco VIII is presented by MCP Presents and hosted by The Disco Biscuits.

Visit www.campbisco.net for the most up to date information.

Wednesday, July 1, 2009

Stonehendge Music Festival thru Chris Paul's Eyes

The Stonehenge Music Festival in PA is a magical event and Chris Paul has managed to capture the feeling of being there. So if you missed being there this year or you were there and would like to feel that feeling again..check his photos out!!!

http://web.mac.com/chrispaularchives/iWeb/Chris%20Paul%20Photography/Healthy%20Hippie%203.html