The event took place over the
weekend of Aug. 31 to Sept. 2. It was held at the Catawba Sustainability Center
in Catawba, Va., property owned by Virginia Tech. The goal of the center is to
educate on sustainability, which the festival also focused on. Several booths
were set up showcasing earth friendly projects and vendors. The festival was
held there in an attempt to raise awareness and funding for the Sustainability
Center, as well as to provide musical entertainment.
So, on the night of Sept. 1, I
arrived at Catawba Fest with unmeasurable excitement. Something was finally
going to go right, and Papadosio would make all my stress and tension float
away on syncopated rhythms. I think many others felt the same.
The land was beautiful. An open
field with mountains in view, capped by an expansive sky (often cloudy) and
happy faces. It was intimate, something I’ve always loved in festivals. I
recognized many, and the number only grew as that much awaited time approached.
We were there for the same reason.
The day was rainy. At one point I
found myself drenched, hiding inside a tent dripping with puddles. The music
had stopped; the downpour and winds were simply too much. I didn’t bring a
tent, since I hadn’t planned to stay the night, so when the rain let up, I
moved to a car for protection. When I finally ventured out again, the band’s
set time was nearing but there were still showers.
Because of the rain delay, things
were off schedule, and the Shane Pruitt Band, on stage right before Papadosio,
played later than expected. The band closed out its set with remarkable energy
and began to pack up. At this point, rain was still falling lightly, but I’d
realized that a small area right in front of the stage was also covered by the
tent, and was staying dry.
The crowd gathered in wait. Papadosio began to set up. The anticipation was palpable. Like-minded souls expecting a release.
The crowd gathered in wait. Papadosio began to set up. The anticipation was palpable. Like-minded souls expecting a release.
 |
| Papadosio performs at Electric Forest '12 |
The group was small. Many attendees
had gotten rained out and gone home, or had children they needed to put to bed.
The last few survivors waited for their reward. But suddenly, the atmosphere
changed. Cords were wound instead of unwound. Equipment was packed up instead
of set up. Lights were broken down; instruments were put away. Confusion spread
through the crowd as people wondered, “What’s going on? Are they going to play?”
There was a stalemate on stage. The band members were clearly ready to put on a
show, but something was stopping them.
And then it all became clear. No, they weren’t going to play. We all reeled in disbelief. This couldn’t be right.
And then it all became clear. No, they weren’t going to play. We all reeled in disbelief. This couldn’t be right.
Eric Langston of Half Acre
Promotions walked onto the stage and took the mic. He announced that Papadosio
would not play that night due to weather issues and a noise ordinance. He
stated that the decision was out of his hands and that due to safety protocols
the band would not be allowed to perform.
Mind you, at this point, the rain
had stopped. The band was itching to play and the audience was itching to
listen. No one understood what was happening. There was some booing and some
chanting; maybe we thought we could change things if we just made enough noise.
No one left the stage. No one was willing to give up on what would have been a
magical, intimate moment. How could we? We didn’t even know what to do next.
The night had ended without even a hint of the gratification we were looking
for.
The organizers offered the
attendees who had purchased tickets only for Saturday free admission on Sunday,
but that wasn’t enough. I had paid $35 to see Papadosio, and wasn’t satisfied
with a free pass that I probably wouldn’t even use. I wanted my money back. I
wanted to storm the gate and get all of our money back. The expectation turned
to anger, and the crowd began to boil. The energy was going bad.
At that point, the band stepped
forward. The mob grew silent. Guitarist and vocalist Anthony Thogmartin offered
apologies and let us know that if the band could play, it would. I was touched
by the genuine regret at not being allowed to perform. He even offered those
still waiting patiently free admission to another show on the tour, passing
around a paper and pen to take names. It was beautiful really – their sadness,
mixed with the loss of the crowd, settled the raging energies, although still
unfulfilled.
Several people offered to let
Papadosio play in their homes, but the amount of equipment that would require
was beyond anything those in the crowd could piece together. It seemed
hopeless. The bandmates stuck around for a while, signing autographs and taking
pictures. I struggled with the decision, but the options had run out. I began
to head home. While I talked with friends in the parking lot, two cop cars
approached and the officers went in to the grounds. I assumed they had been
brought in to calm disgruntled attendees and officially break up the gathering.
I drove away feeling empty, inconsolable. My liberation was lost.
I awoke the next morning to learn
that the band had indeed found somewhere to play. Well, Thogmartin at least. He
had set up his DJ equipment at a nearby home and given those lucky enough to be
in attendance a taste of his solo project, EarthCry. The other members mingled
and everyone had an enjoyable, uplifting night.
As you can imagine, I was very
disappointed to learn of this. I thought, maybe if I’d just stayed a bit longer
I would have known. But, instead of moping, I resolved to turn my
disappointment – which I knew was not just my own – into something greater. I
resolved to find out what really happened that night.
I spoke with Langston, sent an
email to the band – to which Thogmartin responded thoroughly – and even briefly
messaged Corey Fulp, who had been so kind as to offer his home for the assembly
that night. Most of my questions were answered, but a few other things that I
was unaware of came to light.
I was informed by Langston that due
to Virginia Tech’s ownership of the property, the organizers were required to
follow Tech’s emergency management procedures. These require monitoring of the
weather up to an hour out, and erring on the side of caution. Although the rain
had stopped, there were reports of lightning in the area that dictated the
shutdown of the event. And that was not the only instance. The festival had to
be put on hold several times over the weekend, and even ended early on Sunday.
About half-a-dozen bands were cancelled, not just Papadosio. Half Acre’s choice
of land necessitated a partnership with Virginia Tech, and thus the decision
was, in a sense, handed down.
This all seems straightforward
enough, but I learned some other interesting details through my correspondence
with Thogmartin. The band had signed a contract with Half Acre before the event
that afforded it a hotel room, a meal, and a $4000 performance fee. This fee
covers several things – production, gas, expenses, etc. A deposit of $2000 had
been received before the Saturday night set time.
Once the set was cancelled, the
band’s manager, Andrew Koontz, attempted to collect the rest of the band’s pay
from Langston. According to Thogmartin, Langston said the band would not be
paid $4000 for just showing up, and offered only $500 more. Koontz was not
satisfied with this and continued to try and collect the rest of the band’s
agreed upon pay. At this point, Langston called the police (that is the real
reason they were on the scene). By Langston’s account, he was justified in
doing this. “Their manager was out of control. He stole a golf cart, he stole
the key to the golf cart, almost hit me with the golf cart in front of lots of
witnesses. Basically (he was) just acting way out of control.” Langston claims
Koontz tried to incite the crowd and would not leave the premises on his own
accord, and so he had no choice. The production crew apologized for his
behavior, but by then it was too late. Thogmartin disagrees. “He was being persistent and
that’s his job. (Langston) was avoiding him and not being reasonable. And to
get my manager to leave him alone, (he) called the cops. If our manager was
being aggressive the cops would have taken him away.” He says the proof lies in
the fact that Koontz was allowed, by the police, to return to the property and
help the band reload its gear.
I was not present for these events, so I cannot confirm one
way or the other. But I do know this, as of today the band has not received full
compensation for the event. In spite of that, free admission to another show has
still been offered by the band to the over 100 people in attendance that night.
Thogmartin had this to say: “We throw a festival in Ohio every year called
Rootwire, we operated at a loss this year financially; it happens. But one rule
you never break when throwing any event is that you don't ever try to make the
money to pay the talent out of ticket sales, you always want to have the money
in hand before the show so this situation is avoided.” He believes that low
festival attendance may have been a factor in the band not being allowed to
play and then not being paid in full. According to Langston, there were about
1,000 attendees over the weekend, including musicians staff, and volunteers.
Over 40 bands were slated to perform.
Aside from the weather issues and cancellations, Catawba
Fest appears to have been a success. The majority of comments on the Facebook
event and group pages have been positive. “Everyone from officials in Roanoke
city and Roanoke County to officials from Virginia Tech, thought the event was
a great success, aside from the fact that we got crushed by weather,” Langston
said. “So I think the most important thing … is that the community was really
happy that we did this, the university was happy, Roanoke city, Roanoke County
was happy, and so I’d say in general … it was a big success. No one can control
the weather, it’s just unfortunate.”
Half Acre plans to hold Catawba Fest again on the same
property. However, Langston did say that the weather should be studied and the
festival possibly moved to another, drier weekend.
