FloydFest was even more of an adventure for us this year at the New River Voice. We’ve covered the event since we’ve been in existence, which translates into the 2008 and 2009 festivals. But this year we took it a step further by having a booth, which was a new project now that we have moved to nonprofit journalism. And that meant even more time spent at the 80-acre festival site situated just off the Blue Ridge Parkway.

While our faithful interns kept things under control at the booth, trying to raise awareness about our online publication and our community nonprofit organization, the Freedom Foundation of Southwest Virginia, I tried to soak up as much of the festival and catch as many musical acts as possible.

Managing Editor Taryn Chase Jackson split her time between our booth and wandering the festival grounds, so she will join me in making some observations about this year’s event. Together, we’ll offer you a snapshot of what we saw at the festival.

Southwest Virginia, Represent!: It seems that in past FloydFest forays I’ve struggled to catch some of the “local” acts. But this year, I did fairly well. We”ll start up the road in Roanoke, from which hails My Radio, The Young Sinclairs, and Blue Mule, all of which I saw. From Blacksburg, I enjoyed 3 Minute Lovin’ and Kat Mills. I caught Old Sledge, which has members from Giles and Floyd counties. I took in The Sauerkraut Band, which has members from all over the New River Valley. Going down the road in Grayson County, I saw the Whitetop Mountain Band and Wayne Henderson and a few of his instrument-making friends. And then moving on down toward Bristol, I was happy to see—for the first time—Folk Soul Revival. Overall, I was proud to be living in an area with such rich musical talent. Unfortunately, I missed Dot Dot Dash due to a power outage on Friday night.

What’s Up With the Power Outages?: I was watching a cool set from Papadosio on Friday at about 8:30 p.m. when the stage goes dark and silent. And the stages stayed that way for two hours. The Main Stage finally kicked back up thanks to generators, but the other stages didn’t come back on until after we left for the evening, which was about 10:30 p.m. I’m sure the logistics of providing that much power to a festival site is an immense undertaking, but this was a major disappointment for bands and fans, and not the first time it’s happened. To the organizers’ credit, though, lighting for the vendors was supplied by solar power. Baby steps!

Eat, Drink & Be Merry: Fortunately the food vendors keep getting better each year. Of course, old favorites returned, like Carpe Donut, Bearly Edible (whose home base in Asheville, N.C. is now called Ophelia’s), and Wild Bill’s Soda.  Dogtown Pizza from Floyd and Due South BBQ from Christiansburg were great local vendors. I’m continually amazed at the organizers’ dedication to offering locally produced food. Kudos!

Best-Dressed: In their “Speed Date” answer, The Two Man Gentlemen Band said they were most looking forward to “being the best-dressed two-man band at the festival” and this proved to be true. They were one of the most entertaining acts of the festival, to boot. How can you go wrong with an act who will wear knee-breeches, play kazoo, and sing songs about obscure U.S. Presidents, “fancy beer,” and reefer? I ask you.

Did Not Disappoint: I had been interested in seeing Christabel and the Jons ever since I first heard about them, which is now probably three years ago. I finally caught them at FloydFest and fell in love with vocals of Christa DeCicco. I’m wondering if she will come sing to me at bedtime. And this despite the fact that they hail from Knoxville. (I’ll avoid getting into details into my disdain for that city.)

What’s My Excuse, Again?: I play guitar a little bit. Mostly badly. Seriously. I think to myself I just don’t have the skill or talent or whatever. But to see Lefty Williams, who uses a prosthetic pick attached to his partial arm and Barry Abernathy, who was born without fingers on his left hand, yet has won a banjo player of the year award, is certainly inspiration that people can overcome major obstacles to play music if they set their minds to it.

Pleased to Meet You: Colleen Redman has been our blogger from Floyd for a couple of years and I had never met her in person—until FloydFest this year. She stopped by our booth, and I’m so glad she did! Colleen does a great job for us, and I’m happy to have finally met her.

Local Flavor: I’m grateful to the FloydFest organizers for offering such a local—or at least regional—feel to the event. You don’t see signs for big national sponsors plastered everywhere in the event (although sponsors frequently got mentions from the stage). Many of the artists are from a radius of about 150 miles of the event. Lots of vendors are regional, too. I hope it will stay that way!

Cirque du Floyd: Performance art isn’t something we stumble upon much in regular life, so it’s always a pleasure to enjoy the odd sights of FloydFest (and I’m not just talking about the fashions). Last year there were belly dancers and stilt walkers, but nothing compares to the spectacle put on by Flam Chen‘s aerial dancer suspended from gigantic balloons. Add to that the hula hoop and aerial silk performances of Spiral, fire shows from Dance Afire and Scintillation Fire Troupe, as well as the antics of the Circus Practice and Miss Kitty’s Society for Wayward Cosmonauts and a tremendous sense of possibility arises!

Message in a Bottle: Another thing we appreciate about the festival is that, in addition to entertaining, it’s also held to educate. From vendors spreading the word about the effects of mountaintop removal coal mining to workshops on sustainable living practices and alternative medicine, FloydFest is successful in part because it has preserved its social conscience. Musicians like Adrienne Young (and her Backyard Revolution), Mitch Barrett, and Rising Appalachia remind us that we have much more work to do in the world when we leave the festival grounds.

See you next year at FloydFest!