Event Review: 2022 Blue Ox Music Festival in Eau Claire, Wisconsin
The bluegrass-focused festival’s 2022 lineup was stacked with heavy hitters, but the lower-profile acts were just as impressive.
Soren Staff of Them Coulee Boys. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
In late June, I joined about 5,000 other music fans for the seventh in-person Blue Ox Music Festival, located in The Pines campground outside Eau Claire, Wisconsin. The three-day event serves up an incredible lineup every year, from locals and up-and-comers to established stars. This year’s bill included top-notch entertainers like Béla Fleck, Sam Bush, the Punch Brothers, Old Crow Medicine Show, Paul Cauthen and Del McCoury.
The festival delivers so much more throughout the weekend, from yoga and wellness activities to jamming opportunities to a kids’ stage. Friday and Saturday mornings feature instrument workshops by local stars; this year I got a lesson in mandolin techniques by David Robinson of the High 48s and learned about songwriting from Siri Undlin of Humbird and Soren Staff of Them Coulee Boys!
Last year was my first time attending Blue Ox, and I wrote about my whole experience from camping to finding my way around the vast grounds. This year I felt much more acclimated and was even more able to appreciate the sense of community—I’m sure there were challenges, but I didn’t see a single fight or unhappy face the entire time I was there—and overall the music.
Oh, the music! It wasn’t just the heavy-hitters that kept attendees cheering and dancing—the whole lineup from morning to late night was a constant stream of crowd-pleasing acts from the Midwest region and around the country. Although one of the acts I was most excited to see, Riddy Arman, couldn’t make it, there were plenty of good times and magical moments throughout. These were some of my highlights, both familiar favorites and new discoveries.
Day One
Thursday’s music doesn’t start til the late afternoon, so it’s like a warm-up for the next two days. I love it because I get to relax and wander all day, easing into the music-filled weekend. The first highlight for me was Them Coulee Boys. I’d missed their set the previous year and heard great things about it, so I didn’t want to make the same mistake! This Wisconsin-based five-piece band featured beautiful harmonies and killer playing by talented multi-instrumentalists, and the crowd singalongs showed that they were local favorites.
Their sound has a definite bluegrass feel thanks to fast banjo, mandolin and guitar playing and four-part harmonizing, but they also utilize keyboard, electric guitar and drums, which adds a roots-rock sensibility. And the humble, relatable storytelling in Staff’s songs puts him in good company with folk artists like Chicago Farmer. My favorite lyric of the set, which personified his empathetic voice as a songwriter, was “I won’t be defined by who I am when I’m weak.” Seeing him talk about his craft a couple days later at the songwriting workshop cemented my admiration for his work.
Daniel Donato. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
I’d heard Daniel Donato’s name in passing dozens of times during the day, always with an air of anticipation, so that got me primed for something special, even though I knew nothing about this entertainer. The first thing I noticed when they took the stage was the bass drum emblazoned with the words “Cosmic Country.” It’s hard to describe his sound any better than that—think the grooviness of a jam band mixed with the high-speed high-energy playing of bluegrass, with a healthy dose of honky-tonk thrown in. I loved their originals even though I didn’t know them, but I was also happy that they also put their unique spin on a couple beloved classics like “Fox on the Run” and “Big River.”
Their vocals were pleasing but fairly low-key—at least compared with their playing! Donato’s fingers were a blur on the electric guitar as he served up impossibly hot licks, and his keyboardist, bassist and drummer not only kept up with him but got their own chance to shine in showy solos. Although they played the slightly smaller Saloon Stage, the crowd swelled around it on all sides, driven into a happy frenzy by the fiery set.
I’m not big into jam bands, but the high energy of Donato’s band means there’s never a dull moment. I’d happily go see them again—in fact I did, a couple hours later, when they kicked off the late-night bill on the Backwoods Stage! I was flagging by then, but not Donato. He delivered just as much energy as he had earlier, and in fact I heard rumors the next morning that he’d jammed for hours sitting by the fire at the Potluck Pickin’ Circle after his sets. How he does it I have no idea, but the guy seems to have limitless energy and tireless fingers. This Nashville native has a hard-touring schedule, so be sure and check him out if you get the chance!
David Robinson. Photo credit: Carol Roth, 2022.
Day Two
June 24, 2022, is a day that’ll live in infamy: We all awoke that Friday morning to the news that the highest court of the land had stripped away one of the most important rights enabling women to make decisions about their own bodies. It wasn’t a surprise but it was still a blow, and something that many concertgoers carried around with them for the rest of the weekend.
Maybe it seems trivial to still go out and enjoy a full day of music. But it’s these kinds of times when I need it the most—in fact, the whole reason that Adventures in Americana even exists is because the music of Minneapolis band The Cactus Blossoms came to the rescue for me at a time when I was feeling despair over Brexit, the 2016 presidential campaigns and a particularly horrific case of police brutality in Minnesota.
So, after stopping by the Potluck Pickin’ Circle for David Robinson’s easygoing but informative and inspiring mandolin workshop, I headed out to find comfort in the collective appreciation of live music. There were a lot of acts I wanted to see that day, so there was a lot of leaving sets early, which is not my favorite thing to do. But I also didn’t want to be racked with FOMO, so I made the sacrifice! I enjoyed each and every act, but a few stood out especially.
Humbird. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
If I could’ve chosen one artist to share in my pain and anger yet soothe my soul that morning, I can’t think of anyone better than Humbird, fronted by Siri Undlin. The Minneapolis folk artist later revealed that she changed her band’s entire setlist upon hearing the news about Roe v. Wade, and her set kicked off with a grittier-than-usual rendition of a song I’ve heard before but I believe is unreleased. It talks about the suffering brought about by injustice and unscrupulous leaders, then brings in a hopeful refrain like a breath of fresh air: “We can be a break in the chain.”
She shared our outrage in calm, concise stage patter and in several more of the songs in her set, such as “Kansas City, MO”: “Hope for sunrise, hope for change / While America goes up in flames … A cheap shot hit right to the knees / America, you’re a sight to see.” The combination of cynicism and determination, plus Undlin’s pure, effortlessly soaring voice, was just what I needed in that moment. (Learn more about Humbird in our review of her recent album, Still Life.)
Maygen & The Birdwatcher. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
I don’t know if the crisis gave me a particular affinity for female voices that day, but for whatever reason, all of my favorite sets featured strong lead vocals by women. Minnesota act (and Midwest Country Music Award winner) Maygen & The Birdwatcher consists of two equally compelling Americana singer-songwriters, Maygen Lacey and Noah Neumann, who take turns on the lead.
I gave their most recent album Moonshine a rave review, but I think they shine even more when you see them live. It’s a band with a lot of chemistry, and it’s fun to see the interplay of Lacey’s sweet mellifluous vocals with Neumann’s gritty, soulful voice unfolding in real life. I regretted having to leave their Backwoods Stage set early but reminded myself that I’d get another chance to see them at the Hook and Ladder in Minneapolis in September, celebrating an EP release and supporting delightful Blue Ox alumnae The Foxgloves for their album release!
The Resonant Rogues. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
I returned to the Backwoods Stage a couple hours later for a new-to-me act, but one I’d been hearing buzz about for some time. The Resonant Rogues hail from rural North Carolina, and they draw deep inspiration from Appalachian folk but also from France, Eastern Europe, New Orleans and more. Married couple Sparrow and Keith Smith have a restless nomadic spirit, Smith having ridden the rails at age 18 and Sparrow even earlier, which explains their intoxicating melange of influences. But they also have a deeply rooted connection to home, nature and one another, all of which comes through in their deceptively humble but dark and thoughtful lyrics.
I’ll be writing in more depth about them another time—I’ve already caught them live again, back in Minneapolis, in the time it’s taken to write this article!—but suffice it to say this charming duo puts on a show that’s full of quirky musical surprises, funny and fascinating stage patter, and absolutely gorgeous vocals (Sparrow sings lead most of the time but Smith’s voice is also a pleasure) plus virtuosic instrumentation on guitar, banjo and even accordion. A superfan who’d driven down from Michigan excitedly told me between songs that they hardly ever tour the Midwest. I hope that changes, because I’d see them again (and again, and again) in a heartbeat.
Soren Staff of Them Coulee Boys and Siri Undlin of Humbird. Photo credit: Carol Roth, 2022.
Day 3
Although I woke up to heavy rain on my tent, the weather had cleared up somewhat by the time I got out to the Potluck Pickin’ Circle for Undlin and Staff’s songwriting workshop, featuring performances of finished and in-progress songs as well as lots of insight, inspiration and laughs. It was a ray of light that dissipated the gloom of the wet morning, and I left buoyed and full of thoughts about my own writing.
Isaak Gill Elker and Dawson Redenius of Good Morning Bedlam. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
It was sunny and oppressively hot by the time Good Morning Bedlam took to the Saloon Stage. I clung to what little shade I could find off to the side, but a sizable crowd took no such precautions, and I soon found out why. Although I knew their music from when we’d featured the Minneapolis band on an episode of our podcast, I’d never seen them live. I won’t miss a chance from here on out!
Their performance was sheer fire, with unreal amounts of energy, phenomenal vocals (three equally great bandmates take turns on lead), and an effortless chemistry with the crowd. You could practically see the audience feeding on their energy and vice versa, and the set built to a crescendo of joyful, unruly abandon. I’d struggle to define their sound (“pop-folk” is a start but doesn’t prepare you for the bluegrass, punk and more that permeates it), so I suggest you see this incredible, indelible band for yourself every chance you get. I sure did; I came back after the next act an hour later to catch another full set from them—and this time I went up front despite the blazing sun.
Joseph. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
Practically everyone I talked to about attending Blue Ox brought up Joseph. I deliberately didn’t look into their music, because the critical mass of friends excited about them told me I was going to be in for something spectacular and I wanted to be surprised. It was still fairly early in the day but the bowl filled up fast as the sister trio from Portland, Oregon, took the stage.
I tried not to have preconceptions, but I was expecting a sound similar to First Aid Kit or Secret Sisters. Either of those would’ve made me very happy, but even better was being blown away by a sound like nothing I’d ever heard before. With nothing but an electric guitar occasionally supplemented by minimal electronic percussion, these three women delivered a powerhouse performance largely on the strength of their vocals.
I cannot adequately describe the intensity of that three-part harmony belted at full strength; the crowd erupted every time their soaring voices reached for the heavens. The rain came back through, briefly, and not a single audience member moved an inch to get out of it as far as I could see. It was an empowering highlight to see an all-female group holding thousands of fans in the palm of their hand, and one of their last songs, “White Flag,” felt like a galvanizing call to action in the face of the awful news we’d had the day before. There were many more amazing musical moments to come that day, but I’ll stop here because I don’t know that anything topped hearing the crowd shout-singing cathartically along to this chorus:
They say “you'd better give up
You'd better give up”
I say “I'll never give up, I'll never give up”
I’ll be an army, no you’re
Not gonna stop me gettin’ through
I’ll sing a marching song and
Stomp through the halls louder than you
I could surrender but I’d
Just be pretending, no I’d
Rather be dead than live a lie
Burn the white flag!
Carol Roth (l), Erin Smouse (c) and other fans enjoying Joseph. Photo credit: Tom Smouse, 2022.
Carol Roth. Photo credit: Dan Lee.
Carol Roth is a full-time marketing copywriter and the main music journalist and social media publicist for Adventures in Americana. In addition to studying the guitar and songwriting, Carol’s additional creative side hustle is writing self-proclaimed “trashy” novels under the pseudonym T.A. Berkeley!
