a recap + gallery from the stellar final day of Savannah Stopover 2016

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My 2016 Savannah Stopover finished about 1:30 a.m. with Capsula’s stunning set of originals followed by their encore: Bowie’s “Ziggy Stardust” and “Suffragette City”. Wow.

As I said in my day 2 roundup yesterday, we’ll have lots more posts over the next few days and maybe beyond. We had multiple contributors out and about all three days, each making their own plans. (We’re a little unstructured here at hissing lawns.)

You’ll see at least one shot here of all the bands I saw on Saturday, including The High Divers at The Grey, Curbdogs at Congress Street Social Club (which hosted the Furious Hooves/Graveface/Noisy Ghost PR showcase all afternoon), Street Clothes at The Rail (what a great new Stopover venue that turned out to be!), Dosti Music Project at Trinity, Ancient Cities at The Rail, Ancient Warfare at Congress Street Social, Your Friend at Wild Wing Cafe, Alex G. at Wild Wing Cafe, Jeff Zagers at Trinity, Hospital Ships at Congress Street Social, Haybaby at The Rail, Des Ark at Congress Street Social, Susto at the Ships of the Sea, The Britanys at Ampersand, Twisty Cats at The Jinx, Mass Gothic at The Jinx, and Capsula at The Jinx.

And man, I missed a lot of great shows, including headliner Futurebirds at the Ships of the Sea. Stopover presents some tough choices — and amazing choices too. More to come.

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Scotty ATL refused to play Club One at Savannah Stopover

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Day 3 of Savannah Stopover capped an amazing indie music festival. But there was one down note amidst Saturday’s excellent performances: Atlanta-based rapper Scotty ATL refused to play at Club One.

Club One — a huge multi-level club with a casual bar and food in the basement, dancing on the ground level, and a performance space for drag shows and theatre productions on the second floor — has been one of the centers of the coastal Georgia gay community for something way over 20 years. When I’m asked about “gay bars” in Savannah, I always mention Club One first, but then I always add that you’ll find pretty much anyone at Club One — it’s one of the most diverse nightlife spots I’ve ever been to, anywhere — and I also mention that basically every bar in Savannah is a gay bar. Savannah is a creative, inclusive place, and the big dance floor at Club One has been a perfect spot for many Savannah Stopover acts over the last couple of years.

Scotty ATL’s social media accounts have so far been silent on last night’s refusal to perform at Club One, and frankly we don’t much care what he has to say at this point. It’s 2016. Time to get over this crap.

a quick recap of day 2 of Savannah Stopover 2016

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It was another day of great weather and awesome crowds at Savannah Stopover. I ended up missing headliners Yuck and Blitzen Trapper because the lineup was so full of emerging artists that I wanted to see.

The 3rd and final day of Stopover kicks off soon — and there are some amazing afternoon options like the Dosti Music Project and the Graveface/Furious Hooves/Noisy Ghost PR showcase — so I’m not going to give any commentary right now about any of these acts.

But here you’ll see at least a photo each of CC Witt at The Jinx, Christopher Paul Stelling at The Jinx, Miquel Moure at Trinity, Hiss Golden Messenger at The Jinx, Sweet Crude at Trinity, Lucette at the Ships of the Sea, Tedo Stone at Congress Street Social Club (I literally arrived as they were finishing), Rainbow Kitten Surprise at Trinity, Mercury Girls at The Rail, Family and Friends at Trinity, Bruiser Queen at The Rail, Washer at The Jinx, Heaters at The Rail, Wild Powwers at The Jinx, Capsula’s Bowie tribute at Trinity, Honduras at Congress Street Social, and Mr Little Jeans at Club One. Fun night.

We’ll have a lot of posts in the next few days with various Stopover roundups and more on some of the bands you see here. (Click here for my day 1 recap.)

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Savannah Stopover 2016 – Saturday Recommendations

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Alright, we’ve made it this far! By now, you’ve probably gotten the lay of the land and you’ve more than likely met a few awesome people around town while catching some radical bands. Just because it’s the last day of Stopover doesn’t mean that there’s time for slacking, some of the best bands are yet to come!

Here are a few of bigger acts that I wouldn’t miss out on. As always, take care, have fun, and make sure to say “hey” to some of the bands, it really does mean a lot to them!

Curbdogs: 2:00pm at Congress Street Social Club
– Savannah locals jamming out with classic 90’s alt-rock.
The Fontaines: 3:00pm at The Rail
– A stellar modern take on classic doo-wop.
Say Brother: 4:00pm at The Jinx
– A bit of country infused rock out of Columbia.
The Stargazer Lilies: 6:00pm at Congress Street Social Club
– Part shoegaze, part psych-rock, all awesome.
Hospital Ships: 7:00pm at Congress Street Social Club
– Indie rock goodness from Carrboro, NC.
Des Ark: 8:00pm at Congress Street Social Club
– Intimate singer/songwriter with a style that’s hard to pin down capping off the Graveface/Noisy Ghost Stopover Showcase.
Sunglow: 9:00pm at Club One
– Savannah made electronic fuzz-pop.
Futurebirds: 10:00pm at Ships of the Sea
– Ambient, country-rock with a bit of psych thrown in for good measure.
French Horn Rebellion: 11:00pm at Club One
– A two man, electro-dance rock party out of Brooklyn.
Capsula: 12:00am at The Jinx
– Awesome rock and roll imported all the way from Spain!

Happy Stopover! And don’t forget about that pesky time change tonight while you’re out having fun!

Stopover Spotlight… Say Brother

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Say Brother plays Saturday March 12th at The Jinx // 3pm

A true dark horse on the Savannah Stopover lineup, Say Brother are closer to veterans than their one album on Spotify, All I Got Is Time, suggests. The pride of Columbia, SC, Say Brother’s reputation precedes themselves in the Southeast for their straight-from-the-bottle blues rock and roll and spirited live shows. Tripp LaFrance and company are a real ‘dirt of the earth’ crew; they wear it on their sleeve as they swashbuckle and stomp through country rockers that pay homage to Waylon Jennings and Creedence Clearwater Revival. But this crew’s menace is matched by their songs, so full of hooks and memorable guitar lines… Perfect for either pouring another or starting off your Stopover Saturday afternoon at The Jinx.

Lead singer Tripp LaFrance below with some downright real talk:

How many beers have y’all collectively taken down in a night?

ill put it to ya this way, i have seen more beer cans in the grass round the fire than ive ever seen dollar bills in my bank account

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Savannah Stopover preview: Honduras

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Honduras plays on Friday 3/11 at midnight at the Congress Street Social Club.

I’m not always sure that Savannah Stopover attendees realize just how strong the booking is. Again and again, organizers Kayne Lanahan and Peter Robaudo — working months in advance — schedule some bands that end up having breakout years. On night one, for example, we were treated to PWR BTTM, which today was named by Rolling Stone as one of the 25 Artists You Need to See at SXSW.

There’s a pretty good bet that Honduras could turn out to be one of the emerging artists that’s poised for bigger things. The band has just released a great EP, Gathering Rust,, and it probably won’t hurt that lead singer Pat Phillips has just been chosen one of the seven “most fashionable New Yorkers” by Time Out New York.

And how much fun is this brand new video.

Savannah Stopover roars out of the gate – a quick recap of day 1

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Great crowds. Great weather. Stellar music. Not a bad day one for Savannah Stopover.

It’s impossible to be everywhere at once, and I definitely missed a few bands that I really wanted to see, but I still managed to catch a staggering amount of talent on Thursday night.

Breakers kicked things off about 6:30 at the North Garden of the Ships of the Sea Museum — they sounded great and Samford danced with his MeeMaw, hard to top that. Sun Club played a fun, raucous set, and headliner Ra Ra Riot had much of the big crowd enthralled.

After that, I made my way to Quiet Hollers at Trinity, All Dogs at Wild Wing, Faux Ferocious at The Jinx, Ballroom Thieves at Trinity, Mothers at Wild Wing, The Gotobeds at Ampersand, T. Hardy Morris at Congress Street Social, PWR BTTM at Ampersand, and, finally, White Reaper at The Jinx. I didn’t catch full sets of all of those acts, obviously.

The sound was tremendous at all the venues, with the exception of thumping bass from downstairs at Ampersand, and crowds seemed way up to me from opening night in 2015, when the latenight shows had to battle with the rain. I was struck again and again by the wonderful diversity of the venues all in such close proximity to each other, and I didn’t even make it to any of the Club One shows.

We’ll have a lot more posts and hundreds more photos on the way in the next few days, so here’s just a roundup of a few of mine. As you photographers will be able to tell, there are some tough, tough shooting conditions at Savannah venues.

Favorite line of night 1: Liv from PWR BTTM reflecting on their day wandering Savannah: “I’ve seen so many pedicab drivers I want to sleep with.”

Please click back to the hissing lawns homepage for various posts with recommendations from Petee, Larry Jack, and Jason for Day 2. (A few of my must-sees: Honduras, Capsula’s Bowie tribute, Family and Friends, and Hiss Golden Messenger.)

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Savannah Stopover 2016 – Friday Recommendations

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Greetings! So, you survived day one and hopefully had an awesome time! Well, there’s no rest for the weary so make sure you hydrate with something besides beer and take in a little more of the local flavor besides that ever so convenient walk-up window under the Golden Arches on Broughton St. before we plunge into Day 2! If you’re at a loss for bands to check out, here are a few that I’d recommend in a heartbeat.

Christopher Paul Stelling: 5:00pm at The Jinx
– Folk/Country infused Americana with some stellar guitar work.

Surf Rock Is Dead: 6:00pm at Ampersand
– Ambient, effects driven, groove heavy surf rock.

Family and Friends: 8:00pm at Trinity United Methodist Church
– High energy, Americana tinged, indie rock out of Athens driven by dual percussionists.

Garden Giant: 9:00 at Wild Wing Cafe
–  Savannah’s own 90s influenced garage rock gem.

Bruiser Queen: 9:00pm at The Rail Pub
– Slightly sweet, slightly gnarly garage rock duo.

COEDS: 10:00pm at Ampersand
– Local “raucous N rollers”

Capsula’s David Bowie Tribute: 11:00pm Trinity United Methodist
– It’s a David Bowie tribute by one of Stopover’s best acts from last year. Do I really need to say more?

Big Ups: 11:30 at The Jinx
– Super rad post-punk in the vein of Fugazi or mclusky.

Diet Cig: 12:00am at Ampersand
– Self proclaimed “slop pop” duo out of New York

No BS! Brass Band: 12:30 at The Jinx
– Big brass out of Virginia to end your night with.

Stay strong kiddos! Fun times are ahead so rest up for tomorrow!

Savannah Stopover 2016 – Thursday Recommendations

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The time is finally here! As Savannah Stopover enters its sixth year, it may seem more intimidating than ever with the event spanning 10 venues and no less than 100 bands. Whether you’re a newcomer or a Stopover veteran, there’s no need to panic though, there’s plenty of assistance floating around including Tom’s excellent festival survival guide here. In the meantime, here are some acts that shouldn’t be missed, at least in my opinion, for day one!

Band Poster Exhibition featuring Breakers, Sun  Club, and Ra Ra Riot: 6:00pm – 8:00pm at Ships of the Sea
– Come for the posters, stick around for the indie-pop goodness to follow!

Culture Vulture: 9:00pm at Ampersand
– Savannah locals with a prog rock meets jazz sound.

All Dogs: 9:30pm at Wild Wing Cafe
– Ohio bred jangly, indie rock.

Mothers: 10:30pm at Wild Wing Cafe
– Indie/folk rock out of Athens.

Mobley: 11:00pm at Club One
– Very smooth, high energy, electro-pop.

T. Hardy Morris: 11:30pm at Congress St. Social Club
– Georgia born, Southern styled garage rock.

PWR BTTM: 12:00am at Ampersand
– Queercore/punk influenced garage rock known for raucous shows.

Stay on the lookout for my day two recommendations coming tomorrow morning!

Jason’s Stopover schedule

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Well, here we are on the verge of Savannah Stopover Music Festival‘s sixth year, and I’m more excited about the lineup than ever. Tom has already shared his best tips on how to make the best of your time during Stopover in his survival guide, so I’ll do my best to avoid repeating his wise words. And Larry Jack, he’s shared his schedule with you, but we’re not all as ambitious as Larry. So here I am offering up some choice picks for the common folk like me who will stick around to hear most or all of a band’s set. That said, if you’re not feeling it don’t be afraid to grab a to go cup and walk down the street, chances are you’ll like whoever is playing in the next venue.

A quick note, I normally plan my schedule at the very last minute, but this year I’ve got a friend from out of town tagging along with me and she wanted a plan. So we sat up late one night listening to the Savannah Stopover playlist on Spotify, put a check by my favorites and sorted it out in to a schedule. What I’m saying is, take a moment today and skip around through that playlist yourself and find your own favorites.

Astericks indicate a band I’ve seen before. However, it’s entirely possible that I’ve seen a band and forgotten about it, I don’t keep spreadsheets and stats like Larry Jack. There can be only one.

THURSDAY

6:00 PM – Band Poster Exhibition – Ships of the Sea North Garden – I know it’s not cool to show up early, but since the first year of Stopover I’ve found myself really impressed with many of the posters entered in the competion. Make a point to get there and check them out before the music kicks off!

6:30 – Breakers * – Ships of the Sea North Garden – This local four piece has been generating quite a bit of buzz lately and impressing fans of all ages. I highly recommend that you come and catch them as they kick off the sixth year.

7:00 – Sun Club – Ships of the Sea North Garden – I know next to nothing about these guys, other than their singer’s voice reminds me a little of Stopover alum Brad Oberhofer. In fact, when I first heard their tune “Tropicoller Lease” on the Savannah Stopover 2016 playlist, I thought it was a new Oberhofer song. What I do know is they have a fun, energetic vibe that draws me in. Check out this Audiotree performance:

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Stopover Spotlight… Breakers

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Breakers opens Savannah Stopover at the Ships of the Sea Museum on Thursday, March 10 // 630pm.

We are in the family home of Breakers lead singer Samford Justice on Isle of Hope, nestled right outside Savannah, Georgia, surrounded by hundreds of records: from the Louvin Brothers’ Satan Is Real, Sabbath Bloody Sabbath, to Grandmaster Flash. He is talking with me about the “canon”, or in other words, music that will stand the test of time.

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Savannah Stopover preview: PWR BTTM

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PWR BTTM performs on Thursday, March 10 at midnight on the second floor of Ampersand.

You might not know PWR BTTM yet, but the duo is one of the bands playing the 2016 Savannah Stopover that seems on the verge of breaking out big. The queer punk duo have just launched a lengthy tour with Ra Ra Riot, who headline earlier on Thursday at the festival kickoff at the North Garden of the Ships of the Sea Museum. Sun Club and And The Kids are also traveling with the lineup and also playing Stopover.

PWR BTTM has been in the news lately for a clause in their rider calling for gender neutral restrooms — check out Fusion’s How this band is making punk show venues more trans-friendly — but they’re going to stay in the news because of catchy songs like these (I love the languid vocals and the variations in tempo) and their transgressive pop esthetic.