by Dominick Mastrangelo

The Savannah Stopover festival might only be three years old but it already has the makings of a go-to festival. There's the charming, walkable downtown area with venues just steps from each other. You can tote your (inexpensive) alcoholic beverage around the streets. The price for a three-day pass was an insanely-reasonable $75. The festival schedule felt manageable with only about 100 bands on the docket. (And just about all of these bands are heading to Austin this week.) There were a lot of hallmarks to SXSW, and indeed one person offered up the observation that the current size of Stopover reminded him of the very early years of SXSW.

But the thing that is so important to any festival, whether it be SXSW or Coachella, is having a strong line-up. And Stopover very much had this. From Mac DeMarco on the first night through Turbo Fruits at the very last, there were solid bands up and down the schedule. It was extremely well curated. On the second day, the free Of Montreal concert in Forsyth Park was weird and wonderful among the Spanish Moss. It was the Athens band's first time performing in Savannah. Chris Cohen and Ducktails were excellent over at Knights of Columbus a little later in the evening.

And the all-Georgia lineup at the same venue on Day Three (3/9) featuring Whaleboat, Ponderosa and The Whigs was raucous. I'm sure the festival's plan, as it should be, is to continue growing. My hope is that it doesn't grow too much. Or that it at least doesn't strive to SXSW levels of attendance or insanity. Its location and size make it a perfect alternative to that monster a few states to the West.

You can check out pictures from Day 1 and Day 2 are here. More pics from Savannah Stopover Day 3 are below.

Continue reading "The Savannah Stopover: day 3 in pics (The Whigs, Beach Day, Country Mice, Whale Boat and more)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Of Montreal / Ducktails @ Savannah Stopover, 3/8/2013

Amazingly, Athens-based of Montreal's gig was their first ever in Savannah.

Of Montreal's show in the park was also the first time the sweeping backdrop of our so-called band shell was used to full effect. Surreal and colorful, the dancing images looked almost as wonderful from a distance as the ridiculous stage theatrics appeared up close.

That event might have been the signature event of the third annual indie music festival that lures many bands headed to Austin for SXSW, but there were plenty of other gems.

Thursday's opening night lineup was especially impressive.

To get the festival rolling, the rich sounds of The Last Bison filled up the glorious North Garden at the Ships of the Sea Museum. The music ended about six hours later, with Mac DeMarco finishing his set by crowd surfing at The Jinx.

In between, a couple of dozen acts played at a variety of downtown venues, including Thurston Moore and his new band Chelsea Light Moving in the beautifully renovated ballroom at the Knights of Columbus on Liberty Street. - [Savannah Now]

As mentioned, the Savannah Stopover happened over the weekend in its namesake Georgia town with bands from all over the world playing on their way to SXSW. BV photographer Dominick Mastrangelo was there the whole weekend and here are pics from Friday (3/8), including shots of Of Montreal, Braids, Ducktails, Chris Cohen and more. Check them out below.

Continue reading "The Savannah Stopover: day 2 in pics (of Montreal, Ducktails, Braids and more)"

photos by Dominick Mastrangelo

Mac DeMarco @ The Jinx, Savannah, GA 3/7/2013

The Savannah Stopover kicked off last night (3/7) in the genteel Georgia city. Over 100 bands on their way to SXSW (and a few that aren't) will play through Saturday (3/9). Intrepid BV photographer Dominick Mastrangelo will be covering the fest for us and arrived last night just in time to catch Mac DeMarco's headlining set at The Jinx. Hijinx is more like it judging from these photos.

More coverage from the Savannah Stopover to come and more pics from Mac's set are below.

Continue reading "The Savannah Stopover is underway in Georgia; check out pics from Mac DeMarco's performance"

SXSW is no doubt a great way to see a lot of bands in a short amount of time and can be a lot of fun. But it can also be a little much for some. If you'd like to see many of the same bands but in a more genteel setting, you might be interested in The Savannah Stopover which happens the weekend before SXSW (March 7 - 9) in at various clubs in Savannah, Georgia. Over 100 bands will play, including Of Montreal, Merchandise, Mac DeMarco, Chelsea Light Moving, Hunters, Braids, Delicate Steve, Turbo Fruits, Ducktails and loads more.

Tickets ($30 per day or $75 for three-day pass) are on sale now and more info is at Savannah Stopover's website. The full announced lineup is below.

Continue reading "of Montreal, Chelsea Light Moving, Merchandise, Mac DeMarco, & more playing Savannah Stopover before SXSW"