From bright blue skies, to the downpour of rain and thunderstorms, the weather went hand in hand with the festival. One moment people were rocking out to Father John Misty and the next, Dan Mangan & Blacksmith were getting them ready for a nap.

Although there were ups and downs, that’s not to say that it wasn’t a fun and interesting day all around. There were tonnes of things to do. An art gallery, hula hoops all around, ping pong tables, you name it. This festival is about much more than just the music, it’s a weekend of fun for the whole family and a nice getaway from the 9-5 life.

That getaway is somewhat of a euphoric escape from the real world that all of us need sometimes and you could almost see the relief in some of the people dancing, ever so gently, putting off an aura of full relaxation. The line-up wasn’t anything too crazy, but it filled up both stages from start to finish.

A mellow tone to the large outdoor venue was a great setting for the mostly soft, melodic rock sets throughout the day. There were a couple exceptions to the relatively intertwined genre put forth at Field Trip. Psychadellic rockers Temples put on a terrific set for their Canadian fans and didn’t stop there. They were mingling with fans and catching the eyes of security after the show, with a pretty substantial line up of fans waiting to get pictures with them and autographs.

Father John Misty engaged the crowd through and through, with the vocalist dancing seductively and leaving his absolutely gorgeous voice sticking in the heads of anyone who even walked past the venue while they were playing. Even the people who were sitting down on their blankets got up to dance for this one.

Canadian music legends old and new Andy Kim and Kevin Drew, along with a band of five, got everyone dancing and gave stage hoppers something to listen to if they wanted to wake up from Dan Mangan & Blacksmith.

Flower headbands, wavy skirts and dancing that would remind you of the 70’s filled the Commons and gave it an almost modern day Woodstock kind of feel.

Anyone who didn’t know of Hayden before their performance definitely won’t forget his name after seeing him today with his band. I know I went home and checked out some more of their music. The folky harmonica, paired with the deep, soft vocals and trumpet gave it a rather old school bluesy feel. Not to mention the phenomenal piano playing into the melodies. Umbrellas popping up and people just trekking the wet made for a very thankful band. You could really tell how much they loved playing music, and together on top of it. It showed in how powerful the performance was, from start to finish.

Mariana and the Diamonds was a bit of an exception to the feel of the festival, but the vocalist definitely knows how to put on a show and had more adoring fans than any of the other performers that I noticed. There was a line down the path of a good 30 or 40 fans waiting by the gate aside the stage, just hoping for her to come out. I wondered all day why I kept seeing girls with lady bug antennas on their heads, until I got to witness how dedicated her fans in attendance were. Sporting the same headpiece as I’d seen all day, she put on a very energetic, fun performance. The poppy, electronic sound was not quite well suited to fall into place with the other bands who played though.

The vocalist in Rhye was admittedly insecure through some of the performance and thanked one of the fans specifically for keeping him “pumped,” pointing at him and saying “this guy, this guy right here.” The simplistically lovely performance, filled with long, pitch perfect notes, backed by gentle symbols and the smooth sounds of bass and violin, aligned perfectly with the lightshow behind the band. By the end of the show, you could see how much the crowd had warmed up to the band and vice versa.

Finishing off the night on the Garrison stage, My Morning Jacket’s sound was so crisp that you could hear it like you were in front of the stage, all the way from the tents. Bringing out the most hardcore of fans, who stayed through the downpour and lightning, the guitar solos were almost too long, but it sounded better than their recordings. The heavy smoke machines made for a musky feel to match the already rainy night.

A fun filled day for all may have ended with a lot of wet hair and drenched panchos, but at least it left anyone who was there with some great songs stuck in their heads and some new music to check out – hopefully to fall in love with as well.

SETLISTS

HAYDEN –
HEY LOVE
BAD AS/RAINY
HAZARDS
NO HAPPY
WITERE & WITEN
WICKED
NOWHERE
TREE’S LOVNGE
DYND

KEVIN DREW & ANDY KIM –
SISTER OK
LUCKY ONES
SAIL ON
LONGEST TIME
YOU GOT CAUGHT
SHOOT EM’ UP BABY
YOU IN YOUR WERE
WHO CAME FIRST