Photo by Ali Lane (https://www.facebook.com/Soundscapeology?sk=info)
With 2011 marking its 2nd year, The Werk Out Music Festival touched down again at the Zane Shawnee Caverns in Bellefontaine, OH. The festival, hosted by one of Ohio’s premier rock/ trance/ fusion bands The Werks, provided 4 days of camping, good friends, and most importantly, live music. Although the original forecast for the weekend was cloudy with thunderstorms, high spirits drove away the storms for 4 days of comfortable weather and sunshine. Artists include: The Werks, The Dark Star Orchestra, EOTO, Kyle Hollingsworth Band, Everyone Orchestra with Michael Kang, The New Mastersounds, Future Rock, Ganja Giri, and Johnny Neel.
Braving swerving back country roads, people came from states all around Ohio to enjoy the beautiful weather, explore a multitude of festival attractions and to celebrate an annual cultural experience of peace, love and freedom. At the main entrance of the camp grounds, fans could expect to be greeted by a group of friendly and excited volunteers. Every step of the typical entrance process was streamlined and hassle free, shortening that anxious wait time we all tend to loath. A short walk down the main trail from the parking area and the first glimpses of tents and canopy tops could be seen through the trees. Everyone had the opportunity to set up camp in a variety of different locations all contained within the festival grounds. For example, some chose to camp around tranquil ponds, while some chose to camp amongst the woods, while others enjoyed camping closer to the stages on the hill. Regardless of your selected camping location, you could be assured that all the excitement of the festival would surround you, 24 hours a day.
Further down the main path, the sweet sounds of a killer lineup filled the air, constantly reverberating from any one of the three stages
Cameron Reel of the Twin Cats -Photo by Ali Lane (https://www.facebook.com/Soundscapeology?sk=info)
set up across the venue. Centrally located were two large stages surrounded by vendor stands food and live art exhibits. The main stage and side stage were a constant flow of funky jams and high energy vibes due to their alternating schedule. On Saturday night when the Dark Star Orchestra finished blowing away the crowd with their epic set, Ganja Giri was all ready to go on the side stage keeping the music seamlessly flowing. The main stage area was defiantly the place to go for non stop entertainment and fun. However, if you were looking for a more intimate music experience, the Wuhnurth Stage provided more up close and personal shows. Located in a quaint forest clearing, fans gathered around to enjoy artists like Catch Curtis, a funky fusion/ jam band from Muncie, IN or Mikial Robertson, an extremely talented fusion guitar player from Anderson, IN. Unlike most of the shows at the large stages, at the Wuhnurth stage, the crowd was encouraged to get more involved with the show, giving it that unmatched intimate experience mentioned before.
All the stages were fully captivating, making it very hard to focus on anything else. However the selection of other attractions at The Werk Out created the desire to explore beyond just the stages. Vendors lined the rear of the main stage area, ranging from clothing and accessory’s, to handmade drums, all the way to live glass blowing exhibitions. Just behind the sound stage, a group of large colorful wooden boxes became a popular place to sit and enjoy the music as well as a display of live painters. The perfect place for artists to set up there canvas, people could enjoy each painter’s talent, while relaxing with their friends. There was even an art museum set up so fans could enjoy the artists completed pieces in a more comfortable indoor setting.
The Werk Out Music Festival was the brain child of undoubtedly the hardest working band all weekend. Scheduled for three sets across three days, the guys of The Werks had to manage the inner workings of the festival and still give their all to the stage. Proving there passion and commitment, The Werks sacrificed sleep and preformed some of the best sets experienced all weekend, exactly what their fans expected. One of the most earth shaking sets was their Saturday night set, which included special appearances by Dark Star Orchestra’s Jeff Mattson and Donna Jean Godcheaux, preforming one of the best covers of “Shakedown St” ever witnessed, followed by Johnny Neil on the organ and vocals preforming a composition that included classics such as “Hey Jude” and “Can’t You See”.
Regardless of how fans chose to spent their time at The Werk Out, through all of it they could be confident that they were amongst good friends. After all, its the breed of people that come to these events that make them what they are. A good music festival is full of fun, helpful, polite and most importantly, friendly people. The Werk Out’s attendees fit exactly that description. Traveling from all around Ohio and its bordering states, they came from all around, despite the predicted weekend of thunderstorms. Everyone was prepared to have a good time and rain wasn’t going to dampen their spirits. Luckily, the bad weather missed Bellefontaine and thousands got to enjoy performances under the warm sun during the day and a full moon with bright stars each night. Be sure to add The Werk Out Music Festival to your summer plans next year, it will be back and larger than ever in 2012.
