Gem and Jam Festival 2017 - Pima County Fairgrounds - Tuscon, AZ Feb. 2-4
Review & Photos: Sam Berenson
Gem and Jam Festival 2017 was an intimate, musically diverse festival that people will be remembering for the rest of their lives. As I was driving into the festival grounds right before 6 on Thursday night, I glanced through a few trees, and saw the magnificent sunset I’ve ever seen in my life (and I live in Colorado)! The Tucson, Arizona desert already cast a magical spell on me that I will hold onto forever now. Thursday was just the start of the party, so I walked around becoming oriented with the festival grounds, and went and checked out all the different gem and art vendors inside the concert area. The amount of creativity and artistic design that I witnessed, would blow away some of the art museums I’ve visited in my life. That’s the thing; Gem and Jam Festival was like exploring the most profound art collective in the world, while being able to party with friends to some of our favorite bands and artists. I was unaware of most all of the pre-party acts, but Thursday night ended with a high-energy Eoto set, to get the crowd ready for what the weekend had in store.
I was one of the unprepared festival-goers in terms of appropriate attire, and by the time we went to sleep each night it was that bone-chilling desert cold. When we woke up every morning, by 10 AM the temperature was already back up at 60-65 degrees. Kyle Hollingsworth Band played a memorable set Friday night, with Kyle still battling through playing with a broken hand preparing for String Cheese Incident tour, and a nice sit-in on banjo, by Infamous String Dusters own, Chris Pandolfini. The night rolled on into a high-energy, bluegrass pickin’ fest over with the Dusters, and flowed into a heater of a Mike Gordon 90 minute set. Mike weaved in and out of originals and covers, almost entirely avoiding any material that makes appearances when he’s playing bass with Phish. Anybody there that I spoke with now understands the true magic that Mike Gordon provides with his side-project band.
The Floozies followed up Mike Gordon’s set with a crowd captivating set, that really made the place feel like it was jumping. Everyone headed over to see the last main act of the night, The Trancident, featuring String Cheese Incident members Michael Kang, Kyle Hollingsworth, Michael Travis, and Jason Hann. The boys do an interesting job of mixing up eclectic tribal and mashing them up with both instrumental and electronic-based grooves. Late night was a Desert Hearts Showcase that left everyone exhausted from a full night of dancing, but more than ready to take on Saturday and Sunday.
I was one of the unprepared festival-goers in terms of appropriate attire, and by the time we went to sleep each night it was that bone-chilling desert cold. When we woke up every morning, by 10 AM the temperature was already back up at 60-65 degrees. Kyle Hollingsworth Band played a memorable set Friday night, with Kyle still battling through playing with a broken hand preparing for String Cheese Incident tour, and a nice sit-in on banjo, by Infamous String Dusters own, Chris Pandolfini. The night rolled on into a high-energy, bluegrass pickin’ fest over with the Dusters, and flowed into a heater of a Mike Gordon 90 minute set. Mike weaved in and out of originals and covers, almost entirely avoiding any material that makes appearances when he’s playing bass with Phish. Anybody there that I spoke with now understands the true magic that Mike Gordon provides with his side-project band.
The Floozies followed up Mike Gordon’s set with a crowd captivating set, that really made the place feel like it was jumping. Everyone headed over to see the last main act of the night, The Trancident, featuring String Cheese Incident members Michael Kang, Kyle Hollingsworth, Michael Travis, and Jason Hann. The boys do an interesting job of mixing up eclectic tribal and mashing them up with both instrumental and electronic-based grooves. Late night was a Desert Hearts Showcase that left everyone exhausted from a full night of dancing, but more than ready to take on Saturday and Sunday.
The nice thing about Gem and Jam was the music lineup was packed to the brim, yet big acts didn’t start until around 5 PM, so festival-goers had all day to explore both the camping area, and vendors and workshops inside. There was a wide-range of painters and visual artists also slingin’ paint all weekend, and collaborating with other like-minded artists on absolutely mind-blowing canvases. Inside the campgrounds, I met many Gem dealers, some of whom had dug up every single gem they had with their own hands. It was pretty phenomenal to hear people’s stories and experiences finding such rare stones and gems out in different parts of the country. Saturday had a bit of a different feel to it, with a lot of local college kids flocking to the festival for their favorite electronic acts. Late Night Radio, Russ Liquid, OPIUO and G Jones really got the party bumping, and then fan-favorites Lotus and Gramatik played killer 90-minute sets that had people bouncing around and dancing until the second the music ended. In between, Bozeman, Montana locals, the Kitchen Dwellers played the hardest hitting bluegrass set of the weekend, and Saturday night left people begging for more.
Typical for some festivals, with people having to work or go to school Monday morning, I noticed that by Sunday a lot of people had packed up and left, and everyone still present knew we were in for a very special treat to end an incredible Gem and Jam. Nederland, Colorado locals, Gipsy Moon, led by Silas Herman (son of Vince Herman from Leftover Salmon), got the night off to a fast-paced start, proving the rising band they’ve become. I heard many folks who had never heard of them in shock and awe of how phenomenal they were. Steve Kimock and Friends followed with Bobby Vega, Wally Ingram, and Jeff Chimenti on keys from Dead and Company. It was a truly magical Kimock show, followed by a Motet show with recently added new vocalist and hype-man Lyle Divinisky. It was my first time seeing the new line-up, and after the hype I heard about their sets on Jam Cruise, I was pleasantly surprised by how intact the band has stayed and progressed with members coming and going. The night ended with a rockin’ and heart-warming Grateful Dead tribute set led by Steve Kimock, Jeff Chimenti, Bobby Vega, and various rotating members of the Motet, including their phenomenal horn section. The Dead late night went to almost 4:30 AM, and the festival ended on the highest note possible. Everyone I’ve spoken with since leaving, will 100% be back in the Tucson desert to party next February at Gem and Jam Festival!
Typical for some festivals, with people having to work or go to school Monday morning, I noticed that by Sunday a lot of people had packed up and left, and everyone still present knew we were in for a very special treat to end an incredible Gem and Jam. Nederland, Colorado locals, Gipsy Moon, led by Silas Herman (son of Vince Herman from Leftover Salmon), got the night off to a fast-paced start, proving the rising band they’ve become. I heard many folks who had never heard of them in shock and awe of how phenomenal they were. Steve Kimock and Friends followed with Bobby Vega, Wally Ingram, and Jeff Chimenti on keys from Dead and Company. It was a truly magical Kimock show, followed by a Motet show with recently added new vocalist and hype-man Lyle Divinisky. It was my first time seeing the new line-up, and after the hype I heard about their sets on Jam Cruise, I was pleasantly surprised by how intact the band has stayed and progressed with members coming and going. The night ended with a rockin’ and heart-warming Grateful Dead tribute set led by Steve Kimock, Jeff Chimenti, Bobby Vega, and various rotating members of the Motet, including their phenomenal horn section. The Dead late night went to almost 4:30 AM, and the festival ended on the highest note possible. Everyone I’ve spoken with since leaving, will 100% be back in the Tucson desert to party next February at Gem and Jam Festival!
