I'm overwhelmed and grateful for the collision of Indie Fest, Sativa Gumbo and NABC on Saturday night.

Photo by John Voyles.

New Albany Indie Fest took place on Saturday. On game day, the event went off with very few hitches, although several seemingly impassable mountains were climbed just to get to the 24th.

However, these are topics for another day, so allow me to thank my fellow committee members and everyone else who helped in any way to pull this one off. To attempt an exhaustive list would be to risk an omission. You know who you are. At the same time, I'd be remiss to ignore the central role Marcey Wisman-Bennett has played in keeping the dream alive.

Special thanks to the cast and crew at Bank Street Brewhouse. The band Sativa Gumbo's anniversary performance was a major impetus for the musical component at this year's Indie Fest, and for it to take place on NABC property ultimately felt right in a way I didn't anticipate. I cannot take credit for the idea. I'm just glad it happened.

The emotion I felt last night is hard to explain. I wasn't expecting to be gobsmacked. To be honest, I never was a die-hard "fan" of Sativa Gumbo as a musical collective; let's face it, I'm a British-influenced pop/rock kind of fellow, but this distinction is irrelevant, because I've always been a hardcore fan of the musicians in Sativa Gumbo -- admiring them for their talents and skills as individuals, and also adoring them for the family vibe they've engendered over two decades.

There were lots of folks in one place last night who probably haven't been together for a while, and their love and enthusiasm was a reaffirmation of life itself. There are many degrees of connectivity, and all sorts of overlapping circles, but for me it's acknowledging the huge part all of them, musicians and spectators alike, occupied in my own working career.

Whether it's my place to say so or not, I'm awfully proud of them. NABC alumni have gone on to do awesome things. It was incredibly moving for me to see past and present employees mixing with the many longtime customers of the businesses, who're the real superstars keeping the train rolling for so long.

It's the closest I'll come to knowing what it felt like for Bob Youngblood, witnessing the success and good works of former students, and knowing he made a difference. It's gratifying to have played a part, albeit small, in so many players moving up to the majors ... and mixed metaphors be damned.

I wasn't expecting Sativa Gumbo's comeback to generate epiphanies, but one must take them as they come. Peace and serenity are so important, and Saturday night helped me clarify a few decisions. They may as yet be difficult, though they'll be easier than before.

Thanks, everyone. You rock.

IMPORTANT: New Albany Indie Fest 2016 will be held on September 24 at the 400 block of Bank Street, and at NABC Bank Street Brewhouse.

IMPORTANT INDIE FEST UPDATE

A change in location for New Albany Indie Fest 2016.

New Albany Indie Fest announces a change in location for 2016. The previously announced date and overall program are not affected by the site change.

Saturday, September 24, starting at 12 noon.

However, Indie Fest will be held on the 400 block of Bank Street between Spring and Elm.

Music will be staged at NABC’s Bank Street Brewhouse (415 Bank Street), whom we thank for stepping in at short notice.

Sativa Gumbo remains the Indie Fest headliner, and the remainder of the musical lineup is the same as previously announced.

Thanks for your consideration, and we’ll see you on Saturday.

New Albany Indie Fest on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NAIndiefest/

New Albany Indie Fest Contact:
Marcey Wisman-Bennett 812.207.7415
marcey.wisman@gmail.com

New Albany Indie Fest is a 501c3 non-profit organization.

The updated press release follows, including the performance schedule.

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Sativa Gumbo’s 20th Anniversary Reunion Tops New Albany Indie Fest 2016

NEW ALBANY, IN (September 20, 2016) – New Albany Indie Fest marks its fifth year in 2016 with a headlining 20th anniversary performance by the reunited Sativa Gumbo.

Other performers and their performance schedules:

CONCERT STAGE PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
At NABC Bank Street Brewhouse

12:30 - Powell
1:45 - Prodepressants
3:15 - Winston on Wheels
5:00 - EMDW
6:30 - Jimmy G & the Sidewinders
7:45 - Brother Wolves
9:00 - Sativa Gumbo

PATIO PERFORMANCE SCHEDULE
At NABC Bank Street Brewhouse

1:15 p.m. - Christian Johnson
2:30 p.m. - Hugh E. Bir
4:30 p.m. - Meadow Ryann
5:45 p.m. - Mike Mullins

New Albany Indie Fest is an arts and music festival taking place in downtown New Albany on Saturday, September 24, in the 400 block of Bank Street, and at NABC’s Bank Street Brewhouse (415 Bank Street). The festival begins at noon, and admission is free. It is a celebration of localism, showcasing independent artists and entrepreneurs.

By choosing local and independent businesses for your services, shopping, dining and other needs, you not only enjoy a more distinctive and personal experience, you’re helping build community, strengthen your local economy, shape local character, create a healthier environment – among other positive outcomes (www.ambiba.net).

Members of the New Albany area’s thriving arts scene will be on hand to display their homegrown talents. Expect handmade jewelry, local boutiques, handmade bath and body products and much more.

In 2016, New Albany Indie Fest is being held concurrently with the Carnegie Center for Art and History’s Public Art Project event at the Riverfront Amphitheater, and extended afternoon hours for the New Albany Farmer’s Market at City Square (Bank and Market).

THE SATIVA GUMBO STORY

Local rock band Sativa Gumbo is proud to announce a fall 2016 reunion to celebrate 20 years of music and memories.

Sativa Gumbo on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Sativa-Gumbo-624886324282531

Founding members of Sativa Gumbo are Tommy Potts (guitar and vocals) and Jared Williamson (bass and vocals). They met in the summer of 1996 and immediately connected over their mutual love of music and songwriting.

A full band followed almost instinctually, and Johnny Stein (guitar) and Andrew Garbe (drums) were added to form the original lineup, which played its first-ever show on October 9th, 1996 – coincidentally, in downtown New Albany.

As Sativa Gumbo’s musical style evolved, so did its lineup. With the subsequent departure of Stein and Garbe, the band found its heartbeat in the masterful percussive voice of Shawn “Coach” Williams. Williams brought a whole new level of depth to the band’s rhythm section, allowing for continued exploration of different time signatures and genres, and on occasion taking to the mic himself to deliver a stirring vocal lead that always left the audience wanting more.

The late Ryan Pickhardt’s keyboard and organ work is the stuff of local lore. The energy and vibrancy of Pickhardt’s approach to music was akin to Zambelli’s approach to fireworks: bright, loud, percussive-shock and awe. It was not uncommon for him to break keys during a show, or play until he was literally bleeding. He catapulted the energy of the band’s live show into the stratosphere.

Williamson, Potts, Williams and Pickhardt were the longest-running lineup of the band. When they took a hiatus after their last show on October 9th 2010, exactly 14 years and a few blocks from the first show, it was only a short time before another incarnation of the band surfaced.

The Gumbo Family Quartet “unplugged” and re-arranged many of Sativa Gumbo’s songs in a more acoustic approach. Williamson took to the upright bass, Potts the acoustic guitar, Pickhardt on keys and Richard Atnip joining on lap steel guitar.

The quartet enjoyed a short run of shows and started work on an album before career changes moved Williamson to Saint Louis and Atnip to Chicago. Then the biggest loss of all hit the extended Gumbo family, as we said our final goodbyes to Ryan Pickhardt -- and the music stopped.

As the years passed, the band’s internal fire gradually returned, and the pieces started to be put back together to re-envision a combination of both SG and TGFQ sensibilities.

In 2016, Williamson and Potts return to their co-founder roles, Williams returns to the drum throne, and Atnip brings both his lap steel and electric guitar styling into the fold.

There was a massive hole to fill in replacing Pickhardt’s keyboard mastery, but the perfect choice to fill it has been close at hand since the band’s beginnings: DJ Barksdale.

Like every other member of SG, DJ attended New Albany High School and was a close friend of Ryan’s. They jammed together and exchanged keyboard knowledge over the years, and both attended numerous SG shows before joining the band. DJ brings respect to the music and the keyboard stylings that came before him, while helping the band move the music forward as the new quintet evolves into the next era of Sativa Gumbo.

Older, hopefully wiser, and ready to rock and roll once more, Sativa Gumbo is back for a 2016 fall reunion, after more than 100 original songs, hundreds of shows across the Midwest, multiple albums recorded, and 8 band members over the years.

We invite any and all to celebrate the memories we’ve made together over the years, and to make some new ones. We hope to see you at the shows!

Sativa Gumbo’s 20th Anniversary Reunion Tops New Albany Indie Fest 2016.

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Sativa Gumbo’s 20th Anniversary Reunion Tops New Albany Indie Fest 2016

NEW ALBANY, IN (July 5, 2016) – New Albany Indie Fest marks its fifth year in 2016 with a headlining 20th anniversary performance by the reunited Sativa Gumbo.

Other performers scheduled to appear:

Powell, Christian Johnson, Brother Wolves, Hugh Bir, Jimmy G & the Sidewinders, EMDW, Kendra Villiger, Dillan Johnson, Ashley Ledrick and others TBA.

New Albany Indie Fest is an arts and music festival taking place in downtown New Albany on Saturday, September 24, at 100 Bank Street, by the levee at the foot of Pearl and Bank Streets (and behind Underground Station). It begins at noon and admission is free. It is a celebration of localism, showcasing independent artists and entrepreneurs.

By choosing local and independent businesses for your services, shopping, dining and other needs, you not only enjoy a more distinctive and personal experience, you’re helping build community, strengthen your local economy, shape local character, create a healthier environment – among other positive outcomes (www.ambiba.net).

Members of the New Albany area’s thriving arts scene will be on hand to display their homegrown talents. Expect handmade jewelry, local boutiques, handmade bath and body products and much more.

In 2016, New Albany Indie Fest is being held concurrently with the Carnegie Center for Art and History’s Public Art Project event at the Riverfront Amphitheater, and extended afternoon hours for the New Albany Farmer’s Market (at City Square; Bank and Market).

As in years past, New Albany Indie Fest 2016 will feature a selection of local craft beers, wines and food.

New Albany Indie Fest on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/NAIndiefest/

New Albany Indie Fest Contact:
marcey.wisman(at)gmail(dot)com

New Albany Indie Fest is a 501c3 non-profit organization.

THE SATIVA GUMBO STORY

Local rock band Sativa Gumbo is proud to announce a fall 2016 reunion to celebrate 20 years of music and memories.

Sativa Gumbo on Facebook:
https://www.facebook.com/Sativa-Gumbo-624886324282531

Founding members of Sativa Gumbo are Tommy Potts (guitar and vocals) and Jared Williamson (bass and vocals). They met in the summer of 1996 and immediately connected over their mutual love of music and songwriting.

A full band followed almost instinctually, and Johnny Stein (guitar) and Andrew Garbe (drums) were added to form the original lineup, which played its first-ever show on October 9th, 1996 – coincidentally, in downtown New Albany.

As Sativa Gumbo’s musical style evolved, so did its lineup. With the subsequent departure of Stein and Garbe, the band found its heartbeat in the masterful percussive voice of Shawn “Coach” Williams. Williams brought a whole new level of depth to the band’s rhythm section, allowing for continued exploration of different time signatures and genres, and on occasion taking to the mic himself to deliver a stirring vocal lead that always left the audience wanting more.

The late Ryan Pickhardt’s keyboard and organ work is the stuff of local lore. The energy and vibrancy of Pickhardt’s approach to music was akin to Zambelli’s approach to fireworks: bright, loud, percussive-shock and awe. It was not uncommon for him to break keys during a show, or play until he was literally bleeding. He catapulted the energy of the band’s live show into the stratosphere.

Williamson, Potts, Williams and Pickhardt were the longest-running lineup of the band. When they took a hiatus after their last show on October 9th 2010, exactly 14 years and a few blocks from the first show, it was only a short time before another incarnation of the band surfaced.

The Gumbo Family Quartet “unplugged” and re-arranged many of Sativa Gumbo’s songs in a more acoustic approach. Williamson took to the upright bass, Potts the acoustic guitar, Pickhardt on keys and Richard Atnip joining on lap steel guitar.

The quartet enjoyed a short run of shows and started work on an album before career changes moved Williamson to Saint Louis and Atnip to Chicago. Then the biggest loss of all hit the extended Gumbo family, as we said our final goodbyes to Ryan Pickhardt -- and the music stopped.

As the years passed, the band’s internal fire gradually returned, and the pieces started to be put back together to re-envision a combination of both SG and TGFQ sensibilities.

In 2016, Williamson and Potts return to their co-founder roles, Williams returns to the drum throne, and Atnip brings both his lap steel and electric guitar styling into the fold.

There was a massive hole to fill in replacing Pickhardt’s keyboard mastery, but the perfect choice to fill it has been close at hand since the band’s beginnings: DJ Barksdale.

Like every other member of SG, DJ attended New Albany High School and was a close friend of Ryan’s. They jammed together and exchanged keyboard knowledge over the years, and both attended numerous SG shows before joining the band. DJ brings respect to the music and the keyboard stylings that came before him, while helping the band move the music forward as the new quintet evolves into the next era of Sativa Gumbo.

Older, hopefully wiser, and ready to rock and roll once more, Sativa Gumbo is back for a 2016 fall reunion, after more than 100 original songs, hundreds of shows across the Midwest, multiple albums recorded, and 8 band members over the years.

We invite any and all to celebrate the memories we’ve made together over the years, and to make some new ones. We hope to see you at the shows!


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