The town of Hot Springs is about to go green, with a little help from some major bluegrass.
The inaugural Soula Music Festival will be held in Hot Springs from Aug. 19 to Aug. 21, and will include live music, workshops on sustainable practices and kids’ activities.
Festival organizer Ben Nachman of Missoula Green Team – the organization also responsible for the Love Your Mother Earth Music Festival – said his group chose Hot Springs for the first Soula event because of the area’s therapeutic aura.
“Historically, it’s been a healing place and just great people up there,” Nachman said in an interview last week. “We chose it based on trying to get more life in the area and get people experiencing that part of the state.”
Nachman said Missoula Green Team likes to work on making its events sustainable, a characteristic they would like to pass on to the town of Hot Springs.
During the event there will be a recycling area set up for cans, which will then be taken in for cash in Missoula, Nachman said. That bounty, along with donations from event patrons and a silent auction, will go toward a recycling program for Hot Springs.
The proceeds will go toward the cost of two trailers for recyclables that could go back and forth between Hot Springs and Missoula, Nachman said. The cans collected and recycled from the small town would help pay for the trailers’ trips.
“Hopefully we’ll be able to have a continual recycling program,” he said.
The main draw of the festival will be its music lineup, he said. The headliner, the David Grisman Bluegrass Experience, is a heavyweight in bluegrass and “newgrass” circles, known for his mandolin skills and starting a record label dedicated to preserving acoustic music.
Grisman has played with plenty of big name musicians in his nearly 40-year career, including Martin Taylor, Jerry Garcia, Bela Fleck and Tony Rice. Nachman noted that Grisman is especially known for originating “jam grass.”
“We’re very excited to have him,” Nachman said.
The lineup also includes Larry Keel & Natural Bridge. Keel is known for his acoustic Americana flat-picking skills, but is well versed in multiple genres of music. His technical skill works with his laid-back approach, combining for an entertaining connection with the audience.
The rest of the weekend’s lineup includes Missoula’s Dodgy Mountain Men, a four-piece group that unites bluegrass, rock, folk, reggae, and world music traditions.
Zeppo, an eight-person horn-driven rhythm and blues band, will also make an appearance, as well as the Gypsy Lumberjacks, Equaleyes, Voodoo Horseshoes, and Without Annette.
The music will run from noon until 1:30 a.m., Nachman said.
Soula participants are encouraged to camp during the festival, and Nachman said landowners and business owners in Hot Springs are opening up their land for tents. The town is also shutting down one street so festival-goers can camp in the city park, he said.
Other than the music, event ticketholders can participate in a variety of workshops, which range from hula hooping to green cleaning tips to arts-oriented events.
The music festival welcomes families with children, Nachman said. There will be a kids’ camp with activities such as face painting for the young participants.
Nachman said the festival’s vendors would be mostly local food merchants with organic fare, and Sierra Nevada will provide microbrews for sale.
And while Missoula Green Team hopes to bring entertainment to Hot Springs, the group does not overlook the value of the area’s namesake soaking springs.
“The soaking is a part for why we chose Hot Springs,” Nachman said.
Tickets for the Soula Music Festival cost $35 before Aug. 18 and $45 at the door. Kids under have free admission. Tickets are available at Rockin’ Rudy’s in Missoula or online at www.brownpapertickets.com. For more information on the festival, visit www.soulafestival.info.