For many people, that Sundance experience is all about ten days of both living and breathing films. Many times, people get so caught up in excessively logging hours in dark theaters, that they completely miss out on another wonderful aspect of this festival–that being the music.
Now when I mention “The Music”, I am not talking about the bloated scams of cheapskate venues like Park City Live or The Underground, for though these venues bring in their own array of interesting acts, there inflated prices and holier-than-thou attitudes peg them as nothing but petty thieves profiteering off the notoriety of the festival. What I am talking about, is a quaint little venue at the bottom of Main Street known as the “ASCAP Music Cafe”. A place where you can experience some of your favorite artists in a more intimate setting than usual. For years ASCAP has been bringing legions of talented musicians
from that of the extremely famous, to the relatively unknown. Past performer’s have included Rufus Wainwright, Jason Mraz, The Swell Season and many more. This year, they have once again lived up to their reputation by putting together an eight day showcase that has easily become one of my favorite parts of my 2013 experience. I got to watch the prodigious likes of Andrew Bird and Jonathan Batiste, whose musicianship and technical prowess easily peg them as virtuoso’s.
I got to watch bands like The Head and the Heart wow audiences with their beautiful 3 part harmonies, and I got to see a grey haired old couple dancing front row at the Flying Lotus show. I also got to see Eric Hutchinson put the likes of Ed Sheeran and Jason Mraz to shame. I cannot even begin to describe how much this little music oasis has meant to me, so instead, I will try and do them justice by giving you all a little preview of the awesomeness that was the ASCAP Music Cafe. So without further ado… Ladies and Gentlemen.. Flying Lotus!!!
Also thanks to all my favorite Volunteers and ASCAP employees.. including Buffy and Marley!
