It seems like every year there's something new at Riverfest. Usually, it's something deep fried or chocolate covered. Sometimes, it's on a stick. This year, it was a new stage -- one devoted entirely to Arkansas acts. The Arkansas Music Tent (what marketing agency did they pay to come up with that name?) is a humble little venue. Whoever wrote in the festival brochure that it's a "club-like setting" clearly hasn't been to many clubs, unless a bingo hall counts as a club. Plastic chairs and turkey legs do not a club make. Nevertheless, the tent was jumpin' tonight when The Nobility and The Moving Front rounded out the first night of Riverfest.
The Nobility hail out of Nashville these days, but they're originally from White County. I've seen this band three times and I never get tired of them. They sound retro for a pop rock band, but refreshingly original. They started out in 2001 as Jetpack, and later Jetpack UK. They changed the name to The Nobility in 2007 following a legal dispute with a band of the same name. Sean Williams, the lead singer, evokes Buddy Holly with the vocals. For a four-piece act, these guys put out a very impressive and sophisticated sound. It's stripped down, but its very harmonic. I've heard few bands play keyboard and guitar off of each other to better effect.
The Nobility played pretty much their full set from the latest album, 2007's The Mezzanine, as well as a couple from their Jetpack days. As an added bonus for the modest but appreciative crowd, they debuted a new song from their upcoming album. But as is always the case with these guys, they finished up way too soon, leaving us wishing for more.
The Moving Front, on the other hand, put on a marathon performance. Over an hour, in fact. In case you didn't know, the band won an award at the film festival for their music video to "Like Zombies", a song I don't care for, mainly because the chorus got stuck in my head for the whole half-hour drive to work the other morning. But I don't want to sell them short - they're a good band. Lead singer Jeremy Brasher belted out the lyrics, occasionally walking off stage and into the crowd, even sitting with the audience and singing back to the rest of his band on stage at one point. All in all, though, I prefer The Nobility.
Well, Day 1's in the bag. Let's all get mentally prepared for Day 2. Remember, people, you have to wear the pin on the shirt in order to gain entry; no carrying your beer out of the park; and, for heaven's sake, no dropping quarters on passing boats from the pedestrian bridge. Is this a festival or a zoo? Don't answer that.
-G
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