Friday at Hulaween opens up The Meadow stage and that’s where String Cheese Incident will play the first two of seven fest sets. I’ll be out at that stage early to catch a couple of Hula ’23 stars reprise their 2023 sets, TAND and Karina Rykman. I’ll likely bounce back and forth to The Hallows stage across the field where the Friday lineup starts off Ajeva, Dumpstaphunk, Cory Wong so it’ll be a SPF 50+ day going into the evening sets. Here’s my rundown of Friday highlights.
Black Pumas headline Friday if things play out as I expect it’ll be my second time seeing them after Music At The Intersection in St. Louis in September. They’re categorized as “psychedelic soul,” intriguing, as is this popular video. I expect that I’ll be hooked by the time Hula rolls around.
Cory Wong is a blistering guitar player and his band is one of the highest energy acts on the planet. I could go on about the incredible horns, rockin’ rhythm section forever. I’ve seen him grow his success and fan base over the years, pump out an incredible amount of high quality albums and always remain a super-nice person!
Ajeva is a funk/rock band from St. Petersburg, FL that I first came across at Hulaween back in 2016. I’ve since beome a fan and friend of the band. Ajeva spread their message of peace, unity and higher consciousness through music with infectious grooves and driving energy.
Dumpstaphunk are a legendary New Orleans funk band, that I first caught live at Bear Creek 2010! Ivan Neville and the fellas know how to throw down and they’ve been carrying the torch forward after the untimely death of long-time bassist Nick Daniels III. I’m sure this set will bring a lot of joy and remembrance tears for Nick and they’ll pack The Hallows stage.
Mildlife is an Australian psychedelic jazz-fusion band that is right in my wheelhouse, but somehow I missed on my first pass. They have infectious rhythms, tight grooves and at times, some jazz-flute mixed in which is always a perk. I won’t miss them again as I’ve made them a must see for this fest. I also notice that they’ll be on Jam Cruise so they’ve vaulted into my earspace quickly. I expect that they’ll capture a bunch of new fans here.
ElephantProof will be over on the Spirit Lake stage, a good chance to catch them and take a break from the sun. The band was born at Berklee College of Music and features Ben Atkind (formerly of Goose) on drums. I haven’t heard much about them but they seem to blend some jam, jazz and funk so def interested in checking them out.
Karina Rykman first came to my attention as the bass player for Marco Benevento –now she’s clearly established a reputation for her own standout band. I’d seen her a couple of times but I caught her full blast at 420 Fest 2022 in Atlanta where I’d put her set among the top five of the weekend. I’ve caught her a few times since then – she’s a badass player, a fine singer and most of all, her sets are tons of fun. Looking forward to this one.
TAND launched me into Hula vibes right away as they opened Hula ’23 on the Hallows stage. Their mix with the visuals was a great dose of playfulness to start the day. The South Florida band is more than just rock, with some very funky jams, excellent vocals and eminently danceable tunes.
Eggy will be playing a late-night set so save some energy. I’ve heard a lot of good hype about these guys who come out of New Haven, CT. They’re defining rising in the jam band ranks and getting the late night slot shows the faith that everyone has in them to deliver a noteworthy set that people are sure to be talking about. Right after the fest, they’ll be passing back through Terminal West, Atlanta so come on out if you’re not gonna be at Hula!