Maha Festival 2021: An Electric Return to Live Music in the Age of COVID
Thanks to contributors Nathan Whitcome and William Mollet, whose observations and conversations were essential to the writing of this article. Thanks as well to local knowledgeables Frank Camaratta and Jon Stroyan. Photo passes were provided to both Nathan and me/a press pass was provided to William in exchange for the press coverage that culminated in this article.
After the cancellation of virtually all concerts with the start of the COVID-19 pandemic, it seemed increasingly impossible to have a full return to the summer festival live music scene given the current public health circumstances, much less a music festival. However, music festivals have begun to pop up in the Midwest: Chicago had Lollapalooza/will host Pitchfork later this month and Hinterland is again appearing in St. Charles, Iowa this week.
With other local festivals like Rolling Loud and Los Dells (of which I will publish a retrospective on soon) out of the picture, I turned to Maha Festival in Omaha, Nebraska as an indicator of what local festivals will be like post-COVID. Will music festivals be the same this year or next? In short, yes…and no. Below, I’ll cover what the festival is, how it handled COVID-19, and the music itself, of course.
A Little Bit about Maha Festival
Prior to aforementioned contributor Nathan Whitcome mentioning Maha Festival, I hadn’t heard of it; maybe it’s my lack of knowledge of the live music scene outside Chicagoland, Mauston, CU, or west of the Mississippi, but festivals in Nebraska did not occur to me as a possibility. Yet, just like Los Dells, Maha Festival in Omaha (named after the Omaha people) was an oasis of music in an unlikely environment. For those unaware, the festival combines both larger and local acts on alternating stages at one end of Stinson Park in the Askarben Village neighborhood.[1] It also features many corporate tents, a Silent Disco, and local food vendors/advertising tents with free swag (in just five minutes, I snagged a towel, a JBL fanny pack, and a light-up lei pictured below).
Compared to a larger festival, or even other smaller-sized festivals, the setup was compact and simple: food vendors, merchandise, water, and swag tents were to the east, while the two stages were to the west. Something enjoyable about the layout was that you could walk from one end of the Stinson Park to the other in a matter of minutes without much foot traffic in your way and still hear the music from the west end everywhere you went. I put this to the test by ordering three ribs right before the Japanese Breakfast show, waiting for them to come out of the food truck, and walking back to the other end of the park without much time left to return the stage; other than some crowding up front, the ease of navigating quickly from one end to the other was surprising.
COVID-19 Considerations
The “Two Americas” discussion bubbling up, given the nationwide surges of COVID-19 infections, does not exclude festivals. Though festivals are limited this year because of the pandemic, let’s compare Lollapalooza[2] to Maha in terms of the health and public safety considerations taken. For those unaware, Lollapalooza is a multi-day music festival held in Chicago’s Grant Park.
The prominence of Lollapalooza in the Midwest festival scene, combined with its potential to spread COVID-19 infections, has caused some online to dub it “Spreaderpalooza” or use similar terms to describe the high risk of COVID-19 transmission despite the event being outdoors. Though Nicolas Kriho’s skepticism may come off as boomerish, the concern is shared by others elsewhere: some Illinois state health officials have recommended concertgoers get tested given the lax approach to COVID precautions at the event and the close quarters displayed. Lollapalooza required either vaccination or proof of a negative COVID-19 test to enter, yet the lack of social distancing is cause for concern. Though some have taken to criticising mayor Lori Lightfoot, the festival organizers, and the concertgoers themselves for the danger that this larger music festival caused, at least some effort was taken to ensure the safety of attendees.
At Maha Festival in Omaha, where COVID-19 cases are rising across the whole of Douglas County,[3] no proof of vaccination or a negative test was required to enter. Instead, only 70% of the grounds’ capacity was sold, more bathrooms were added, the layout was changed, and increased sanitation practices were in place.[4] Just in case, I brought my proof of vaccination: it was not requested at the gate. There are a few holes in the safety plan of the festival though, besides the obvious lack of vaccination/testing proof. This picture demonstrates where those holes are:
In fact, one could describe this as a lack of holes; social distancing “suggestions” which had influenced the capacity reduction in the first place were not at all taken seriously by concertgoers, yet that’s something that Maha likely anticipated. The 70% capacity was introduced to “calculated with a six-foot theoretical space bubble around every attendee in mind,” making social distancing a recommended, but not enforced, activity. Despite the offer of free masks throughout the festival, I could count on two hands the individuals I saw wearing masks outside of staff and press. Despite the “Spreaderpalooza” dub of Lollapalooza, conditions were somewhat ripe, too, at Maha Festival for this sort of spread, though Lollapalooza has a bigger draw, longer length, and a larger capacity.
I will give Maha credit in a few areas, though. Ignoring the area directly in front of a stage, crowding was less of an issue throughout the festival grounds itself. The “6-feet apart pods” idea did sort of work on the outskirts of the main stage and at non-headliner performances:
Some attendees stayed farther back and brought their own lawn chairs to sit comfortably a short distance away from the actual stage. Both crowd pictures are part of the final show of the night, where the amount of people near the stage was seemingly at its highest. Sure, it does seem that this festival is more spread out than Lollapalooza in terms of density of people, but it still would have been good practice to ask for negative tests or vaccination records as Lollapalooza did. With the reduced capacity and more local nature of Maha, checking for these would be much more implementable.
Music
Almost as remarkable as the musicians themselves were the circumstances that allowed this festival to continue and the performers to perform, and this is something that almost all the groups mentioned. Shovels & Rope shared their excitement for “being back”, as did Thundercat and Drive-By Truckers. Mark Speer of Khruangbin remarked, “[t]his pretty, incredibly, it’s wonderfully, unimaginably—I cannot say the words to describe how beautiful it is to see you guys out here tonight. You're all out here to join this festival, that's—it's surreal to me, and I know it's surreal to the rest of us out here...”. Michelle Zauner of Japanese Breakfast commented during her performance, “[i]t’s great to be playing here, for all of you, beach balls about”[5]:
Before jumping into some headliners, it’s important to recognize the uniqueness in genre of the groups presented at Maha. To put an overarching genre label over all the groups is somewhat as difficult as putting a genre label on groups individually. Examining artists one by one, almost the entire lineup is genre bending or blending in some way.
This intentional emulsified genre cocktail is noticeable even in the between-set DJ, who deserves recognition in this article:
Crabrangucci
Crabrangucci has an amazing vault of music that she pulls from: she swerves from Dur-Dur Band to Moullinex to Beat Connection to Miami Horror like nobody’s business, playing little heard songs and bringing them to large audiences. Though her DJing was incidental and in between other sets, I’d be happy to hear a full show from this DJ if given the opportunity.
Shovels & Rope
Besides the few, quick pictures I snagged of Edem Soul Music, the first performance I attended was that of Shovels & Rope. The folk duo, which fits unneatly in a Folk/Country/Indie/Alt Rock box,[6] filled the performance space beautifully, which was even more impressive given that they were a married-couple duo. Their multi-instrumentalism was showcased by switching positions. Michael Trent began stage right singing with his guitar and occasional harmonica, while Cary Ann Hearst sang stage left with drums, tambourine, and a synthesizer; however, their effortless switch of positions had them take up each other’s instruments with not just proficiency, but mastery. Their style was solid as concrete, with the deeply satisfying boom of the bass drum driving their songs’ heartbeat.
Drive-By Truckers
Drive-By Truckers was a surprisingly country name for a group that looked and sounded like a group that had strong rock ties. While I wasn’t familiar with their music and was unable to attend the full performance, they were deeply rooted in being a strong, cohesive group, confident in their style and playing (so much so that member Patterson Hood drank onstage and still gave a strong performance).
Also multi-instrumentalists and singers just as Shovels & Rope were, these guys knew how to rock out country music, evident by the Black Sabbath button on Patterson Hood’s guitar sash:
Besides their stylistic and musical strength, something surprising is that Patterson Hood was hyped about the next performance, Japanese Breakfast, despite the genre switch:
Japanese Breakfast—contributed by Nathan Whitcome
Japanese Breakfast’s show started with a bang, with Michelle Zauner smashing a massive crash cymbal on the song “Paprika” off the new critically-acclaimed album Jubilee, as well as accidentally kicking an inflatable beach ball into an audience member’s face (nobody was hurt in the making of this performance).
That infectious energy continued throughout the show as they made their way though the Japanese Breakfast catalog with, “Be Sweet”, “Road Head”, and my personal favorite live performance, “Posing in Bondage”.
Michelle made her way back and forth across the stage, interacting with an audience that was ready to reflect that enthusiasm right back at her as she picked out a bright pink cowboy hat handed to her by a fan (later to be returned to an ecstatic owner).
This concert was fairly early on in an extensive tour across the United States, the first since the COVID-19 pandemic and the release of Japanese Breakfast’s third album, and their anticipation showed. The whole band played their hearts out with an energy that showed just how happy they were to be back on tour with bands such as Mannequin Pussy, Bright Eyes, SPIRIT OF THE BEEHIVE, and Luna Li, all of whom could put on a killer live show on their own.
I wouldn’t hesitate to see another live performance from Michelle and company, so get your tickets before they’re all gone!
Thundercat
Besides the recent Ariana Grande duet at his Adult Swim Festival set, I had not heard Thundercat’s music in a live context. I was, however, familiar with his two latest albums, Drunk and It Is What It Is, and more the former than the latter. Drunk filled the niche-but-bomb hole in my music listening at the end of 2017 into 2018. The beautiful, funked-up jazzy, rambunctious creature that was that album is a little off-center to what Thundercat is like live. From the small glimpse I saw at Adult Swim Festival, it was apparent that Thundercat’s reputation as a bass virtuoso shines much more in live spaces than in the studio work he does. He approached his duet with Ariana as a jazzer through and through; I knew that his Maha set would be no different.
For his reputation, he didn’t disappoint. With two talented backing members forming his trio, Thundercat soloed with virtuosity in a modified jazz setting until the cows came home. His bass playing (while wearing a black jumpsuit with the Thundercat emblem on top) was both lightning-fast and knowledgeable, to the point that his mastery of the bass was more than apparent. His set was packed with goodies: the funky songs he’s best known for for filled the beginning and end (“How Sway”, “Dragonball Durag”, “Them Changes”, “Funny Thing”), but Thundercat took the opportunity to play the deeper cut “I Love Louis Cole” from What It Is, followed by a cover of Knower’s “Overtime” (where Louis Cole is the drummer).
Surprisingly, he continued with a Chick Corea tribute after recounting the changes that occurred in the past year, including Corea’s death and his 100 lb weight-loss. The perfectly-executed cover of “Got a Match?” was not only lightning-fast, but stylistically hit the nail on the head and then some; Thundercat used a pedal to transpose his bass up a few octaves while playing the tune, proving his bass wasn’t just for harmony, while all three musicians shredded during their solos.
In typical jazz fashion, Thundercat would often play the head of the tune (or the whole tune straight-through), turn it over to solos from himself, his keyboardist, and his drummer, then return to the tune’s head. I’d be lying if I said you couldn’t tell that the musicians on stage were well-versed jazzers through and through, but you could also tell they spent significant time into funk and pop to round out the musical style. My jaw dropped at the strength of the trio onstage as not only musicians, but as soloists in their own right. The drummer was far beyond proficient in the variety of genres he played, the keyboardist was confident and creative while also vocoding backing vocals, and Thundercat sang his heart out while shredding 32nd notes on his bass a few seconds later. You can see how Thundercat communicated with his backing musicians while soloing here:
It’s beyond amazing that Thundercat had concertgoers excited about a jazz performance, and he’s one of the few people who can bridge the gap between talented jazzers and pop with a groove. Oozing with talent and charisma, this tour of Thundercat is one you’ll want to see.
While Thundercat could have easily been the last headliner of the night, that honor was reserved for another trio that pushed genre walls:
Khruangbin
I developed a taste aversion to longer band names that begin with “K” because of my interactions with Klangfarbenmelodie as a music major; [7] this caused me to initially dismiss Khruangbin as an act I would end up missing at Maha. However, upon listening to their material prior to the festival in preparation, I was relieved at how groovy and vibey the group was. Their stage presence was confident and alluring, their playing was danceable and lively, and all the fans and audience members loved that energy:
The band wasn’t much for words, as they let their music speak for them. The surprisingly mighty trio of Mark Speer’s guitar, Laura Lee’s bass, Donald Ray “DJ” Johnson Jr.'s drums, as well as the voices of all three, was more than enough to keep their groove going. With DJ as the rhythmic rock and farther upstage, Speer and Lee had a sort of elegance as they glided across the downstage area: they were confident in their material, synced in their groove, and sleek in their stage presence. Virtuosic in their own right, Khruangbin seemed to be the cool to Thundercat’s hot. Props to the festival organizers for the amazing pair of these last performers.
In fact, Mark Speer effortlessly quoted “Bam Bam” and “Rap Snitch Knishes” while on the sonic journey Khruangbin presented, something that wouldn’t be out of place on Thundercat’s set either. And, despite his admission that he was feeling “too sparkly to be coherent,” nothing spoke to his legitimacy as a guitarist as much as the strength of his playing. He was a wizard with the strings in his fingers and the pedals at his feet. With his experienced playing, looping harmonies and following with melodies was effortless to those watching. Really, the only way to describe listening to Mark as he hopped between guitar riffs is “in awe.” Not to mention, Mark’s vocals were equally stellar.
So too were Laura’s. Laura Lee’s bass sometimes took the melody as well, but her playing in the context of a rhythm section really cemented the groove that DJ was putting down in the drums. Her voice, speaking into the microphone “if you’d like to say hello, press one” is what began their set opener “Evan Finds the Third Room”. Khruangbin tends to use vocals carefully, making them part of the texture rather than the highlight; in this respect, it was amazing and somewhat unexpected every time you heard Laura’s soft, smooth voice run across Stinson Park. Equally amazing was how she carried herself: Laura wasn’t afraid to have fun while transmitting vibes to the audience, swaying her knees and slowly exploring the length of the stage as she laid down the bass with ease. Like any good group musician, Lee locked in with the other members so well.
Of course, DJ can’t be forgotten as the other half of the rhythmic backbone that he and Laura created: his grooves were tight and his singing just as well. Though sitting at his drum set upstage, his presence was crucial to what was happening downstage. To do both drums and vocals well isn’t something that everyone can replicate.
I felt almost transported back to the 70s with the style and swagger that Khruangbin presented with their music. There was something about them, their style, their presence, that gave off a feeling of witnessing psychedelic rock stars of the past that could groove and still play your socks off. Recent singles “Time (You and I)” and “Pelota” seem to shimmer when played onstage, taking the laid back energy of their records and adding a jolt of live excitement. If you can catch Khruangbin on their current tour, I say ditto to what I said for Thundercat and encourage you to see the majesty that Khruangbin presents for yourself.
In Conclusion
It’s still crazy that this festival was able to happen, especially given the more recent rise in COVID cases. And while there were areas of improvement that could be explored, particularly in COVID safety protocols, the setlist was divine and the music was ripe for enjoyment. As Mark Speer said, it was “beautiful” to be in a performance space once again, and as Michelle Zauner said, “beach balls about.” [8]
[1] Additionally, there were stand-up comedians and Louder Than a Bomb groups performing on a separate stage, though we (myself and my contributors) did not have the opportunity to view them
[2] Full disclosure: multiple journalists at Pizza FM applied for press coverage of Lollapalooza; all applications were denied. However, this is another prominent Midwest festival that did return this year to use as a point of comparison.
[3] Omaha is located within Douglas County
[4] Between sets of Thundercat and Khruangbin, I noticed a stagehand disinfecting microphones, presumably since they were shared between artists and sets.
[5] For more information and tales about beach balls at this festival, read endnote number 8
[6] Spotify could call this “Stomp & Holler”, though I struggle with using Spotify genre labels other than “hyperpop”. Cary Ann described their music as “country” during the performance, but to simply confine them to country would blindside their music by sidestepping the important reaching into folk and other genres that they do.
[7] Klangfarbenmelodie is splitting up the melody between multiple instruments. Sometimes this is fun to listen to! Other times it’s an overwhelming amount of percussion that can’t go away…
[8] A note on beach balls:
Something surprising about the festival was its inclusion of beach balls amongst audience members. These beach balls (likely inflated by festival staff) were somewhat encouraged to be tossed around the audience. However, some audience members would eventually turn to making the festival stages the target for the beach balls. All three headliners (Japanese Breakfast, Thundercat, and Khruangbin) removed beach balls from the stage. Japanese Breakfast’s aforementioned “beach balls about” comment was met with its Khruangbin equivalent later that night: Mark Speer kicked a ball offstage and it didn’t go too far into the crowd, to which he responded, “obviously, I’m not a golfer.”
Contributor Nathan Whitcome also saw a member of the security team directly in front of the stage (which also served as the photo area) repeatedly and accidentally pelt a member of the audience in the face, as she was in the front row while he tried to send the ball back into the crowd.
While one could think of these beach balls as spontaneous, it’s important to note that beach balls were actively featured in festival signage. Whether it was intentional or just a result of having a summer theme, the beach balls seemed weirdly fitting at a festival filled with attendees sitting in their own lawn chairs.