The Apache Lake Music Festival has rounded up some of the Valley's most popular local bands for a two-day blowout this weekend at Apache Lake Resort and Marina, off the Apache Trail in Tonto National Forest.
The event was launched in 2010 by Brannon Kleinlein, whose Tempe club, the Last Exit, had closed in 2009, and Tempe scenester Paul 'PC' Cardone, who had established his own music festival, Jeromeatherapy, in - as you may have guessed - Jerome.
Apache Lake provides a scenic backdrop for the annual Apache Lake Music Festival.(Photo: Tom Tingle/The Republic)
As Matty Steinkamp, who handles the marketing for the Apache Lake festival, explains, 'They took Jeromeatherapy and brought it to Apache Lake. And from there, it's morphed into this two-day camping adventure with music. There's so much more music culture that happens in the campground than the first year. The staging itself went from this very small stage to a full, big production with lights and lasers and huge sound that you can pretty much hear down to the lake now.'
There's now an indoor stage as well, which Steinkamp compares to the feel of Tempe's Yucca Tap Room or Kleinlein's Phoenix club, Last Exit Live. They've also worked with Apache Lake Resort and Marina to make improvements to the dirt road leading to the festival site and added charging stations.
The fifth-anniversary lineup includes Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra, Banana Gun, Dry River Yacht Club, the Haymarket Squares, the Sugar Thieves, Japhy's Descent, Sara Robinson & the Midnight Special, Playboy Manbaby, the MSU X Deathwish 45, Sister Lip, Captain Squeegee and more.
Steinkamp says he's especially looking forward to Phoenix Afrobeat Orchestra, Captain Squeegee, Japhy's Descent and Haymarket Squares, who blew the power last year on the indoor stage and thrilled the crowd by finishing their set acoustically outdoors.
This is Captain Squeegee's first time. And front man Danny Torgersen has no idea why.
'We've wanted to play for years,' he says. 'I heard it was all the rage and that the audience may finally be intoxicated enough to dig us.'
Looking back on festival highlights through the years, Steinkamp points to Banana Gun bringing inflatable bananas for the crowd to toss around and Mergence throwing a glow-in-the-dark beach-ball party.
Last year also featured Kongos on the verge of blowing up much bigger than Banana Gun's inflatables.
'They had just gotten back from a tour,' Steinkamp says. 'And they did us a huge favor coming out. The festival grounds were almost full for their set. That was great to see a band that played the first two years of the festival, going from that to coming back last year right before they went Number 1 on the Billboard charts just two months after that.'
Last year also featured Corey Gloden of Dry River Yacht Club and Strange Young Things leading a local music supergroup of sorts with as many as 15 musicians from assorted Valley bands.
'They basically mashed up a bunch of songs,' Steinkamp says. 'It was very entertaining and very exciting. The crowd definitely loves that kind of impromptu thing.'
Camping at Apache Lake is on a first-come, first-served basis. There are plenty of spots, but early arrival is recommended for lakeside locations. A $5-per-car camping pass is required and good for the entire weekend. There are indoor bathrooms and showers. Bring trash bags and use the on-site garbage cans and dumpsters to keep the area clean.
'The great thing about the festival now is there's so much more community,' Steinkamp says. 'There are groups that come out and have their own campsite with 20 to 30 people.'
And that back-to-nature atmosphere is part of the appeal. As Apache Lake veteran Henri Bernard of Dry River Yacht Club says, 'One of my favorite memories from Apache Lake Music Festival are the Sunday pontoon rides we always take after the festivities are over. Just being out there on the lake with your friends, enjoying the views and all the nature Apache has to offer, it's all just so magical. I even got to ride a Jet Ski for the first time at Apache Lake Music Festival. Talk about a treat.'
For a complete list of bands, go to http://ift.tt/1FEPnYf.
Noon Friday, Oct. 24, and Saturday, Oct. 25. Apache Lake Marina & Resort, 32 miles east of Apache Junction on State Route 88 (the Apache Trail). The paved road ends about 21 miles east of Apache Junction. The rest is graded dirt, suitable for carefully driven cars. $40 for the weekend. apachelakemusicfestival.com.
Reach the reporter at ed.masley@arizonarepublic.com or 602-444-4495. Twitter.com/EdMasley
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