Feeling much like a reward for our getting through the lockdown years, the summer calendar continues to pop with newly minted outdoor music festivals around the region. One of the coolest-looking new gatherings this year is the Cave Mountain Catskills Music Festival, which will take over the scenic peaks of Windham Mountain ski resort on September 15 and 16. Headlining the eclectic event are pop punk paragons Weezer (September 16) and jam-band drummer Joe Russo's Almost Dead (September 15). Stacking the rest of the bill across the two dates are Dinosaur Jr., the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Albert Hammond Jr., Lee Fields, Courtney Marie Andrews, Sheer Mag, Channing Wilson, Charlotte Rose Benjamin, Elijah Wolf, Matt Sucich, the Bones of J.R. Jones, and Thunderstorm Artis.
The occasion also marks the first Hudson Valley visit from country singer-songwriter Channing Wilson, on the road to promote his 2023 debut album, Dead Man. The road to making the album has not been short or easy for Wilson, taking him from his native Georgia to the cutthroat Nashville music scene and back. But the sublime songs that he's written and recorded along the way are seasoned with the kind of character that just couldn't have been made without living the real, raw life they reflect, or from learning from listening deeply to masters like Guy Davis and Steve Earle (two big early influences) or the ones he namechecks in Dead Man's powerful "Blues Comin' On": Hank Williams (I and II) and Howlin' Wolf.
"I lived in Nashville off and on for about 10 or 11 years," says Channing. "I had a lot of preconceived notions about [the Tennessee city] before I went there, when I was 35. It was good for the first couple of months. I landed a publishing deal and hit a lick. But I have kind of a punk rock attitude, even when it comes to country—I'm not really a fan of Top 40 country. So I ran into some dead ends here and there. But I did meet a lot of really cool people." Indeed he did, sharing bills with Earle, Billy Joe Shaver, Tony Joe White, and others; writing songs for hitmakers like Luke Combs; and grabbing a slot on the 2012 Country Throwdown tour.
On top of the enticing music, Cave Mountain promises a wide selection of food and beverage and local craft vendors as well as panoramic skyline rides on the resort's chairlift and daytime yoga sessions.
"I hope people get a sense of connection, feel like there's someone else like them who has a lot of the same hopes and dreams and fears they have," says Channing when asked what hopes people get from hearing his songs. "I just hope they feel like they can relate to me. And that maybe we can meet up and talk after the set."
The Cave Mountain Catskills Music Festival will take place at Windham Mountain ski resort in Windham on September 15 and 16. Tickets are $125 for each day or $199 for both days. See website for lineup schedule and more information.
