By Anastasia Pantsios
Sat 2/16 @ 5 – 10pm
Three years ago, a couple of Case grad students had the idea to get several bands they knew to play outdoors on the banks of the Cuyahoga River — in February. With a couple of bonfires, some games, and a nearby Italian restaurant for warmth and food, they had themselves a little festival.
That didn’t sound like a promising blueprint for what’s become one of Cleveland’s bigger and better showcases of local and regional artists. But in its fourth year, Brite Winter Festival has expanded into the sort of event that buzz acts touring their way to Austin, Texas’ huge annual South by Southwest music festival in March want to make a stop here.
What began as a three-band event with mainly word-of-mouth promotion has evolved into a major production. Last year, it moved up the hill to Ohio City where 40 acts played on eight stages, including a large outdoor stage on West 26th and Bridge. Food trucks, games, and two bonfires helped keep festival goers from feeling the cold.
Instead of growing the one-day event to an unwieldy size, the organizers have made tweeks. The number of performers has grown slightly to 48, but the main difference is that the festival’s footprint has expanded to include venues on West 25th south of Lorain: Campbell’s Sweet Factory, the Loren Naji Gallery, and Cleveland Hostel.
Music coordinator Thomas Fox, who runs Bad Racket Recording, says that he and his team had over 1,200 acts from which to pick the final four dozen. Many found them as the festival’s reputation has grown. They also solicited bands online and from agents and indie labels. And they looked at bands in their own networks and those Fox knew from his recording studio to maintain an effective balance between regional bands often being exposed to Cleveland audiences for the first time and those from northeast Ohio who can bring down their fans.
“We’ve got bands from Chicago, Columbus, Indianapolis, Kentucky, Michigan, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, NY,” says Fox. “I didn’t want it to be all local. It’s about half and half. I suppose I could have gone a little less local but I like the mix.”
He’s also tried to keep the music fresh, with only a handful of repeat artists: Reverse the Curse, Tom Evanchuck (who’ll play solo after playing with his band last year), Istvan Medgyesi, and folk rockers Bethesda, who have a new album about to drop.
“I wanted to have Bethesda back this year because they’re doing something new,” says Fox. “They’ve got some exciting stuff going on. We don’t want to have the same festival two years in a row. There is a healthy amount of really new stuff. Bands that are back again — there aren’t that many. If they are back again, they are playing new stages.”
He adds that this year, only main stage at 26th and Bridge will host an eclectic mix of genres, while the others will be genre-specific.
“We’ll have a punk-type thing at Joy Machines,” he says. “A rock thing behind Campbell’s Sweet Factory. There’ll be party folk music at the Cleveland Hostel. We’ll have more indie or electronic music at the Naji gallery and intimate acoustic music at the Market Avenue Wine Bar. The main stage is deliberately eclectic this year since the attendance was so much last year and we’re not trying to drive any one genre.”
The first act goes on at 4:15 with the final bands hitting the stage around 11. Fox warns, “For people who are fans of music, the bands on later on the night aren’t necessarily better or better known than the ones on earlier. Fans of music should get there early.”
In addition to music at multiple venues — all free and unticketed, so fans can wander freely — there will be food trucks, an outdoor beer garden (with Great Lakes Christmas Ale!), games, and lighting installations, created by artists from Cleveland Institute of Art and the Cleveland Museum of Art from materials donated by GE.
“It’s impossible to catch everything,” says Fox. “Wherever you are, there’s good stuff going on. You’re in this predicament where there’s more than enough things to do that are great.”
If you want to plan ahead, there’s a full schedule of bands and stages at http://BriteWinter.com.