Hannastock 2007
This year was my first Hannastock experience. I believe, this is the third year of the festival. It is located near Oxford, PA. The festival is the brain child of Kelly and Matt Hanna. I was told, the its original concept was to celebrate Kelly's birthday. They invite a few bands! The headlining band is Problem Solving. They are a rock band from Philadelphia, PA. I am friends with one of their guitarists, Rob. The hold the huge party on a few acres of land. This quite and serene spot features a pond, open fields and trees. There is plenty of space to camp, cook and listen to music.
Everyone arrives around 3pm or 4pm. I was unable to make the trip until almost 8pm. Oxford, PA is not far from Baltimore. The drive is only about an hour. I really enjoyed winding through farm country at twilight. I grew up in this type of area, and I enjoy visiting something like it. I am not ready to move back, but it is very peaceful.
As I pulled into the property, Herczeg was waiting for me in the dirt road. He jumped in the car and showed me where to park. Along the way, we grabbed Mike. He held down his air mattress to the roof of the car. A majority of the property was covered in tall grass. Pathways had been mowed for cars to drive to campsites. We pulled up behind a few other cars, and I brought my stuff to their site. It was awesome to see Kelly, Dave, Jeff, Rob and others. I quickly setup my tent before dark.
Besides listening to music, you can go swimming. I didn't really want to jump in the lake so, I didn't. They also have a paddle boat setup, but I didn't try that either. I really enjoyed sitting around and catching up with everyone. I hadn't seen anyone but Jeff in months. From our campsite, we could hear the music. I guess, you can hear the music from any campsite. In between bands, a DJ was playing random songs from rap to rock. A band played before Problem Solving, but I don't remember their name.
Around 10pm, Problem Solving took the stage. By this time, we had moved ourselves, our chairs and our coolers over to the "stage." The Stage consisted of a flatbed tractor trailer with musicians and gear on top. The setup worked out well, and we could sit or dance. Stage right, an ice luge was setup in a truck. There was also a dunk tank. Just a bit further were picnic tables lined with roasted pork and tomato top pizza. What a spread. When I was tired of listening to music, I was able to eat.
I haven't seen Problem Solving since their performance at Abilene's on South Street. I was pleasantly surprised. They did a mean cover of the ABB. I really enjoyed a run of about six new songs. I hope some of these tunes make their new record. I feel like they get better with each new song. Unfortunately, the sound wasn't that great. I'd like to hear them now in a real venue.
I was told, after the bands, a late night dance party was set to start. There was lights wrapped around trees to create a dance floor. A DJ setup near by, but he totally sucked. He kept playing some sort of music that no one wanted to hear. He didn't do a decent job of mixing. Basically, everyone stood around then left for their tents.
Once we were back at the campsite, Jeff and I explored. There weren't many other sites than ours, and we didn't make any new friends. Back at our own site, everyone stayed up until 130amish. It wasn't a late night. It was a good thing because; we all started to wake up around 7am. By 8am, the tents were too hot to bare. By 9am, we were cleaned up and out on the road. It was great to be home in under and hour.
I really enjoyed Hannastock. I can understand all the hype. Its a great little festival. I would go back next year. I wish Problem Solving would play a few venues (at least one) in Baltimore. I also enjoy camping. This wasn't the complete experience, but at least I slept outside. Of course, I was very excited to see everyone. We will have to get together soon! Sometime soon, I will be up in Philadelphia.
