Snow Ball music festival lineup finalized + interview w/ Snow Ball’s Chad Donnelly
Snowchella has finally announced its lengthy list of artists with plenty of local big timers on the bill ranging from to (see a full list of acts ). The event runs March 4-6 at Vail Valley with tickets on sale . Reverb caught up with Snow Ball’s Chad Donnelly to get the lowdown.
What can fans expect at a “winter” music fest compared to a cliché “sumer” festival?
“We envision the experience will be different from top to bottom. We have some really cool activities planned for the space, things that wouldn’t work during the summer months because of the temperatures. Let’s just say that we are going to embrace and utilize the natural elements when it comes to the site design.”
“From the beginning, the idea was really to bridge the mountains and music, and with that comes a totally different day. At Coachella, for example, the surroundings are essentially the exact opposite of what our attendees will experience. They have the desert and heat, and we have mountains and cold. After you break down the difference in location, then you have to look at the daily itinerary for the festival goer. At Coachella, most people wake up after a huge night of music and partying, jump in the pool and relax in the sun all day prior to hitting the festival. For our attendees, the scope of activities is entirely different. You might start your day in the hot tub, but from there, people will have the opportunity to ski and snowboard at two of the top resorts in the world. I’ve already talked to people who are planning out their days, and I’ve heard everything from dog sledding to ice skating, to people who just want to relax and watch movies by the fire. That is what I think is so cool about this platform, is that there is so many different ways it can be done. I think we will see a ton of people on the mountain during the day, and from there, they can cruise over to the festival to catch a couple of shows, head back to the place to warm up in a hot tub, and then be back in time to see more music. After the music concludes at the festival, we have a series of after parties taking place throughout the valley. For every festival goer, the way they go about things is totally different, and I’m super excited to see how our attendees design their days and nights.”
What went behind the choices in musical acts for Snow Ball?
“Whewww! Good question for sure. To be honest, it is a really interesting process, and I’m confident in saying that there is never a dull moment on this front. Our team is really passionate about music, and just like others, we have favorites, so it makes for some really good conversations, really really lengthy conversations. I think the most important thing we learned is that you have to take a step, or several steps back, and realize that this festival is going to mean something different to just about everyone who has the opportunity to experience it. We have a combination of rock, indie-rock, electronic, dubstep, folk, hip-hop and more, so variety certainly played an integral role in our artist selections. More than variety though, we focused on acts that we love to see live, acts that are developing or already have a reputation for the spectacular.”
Of all the resort towns in Colorado, why Vail?
“Actually, the town of Avon is the official site, which is just five minutes past Vail. The Vail Valley is the home of Snow Ball for so many reasons.
-Proximity to the Front Range,
-World class skiing and snowboarding
-Reasonable prices on lodging and the amount of lodging
-Vail Valley Partnership and The Town of Avon are amazing to work with
-The transportation system. We want to do everything we can to keep our attendees safe, and we understand there is certainly an element of festivals that includes partying for many, so the opportunity to utilize this feature is awesome. We would love to see our attendees park their cars for the weekend at their place, and utilize the free transportation system as much as possible. There is an element to festival that includes drinking for many, and we believe the transportation system can be a huge aid in keeping our festival attendees safe and sound.”
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A Shoreline Dream covers Fleetwood Mac
has put their hazy stamp on the timeless Fleetwood Mac classic, “The Chain” and produced a video to accompany the cover. Fans can score a signed copy of the single over and check out their video below.
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White Girl Lust release their Best of 2010 mix tape
Ex-Denver beat pushers have released their “Best of 2010” mix tape that you can jam out to and download below.
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Jonathan and Bpro get remixed by option4
have no shows on the horizon, but that doesn’t mean their wheels aren’t turning. The electro-dance team has teamed up with Colorado Springs DJ/producer to remix “Turn It Up,” taken from their strong self-titled debut. Fast forward to 56:57 of option4’s podcast below to get a taste of the booty bumpin’ remix. (Photo via )
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Gaunlet Hair get some Flaming Lips love
multi-instrumentalist and lead guitarist, Steve Drozd, sang his praise from the highest of mountains for recently. Well, maybe not a mountain, but he took to his Twitter and gushed about the Colorado duo.
Drozd’s Tweet: @stevendrozd: I’d like to thank @siriusxmu for turning me on to Gauntlet Hair.
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Geeks Who Drink invade the Fillmore Auditorium
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Get your thinking caps on and designated drivers ready, because is bringing Geek Bowl 2011 to the this Saturday to create possibly the largest pub quiz ever. Teams wanting to participate must register prior to Saturday, so rally the troops and get more information .
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The Adventurous 500 thinks we’re kind of swell
Well, ah shucks (hands in pocket while kicking dirt), thanks !
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Julio Enriquez is a Denver writer and photographer, editor of the blog and a regular contributor to Reverb.
