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St. Cloud State University
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Summer reigns on the river
By Adam Johnson
Published:
Monday, April 28, 2003
Media Credit: Soul Asylum plays at Riverside Park as part of MMF
Bethany Yankovel, four, dances along with the crowd Sunday under the beautiful weather at Riverside Park.
Media Credit: Emily Merrill
Soul Asylum plays at Riverside Park as part of MMF
Visitors to Riverside Park Sunday may have found the experience overwhelming. Some found navigating the minefield of blankets and lawn chairs that littered the site challenge enough, not to mention the thousands of students, the flowing beer and the swirling music that surrounded them. Amid a sea of sunglasses and sunburned shoulders, six bands came together to announce the unofficial start of summer.
The Mississippi Music Fest, SCSU's annual year-end festival, brought together students and area residents, as well as visitors from around the state. Shelly Dihle, a graduate of SCSU, drove all the way from Duluth to see the concert.
"It's always such a blast, I just couldn't miss it," Dihle said. "Being at the (festival) just feels like home."
The bands seemed to agree. Bassist Karl Mueller, of festival headliner Soul Asylum, spoke highly of the band's experiences in the city.
"We've always had a great time in St. Cloud," Mueller said. "It's a fun town."
Though the day's events were scheduled around music, there were many who enjoyed the day for other reasons.
"I came because this is a place where you can relax, drink beer and get plenty of sun." Sophomore Jess Pontius said.
The festival's first stage was host to four lesser-known bands, whose eclectic styles ranged from Jude Kastle's acoustic folk-rock to Keith Secola's chant/groove beat. The bands received a warm welcome, but only a small portion of the audience found themselves focused intently on the music.
"I like these bands because they're mellow," Pontius said. "They make for good background music so you can just chill out."
When not cheering for the various performers, most attendees layed on blankets, feasted on beer and cheese curds or shopped around the various merchant booths for clothing and jewelry.
Down the hill from the first stage lay the grandstand, which featured performances by the festival's two leading groups, Kory and the Fireflies and Soul Asylum. As the day progressed, more and more people found their way down to the area, until eventually the hill had become a massive wall of partially-inebriated students anxiously awaiting the evening's final performances.
Kory and the Fireflies compensated for their relative obscurity by playing a number of souped-up rock hits from the 1970s and 80s, with positive results. Those who had been treating the performers as background music all day found themselves mouthing the words to various songs, slowly but surely turning the crowd from passive listeners into active participants.
The day culminated with the arrival of Soul Asylum to the grandstand. Despite the fact that the band's career seemed to have peaked close to a decade ago, they have maintained a devoted following in St. Cloud, thanks to a number of recent appearances at the Red Carpet.
However, the band did appear somewhat anxious, as guitarist Dan Murphy, had broken his arm the previous week. The group rushed to find a replacement and ended up with a band-record three guest guitar players sitting in on the set. Despite the impromptu nature of the setup, the show went off without a hitch, and few in the crowd seemed to notice the difference.
Though tenuous about the logistics of their unusually large band, the group appeared excited by the opportunity to play the festival on such a warm, sunny day.
"It's absolutely great playing in a hot, sweaty, smoky nightclub, but to be outside on a day like today is awesome." Mueller said.
Many attendees took note of the fact that humans were not the only ones enjoying the beautiful day. Besides the coolers and the lawn chairs, a number of concert-goers brought their pets along for some fresh air. Countless dogs of all sizes and breeds littered the site, while other pet owners brought along more exotic creatures. A number of ferrets could be seen scurrying about on leashes, while student Zeke Pryce toted his pet python about. But it was St. Cloud resident Doug Andrews, 25, who was the talk of the crowd, as he traveled about the festival with his pet bobcat Spaz on his shoulder.
Everywhere Pryce went, a crowd gathered about to pet the feline and ask various questions about the surprisingly docile pet.
"I just wanted to bring him outside and keep him used to being around people," Pryce said. "He seems to enjoy it."
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