Dromfest '25 - More Photos and a Few Words

Back over Labor Day weekend, I drove up to Catskill, New York for Dromfest '25, a three-day festival of indie rock music from past and present. A full account of the weekend appears on The Big Takeover's website, which can be found here. The whole event was revelatory for me and I encourage you to check out my dispatch for details. 

Rather than retreading that article, I thought it would be cool to post some of the many photos that I took that weekend, excluding ones that already appear on the BT site. So these are some of the folks I saw. Hopefully the photos taken in the Avalon Lounge aren't too dark for details.

It took two photos to get an accurate shot of Sunburned Hand of the Man's personnel. (The drummer in the far left is Chris Corsano, free jazz extraordinaire.)

At events like Dromfest, it's always a good idea to check out bands that you don't know, in addition to your faves that you came to see. Case in point: the band $500, seen here. They blew me away and I'm glad I didn't miss them.

Guitarist Chris Brokaw (far right) was one of the busiest people at Dromfest. He played solo on opening night, accompanied Beth Kaplan, sat in with Yo La Tengo and, in this photo above, he played with the group Lupo Cita'.

Note to self, pick up any New Radiant Storm King release you see because they, too, were awesome.  

Going a little out of order here. Thalia Zedek has a way of pulling you in with her mid-tempo music, and awesome guitar work. From Sunday afternoon.

Mark Robinson, once and forever of Unrest and Teen Beat Records, played non-stop for about 45 minutes, seguing one tune into another for a 52-song medley (that is, if he stuck to his setlist).

Before Robinson, Fly Ashtray kicked off Sunday afternoon with their wry, brainy pop tunes, in their first set outside of the New York/Brooklyn area in the 21st century.

Sue Harshe, of Scrawl, looked so happy during her band's set, a feeling that pervaded the whole room.

Back to Saturday afternoon, it was so great to see Beth Kaplan, founding member of Salem 66, performing again.

Rebecca Gates, once of the Spinanes, played a beautiful solo set on Sunday.

Note: There should be a photo here of the great Phantom Tollbooth, but I was so enamoured with them that I didn't take any photos, just some so-so videos. 

Will the guys is Cathedral Ceilings be bothered by my continual comparisons to Hüsker Dü? Hopefully not because their speed, clarity and hooks had me by the ear from the minute they started. 

This photo of Al Crisafulli also appeared on The Big Takeover site, but it's worth repeating. Al is the guy who put Dromfest together, and despite being busy the whole weekend, he still had plenty of time to mingle and chat with everyone there and to make sure everyone had a good time. Kudos to him and his crew of helpers. See you next year.