Photos by Dino Perrucci

Widespread Panic headlined the second day of Hunter, NY’s 9th annual Mountain Jam festival. The band made their first appearance at the festival with a full two set show that included some fun guest appearances. Saxophonist Bill Evans—an old friend of event host Warren Haynes—and Gov’t Mule keyboardist Danny Louis both joined the group for a take on Traffic’s “Low Spark of High Heeled Boys” during the second set, with Evans sticking around for “Surprise Valley” as well.

Another highlight of the evening was the The Avett Brothers’ set. The band has made it to the festival a few times, and their rootsy sound is emblematic of the direction that the event has taken in recent years. Similar bands like Deer Tick, Roadkill Ghost Choir and Futurebirds all drew big crowds throughout the day. Deer Tick kicked off their set with “Ashamed,” the first track off their first album, War Elephant, and nodded to influences the Replacements with a take on “Can’t Hardly Wait.”
The band also covered Nirvana’s “Breed,” which was not entirely surprising given their experience playing the the legendary grunge act’s music with their “Deervana” project.

In more unexpected new, they brought out Vanessa Carlton to sing on “In Our Time” off the band’s forthcoming record Negativity. Carlton struck up a friendship with Deer Tick singer John McCauley over Twitter and appears on Negativity.

The other big story at Mountain Jam was the inclement weather, which dampened the festival grounds considerably and forced many attendees to seek shelter at the Healey Brothers Hall indoor stage. Fans who made it there were treated to a lively set by the David Wax Museum, who performed a few song in the middle of the crowd and were also joined by some of the Rubblebucket horns during their set. While Hunter Mountain may have seemed a little less picturesque, the weather didn’t really cause any delays or cancellations, so few were disappointed.

The day came to a close with late-night performances by White Denim and Conspirator, who played till 1:45 and 3am, respectively. White Denim brought a jammy set that focused on some of their newer material, while Conspirator kept the crowd raging even later with their brand of live electronica.

Gov’t Mule will grace the stage today with a full two set show. Other notable acts like Gary Clark Jr., The Lumineers and Soulive with Shady Horns will perform as well.

Here’s a look at yesterday’s Widespreach Panic setlist via our Box Scores page

Friday, June 7, 2013, Widespread Panic, Hunter, NY, Mountain Jam

Set I: Give, Ribs & Whiskey, Happy, Blue Indian, Good People > Me and the Devil Blues, One Arm Steve > Jack, Proving Ground > Junior

Set II: Little Kin > Pigeons, Disco > You Should Be Glad, Low Spark of High Heeled Boys*, Surprise Valley^ > Drums > Papa Legba > Surprise Valley > Protein Drink / Sewing Machine

E: Expiration Day, Travelin’ Light

(*)with Bill Evans and Danny Louis (^)with Bill Evans

Photos by Dino Perrucci