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"No Hassles or Bad Attitudes is the way we like things here"
Nesseled on the outskirts of Columbus, Ohio existed a place where all the rules were changes, for a brief and shining weekend. From August 28-30, Frontier Ranch in Kirkersville, Ohio became a musical dreamland as Ekoostik Hookah moved in and created a place where people could enjoy quality music in a beautiful setting without the hassles of modern day arenas and ampitheatres. Carrying with them the incredible music they play, Ekoostik Hookah jammed out two nights of spectacular music to a loving crowd and Hookahville was once again alive.
Hookahville History
Ekoostik Hookah has been putting on their self-promoted and produced Hookahville festivals since 1994 when they first occupied pianist Dave Katz's and manager Jeff Spencer's backyard for an afternoon filled with fun and music, and 800 people. The current rhythm guitarist, Ed McGee, opened for Hookah that weekend, and would later replace John Mullins in the band. The three following years Hookahville was held in Bellvue, OH at Songbird Centre. As the festival progressed, so did the guest acts, which have included Yolk, Acoustic Junction (now Fools Progress) and Percy HillHookah had made their temporary Hookahville home at Frontier Ranch twice before. In the Fall of '96 Hookah joined Heavy Weather, Belsher Mountain Blue Grass Band, and 1000 people for a weekend of fun-filled camping and music. Earlier this year, Hookahville returned to Frontier Ranch with an enourmous weekend planned. 8,200 people came out to see Zero, David Nelson Band, Max Creek, Hypnotic Clambake and Nathan Whitt and Chief Tale. The largest Hookahville yet, headlining acts occupied Friday night's lineup for the first time and it worked well as the festival was donned a complete success. Hookah's Saturday night performance possessed an intensity level that many Hookah lovers claimed they'd never seen before.
August 28-30, 1998 - Frontier Ranch, Kirkersville, OH
Back to the present as Hookah decides that they love Fronier Ranch so much that they're coming back.The largest aspect of Hookahville which remains in the mind of the attendant is the total ease at which the festival appears to be produced. A Hookahville guest is really free to create whichever environment they feel they want. The camping area is spacious, a vending village is erected to supply foods and wares to concertgoers, and the concert area is large enough to allow ample dancing space. But easy to produce, it is not. Ekoostik Hookah is an organization which is very family oriented. Everyone involved has been working with Accoustic Productions (Hookah's production company) for years and knows the business of putting on concerts. Everything done is to ensure the quality and comfort of the performance. From the spectacular high-end light show to the crystal clear sound system, Hookah obviously cares very much for their fans. Months of planning and promotion go into each festival and the purity and quality of their collective energies shines through.
Scaled back from this year's earlier Hookahville, this weekend featured Ekoostik Hookah performing on Friday night to warm the crowd up with both an acoustic and electric set of music. Definitely living up their name, Hookah's acoustic set on Friday was a tantalizing delight to the ears, easing themselves into the weekend with some classic Hookah tunes. The night also featured a rare appearance of 'Caribou' which appears on their latest release, "Where The Fields Grow Green".
Later that night, Hookah let loose and became Electric Hookah for a following set which included an extended Viper and stellar Keeping Time. Hookahville was once again on fire and everyone loved it.
After Hookah's performance concluded, the evening was obviously not over for many as the tent city was alive with activity. A celebratory feeling was in the air that evening. Of course, it was Hookahville!
The morning awoke with Al Beaver's Belshuer Moutain Boys taking the stage around 1pm. Hookah obviously knows that their fans need some time to adjust to the daylight by inviting this wonderful bluegrass band to play. Creating a beautiful bluegrass setting, Al and his boys eased us into a full day of music. High quality music was present in the air.
Baaba Seth got the groove going as the day progressed. Mixing the African, Reggae and Latin styles into a layer of funk and jazz, this band definitely hit well with the jam band loving crowd.
Keeping things moving right along, Strangefolk took the stage and treated everyone to their awesome brand of energetic jams which moved all over the musical scales.
Another wonderful aspect of Hookahville is that guest bands are given enough time to really shine and reach the music levels which they feel comfortable in. Sets of over 2 hours allow the audience to sink in and feel what the band is really trying to convey, and it works magic. This festival isn't only about Hookah. They recognize so well that there are other amazing forces of music out there that people need to see, which is part of the reason they put on the festival.
As Hookah took the stage you could feel the excitement in the air. People had come to see their band, and they were about to take over. 'Springtime Again' blasted us off into an evening which would feature both classic and new Hookah tunes. Hookah's music possesses the amazing quality of abduction. Obviously mastered by lead guitarist Steve Sweney, Hookah can pull an audience in so tightly and hold on for the night. Sweeney's guitar licks seem to take him over, as the guitar appears to be playing him. It becomes very hard to ignore his presence on stage. Sweeney is the band's crazy glue. Even when the jams reach out farther than it appears it could possibly go, Sweeney is always on cue to bring it back right where it needs to be.
Looking to the right (and sometimes left) is keyboardist Dave Katz. Katz, a founding member of the band, offers soulful ballads of life and love. Dave's high ranging voice carries Hookah's tunes into a harmonic realm of beauty which touch the spirit and awake the mind. Perhaps Katz's best ability is his addition of levels to the already present Hookah mix. A unifying force on stage, Katz will often play one constant note to allow the other musicians to latch onto his power and align before jamming.
Ed McGee, Hookah's energetic rhythm guitarist, who joined the group in 1996, adds his poetic and soaring tunes to Hookah's repitoire. Songs such as Tearose, The Giant, and Daffodils In Detroit explode with beauty of his words and seamless chord progressions. New songs like Bone, show off McGee's creative writing styles. His addition to Hookah has allowed them to explore a range of places earlier recordings don't seem to 'peak' into.
Cliff Starbuck's smile will brighten a room on any given night. Cliff plays bass, and he plays it well. Feeling out the grooves as he is carried around the jams by the other members, Cliff lays down his funky funky beat whenever possible. Creating a solid foundation for others to go off on, Cliff's mastery of the bass lies in his ability to allow the music to flow through him. Highly spiritual and always willing to perform a death-defying stage feat (hanging upside down from the scaffolding for the final chord), Cliff will truly "BOOGIE ALL NIGHT"
Behind all the magic and soulful jamming, Eric Lanese is keeping the beat, and man is he on target! It seems that Eric never misses the groove when slammin' on those drums. Eric started playing music when he was really little on his grandfathers piano, but he says, "I really wanted to play drums after I heard the theme to Hawaii 5-0 and heard Kiss Alive II." Good thing too, because he is the backbone of an incredible group of musicians.
Why is Hookah so good? What's the secret? It's really quite hard to explain. Their jams are towering monuments to jam band glory. Their ballads soar through the range of heartfelt tributes, and they know when to let loose and kick in the bluegrass. It's really got everything you'd ever want out of a jam band that you can still catch for under $10, but not for long it looks like. As the world catches onto what's going on with Hookah, they will obviously have to begin to play larger venues in front of larger groups of people, which is fine with them, as they really would like to reach out to more people and play at the next level.
I should point out now, that this article could be construde as slightly biased. I have been seeing Ekoostik Hookah for about three years. Everytime they would come through East Lansing, Michigan I would catch them at The Small Planet, and they would always blow the roof off of the place. It seems that every night that I went to the bar when Hookah was in town, I always had a good time. Perhaps every performance wasn't as powerful as the next, but each night I would walk away having been filled up by the tunes and in a great mood. To me, that's what live music is all about, and Hookah has the power to take what's good in live music and throw it in your face. Go see them, you won't be disappointed.
Ekoostik Hookah has a fantastic website: www.ekoostik.com
Be sure to check out the Hookahville X Page Peace,
Andy Gadiel andy@gadiel.comAndy Gadiel is searching for the ultimate jam
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