Bristol Renaissance Faire Music Scene

Come one come all to the- haha, just kidding.  I'll try my best to not sound like a spokesperson for the damn place.  I'll do that if they pay me.

Anyways, for those of you who don't know, the Bristol Renaissance Faire is a place just north of the Illinois/Wisconsin border off of I94.  Basically, the idea is to take you back to medieval times (there's an official year that it's supposed to take place in but I don't remember now).  There are hundreds of actors that dress in costume and numerous acrobatic, comedy, musical, and demonstration shows to be seen.  Probably most notably is the jousting at the jousting arena, especially the final show of the day.

Anyways, I'm not writing this to talk about the whole faire.  That would take FOREVER!  Will I write a series on the faire?  Perhaps.  I'm not sure yet.

I felt inclined to write a post about the music scene at the faire though.  Why?  Well, because most of this blog site is littered with music related posts (which I ought to change up sooner rather than later).  Also, the musical acts are probably my favorite part of the faire.  I could probably spend the whole day just watching music acts if I really wanted to.  However, this would probably drive the other people with me crazy so I am willing to go to the other kinds of shows too because, well, they're really good too.

The music scene at the Bristol Renaissance Faire is unlike the genres of music that I typically listen to.  If you went through all of my music related posts, you would probably conclude that the music I enjoy is mostly punk, rock, and 90s alternative.  Well, the music scene at the Bristol Renaissance Faire has slowly but surely been moving me to enjoy other genres as well, particularly, more traditional genres of music.  In fact, I find myself with four CDs on my shelf that I had purchased from the various bands at the faire.  I don't listen to them often but it is definitely more than never that I give them a good listen.

The Minstrels of Mayhem

To start, my favorite band at the Bristol Renaissance Faire would have to be The New Minstrel Revue.  The New Minstrel Revue (formally known as The Minstrels of Mayhem) are an Irish Folk band that performs traditional Irish Folk songs along with originals.  Most of their songs are about drinkin', sailin', or just being a regular old plebeian.  If you make your way to the Renaissance Faire, I highly recommend that you check them out.

Billy Miller

Next is Billy miller who I actually just saw for the first time the last time I was at the faire.  He does folk music that's a combination of guitar, flute, and pre-recorded organ tracks.  It's neat.  I'm not sure how much I like him yet but I'm sure I will catch one of his shows next year sometime.




    

Craig of Farrington

Craig of Farrington is also an interesting musician.  He does old folk songs as well.  They tend to be more on the humorous side but he is still a very talented  lute player.  He often teams up with The New Minstrel Revue at the end of the day and plays the bass (you can actually see him in the picture of the New Minstrel Revue).  I don't think that I would be too interested in seeing his solo performance again but he goes well with the New Minstrel Revue

Rambling Sailors

Rambling Sailors are a duo that does sailing songs as you might expect.  They keep it simple and get the job done.  They certainly don't wow audiences but they make for good background music as you're walking by.

The Dreadcrew of Oddwood

The Dreadcrew of Oddwood are a pirate band that are not regulars at the Bristol Renaissance Faire.  They're from San Diego and tour across the United States playing their tunes.  I happened to catch them the two weekends that they were at the Bristol Renaissance Faire.  They were pretty great the both times I saw them and I hope that they come back in the future.

VaNa Mazi

Out of all of the acts of the season, VaNa Mazi impressed me the most.  Like the Dreadcrew of Oddwood, they tour around the country playing...wherever I suppose.  VaNa Mazi is from Austin and they are, what I could best describe as, a fusion of Jazz and traditional world music.  The music gets really complicated at times as they play in some more obscure keys and time signatures like 7/4 and 9/4.  The songs will often switch in out of time signatures as well, giving someone a 4/4 beat to clap along to in the middle of the song.  The band's instrumentation consists of a drumkit, double contra bass, guitar, violin, accordion, and, most spectacularly, clarinet.  The clarinetist was phenomenal.  He could play fast, yes.  But also, he had completely mastered the concept of dynamic change.  He could go from mezzo piano to fortissimo instantaneously.  His fortissimo is also the loudest I've ever heard on the clarinet.  The clarinet was the only instrument not run through a PA other than the drums.

Now that the faire season is over.  I'm really anxious to see what next year's music scene is going to look like.  I really hope that The Dreadcrew of Oddwood and VaNa Mazi come back again.  Keeping my fingers crossed for that!

More info:

Billy Miller:
http://www.windwoodflutes.com/

Craig of Farrington:
http://www.craigminstrel.com/ (though this site seems to be down)

The New Minstrel Revue:
https://myspace.com/newminstrelrevue

Rambling Sailors:
http://ramblingsailors.com/
The Dread Crew of Oddwood
http://www.thedreadcrewofoddwood.com

VaNa Mazi
http://www.vanamazi.com
www.reverbnation.com/vanamazi




The Bristol Renaissance Faire:http://renfair.com/bristol/




All pictures taken from:http://www.renfair.com/bristol/thefaire/entertainment.asp