Three-day music festival draws largest crowd ever
The annual Bear Shadow festival continues to get bigger each year, and last weekend’s event was no exception.
Thousands of festival attendees from across the Southeast gathered at Winfield Farm in Scaly Mountain to enjoy an eclectic mix of music from nine bands, shop at local vendors such as Highland Hiker and Highlands Hatter and eat at regional food trucks like The Outpost and Backwoods Bakery.
The festival kicked off on Friday with performances by Lissie, followed by Fruit Bats and later, Spoon, who put on an electrifying performance with their hits such as “The Way We Get By,” “The Underdog,” “My Babe,” and “I Turn My Camera On.”
Eric D. Johnson, lead singer of Fruit Bats, did not know the Bear Shadow festival existed until his agent called and asked if the band would like to perform.
Fruit Bats hits include “Humbug Mountain Song,” “The Bottom of It,” and “When U Love Somebody.”
“I was pretty excited because I looked on the map and thought, ‘I bet that’s going to be a beautiful spot,’” Johnson said. “I know Western North Carolina just by traveling through and I have friends in Greenville (SC) as well. It kind of got thrown in our lap and I was excited about it.”
On Saturday, the performances included Myron Elkins, Neal Francis, and The Head and the Heart.
Saturday’s festivities began under mostly cloudy skies, but fortunately no rain, which plagued the Highlands-Cashiers Plateau in the days leading up to the festival.
“This is our first time being here and we didn’t really know what to expect with the weather in the mountains,” festival attendee Jenny Harris said. “Having to wear winter jackets and rain boots for a festival is a little different, but I’m definitely glad I brought enough warm clothes.”
Following Saturday night’s show, storms moved through the area and created even soggier conditions for Sunday. The precipitation moved out just in time for the music to start after lunch. Brevard artists Shannon Whitworth and Woody Platt kicked things off with an hour of their hits, followed by Chattanooga-based singer Amythyst Kiah with a rock-infused setlist and Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit as the closing act.
“We are thrilled that the gates were open and we started Bear Shadow 2023 after a couple of days of rain, we were glad to be up and running with music and sunshine,” Bear Shadow festival director Casey Reid said. “I feel like every year we make strides, and we have an incredible lineup every year. There’s something for everyone and there’s all kinds of genres of music.”
Dates and artists for the 2024 Bear Shadow festival will be announced later in the year.
The Highlander publisher Ryan Hanchett contributed to this report.