2008 Music performers
Rusted Root 
This is a special tour for the Pittsburgh, PA based band. In the process of recording their first studio album since 2002’s Welcome To My Party, Rusted Root is giving their faithful fans a chance to hear some of the new music they have been working on. “Our fans are the cream of the crop,” says band front man Michael Glabicki. “They have been critical to the music we have created. The songs on the upcoming record, I feel, are our best to date (so) I am jonesing to get in front of our audience in such a small and intimate venue and let the alchemy begin. ”
Rusted Root has sold more than 3 million albums worldwide. Formed in Pittsburgh by frontman Glabicki in the early ‘90s, Rusted Root’s polyrhythmic style quickly charmed fans of roots music and jam rock. But clubgoers weren’t the only ones left smitten by the sextet’s impressively diverse chops and soaring vocals. Veering into Eastern and African directions, Rusted Root features three of the Pittsburgh-born band’s original band members; Michael Glabicki (lead vocals, guitar), Liz Berlin (vocals, percussion), and Patrick Norman (bass, vocals, percussion). Joining them on the road are Jason Miller (drums, percussion) Colter Harper (vocals, guitar), Preach Freedom (percussion) and Dirk Miller (guitar).
MICHAEL GLABICKI - lead vocals, guitar
JENN WERTZ - vocals, guitars, percussion
LIZ BERLIN - vocals, guitars, percussion
JIM DONOVAN - drums, percussion, vocals
PATRICK NORMAN - bass, guitar, baritone, vocals, percussion
JOHN BUYNAK - electric guitar, percusssion, flute
DJ Ivy
DJ Ivy is an electronic chameleon behind the decks. Regardless of what he's spinning — house, breaks, down-tempo and damn near everything else — his sets are always tasty masterpieces of dance-floor delight. He handles it all, from smooth and sexy funk to tripped-out space journeys and deep, pumping progressive grooves. Whether he's opening for dance-music royalty or headlining his own residency, he always manages to craft thoughtful, heady sets that ignite the crowd. And no matter what the occasion, Ivy is the consummate professional: He brings it and leaves it all on the floor.
Recycled Rags Dance Party with DJ Ivy on the Solar Stage.
Come dressed in your best thrift-store fashions, from retro to ridiculous!
www.myspace.com/blackbridgetv
Justin Roberts"Some of the most inspired and intelligent kids lyrics ever." - Amazon.com
Like a scene from "Groundhog Day," the event repeats itself over and over. Bass and drums pound out the beat in perfect unison. Bodies spring to their feet and rush the stage; jumping, dancing and bouncing off each other like bumper cars. The concertgoers behave like children. Which is no surprise because they are children, participating in the kiddie mosh pit found at nearly every Justin Roberts concert.
Justin Roberts is truly one of the "all-stars" of the indie family music scene. He logs thousands of miles on the road each year, leading some to call him the hardest working man in children's show business. With national awards and recognition and a devoted fan base, Justin and his wonderfully named bandmates "The Not Ready for Naptime Players" dish out unexpectedly intelligent and whimsically rocking music for kids and their parents.
www.justinroberts.org
Pete Francis of Dispatch Opening
Pete Francis is a singer songwriter based in New York City. He began his career with the band DISPATCH. For almost ten years, the three members of Dispatch released four studio albums, a live CD, and a DVD under their own label, Bomber Records. They gained dedicated fans without the assistance of a major record company and became pioneers in the music industry, playing to capacity at major venues across the country and selling more than 600,000 albums. In 2004 Dispatch celebrated a remarkable eight-year run by performing a farewell show in Boston, MA. Over 110,000 fans were in attendance, making it the largest independent music event in history. Three years later, the band reunited at Madison Square Garden in New York City playing three sold-out nights benefiting charities to combat famine, disease, and social injustice in Zimbabwe. They made history once again as the first independent band to headline the Garden.
The music did not stop there. Pete Francis has created a soulful catalogue of solo music as well. In his songs a poetic tension exists between textured imagery and pure improvised rock and roll. A Pete Francis record feels like a ride from New York City to the coast of Maine. Sometimes his songs are weightless abstractions. Sometimes they tell the story of experience.
www.myspace.com/petefrancis
