Operation Adaptation Launches Festival Season

This weekend officially welcomes music festival season here in the upper Midwest. Operation Adaptation, a truly eco-friendly festival, will open its gates this Friday at The Concord House in Sullivan, WI (near Milwaukee).

Unlike many festivals that say they are green because they give festival goers bags to recycle their aluminum cans, Operation Adaptation shows how a local festival can green itself with the right mindset and by taking the proper steps. All of the decorations and stage sets you’ll see at Operation Adaptation are made from reused and recycled materials. Every food vendor at the site will serve their wares on corn-based dishes that decompose faster in the environment (and can be composted in some settings).

The festival also plans to offset the entire CO2 emissions created by the festival by purchasing Renewable Energy Credits. This includes estimated travel distances, food consumption, and energy costs of the festival. And, for every ticket sold, a tree will be planted through Trees for the Future’s many land management projects. This non-profit agroforestry resource center aids rural folks in developing countries by improving their livelihoods through the introduction of environmentally sustainable land management projects focused on beneficial tree planting. They have planted nearly 50 million trees in Central America, Africa and Asia, removing nearly a million tons of CO2 from the atmosphere a year.

In addition, the festival will operate two sustainable stages and only one run by electricity. The newest is the Campground Solar Stage, which obviously is run by solar panels. The Human Powered Bike Stage is probably the most interesting. Partnered with Power by the People, the festival has fashioned a production rig that will generate energy from eight stationary bicycles. Everything on the stage is powered by human muscle, including the sound system, the lights and all of the instruments! Festival goers can add their energy contribution to the festival by climbing aboard one of the bikes.

Camping is available on site behind the Concord House. A $5 camping/parking fee will be charged, but even that is a donation for the Jammin’ for Jamaica fund. Established in 2006, this fund raised money for those in need in Porus, Jamaica. Proceeds are directed towards building supplies and music education.

The entertainment lineup for this event is one not to be missed. Not only will fans get to see regional favorites such as Pert Near Sandstone, Boney Fingers, Cosmic Railroad, Stealin’ Strings, Shoeless Revolution, Chinese Fingertrap, Roster McCabe, and Fat Maw Rooney, but they will also be in for a couple of special treats.

One is the Stubblefield/Adler Duo. Known as the legendary Funky Drummer for James Brown in the late 60s, Clyde Stubblefield tracks have been sampled by DJs and hip-hop artists all over the globe. Dave Adler (composer, arranger, producer and keyboard player) has composed for the first season of Comedy Central’s Upright Citizens Brigade and appeared on NBC, MTV, FOX and CNN as well as a featured big band arrangement for Universal Studio’s “Dawn Of The Dead” remake. Currently, Adler has been touring with Willy Porter.

Willy Porter himself will return to Operation Adaptation this year as part of P.A.B., a trio comprised of him on guitars, Dave Adler on keys, and Biff Blumfumgagne (The Gomers, Reptile Palace Orchestra) on mandolin and fiddle. In his solo shows, Willy Porter showcases his mastery of the acoustic guitar and broadens it with performance art, live audio looping and improvisational sketch comedy. He can’t help but bring some of that creativity to P.A.B.

If you have the weekend free, check out Operation Adaptation. It’s a great deal for two days of music at only $50. For a full band lineup, go to http://www.fatmawrooney.com/Adaptation/adaptschedule.htm

For an annotated 2009 festival calendar, go to http://hpr1.com/music.

What: Operation Adaptation: Concert for a Healthy Planet
When: April 24-25
Where: The Concord House, Sullivan WI
Tickets: $50 at the gate