Summer has descended upon Thatch Meadow Farm and as we all enjoyed a nice lengthy spring, summer is now in full swing. The annual Summer Solstice Party was wonderful time and as the Farm evolves with purpose, these celebrations will continue to change and adjust. I'm uploading a whole bunch of pictures from the very talented Stacy Sideris. She is an absolutely amazing photographer and I am always stunned by what she captures. If you are ever in need of a photographer, please visit her website at stacysiderisphotography.com.
Watch a slideshow of Stacy's pictures.
My favorite part of every Solstice event are the bands. And this year did not disappoint! Quarter Horse has always impressed me and they did that again as our closing performance. We also saw an acoustic version of Ernie and the Band which was a last minute surprise. We're hoping to host an electric version of them soon but we are very grateful that the acoustic version graced the stage. Hank Wavers WankHavers is always a blast. However, the man himself never remained mysterious but the other members forged forward and played some real classic covers that the crowd just loved including Add It Up. Speaking of covers, MK Ultra with Katzman on keys killed it! One of my personal favorites is Hush by Deep Purple. And I was not alone! After MK Ultra but before Hank Wavers was Conky and Company. The host of the party put on a 1-hour set and played with Ryan Cullinane on drums. Conky loves to play and you can see her often at open-mics in the earlier part of the evening but this event gave the crowd more time to hear her catalog. We considered ourselves very lucky that Shecky & the Twangtones was able to make the gig. We had assumed that the Great South Bay Music Festival would have precluded them from playing our event (as has happened in years past) but alas that was not the case this year! So we were thrilled to have them open the festival. Immediately after them was Josie Bello and the Kit House band. I had never seen/heard them before but they too pulled out some great covers that were very unexpected. The line-up was great and Mike Hogan did a great job with the sound. Kudos to him, too!
Food trucks have become more and more popular over the years and this year we had John Louis' Maui Chop House truck and the NahMaStay Vegan truck. Of course I had to enjoy meals from both. I'm not a vegan but I am always anxious to visit the NahMaStay Vegan truck- so so good!
But now that the party is over, we're looking forward to the next event which looks like is going to be September 30th. This event, similar to the Summer Solstice where we celebrate the beginning of summer, is called Conquinox where we celebrate the coming of Autumn. But this event will be significantly different that what we're accustomed to at the Summer Solstice party. Instead of a music festival, this is going to be a concert. We're very excited to welcome (once again) Bakithi Kumalo to our stage and this year he is bringing his Graceland Experience to us! So stay tuned for that!