The Nelsonville Music Fest celebrated their 15th Birthday last weekend in Southeast Ohio. We decided to take Americana From the Flatlands on the road to a much hillier part of the Buckeye State – and we weren’t disappointed.

The headliner for Saturday was Death Cab for Cutie, but we were there for three acts and to discover some other new music. The highlights for us focused on Mandolin Orange, The War and Treaty and The Brother Brothers.

The Festival is centered on the campus of Hocking College in Nelsonville. The campus is surrounded by rolling hills and kind people – who are very happy to have you at their annual shindig and welcoming in every way. The only thing larger than the hills would be the camping area – those dedicated to NMF are also dedicated to camping out on the grounds and having a great time into the night.

I’m going to break my reminiscences into two segments this week – starting with the definite highlight of the day – The War and Treaty. Michael and Tanya’s music has hit home with Americana From the Flatlands from the moment we found them, but if you would have shared with us just how blown away we would be with their live performances – we would have looked at you out of the corner of our eye.

At one point of their set – maybe 3 or 4 songs in, a man behind us whooped it up then repeated 10 times “Energy!” He wasn’t wrong. It was an emotional performance from the stage and the crowd at NMF soaked it in like the rains that have doused the Midwest this year. Friends and family were definitely in attendance for The War and Treaty. Perhaps because Ohio neighbors the Trotter’s home of Michigan. Perhaps the road has been weighing on Michael and the day provided an outlet. All we know is The War and Treaty shared themselves and their talents with those lucky enough to be gathered around the Main Stage.

The band alternated hard hitting, hand clapping grooves that, at times, bordered on a spectacular frenzy – with emotion-filled, meaning laced tunes that took you directly to their back porch and invited you to sit down and leave your troubles piled with theirs. Tears were flowing on stage and in the 3 rows of music lovers in front of us. Michael’s journey to a healthy life is no secret to fans – and he used the stage to reach out to any one who needed lifting that evening. Everyone in the Main Stage area connected with the duo’s appeal to let love rule the day. It was a special scene. The majority of the band left the stage for the Trotters and Max Brown to debut a new song “Breathe” that kept the emotions crashing on the crowd below. The bare bones guitar and the stunning vocals kept every eye forward.

The group had spent the day on the road from Virginia the night before and prior to their set we were afraid weariness might set in. Our worries were wasted – The War and Treaty gave everything they had for Nelsonville and – as members of that Main Stage crowd – the Americana From the Flatlands crew felt honored to be there for their set.

Tomorrow – we’ll focus on Mandolin Orange, The Brother Brothers, life in a Cabin (not where our Top 10 lives!), and new discoveries in Americana! Stop by Thursday evening!