Since 1994, the Spoetzl Brewery in Shiner, TX (makers of fine Shiner beer for almost 100 years) have held a music festival on the brewery grounds in October called, rhapsodically enough, “Bocktoberfest” (the "first" Bocktoberfest was actually a repeat of the "Thanks a Million" celebration of 1993 where Shiner thanked its customers for buying a million cases of Shiner, but that's not important now). I attended two such festivals: the first in 1998 (the year of The Flood) and again in 1999, but events have transpired to keep me away the last few years. Nothing important really, just trivial things like my irrational aversion to paying $7 for a cup of Shiner Bock, crowds composed increasingly of loutish mooks, and the dwindling number of friends who feel compelled to sit around for an entire day drinking beer (or the equally dwindling number of people willing to drive said drinkers).
One thing you could always rely on, however, was the fact (one prominently advertised by the organizers in the early years) that the musical acts featured were all based in Texas. Audiences have been treated to performances by everyone from the Hollisters to Todd Snider to Trish Murphy to Junior Brown. Robert Earl Keen headlined five times in a row, and six overall. The shows I went to had a very backyard barbecue feel to them, with everyone lounging around on the grass, drinking beer, and listening to the tunes.
A subtle change could be felt in the last few years, though. The Mighty Mighty Bosstones appearing on the bill in 2000 didn’t cause too much of a ruckus, maybe because Robert Earl was still the headliner. Jerry Jeff Walker – and hey, does anyone every get tired of hearing “Sangria Wine?” – stepped in as the main act in ’01. Luckily, that year also had The Reverend Horton Heat (still one of the best live shows I’ve ever seen) and Joe Ely. Then last year Collective Soul somehow slipped in. They may be from another Southern state, but still, it kind of threw off the vibe laid down by the Derailers and ex-Sister 7 lead singer Patrice Pike. Robert Earl still headlined though, so a balance of sorts was (tentatively) maintained.
I should point out that while I enjoy a lot of REK's music, I no longer go see him live, as every concert of his I've attended in the last five years resembles a Texas Tech ATO mixer. If I want to rub elbows with drunken fratboys, I can go to Sherlock’s.
This year, though, top 40 darlings Nickelback are headlining. Also included will be the nu-metal stylings of Trapt and Dodge truck jingle-writers Cross Canadian Ragweed. I guess festival organizers are chucking the whole “Texas music festival” angle in favor of holding yet another in an infinite series of generic regional “rock fests” that spring up like crab grass all over the country in the summer and fall. What’s even more jarring is seeing early slots still being held down by smaller local acts. I just wonder how many Stephanie Urbina-Jones and Terri Hendrix fans are going to stick around to hear “Too Bad” with all the other mosh puppies.
– And they will mosh, don’t kid yourself. I used to think (back in my combat boot-clad Dark Ages, when we called it “slam dancing”) that there was just some music you flat out could not “mosh” to. Seeing a handful of goofs trying it at a Nickel Creek (not to be confused with this year’s Bocktoberfest headliners) show cured me of that illusion. Jesus.
Back on topic, this isn’t some aging music fan’s screed against new music. I like plenty of new stuff, just not generic, bellowing crap like Nickelback and Trapt (when do we get Korn and Linkin Park on the bill?). I don’t even have anything specific against these bands, but they already have places to play. VH1 showed one of Nickleback’s concerts earlier this year, and thanks to Clear Channel and its ilk you can hear their songs on the hard rock stations, the top 40 stations, and the “alternative” stations, often within the same hour. Bocktoberfest was nice because it gave a bigger venue to acts that didn't usually get a shot at them (Todd Snider, Carolyn Wonderland). I’m glad artists like Hendrix and Urbina-Jones are still playing, but how long do you think that will last? How long before “Bocktoberfest” becomes “Rocktoberfest” and moves to the SBC Center in San Antonio?
Ah, the hell with it. Three hours to Slobberbone.
I went to the "Thanks a Million" party in 1993. One of my friends got on the phone and talked them out of tickets for about 20 of us, because Rice had been such a strong supporter of Shiner. I recall hearing a lot of bands and not paying a lot of attention to them. It was colder than we'd planned for and they didn't give brewery tours, which we'd been led to believe they would do.
I heard a lot of the bands again later and thought "hey, they were at that Shiner thing..."
Sad to hear they're going mainstream.
This is too weird. The last/only Bocktoberfest I attended was that 1998 one that got flooded out. Wound up getting stuck in one of the pasture/parking lots trying to get out. Some nice folks helped push me out, and in return I helped push other people out. I seem to recall some sharing of a Wild Turkey bottle (it was that kind of day). Eventually, I wound up at some local bar and grill to clean up and try and recover before getting back to Houston. And now, I discover you were there as well. Maybe even shared a swig of Wild Turkey. Small world, considering the other shows we seem to have attended without knowing it.
I don't mind Red Dirt acts like Ragweed being part of Bocktoberfest so much -- they're honorary Texans as far as I'm concerned, given the extent to which Red Dirt artists play this state and the similarities of the sound. But I agree that Bocktoberfest is losing some of its "Texas" orientation.
It seems odd to me, given how much bigger and better various Texas acts have become. Then again, maybe "events" like REK's Uprising and Pat Green's copycat festivals have led the Bock folks in this new direction. Any thoughts?
Pete comments on the annual Shiner Bocktoberfest, and how the musical gathering has gradually shifted from a focus on Texas artists to... well, I'm not quite sure. It seems to be a work in progres......
| --Posted to PubliusTX Weblog on Sep 27, 2003 1:17 PM:. |
I was there for the "Thanks a Million" show in 1993, but it was cold and rainy and it took forever for them to start, and I wound up leaving early on. Alas.
Oh, yeah, and the 1998 Bocktoberfest was the weekend of our wedding. We had some guests who couldn't make it out of Houston on Sunday because of the floods. Ah, memories.
Nickelback? WTF is a Nickelback? I might have to reconsider my preferred brew. Except there's nothing else but Lone Star. Even a cheapskate like me can't manage that.
Never made Bocktoberfest...too far away, too many people. But no, you can't hear Sangria Wine too many times.
I must say, you are extremely.....verbal and articulate. It's a seminar reading your posts. :) But informative. Especially with the music. I'll turn on the FM twice a week at night, keep hitting the remote to change stations in between commercials. It's a sad experience.
Keep up the good words buddy!