REVIEW
REVIEW
☆ BY ELIJAH CLOWER ☆
I’VE COVERED MY FAIR SHARE OF FESTIVALS AT THIS POINT - but RedWest was my first country festival, and I didn't really know what to expect walking into the Utah State Fairpark in Salt Lake City. The festival is only in its third year, and it came back this time with something to prove after last year's edition got cut short by a nasty storm. Two days, a stacked lineup, and a whole culture I was stepping into for the first time. Spoiler: I loved it.
Country crowds are definitely a different vibe. Most of the genres I cover at festivals, from pop to metal to hip hop, bring a completely different kind of energy. It's less chaos and more community. People show up in their boots and hats, and they're there for the music in a really genuine way. I walked out of that weekend with a much bigger appreciation for country music, the aesthetic, and honestly the culture around it.
If I had to pick one set from the whole weekend, it's Shaboozey. His stage presence was on another level, and he sounded amazing from start to finish. He worked the catwalk a lot, which made for some great close up moments in the photo pit and gave the crowd something to lose their minds over. The crowd energy for him was right up there with the biggest of the weekend.
Ella Langley was a big reason I made the trip. She's on fire right now in the country space, and with her tour not hitting the West Coast, RedWest was the closest I could get. She brought out special guests Koe Wetzel and Paige Fish, which was a fun touch. Her performance was great, no doubt about it, but for a headline set it felt a little underwhelming. She had a catwalk and barely touched it, at least compared to Shaboozey, which was a bit odd, especially since another photographer told me she used it way more when she played RedWest last year. That's really my only critique, though. I still loved it, and I'll go see her any chance I get. I just wish there was a bit more pizzazz to it, for me personally.
My second favorite set of the weekend was Tucker Wetmore. He's one of the biggest rising stars in country right now, and seeing him live just confirmed it for me. "Proving Me Right" is probably my favorite country song I've heard this year. It actually came out last December, but I only discovered it this year, so I'm counting it. Hearing it live was easily one of my favorite moments of the festival. His stage presence and energy were great too. He was smiling the whole set, interacting and playing around with his band a lot, and the stage production and setup looked cool, which made it a really fun set to shoot. Sam Barber had the closing slot on Saturday and delivered what I would call a calm and serene set. For his age, his voice is so unique. He sounds so much older, and not in a bad way. His tone and singing ability just comes across so much more mature than he actually is. Nothing too fancy production wise, but I don't think he's trying to be a theatrical performer. He lets the songs do the work, and that's a fine way to close out a weekend like this.
Cameron Whitcomb was probably the most animated performer of the entire festival. I'm not super familiar with his catalog yet, but after that show I'll definitely be digging in, because he put on a hell of a show. Ashley Cooke was absolutely amazing too, with great energy and great stage presence, and she ended up being one of my personal favorites of the weekend. Koe Wetzel might have had the most hyped crowd of the whole festival. People were going crazy for him, and right alongside Shaboozey, that was the loudest the fairgrounds got all weekend.
Mike. was kind of the wild card on the lineup since he isn't a full on country artist. He's made some country adjacent music, but I first found him through his pop side. His set was very minimal, just a screen behind him and some decent lighting, and that fit him perfectly. He talked about being an independent artist for years, making his music alone in his bedroom, and the stripped back setup felt true to that. Coming in between all the full country sets, it was a really nice palate cleanser.
Tyler Nance and his band deserve a shout out too. They had great energy and were just super fun to watch, every single one of them, and Ashley Anne was a blast on Saturday, moving all over the stage in a way that made her really fun to shoot.
The depth of the lineup was a big part of what made the weekend work. Michael Marcagi, who most people probably know from "Scared to Start," brought that same heartfelt songwriting to his set and had a crowd singing right along with him. Carter Faith delivered exactly what her fans came for, leaning into the style that's made her one of the more distinct voices in the new wave of Nashville. Laci Kaye Booth, who a lot of people first met on American Idol and who's been out on the road with Ella Langley this year, brought her country soul sound to Saturday's lineup, while Sons of Legion and Paige Fish helped set the tone early on Friday. None of these sets missed, and that kind of consistency from top to bottom is what you want out of a festival lineup.
No review of mine is complete without giving you a little insight into what goes on behind the scenes. Outside of the one hiccup I had getting credentials sorted at the start, which kept me out for about an hour and a half, everything was smooth sailing. For a festival in only its third year, the logistics were honestly better than a lot of the bigger ones I've worked. It's not a huge festival (yet), and that's okay. It was easy to get around, and the scheduling was on point, so people could actually move from stage to stage and catch a ton of artists. You really get your money's worth at a festival like this.
RedWest made a country fan out of me, or at least a lot more of one than I was walking in. I even went home with a cowboy hat that I bought as a souvenir. Three years in, this festival is only going to keep growing, and I'm excited to see what year four looks like. This definitely won't be my last RedWest!
