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my 2 cents


It was a pretty amazing week at Cornerstone for me.  It started with lots
of rain and mud on Tuesday and Wednesday, continued with much heat and
humidity, and ended on Sunday with a broken down van and 9 unexpected
hours spent in the quaint little town of Farmer City, Ill.  (If you ever
find yourself there, I'm highly recommending Dewey's Diner.)

To get the OtR stuff out of the way...  The whole thing seemed a little
more agressive and a whole lot more fun than the last couple times I have
seen them (Cornerstone 97 & UofL in 98).  I was amazed by their energy -
especially at that hour.  I was also stunned by their incessant
creativity.
Random thoughts:
Karin - I like the pigtails.
Linford - He really enjoyed himself.  
Jack - Sorry guys...I'm not missing Rick.
Jack's Valentine - I'm glad they they threw us this bone.  The perfect
improvisation.  Karin's little chuckle at the end was interesting.  It's
almost as if she were amazed by what they had just done.  That's
okay...so was I.
And Can It Be - Wow!
New stuff - I'm looking forward to it more than before.  Is it just me,
or does it seem like a little Cowboy Junkie dust fell on our good little
doggies?
All in all it seemed to me that they loved what they were doing that
night.  When I saw them at Uof L, they were kind of like "okay, yeah,
whatever..."  Of course I would have hated playing for that bunch also.
I guess I don't have anything groundbreaking to say other than our
friends made it worth the $79, 13 hours on the road, and side trip to
Farmer City.
As far as talking to Linford, I can never seem to make it happen.  I went
by the booth while he was there but didn't say anything beyond 'what's
up'.  I dunno, I always feel like I'm not smart enough, not witty enough,
not OtR-knowledgeable enough or something.  Just never know what to say. 
And I refuse to sound like a fan.  I did however have an enjoyable chat
with the Vicar.

Other Cornerstone music:
Waterdeep - Amazing!  I didn't realize they were such the jam band.  I
love their voices.
Stickman Jones - This was my surprise discovery of the week.  Speaking of
amazing voices...!
Ballydowse - How fun are they!  Loved the celt-punk, hated the propoganda
speeches.  (I think he might be just a little naive.)
VOL - solid as always.
Gene Eugene tribute - I was digging it until Mike Knott got into his 5th
song.  I don't think I like him very much.  He bored me, so I left. 
Rikki MIchelle - hubba hubba...
Burlap to Cashmere - a little disappointing but still fun.  They're
breaking up?!?  What's that about?
Jennifer Knapp - I'm liking her.  Talk about sassy!
Ashley Cleveland - Nobody - and I mean nobody - rocks like Ashley!  I
loved her intense take on Rich Mullins' "I See You."

Other Cornerstone thoughts:

My main criticism has to do with the inordinate amount of really bad
music I heard.  I really felt like Cornerstone had become Cornercore, or
at least Cornerpalooza.  There was way to much hardcore music, and all of
it was perfectly hideous.  I resented the fact that it seemed to be the
predominant thing there and that all the quality music that the festival
was founded on was relegated to a couple of tents.  Or maybe I'm just
getting old. 
I love teenagers - I was there with five of them - but I really got a
little put out with all the punks walking around trying to intimidate
others.  Of course by the end of the week we had developed our own little
game.  It became fun to either strike up a conversation with them and
force them to be real or to just stand and stare at them.  That can be
quite disarming.  I guess it proves what I've always believed - teenagers
can be a little hard to swallow from a distance, but are perfectly
delightful up close.

All it all, it was a great week.  I hate that the only one of you I got
to meet was Fred, and that was only for a couple of minutes.  (Sorry I
didn't buy anything.  Just wasn't good weather for coffee.)  I should
have figured out some way to pick you guys out before I went up there. 
But I did have a great time with some really cool kids and some pretty
groovy camping neighbors.

It's all good...

Kelvin

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