“It is always changing. It is always representative of right now. It is not looking back at something else. It is looking forward.”
That’s Matt Smith, managing director at Harvard Square’s Club Passim, describing the Campfire Festival he founded as it enters its 26th year this Labor Day weekend.
Campfire focuses on providing a platform to local folk musicians and singer-songwriters, helping to grow their audiences and build community by encouraging on-stage collaboration between performers – creating around the veritable campfire.
For many of the musicians involved it is the “first time they get up on stage and do something outside of an open-mic night,” Smith said.
Attendees will likely not be familiar with many of the names on the bill exactly because the excitement and longevity of the festival grows from a commitment to fresh voices – the allure of Campfire is the opportunity to see young artists perform and interact in an intimate setting before stardom, Smith said. The festival’s website asks “who will you discover at Campfire?”
Several now well-known artists have performed at the festival in the nascent stages of their careers, including the pop-soul group Lake Street Dive and singer-songwriter Adrianne Lenker, whose work as a solo act and in the band Big Thief is among the most popular and critically acclaimed in folk today. Campfire “started as an event to celebrate an up-and-coming scene that didn’t really have a stage yet,” Smith said.
This year, in addition to several newcomers, the festival’s lineup includes veterans of Club Passim such as Lisa Bastoni, Sean Staples, Lloyd Thayer, Kim Moberg and Alastair Moock, whose presence in and contributions to the scene have helped it to grow and flourish.
Performances will begin at 6 p.m Friday and 2 p.m Saturday, Sunday and Monday, ending each day around 11 p.m. Daily and weekendlong passes – which are free for students – can be bought on the Club Passim website.
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