Athfest 2011: Klezmer Local 42 and the Charlie Garrett rock the midday

Saturday, June 25th, 2011

Klezmer Local 42 & The Charlie Garrett Band

Over on the Hull Street Stage, Klezmer Local 42 prepared to deal us a bit of culture with their unique style of sound. Having never experienced this type of music live before, I didn't quite know what to expect, but immediately their humor put a smile on my face. During their soundcheck, the drummer gave a beat to a guy climbing up a ladder to fix their sign, encouraging us to pretend that he was an acrobat performing some feat of great skill. Just a short while later, the band launched into their upbeat, very traditional Hebrew tunes, and soon after, the dancing began. A whole little crowd of women in the audience began twirling and moving all over the place while children bounced along to the melodies. Responding to the crowd's enthusiasm, the band had those of us in the audience join in to sing part of one of their songs in Yiddish. What a cool experience! Beyond the traditional tunes, they also gave us a few unexpected but purely awesome covers including a great instrumental version of Survivor's Eye of the Tiger and a klezmer-style take on the cantina music from the original Star Wars movie. They finished their set with a catchy original song about attending Hebrew school. I truly love their style!

Once Klezmer Local 42's set ended, it was time to head back to the Pulaski Street Stage for the Charlie Garrett band. Their classic and quality southern rock was positively brimming with excellent keyboard melodies and a huge drum sound. Very nice!

For all of our massive coverage of Athfest 2011, from preparation guides to articles on some of the best featured bands and shows, click here! More entries on all the bands and madness of the festival will be posted daily, so be sure to check back often. Plus, you can visit the Echoreyn of Athens YouTube channel for show footage and Athfest vlogs as well!