Gathering of the Vibes Announces Initial Lineup
Just before midnight on February 24, Gathering of the Vibes released the initial lineup for 2015. Talk about a killer lineup! The 20th anniversary of this festival at Seaside Park in Bridgeport, CT will feature Wilco, The String Cheese Incident, Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals, Weezer, Gregg Allman, and The Tedeschi Trucks Band. And that’s just the first three lines! There’s some killer acts buried deep in this list, like Deep Banana Blackout, The Primate Fiasco, Turkuaz, Kung Fu, and Twiddle, just to name a few. If this is just the initial lineup, we can’t wait to see what else they’ve got up their sleeve.
Tickets are on sale now, and they’ve got a layaway plan so you can lock in at the discounted price without having to pony up the whole amount at once.
Gathering of the Vibes is an annual music, arts and camping festival now in its 20th year. Vibes has grown into a four-day festival that has featured such world-class talent as all founding members of the Grateful Dead, Gov’t Mule, Elvis Costello, Crosby, Stills and Nash, John Fogerty, Allman Brothers Band, James Brown, Jane’s Addiction, The Black Crowes, John Butler Trio, Buddy Guy, Jimmy Cliff, Primus, George Clinton and P-Funk, Bruce Hornsby, moe., Branford Marsalis, Damian Marley and Nas, and more. The Vibes is also a launching pad for extraordinarily talented, young, up-and-coming bands who have the opportunity to showcase their talent to the 25,000 people who attend each year.
Vibes 2014 marked the festival’s tenth return to Seaside Park in Bridgeport, CT, making Seaside Park home to the Vibes more than any other venue. Vibes has become the Northeast’s preeminent music festival — springing from traditions born in the Grateful Dead community. During the band’s 30 year run, the Grateful Dead sparked the creation of an unparalleled sub-culture of loyally devoted enthusiasts. For decades, Grateful Dead shows served as a community-building institution where followers reveled with friends both old and new. When Jerry Garcia died in 1995, Dead fans were left with a void.
In 1996, Ken Hays, a local businessman and Grateful Dead aficionado, and local promoter Bob Kennedy, got some of their friends together to throw a memorial party for Garcia on the campus of SUNY Purchase. Aptly named “Deadhead Heaven – A Gathering of the Tribe”, the event provided a forum for music lovers to celebrate the life of Garcia and to reunite for a weekend of spiritual renewal. In 1997, the festival relocated to Croton Point Park, NY and was re-named “Gathering of the Vibes.” In each year since, Gathering of the Vibes has carried the spirit of these initial events forward by creating wholly unique musical experiences for attendees from far and wide. The folks who come to the Vibes annually to build and renew their bonds of friendship comprise the community that has affectionately become known as the VibeTribe.