This year, I had the opportunity to attend the High Water Festival with my boyfriend and cohost, Logan. The festival took place right before our college's finals week, and this was just the vacation we needed.
On the first day of the festival, we arrived about an hour early to pick up my pass and relax. The festival was held at the Riverfront Park in North Charleston, and it was really nice to be outdoors by the river. After a while, we got in line and entered the park. We filled up our water bottles at the water station and found a place to sit to watch the first band, Easy Honey. I hadn't heard their music before, but it was really good! It felt like summery indie rock, which I love.
After we watched them, we grabbed some merch and settled down in the shade for ice pops. We chatted for a while about what we were most excited about and enjoyed the shade until it was time for the second band to perform, Medium Build. I had heard some of their music before and was excited for their performance.
We planned to stay at that stage until the headliner, and our favorite band of all time, Lord Huron. We got to the stage and were surprised to secure a barricade spot! Medium Build was fantastic. We waited until the third performance, Amos Lee, came on stage. I was surprised at how much I enjoyed his performance. It was full of energy. As part of his performance, he brought out Mt. Joy, which was the next band to play at that stage.
I was very excited for their performance. After we waited a bit longer, one of the crew members came out from backstage and looked at us and said, “Do you want the setlist for Mt. Joy?” and handed it to us! It was so cool.
Once it was finally time for Lord Huron, it was like a dream. My boyfriend and I have been fans for years, and it was so exciting to finally see them live! They played a couple of my favorites and a song from their upcoming album, The Cosmic Selector Vol. 1, called “Bag of Bones.” It just made me even more excited for the album's release. The energy and vibe they brought was perfect, like a cosmic journey.
The second day, I got in a little early and explored until Logan was able to join me. We explored the park again and got some boiled peanuts and watched Goldie. I really liked her old money vibe.
We got pretty good spots to watch Gigi Perez. I love how raw and emotional her songs are, and it was amazing to hear her perform songs from her first album and her newest album released this year.
After that, we sat and watched the river, listening to The War and Treaty in the distance. It was very relaxing and felt like a preview into summer vacation. After a while of relaxing and talking about life, we sat down for a Cabot Creamery grilled cheese and to listen to Wild Rivers and Waxahatchee.
It was then time for the band we had been waiting for that day: Flipturn. The thing that surprised me the most about this performance was how amazing their lighting was—that and the drummer going crazy and putting a drum on his head. (You had to be there.) After, we grabbed dinner and watched Arcade Fire from a distance to wind down the night.
Overall, we really enjoyed this year's High Water Festival. It was definitely easier to get in and out of the parking lots this year than it was last year, which was my only complaint last year! I'm excited to see the lineup for next year and hopefully attend again!
My name's Liz (dj Traveler) and I host the show Out There Inn! I love folk, folk rock, metal, ghibli soundtracks, and video game music! Some of my favorite artists are Fleet Foxes, Hozier, Lord Huron, the Dip, and Sleep Token :) I also love hiking, painting, and reading.