Sound on Sound Festival - Day 1

Connecticut’s first ever Sound on Sound Festival hit Seaside Park in Bridgeport this past weekend, September 24-25, 2022. Consisting of two stages with no overlapping sets, the acts spread across a variety of genres. Which meant there was something for everyone.

Starting off the day was a musician from Connecticut, CHARLEY, who is currently studying at Berklee College of Music and is involved with their Berklee Popular Music Institute program. They helped her book this gig, but she really proved herself on that stage. She played an incredible set with her 70s inspired, yet also modernized sound, even playing an unreleased track called “The Dogs Keep Barking”. Her stunning vocal belts and high energy kept the audience captivated as they claimed their spots for the long festival day ahead. I was also able to interview her shortly after her set, so check out that interview for more information!

Following CHARLEY came Drew Angus, another Connecticut native, and right from Bridgeport at that! Watching him was a joy, anyone could tell just by the look on his face that he was in awe of being there. The constant smile on his face even radiates through the screen when looking at the pictures during his set. It was safe to say he made my job of capturing him very easy. He played a few originals, like “Wrecking Ball” and unreleased “Still No Fire”, but also his mashup cover of “Royals/Midnight Rider”. He brought the country twang mixed with rock ‘n roll for the early afternoon crowd. I also sat and talked with him after his set, which is another interview to look out for!

Next up to the stage were The Cameroons, an acoustic trio that includes a washboard, followed by Trampled by Turtles. The Cameroons brought a classic, upbeat, folk set to the stage that had quite a few people dancing in the sun-lit field. This complimented the following set, Trampled by Turtles, who kept up the folk energy but mixed it with more of an indie feel to it.

The crowd was ready for Jenny Lewis, who followed up in a bright red suit and microphone for her set. She was radiant up on that stage, another artist where the audience can tell by their stage presence that they love what they do. She even interacted with the festival videographer for the camera at one point. Her indie sound was the perfect transition into the next group of artists.

At this point in the day, the crowds were starting to get intense because we were approaching the headliner, Stevie Nicks. It was starting to become clear on how massive the crowd was when lines for food started to snake into the crowd of people watching the stages. Fans took to social media to express their concerns – which ended up working in their favor and I will touch more on in the review for day two of the festival.

The Lumineers lit up the stage – both figuratively and literally – as they played through a beautiful sunset. They set up a cat walk that came out of the stage, which allowed fans to be closer to the artist. With the crowd as thick as it was, I managed to squeeze my way in a little to enjoy their set. They played crowd favorites like “Ophelia” and “Ho Hey”, but also some of their lesser known songs like “Angela” and “A.M Radio” from their most recent album.

Father John Misty opened his set with his semisweet yet satirical ballad “I Love You, Honeybear”. I didn’t know what to expect from him, as I didn’t really know about him until this festival, but he is a textbook performer. He traveled around the stage, dancing as he went, and even incorporating moving the microphone stand around in it. He kept the crowd energized and engaged throughout his whole set, livening the crowd up for the headliner, Stevie Nicks.

All throughout the festival, you could tell who came just for Stevie. Everyone was decked out in 70s style clothing, from the flared jeans to the fringe jackets. She played an incredible set, opening up with her song “Outside the Rain”. Despite the issues of the day, the crowd seemed to perk up quite a bit for Stevie; nearly everyone was dancing as much as they could with the limited space of the jam-packed crowd.

The first day started off great, but as the day went on and more people starting filling the park, there were some slight hiccups in the event. The festival organizers listened to feedback from fans and ultimately ended up making the experience much better the following day. Check out my review of day two for more!