Drive South of Grants Pass, headed towards the beaches, and you'll pass through the tiny town of Selma, Oregon.  You'll probably miss the town except for the single swinging caution light at the one intersection between a Ray's Food Market and a Shell Gas Station.  Those that are in the know, those of us that crave to be the first to hike and swim the most beautiful parts of Oregon each Spring - we've been known to hang a right at this particular Shell Station, and head 10-15 more miles down the windy, gravely, single-lane road to relax by the Illinois River.  Whether it's the beer & drugs or just the casual atmosphere, the Illinois River has been a spot for a number of universal awakenings by the culture of outdoorspeople who make it their weekend destination.

One weekend each Spring, just after the right at the Shell Station, long before you hit the river's edge, a local property owner opens up his land for an all-weekend extravaganza of music, outdoor recreation, and a barter faire to celebrate the oncoming season - The Summer Circus.  Started 4 or 5 years ago, the Summer Circus began with a small group of musicians and their close friends  taking over a stage nestled in the middle of the Siskiyous for a couple days of music and excess.

About the Summer Circus

Drive South of Grants Pass, headed towards the beaches, and you'll pass through the tiny town of Selma, Oregon.  You'll probably miss the town except for the single swinging caution light at the one intersection between a Ray's Food Market and a Shell Gas Station.  Those that are in the know, those of us that crave to be the first to hike and swim the most beautiful parts of Oregon each Spring - we've been known to hang a right at this particular Shell Station, and head 10-15 more miles down the windy, gravely, single-lane road to relax by the Illinois River.  Whether it's the beer & drugs or just the casual atmosphere, the Illinois River has been a spot for a number of universal awakenings by the culture of outdoorspeople who make it their weekend destination.

One weekend each Spring, just after the right at the Shell Station, long before you hit the river's edge, a local property owner opens up his land for an all-weekend extravaganza of music, outdoor recreation, and a barter faire to celebrate the oncoming season - The Summer Circus.  Started 4 or 5 years ago, the Summer Circus began with a small group of musicians and their close friends  taking over a stage nestled in the middle of the Siskiyous for a couple days of music and excess.  It has grown into a slightly more mature outdoor venue for 2008, but with plenty of opportunity still to have a great time and experiment with new ideas (or medicines) within a healthy, comfortable and compassionate community.

The goals of the Summer Circus are to promote goodwill, sound environmental practices, open-minded spirituality, and to fuel the essence of brotherly love that is so crucial to a productively peaceful society in a day and age of civil unrest.  It sounds like a lot to accomplish, but people would be amazed at how easy it is for hundreds of strangers to come together as instant friends and family, just from sharing the same dancefloor. 

The Bands

Things kicked off on Friday, May 30 with true Southern Oregon Flavor. Opening the show was the Reggae/Rock of Monk, whose frontman Aaron Reed's bluesy vocals have encouraged many a young Southern Oregon girl to sway and swoon on the floor. Following up later in the evening, to rally the crowds and bring their Latin Funk flavor, The Frankie Hernandez Band. Frankie's soulful lyrics and emotional trumpet solos filled the surrounding forest with an upbeat rhythm that set the pace for the rest of the weekend.

Soon Organik Time Machine took the stage with the help of T Club guitarist, Nate York and electro beat percussion from Shawn Hail. Their hard rockin' set was followed by the Electro/Breakbeat/Hip-Hop collaboration of BLVD & Souleye. The crowd was at it's highest capacity of the day at the main stage and the energy was ferocious.   The party crowd lasted into the night as DJ James Christopher and Manny Vibes pumped out funky ragga jungle til somewhere around 3 in the morning. Just up the unbeaten path a few hundred yards, younger dancers filled "The Dome" for an all-night Trip-Hop, Drum/Bass party hosted by DJ Christafari.

On Saturday Morning, campers awoke to the sounds of The Dome still thumping away, and vendors began to brew coffee and prepare all the meatless breakfast burritos the festival-goers could stand. By 12:00, the main stage was alive again, opened up by Brookside Bodega, a Northern California Hip-Hop Group. The crowd may have been sparse, but the best part of this venue was how well the music travels throughout the campground, so by the time Brookside Bodega stepped down, everyone was feeling the groove and hyped for the upcoming extravaganza that Saturday promised.

As the evening creeped up, an interesting and colorful Parade of Rainbows made it's way from The Dome to the Main Stage as the Tahoe-based Electro-Jammers, Absynth, filled the air with their aggressive hip-hop/jamrock sounds. Those in attendance saw a vibrant dancing crowd, with rainbow umbrellas, colored hair, and funky ass outfits overtake the venue. The crowd was full-on in tune w/ the grooves from Absynth and the full-capacity rainbow dance craze lasted to the end of the set.

The Hip-Hop flavor would make it's return later as a Northwest favorite Eastern Sunz took the crowd from dusk into the night. But before we get there, we got to enjoy a raucous party during the much-anticipated T Club set. A full stage with extra sax, a new trombone, and guest vocals from Michelle Bellamy and Amber Rose. It was one of the most ass-shaking sets that many T Club fans could remember. An additional appearance by MC Marko, representing RuffKuts, for a freestyle w/ backup from Bellamy was proof enough that this generation of musicians really can't be held to one genre. In fact, the whole weekend proved that music of all forms can be swallowed whole by an appreciative crowd if the message is right. Oh, and the melody, that was good too.

But not to get distracted. As The T Club winded down from their much requested encore and the Eastern Sunz began to set the stage, the final Saturday Stragglers made their way to the stage. Crowd turnout by Saturday night was around 600. And by all accounts, they were there in full force when Eastern Sunz tore it up. Lead Guitarist of OTM, John Anderson, said, "Eastern Sunz fuckin' tore it up." Their set was emotive and powerful, and the Bass thundered through the surrounding woods. In fact, this author was supposed to be shooting video, and after returning to his campsite to retrieve new tapes, the sound was so good that he hung out for a beer or two, and by the time he made it back to the stage, the Eastern Sunz had wrapped up their set. Sorry guys. Really, I am.

And as the Sunz did set, and some campers wrestled with their morals concerning certain hallucinogenics, Organik Time Machine prepared to open minds up to a visually and emotionally dynamic universe - no drugs required. Just bring your eardrums and prepare for aural lubrication... or something. By all accounts, OTM ruled the night. Their set was electrifying, arousing, and close to abusive, it was so good. These guys get the crowds like no other. Cory 3.0 on Keys and Jesse Ostreicher on the drums and other percussion set the pace early on, and it was determined. Funky ass basslines, from "Nickles" D’Onofrio and kick-ass guitar licks from John Anderson meshed perfectly.

Midway through their set, OTM were joined by the SolaRay Firedancing Tribe for a tribal improvisation of music, fire, and dance (or trance). It was freakin' sweet!  The track lasted close to 20 minutes - with OTM outlasting the fire - and as the SolaRays took their show to the sidelines, OTM rocked the crowd for another hour before handing the stage over to the late-night headliners - Heavyweight Dub Champion. Heavy, heavy Dub Reggae pulsated through the grounds - it's easy to see why they picked their name. Stereo Lion added haunting vocals to "Move it Forward " with backup from the soulful cries of Jillian Ann.

In a masterful style, Saturday Night was an outrageous fun climax to the wild weekend getaway that was Summer Circus 2008.

By Sunday, The Dome was finally winding down, vendors began to pack up tents, and bands sorted through their gear. Everyone around was wore out from the long nights previous, but spirits were soaring. As campers packed, the band members from these two days in the wild, were straggling - having much too good a time socializing and jamming with one another amongst the production tents. It was apparent to this author, that Summer Circus is more than just a shared stage. It's an opportunity for these touring bands to break away from their set lists, experimenting and evolving in musical equivalent of a social swinger's party. Fans and bands alike are already looking towards next year. If you missed it because of the weather (which was beautiful along the Illinois River the whole weekend, by the way), hopefully you will get a taste of the experience through the enclosed links to music, video, and photos of the event to persuade you to buy your tickets in advance for Summer Circus 2009.

The Scene

Photos by: Brian LeBlanc

Bands of da Circus '08

[See pics of] Bands and band members of the Summer Circus 2008. These are pieces of what helped to create such positive vibes in the woods of Selma, OR.

Scene of da Circus '08

Ahh, the areas areoun the ground and some of the people that helped maintain the region. From the trees to the people campin' in the tree, this place was made for music, dancin, campin', relaxin', and sweet sweet lovin'.

Parade of da Circus '08

... and then there was a parade! Crazy colors, beautiful people, dudes with monkeys on their soulders and the rainbow reigned supreme.

Family Circus of da Summer '08

There was many of people and things to make the Summer Circus roll. This is a collection of crowd, bands, vendors, dogs and clowns, all known as family for this weekend moment in the woods.

Vendors of da Circus '08

It's all about the vendors, I love these people. They provide food, goods, and orbitronal spins around the world. From beautiful wood working to absolutely perfect coffee and some very well timed early mornin' burritos. Festival clothing all over the place, dressing the crowd in tutus', and hats made from patches of "chord-o-roy." Again, big hand for the vendors.