This is my favorite music event!
That says a lot in town like Austin that offers the “endless buffet of music” that is SXSW, the big headliners of ACL, and a consistent flow of club shows, house parties (https://peggysporchparty.com), and various other performances (https://gazsoup.blogspot.com/2021/07/live-music-at-central-market.html).
In it’s 12th year, UtopiaFest is named after the location of the original site in Utopia, Texas. A few years ago they moved to Burnet which is just about 1 hour NW of Austin. It was started by Travis Sutherland with an idea of a festival that focused on the music so he asked Jos mother and his aunts if he could host a show that their ranch (Three Sisters Ranch). That first show was in 2009 and although it was small and there were some logistic challenges, there was a notable vibe.
My first UtopiaFest was in 2014 when I convinced my friend Mike to join me. It got off to a dubious start with a Texas sized rain storm all the way on the 3 hour drive. By the time we arrived to the ranch the dirt road up to the camping area was a muddy river and, as was shown by the stuck and sliding cars, not something my sedan was going to make. The organizers had set-up a tractor with a flat trailer to haul people into the camping area. We had planned to drive in to unload our stuff but now we were faced with having decide what we could carry up to the tractor in the rain. We grabbed our tent, back packs, and a small cooler with food & drinks and trekked up and jumped in the back of the trailer. It felt more like an evacuation than a festival entry with the rain and scramble to carry what you could. The person organizing said we would wait a few more minutes to let others load their stuff. I looked at Mike and said “I think there’s time to go back and grab more essentials” and I took off running for my car. I returned moments later with our sleeping bags and a bottle of whisky and jumped into the trailer. “Good thinking”, Mike said as he saw the sleeping bags, “What about pillows?” I showed him the whisky bottle and replied “Whiskey will be our pillow. “Very good thinking”, he retorted. One the ride up we shared sips with the other dozen or so people on the journey.
The sun came out the next morning and we went to explore. The ranch is a basin with two music stages set up in the middle on a flat field. Around the edges of the field there were a scattering on vendors now selling breakfast tacos and coffee. In the surrounding slopes and hills there were scattering of tents and group camp sites. There were a couple of early risers - either due to natural cause or due to their kids. Everybody was super friendly and communal; starting up conversations and offering to share food & drink. The music started in the afternoon on two different stages with no overlapping. The music continued through the until the night with only a short break for a “panty drop”. This was a small prop plane that flew over the crowd and dropped swag just as shirts, koozies, and underwear with “UtopiaFest” stamped on them. Due to a combination of youth, lack of beer consumption, and friendly adults, the kids seemed to scoop up most of the prizes. The evening ended with a magical set from Austin band; Wild Child.
This will be my seventh year and the event had evolved but it retains that fun, family friendly, communal, music first vibe. In addition to BYOB, you can now purchase beer and wine and usually score some free samples from local breweries & wineries. REI has a presence there offering hikes and trail bike rides. And the music . . . there’s lots of great music! From the morning shows with coffee & Bloody Mary’s sponsored by local music charity Black Fret, to the main stages that go from afternoon to midnight, then the silent disco fills the void until about 2am when there is an acoustic show under stars and candle light.
I hope to see you there the weekend of October 15th
More information and tickets can be found at https://www.utopiafest.com/
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