Shhh...
Whisperfest is an annual invite-only campout at a secret location in the East Bay. You must be invited to attend. The music of Whisperfest is intimate and acoustic, with minimal or no amplification. In most cases, the artists will be performing a very stripped down set compared to their usual performances. Please don't share this website link with anyone.
Whisperfest 2019 is on Saturday, September 7
New this year: I will be operating a low-power (100mW) FM transmitter. Bring a portable FM radio and headphones and you can listen at your own volume. Also, there will be a DJ set after the live music ends which will ONLY be heard on radio, so don't forget to bring one. Any FM radio will do - a boombox, a handheld, a jogger's armband radio, etc. Extra points will be awarded for anyone who brings one of those gigantic headsets from the 80s.
Before you hear Tom Rhodes’s voice, you feel it - like a left jab to the jaw. Raspy and soulful, like Ray LaMontagne or a young Van Morrison, but with a soaring intensity that recalls Jackson Browne; the words - direct, poetic, timeless, true. The Oakland, California-based songwriter has spent more than a decade honing his honest, heartfelt brand of Americana. In that time, he has performed all over the US and Europe, released five albums, 2 EPs, numerous singles, and even appeared on season 9 of The Voice.
Gabby La La is a singer, songwriter, and classically trained Sitarist and multi-instrumentalist who has a meditative and other worldly improvisational style. La La started playing Sitar in her teens under the instruction of Ali Akbar Khan, and went on to earn a degree in Sitar Performance from CalArts where she began stretching out musically to find her own sonic voice. Today, Gabby La La presents a psychedelic take on classic soul and 90’s R&B using Sitar, ukulele and omnichord. La La has toured nationally as a member of Les Claypool's Fancy Band and under her own name. https://gabbylala.com/
Amy and Hailey are a duet dedicated to playing American traditional music through magnetic vocal harmonies and heartfelt instrumentation. They recently performed at the Berkeley Bluegrass Festival. Listen to a tune here: https://soundcloud.com/amyandhailey/you-wont-be-satisfied-that-way
This year, we'll have a late-night DJ set after the music ends. Ingozi Sound Machine will broadcast some original tracks and favorite tunes on FM radio. You can even listen from your tent.