NakedCity Wichita

kelly’s irish pub: half way to winfield

Posted on 22. Mar, 2010 by Carrie in music

words > TONY ROMANO

photos > MARCUS LAWRENCE

Saturday, March 20th was The 2nd Annual Half Way to Winfield Festival at Kelly’s Irish Pub.

After hours of partying with the most fun boot stomping, skirt flying, beer and whiskey drinking folk in the city of Wichita, I realized that these are my people. The place was packed. It has that raw, want-to-hang-out-with-my-friends-at-home kind of feel. This is a laid-back neighborhood bar with great music, dancing and lots of drinking in a fun atmosphere. I like it, especially the bras hanging from the elk head. Kevin, the owner, is really proud of the place, and for good reason. He’s married to Kelly’s. And she’s got some soul.

Craig Ainsworth and Brandon Blaylock of Prairie Fire Production did one heck of a job organizing this gig. Together with Kelly’s Irish Pub, and some really talented musicians, these guys were able to show us the love.

Six featured bands performed back-to-back for 12 hours, bellowing out some phenomenal music:

Fresh Green Grass started at about 2:00 pm. A family band and trio, their style is a low-down, earthy, bluegrass sound that is simple…a wonderful way to open the event.

Hipbilly, a masterful four-piece combo of hillbilly and hippy with a contemporary, yet progressive, bluegrass feel. They were a cool bunch, maybe they drive a Volkswagen bus. If so, I want to go!

Ok… The Skirts, a trio with a Nora Jones kind of soft sound. Their amazing harmonies, and magical songwriting possessed a simple elegance that just flowed effortlessly.

Then there’s the Calamity Cubes, a four-piece, hit-it-hard, down-and-dirty bluegrass band. They’re edgy and with a driving feel. They like simple things like floating down a river and drinking beer and they took the crowd along for the ride.

Carrie Nation & The Speakeasy, a five-piece, aggressive, country-blues-Dixieland-bluegrass group, with a Delta blues/New Orleans sound. The trombone was blaring out some action brought me back to the French Quarter.

Fast Food Junkies with their strong vocals, and blues-rock-bluegrass vibe, infused with a heavy metal influence and lots of talent, closed down the live line up of artists for the night.

As for many of us, there’s always a group that stands out from the rest. And for me (and I’ll catch some flack for this surely) it’s not always the headliners.

The Skirts. I say, sign them up.
The Walnut Valley Bluegrass Festival isn’t until the 3rd week of September, but the bluegrass buzz we got this weekend has helped ease the pain of anticipation. Hang on folks…we’re half way to Winfield…only six more months.

Tags: calamity cubes, carrie nation and the speakeasy, fast food junkies, fresh green grass, hipbilly, kelly's irish pub, prairie fire productions, the skirts