By Priya Hutner
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“As a musician, I recognize people need to be dropped into the music, dig into the grass and ground down into the earth and be in the moment.”
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Oct. 22-25 – El Dorado County Fairgrounds | Placerville
$60-$70 day pass | $160-$220.50 multi-day passes including camping
$20.50-$25.50 late-night tickets | $15-$99 kids
Railroad Earth
What is it about Hangtown Halloween Ball that sets this event apart from other festivals? Maybe it’s founder Ryan Kronenberg who wants to create a collective consciousness around the music and the event itself. Or, maybe it’s the fact he wants to help breathe new life into Placerville or perhaps it’s the caliber of musicians that Hangtown offers.
Whichever it is, anyone who’s been to Hangtown Halloween raves about it, including the musicians themselves. Kronenberg, an avowed musician and yoga practitioner, loves and lives music. His band, The Sierra Drifters, have been playing the Tahoe area for years. Both Kronenberg and his business partner, Adam Northway, also a musician, say that they are excited about this year’s event from Oct. 22 to 25.
“As a fan of music, the big thing for me is the vibe of the festival and what gets people up and moving. It’s an intimate festival and for me it’s all about the music. We create a space for people to be. Music is a powerful meditation,” explains Kronenberg.
In its fifth year, Hangtown has joined forces with Railroad Earth to bring some of the best in bluegrass and Americana and even a touch of electronic music this year with Beats Antique.
Yonder Mountain String Band
“Hangtown is about bringing people together in a loving environment, where they can have fun. They can take time out and not dwell on the past or what they have to do in their life. As a musician, I recognize people need to be dropped into the music, dig into the grass and ground down into the earth and be in the moment,” said Kronenberg.
Railroad Earth has been together for the last 15 years and has been a host of Hangtown since the beginning. With seven albums and a ton of live shows on CD, Railroad Earth has no intention of slowing down.
Allie Kral of Yonder Mountain String Band
Allie Kral of Yonder Mountain String Band was classically trained. One of the newest members of the band, who have been together for the last 16 years, Kral plays a mean fiddle and her voice is powerfully stunning.
“The three original members, Adam, Dave and Ben developed the sound for the last 16 years before Jake and I joined,” explains Kral. Adam Aijala plays guitar, Dave Johnston plays banjo, and Ben Kaufmann is Yonder’s bassist; all vocalists and songwriters for the band.
The band has naturally evolved since Kral and youngest member of the band, mandolin player Jacob Jolliff, joined.
“They let us have free reign as to how we present ourselves musically,” explains Kral. “I’ve never worked harder on a project like this, we practice all day long, every time we go on tour it just gets better.”
Kral is no stranger at the Hangtown Halloween, she’s played the festival for a number of years with the Hot Buttered Rum String Band and Alex and Ben Morrison of the Brothers Comatose, as Allie and The Morrison’s. Yonder Mountain String Band has been touring and performing songs from their new full-length studio album, “Black Sheep.”
Ryan Kronenberg
With a lineup that isn’t to be missed featuring Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, The Dustbowl Revival, The T-Sisters, the Dead Winter Carpenters, Beats Antique and Turkuaz.
Hangtown is a four-day extravaganza of music, on-site camping, kid-friendly activities, late-night parties and, of course, costumes for Halloween. This year’s themes include Wild West Gold Rush, Who Do Voodoo Mardis Gras, Halloween Monster Mash and Funky Forest Fantasty.
Hangtown Halloween Ball will be held at the El Dorado County Fairgrounds in Placerville. For information and tickets, visit hangtownhalloween.com.
