Once again, Newport Folk Fest will have some late nights.
Since 2010, Providence rock and roll heroes Deer Tick have put on a weekend of after parties at the Newport Blues Cafe, and the list of special guests is storied: Lucero’s Ben Nichols, Leon Bridges, The Replacements’ Tommy Stinson, and The Felice Brothers have all shared the stage with John McCauley and crew. Fellow Providence acts such as Ravi Shavi, Arc Iris, and Smith & Weeden have also joined in on the nightcap as well. The shows add to the memorable experiences the Newport Folk Festival offers and serve as a fitting finale to each day of the festival.
Naturally, Deer Tick will be at it again this time around for the 2016 session, July 22 to 24, with the first night featuring McCauley’s wife Vanessa Carlton and ex-Toy Soldiers frontman Ron Gallo. Saturday will be showing two spectacular Tennessee musicians with Memphis’ Julien Baker and Nashville’s Rayland Baxter taking the stage, and the final night, come Sunday, spotlights The Huntress and Holder Of Holds featuring ex-Brown Bird member MorganEve Swain and Philadelphia blues artist Son Little. And it all goes to benefit the Newport Festivals Foundation and The Multiple Myeloma Research Foundation.
Along with it being an all out party, when Deer Tick plays the Blues Cafe things can get unpredictable. A bunch of special guests are bound to show up, too, so keep your eyes peeled on who’ll jump in on a song (or just check YouTube each morning after).
The weekend caps off a pretty busy month for Deer Tick. On July 18, they play the legendary Ocean Mist in Wakefield, Rhode Island for a tune-up show with Ted Leo before heading up to Boston the next day for a Tea Party Concert Cruise. Outside of the Deer Tick realm, the Thursday before the after parties at The Newport Blues Cafe delivers All Newport’s Eve, featuring Langhorne Slim & The Law, The Suffers and other special guests. That’s also worth noting.
Prepare for a lot of fun in the coming weeks, and hopefully a ticket to one of the parties has already been secured. Here’s a look at one of last year’s after parties.