Photos by Scott Preston
Written by Gretchen Gregory – gretchen.gregory@gmail.com
THORNVILLE – Welcome to Hookahville folks, the place that marks the official start to my summer season. And what a first night it was.
True to form, I spent the first night around the campfire visiting friends, enjoying a few drinks, and before I knew it, the sun was coming up. Hookahville is always the place that gets me back in touch with my roots, my festival families, and lets me let loose from my ordinary lot in life.
Thursday we had a treat, as Freekbass took the stage. Although they started playing an hour later than scheduled, once the funk took the stage I was all ears.
Whether you like Freekbass or not, one of the things you can’t deny about Chris Sherman is that he knows his bass like the back of his hand. Whether he was playing spoofs of the Temptations, Sly & The Family Stone, or David Bowie, he brings a sound to the stage which somewhat mimics the sound of Bootsy Collins, yet adds a flair of his own to the mix.
“We throw little hooks hear and there and they just kind of fall together,” he said, speaking about the different cover songs they tease.
Known as Collins’ protégé, Freekbass was signed to Collins’ label and can be seen jamming out on stage, much like Collins, although he admittedly feeds off the energy of the crowd to reach that point.
“We always love playing Hookahville,” he continued. “It’s a great big festival; it’s close to where we’re from in Cincinnati, and we always see a lot of people we know here.”
“The funk will never die as long as I’m alive,” said someone named Russwood up at the stage, a testament that Freekbass is keeping alive the time-honored tradition of funk which James Brown invented, George Clinton and Booty Collins perfected, and Freekbass keeps alive.
