(L to R) Allen Aucoin, Alissa, Brownie, Kyle

Meeting The Disco Biscuits was amazing and Camp was one of the most fun times of my life!

-Alissa Miller

Last weekend I loaded up my ‘97 Outback, now affectionately known as the “Biscomobile,” and boogied across I-90 to attend Camp Bisco— The Disco Biscuits‘ annual music festival in Mariaville, NY. I was on a mission: to make sure the band met their biggest fan. Mission accomplished, despite the ankle deep mud that destroyed my Pumas and the monsoon that totaled our camp site.

I had the chance to sit down and chat with The Disco Bisuits’ biggest fan Alissa Miller, and her boyfriend Kyle while waiting backstage for the meet and greet. If it wasn’t for entering the contest Alissa wouldn’t have been able to attend camp with her friends at all, let alone rub elbows with her favorite band. Once Alissa and Kyle saw the band it was nonstop, ear-to-ear smiles for both them and the band—bassist Marc “Brownie” Brownstein  appeared especially elated to meet the fan they chose as their biggest. Everyone was joking about the craziness of Camp and there were more than a few laughs describing the antics of fellow festival goers.

Helping The Disco Biscuits and their biggest fan meet one another was just one of the many highlights of this year’s Camp. The three days of non-stop musical fun left a lot of people wondering how next year’s line up could possibly top this year’s.

Marc Brownstein of The Disco Biscuits

When I arrived on Thursday night, two nights prior to the meet and greet, The Disco Biscuits were ripping it up on the main stage. Biscuits fans in the crowd explained to me that the band started Camp Bisco in order to play longer sets in a festival atmosphere, and that with each passing year the festival gets bigger and better.  In fact, this was only the first of six Disco Biscuits sets over the course of the festival since the band was scheduled to headline every night—including multiple sets on Friday and Saturday. Talk about endurance!

After the Biscuits wrapped up their first performance, the crowd migrated over to the top of the hill for the Twisted All-Stars tent featuring the psychedelic synthesized sounds of Prometheus, Ott and Shpongle. Ott’s smooth dub tunes may have helped all the wearied road warriors in the crowd “chillax” after a long day of driving. However, they did little to quell the excitement that comes with seeing a rare US performance by Shpongle, especially one including the very groovy “Star Shpongled Banner.”

Toby Leaman (L) and Juston Stens (R) of Dr. Dog

On Friday, the main stage kicked off at noon with one of my favorite Philly bands, Dr. Dog. With Beach Boy-like harmonies and energy to spare, it was the perfect wake-up call for festival goers camped out near the main stage. Set highlights included, “Worst Trip,” “The Rabbit, The Bat And The Reindeer” and “The Old Days”. After Dr. Dog, K’Naan serenaded the crowd with his unique brand of Somalian inspired hip hop. I knew that Camp Bisco was indeed a very special place for everyone to come together for a good time as I listened to the whole crowd singing his hit “Soobax.”

K'Naan

On Saturday after the meet and greet, I made my way through the mud to catch the rest of Sound Tribe Sector 9’s (STS9) brilliant set on the main stage. Next was a double set by The Disco Biscuits with James Murphy from LCD Soundsystem sandwiched in between to give The Biscuits time to prepare for the most epic live show ever witnessed. I can only describe it as an eternity of mind-blowing jams plus inflatable walruses. The band was so into the groove that by the time their set was over, I wasn’t sure if anyone had enough energy for the festival-ending DFA Disco Tent.

All in all, I had an incredible time and I’m glad that Alissa did too. I’d like to thank The Disco Biscuits and the folks over at Meatcamp Productions for putting on one heck of a fest. I can’t wait to go again next year!