In a world full of uncertainty, sometimes it can be easy to lose sight of what makes us proud to be human. In the rolling hills of Southeast Ohio in the blazing heat of June, a lineup of eclectic, wild and diverse musicians gathered in a town with a census of only about 4,000 people to celebrate what it means to be a human—dancing, singing and satisfying that innate human desire to belong.

With three different stages and a lineup of about 46 artists, the Nelsonville Music Festival is like a portal into a world where folk music flourishes and patrons can truly be themselves. Despite weeks of rain leading up to the festival, there were mostly blue skies (and a couple of stuck SUVs) on site at Snow Fork, where the festival is held annually. Open to folks of any age, Nelsonville Fest is a place for all.

Starting off the fest on Friday night, larger artists such as MJ Lenderman and Waxahatchee played entrancing sets of their own, while occasionally joining each other on stage to perform songs like “Right Back To It,” which has become a cult classic within the world of modern indie rock. Lenderman’s set left the crowd of over 5,000 people silent, which is an anomaly amongst most music festivals. With detailed lyricism and intensity that pierces straight to the heart, Nelsonville fell silent as Lenderman played hits such as “Rip Turn” and "Rudolph," respectfully listening and cheering after each song’s conclusion. It’s rare to see such a respectful crowd, but Nelsonville Fest has successfully cultivated a crowd that knows the ins and outs of concert etiquette.

Waxahatchee and MJ Lenderman, Photos by Ethan Andrews

Artists local to the Nelsonville area, such as Mill Creek Mile, played intimate sets at the stage in the heart of the woods. Mill Creek Mile, whose love of songwriting and the preservation of older folk music drove them to form their band, focusing primarily on writing americana-blues tunes that ring true to the foothills of Appalachia. Growing up in Ohio, Nelsonville Fest was a quintessential part of the duo’s roots. Jerrod Goggans, guitarist and vocalist of the duo, started attending Nelsonville Fest in 2012 at just 12 years old, something he says changed his perspective of music for the better.

“Nelsonville unquestionably shaped my music taste, and just my love of music in a way that I feel like I can’t even describe,” Goggans said. “Without it, I’m not even sure I would be a musician.”

With the release of their latest album Rituals, North Carolina-based duo Watchhouse brought a beautiful sense of togetherness to the festival grounds at Nelsonville. The duo, consisting of Andrew Marlin and Emily Frantz, has been making music together since about 2009. Their latest album truly rounds out the roughness in humanity through poetry that is about as soft in deliverance as it feels sturdy in meaning.

Watchhouse, Photos by Ethan Andrews

“It’s almost like a meditation, in a way,” Marlin said in an on-site interview with Pleaser. “Sometimes it feels therapeutic to get up there and share stories and then still have people who want to be my friend after. I think that alone is a small little internal victory. It feels accepting. And I think that acceptance in sharing that is really important.”

Writing lyrics like “I wish that I remembered all my neighbors' names / Someday I’ll knock on every door / Instead I sit here wondering at the passerby / and why no one drops in anymore,” Watchhouse builds a sense of community through their lyricism. It was truly beautiful to watch how gentle the crowd interacted with one another during this set, as if everyone collectively decided that the beauty of the music was something sacred. There’s something special in the ability to connect with people on a basic human level, and Watchhouse does so effortlessly with both their storytelling and their musicality.

“There’s a certain acknowledgement of the well-roundedness of the people that listen to music. There’s just so many different awarenesses that come with being a human, and we want to offer a little bit of internalization and sentimentality,” Marlin said.

With strong harmonies and gorgeous folk instruments such as guitar, mandolin and fiddle, a Watchhouse set is a musical mosaic of positive energy. The gentleness of their music, in a way, is like a nice pause-and-reflect for Nelsonville Fest to gather and fully be present.

“In our sets, we don’t have a lot of production,” Frantz said. I feel like what we bring out with our music is just a nice sort of balance to higher energy sets that, in a way, is for people to enjoy and recharge to.”

Contrasting from the quietness that Watchhouse brought to Nelsonville, Philly-based Low Cut Connie brought cult-classic rock and roll to Nelsonville Fest. Their songs include suggestive lyricism that rings true to the energy and showmanship Low Cut Connie puts forth in both their music and performances.

Frontman of Low Cut Connie, Adam Weiner, invited Pleaser backstage for an on-site interview where he explained the wild origins of his band, and the serendipitous occurrences that have continuously kept Low Cut Connie relevant throughout the years.

“It wasn’t supposed to be a band,” Weiner said while sipping on a bottle of San Pellegrino and hovering over a bowl of chips and salsa. “It was supposed to be a fun, wild weekend. Me and a few of my buddies, all of us in other bands and day jobs, we were just having a good time. By the end of the weekend, we had 11 songs.”

After accidentally writing and recording way more music than anticipated that weekend, Weiner started to show people their music. He received numerous positive responses, and ended up doing a singular concert on New Years Eve at some crazy church with a graveyard, in which hundreds of people showed up.

“It just kind of went from there. By April, we were in Rolling Stone Magazine, which was a big deal at the time. By Fall, we’d been in the New York Times and NPR and all these different things were happening. It was just a happy accident.”

Low Cut Connie is a rarity that went from zero to 100 quickly, and since then have been recognized by Elton John, Bruce Springsteen and even Barack Obama. Now touring all over the United States, the band worked their cult-classic magic on the crowd at Nelsonville Fest, allowing audience members the space to feel sloppy, get loose, and feel better leaving than when they first showed up.

Overall, my trip to Nelsonville Music Festival was one that will be hard to forget. I've learned that not only is the festival home to many, but it's also one of Nelsonville’s best kept secrets. With an attendance of only about 5,000 people, this music festival almost feels like one of those “word of mouth” events. That’s what makes it so great though– with genuine energy and music that speaks to the soul, Nelsonville is the type of place you can walk into with a bunch of strangers and leave with a bunch of brand new friends. It’s the type of place that makes you feel proud to be human, and in today's world, it's important to find these places that give us that feeling again.