ENTERTAINMENT

Colorado City Music Festival marks turning point in its community

Emily Havens, ehavens@thespectrum.com
Fans and performers gather at the Colorado City Music Festival Saturday, April 22, 2017.

 

Having grown up in Southern Utah with a thorough understanding for the community and what surrounds it, I never thought I'd be able to say that I went to a music festival in Colorado City. 

 

But I did, and it wasn't necessarily like I thought it would be. Short Creek, the colloquial term for twin cities Colorado City, Arizona, and Hildale, Utah, is transforming from the once strict religious community in the grasp of the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints to a group that's ready to heal its wounds, move on from its reputation, and grow into something truly unique. 

While the shift in the community isn't necessarily new, Saturday's music festival proved the area has something truly profound to offer and will stand out as a historical event for the cities. 

Fans and performers gather at the Colorado City Music Festival Saturday, April 22, 2017.

Maxwell Park was filled with camping chairs, blankets, vendor booths and more while a large stage anchored the field. An estimated 200 people or more were in attendance coming and going throughout the day, leaving plenty of room, however, for dancing by those young and old. 

Perhaps the act I was most excited for was Oskar and Julia, a husband and wife duo from Salt Lake City accompanied by acoustic bassist Boston Hatch. I had seen them perform once before at the Georgefest Jazz Garden in St. George, and I had been awaiting the time I'd have the opportunity to hear them once more. 

Performing tracks from their debut album, "Wilshire Royal," the acoustic sauce rock duo also covered "Son of a Preacher Man," which is a go-to for many folk-rock cover artists. 

Fans and performers gather at the Colorado City Music Festival Saturday, April 22, 2017.

But their original tracks "All or Nothing" and "Watcha Gonna Do Now" stand out in my mind as their best performing songs. While they have undeniable chemistry together, Oskar and Juila's voices are individually strong and captivating on their own.

Their performance style and sound is reminiscent of some tracks by The Civil Wars, but more upbeat, jazzy, and classically folk with a bit of a sinister, sassy twist. Not only is their music impressive, but their style and stage presence is intoxicating. Even listening to their audio tracks online, it's impossible for me to not tap my foot along to the tunes. 

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Another band I was particularly impressed with was Lorin Walker Madsen & The Hustlers, an outlaw country band. While I'm a little less familiar with their sound, LWM brought a classic, rockabilly sound to the festival, perfect for the troupe of dancers, young and old, who were in attendance, donned in belly dancing hip scarves. The Wade Wilson Project, a punk band from Salt Lake City, also provided upbeat energy and garnered some excitement from the audience when they covered "Folsom Prison Blues" by Johnny Cash. 

While some pretty harsh rock added noise to the festival, it was also a place I felt more than comfortable letting my curious 2 year old daughter roam free. If she could tell you, she'd probably say she enjoyed the festival's cotton candy and pulled pork sandwich the most.

Fans and performers gather at the Colorado City Music Festival Saturday, April 22, 2017.

The entire Colorado City Music Festival experience was a stark contrast to the understanding I, and I'm sure many others, have historically had in the small town. 

Just a few days before the festival, I was touring the home of Warren Jeffs — the former FLDS prophet who was previously on the FBI's most-wanted list before he was sentenced to life in prison on child sexual abuse charges. 

Walking through the place in which Jeffs called home, along with some of his estimated 78 wives and more than 60 children, was a surreal and haunting experience. The hallways were as wide as a hotel's, it boasted several industrial-sized kitchens, and there were secret rooms and passageways throughout the three-story mansion. One of Jeffs' ex-wives, who's awaiting funding in hopes to turn the abandoned home into something to give back to the community, led the tour. 

Members of the Creekers Foundation in Hildale tour the former home of former FLDS leader Warren Jeffs Tuesday, April 18, 2017.

But while the notoriously eerie past defines the community for some outsiders, Short Creek residents are clearly ready to grow and nourish the seeds of change that have been planted by key influencers in the community, many of whom are ex-FLDS or Centennial Park members. 

When anyone mentions Short Creek, my mind tends to fill with unfinished homes, yes, but it also recreates those sharp, red cliffs that tower above the community. They are so iconic to the area, and it's a privilege to be able to enjoy the gorgeous area when, just five years ago or so, outsiders were not welcome.

In communicating with some ex-FLDS Church members, it's clear that they have pride in their future despite their troubled past. 

Fans and performers gather at the Colorado City Music Festival Saturday, April 22, 2017.

I'm looking forward to an anticipated documentary, "The Winds of Change," which will highlight the challenges the area has overcome under the FLDS Church's reign. Until then, rather than instantly thinking of the controversy that plagued Short Creek, I'll think of its residents casually riding into the festival on horses or inside their cars, waving and smiling openly to appreciative outsiders like me. 

Follow reporter Emily Havens on Twitter, @EmilyJHavens, and find her on Facebook at facebook.com/emilyjhavens. Call her at 435-674-6214.