Three years ago, Sarah Evans, a frequent punk and ska festival-goer, was missing concerts.
“When the pandemic hit, it was very hard for me. Not having shows anymore just kind of took away one of my most fun things, and one of my coping strategies, honestly,” she said.
It was 2021, and the pandemic was still raging, but concerts were coming back. Most of them were large festivals Evans still didn’t feel comfortable going to.
So, she decided to start her own.
Now in its third year, MIG Fest will bring a unique set of punk and ska bands from Oregon and the West Coast to Salem for concertgoers to enjoy while eating locally grown food. The festival is named for the farm that hosts it, Minto Island Growers.
Doors open at 1 p.m. on Saturday, July 22, and the music goes until 8 p.m.
The first show allowed attendees to enjoy live music while adhering to Covid precautions. Now, the outdoor show at the Salem farm is a rare treat for bands used to playing in crowded clubs, bars or house shows, Evans said.
At Minto Island Growers, located at 3394 Brown Island Rd. S, concertgoers of all ages have a chance to dance or lounge to listen to the music, enjoy pizza, snacks, ice cream and drinks from the farm’s food cart.
Local and organic farming is important to Evans, she said, and she’s grateful that her friends at the Salem farm were supportive of her ‘wild’ ideas.
The first festival sold about 200 tickets.
“It was so much fun and so popular with those who attended that, like that day, everyone was like ‘please tell us you’re doing this again next year,’” Evans said. “So here we are in year three.”
This year’s poster, designed by Cristy Road Carrera, shows a person sitting on colorful fruits and veggies, eyes closed and enjoying music in front of a purple and pink background. Evans said it perfectly captures the vibe of the festival.
“It’s punk rock and ska music, and a lot of people don’t know those genres very well, or they don’t think about relaxed vibes when they hear ‘punk rock,’ especially,” she said. “I think that’s what surprises people when they come to the event, that it’s actually really chill and laid-back.”
The lineup this year will bring a range of languages and cultures to the stage, with Evans seeking performers who she said are underrepresented at other festivals, including women, people of color and LGBTQ performers.
“I’ve been involved with the punk ad ska scenes for a long time. Especially the punk scene, I feel like these voices have not always gotten the main stage,” she said.
Here’s the lineup for the festival on Saturday, July 22:
2 p.m., 1876, a “pow wow punk rock” band from Portland whose members are of the Northern Cheyenne and Blackfeet nations and sing in both languages.
3 p.m., Los Mal Hablados, a Latin Skacore band from Portland, who mostly performs in Spanish.
4:10 p.m., Cut-Rate Druggist, an Oakland based rock n’ roll duo.
5:15 p.m., The Bandulus, a ska, reggae and soul group based in Portland that’s been playing for over a decade.
6:35 p.m., MONKEY, the festival’s headliner this year. The band is a high energy ska, rock and reggae group, based in northern California, that formed in 1996.
Evans is looking forward to bringing people together, and hopes the show will make some new punk and ska fans in Salem, and help establish the city as a destination for live music.
“It’s been nice to carve out another thing in Salem that folks seem to enjoy and just give people a day to relax and hang out and make some new friends,” she said.
This year, the capacity for the festival is 275. There were around 85 tickets left as of Tuesday, Evans said. Tickets are available online, and are free for kids under 4, $15 for ages 5-12 and $20 for people over 13. Evans recommends buying them online in advance to secure a spot, but said there may be some available at the door.
Attendees can bring a blanket, cushion or low-backed and low-to-the-ground chair. Shade will be limited, so sunscreen is recommended.
Contact reporter Abbey McDonald: [email protected] or 503-704-0355.
SUPPORT OUR WORK – We depend on subscribers for resources to report on Salem with care and depth, fairness and accuracy. Subscribe today to get our daily newsletters and more. Click I want to subscribe!
Abbey McDonald joined the Salem Reporter in 2022. She previously worked as the business reporter at The Astorian, where she covered labor issues, health care and social services. A University of Oregon grad, she has also reported for the Malheur Enterprise, The News-Review and Willamette Week.
