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02/24/2025

Portland's Folk Festival Moments 2025

2025 Portland's Folk Festival

By MIKE PENK and BOB HOWARD // Photos by DEBRA PENK // A dream comes true, after six years Fox and Bones bring national attention to the Portland folk scene.

Portland's Folk Festival in 2025 was the sixth annual celebration of folk, Americana and roots music merging local and national talent. The organizers, Sarah Vitort and Scott Gilmore, Fox and Bones, started with a vision in 2018 to McMenamin's White Eagle as a way for Portland musicians to come together to celebrate the burgeoning local scene and enjoy each other's craft. It was a 12-hour love fest of regional artists sharing their songs, stories and dreams on the White Eagle stage. Their grand vision has grown to two days and two venues at  the Crystal Ballroom, with all proceeds donated to Sunstone Way and Music Portland.

The stage was set with a familiar and welcoming Oregon scene of mountain, forest and rain clouds. Constant music was enabled by alternating sets with acoustic sets in Lola’s Room. Over 30 acts graced these stages over two days, offering something for everyone in the all-ages audience.

The headliner on Friday was the Rainbow Girls, an eclectic folk trio from the San Francisco Bay area. Listening to the recordings of the group, comprised of Erin Chapin, Caitlin Gowdey and Vanessa Wilbourn, doesn’t do justice to the energy of their live shows. The harmonies and folk-pop stylings really showcase their collective talents. They opened with a song written about the late great John Prine, “I Question Every Day”. The delivery, with three-part harmonies, mirrored the emotions felt by many of his fans when he left us. The song, “Santa Ana”, which asks the question, are natural disasters natural anymore, was dedicated to the people of Los Angeles.

The highlight of the evening was when the Girls were joined by Jeremy Lion and Anna Moss (Handmade Moments) to cover the Dusty Springfield classic, “Son of a Preacher Man”. Anna took the lead vocal, and their version of the soul/gospel hit took the audience directly to some new groovy church.
The evening concluded with an acoustic song circle on the dance floor, with the trio and their musician friends surrounded by an audience that was simply happy to be alive and a part of something inclusive and wonderful.

Handmade Moments, the duo of Anna Moss and Joel Ludford, opened with a Bill Wither’s song, “Grandma’s Hands”, a simple homage to grandmothers everywhere. Utilizing just a beatbox beat and tuba, they quickly found a soulful, finger popping groove. Their quirky, unique, funky, and stripped-down style of delivery was a big crowd pleaser song after song. Rarely has a bass clarinet sounded so cool as it did on the song “Hole in The Ocean”.

Saturday was truly a celebration of local artist who are gaining national attention.  The headliner, Olive Klug is from Portland. While in high school she performed one of her first songs at an open mic at Artichoke Music. She now lives in Nashville and tours nationally and internationally.  In January, she was in residence at Artichoke Music and sold out all three nights.  

Johnny Franco and his Real Brother Dom are an amazing live act who have developed their following on the streets of Portland.  During covid they were a fixture at concerts in the park and at Shady Pines Radio festivals.  They emerged from the pandemic with an enthusiastic following.  They were on stage at Pickathon in 2024.  They were in their element on stage on the final night.

Earlier on day two, the winners of the songwriter contest started the day out, followed by too many acts to mention. Fox and Bones kicked off the evening sessions by bringing their energetic set to life dressed as though they were in a casino, with Sarah portraying Lady Luck herself. The skillful band, which includes Peter Marcott on guitar, Sean Badders on bass, Paul Paresa on keys and Lucas James on drums, brought this visual and sonic treat to the stage. The set featured several songs from Fox and Bones 2024 release, “Long Time Honey”. Most of the day’s performers joined them on stage for the encore, a rousing sing-along of “Don’t Do Nothing”. This song, about finding the motivation to go out and get the things you want in life, was perfect for showcasing the camaraderie and spirit of this community.

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