The Mighty Pines. Courtesy of the artist.
St. Louis roots-rock band The Mighty Pines has toured all over the U.S. After forming in late 2016, the four-man group expanded beyond live shows in their hometown, selling out clubs in cities including Chicago, Denver, and Kansas City. According to singer-songwriter and guitarist Neil Salsich, it was on one of the band’s cross-country road trips that they decided they wanted to do something even bigger: create their own music festival.
“This is something we daydreamed about while we were in the van driving from gig to gig,” Salsich says. “We’ve seen other bands across the country do similar things in their own market, and it’s super inspiring.”
Now, that dream is becoming a reality. On October 22, The Mighty Pines are slated to host the inaugural Pines Fest under The Big Top in the Grand Center Arts District. The event, which starts at 5 p.m., will feature guest artists the River Kittens, David Grelle’s Playadors, the Red and Black Brass Band, and singer Brian Owens.
Salsich says the lineup was curated to highlight some of the city’s foremost talent. The festival’s performers come from an array of backgrounds in genre, including Americana, jazz-funk fusion, and soul. All of the night’s music will be original.
“[The Mighty Pines] have played with a lot of bands, and we’ve met a lot of people,” Salsich says. “The artists that we’re having at our festival are some of the upper echelon of musicians that we’ve worked with. I want St. Louisans to feel proud of their music scene.”
With this first festival, The Mighty Pines are aiming to introduce an event that will continue to evolve over the years. Ultimately, Salsich hopes the Pines Fest can become “a full-blown music festival”—something akin to LouFest.
“That’s our goal, to grow this into something where we’re having major regional and national acts participate alongside more great St. Louis musicians,” Salsich says. “This is year one. I want people to feel a little bit of excited curiosity of, ‘Wow, where is this going to go?’”
Tickets for Pines Fest are available at metrotix.com. Tickets are $25 in advance, $30 on the day of the festival.
