Over the weekend of Sept. 13-15, something exuberantly queer took place in a dark alley on an abandoned street just a block away from the river at Belmont Avenue.
That something was the inaugural Lavender Prairie Country Music Festival, a three-day showcase and celebration of local and national queer country/alternative country musical talent.
The event, which was held at Judson & Moore Distillery at 3057 N. Rockwell, was designed and produced by composer and musician Andrew Sa; booking agent and bar manager Sully Davis; and Alexis Stein of the Queer Social Club. The event was a response to a lack of larger booking options in Chicago, organizers said. For this first festival, the nearly sold-out crowd was treated to a variety of home-brewed talent that ranged from polite pop to hair raising hardcore soul.
The fest opened with a polite though giddy set by local duo The Devil Said Jump, with vocalists Megan Loveless and Emily Franke blending their voices into a shimmering harmony. All that rich subtlety and warmth got blasted into orbit with the rude arrival of Iris Marlowe, who reveled in being a “bad girl” and wallowed in her goth-country allure. Her set included tongue-in-cheek stompers like “Brimstone Cowboy,” “Two-Step into Hell” and the crowd favorite “Piss Poor Example of a Man.” Trans artist Abigail Austin came on stage and delved headfirst into a bracing acoustic solo set of earlier Lucas songs. Austin closed out her set with a lyrically numbing “Alone in Memphis,” which had the effect of lingering over the room like wafting cigarette smoke.
As if the line-up on this first night had not been as jam-packed with surprises as it possibly could get, the closer for the evening was The Kentucky Gentlemen, with queer twins Derek and Brandon Campbell infusing the festival with a set of honey-toned near-gospel balladry with a decided deep groove. The immediate effect on the audience was plenty of lesbian lip locking and gay boy hip grinding.
The sold out second night of the festival got underway with Edie McKenna and her band bopping through a solid set of what could only be called “Big Band Confessional Country Music.” It certainly didn’t hurt that McKenna cracked jokes which threw the audience off. At one point she said, “Every song I have is about lesbians…thank you for having us.”
Nothing could prepare the packed crowd for South Carolina native Hunter Park from the band She Returns from War, who performed in an antebellum gown with rose stems strewn in their hair and a repertoire of intricate ballads. To top this off, Park has a seductive way with phrasing, elegantly wrapping words in lascivious or sinister tones that evoke the madness of Blanche du Bois.
Heather McEntire hit the stage next, and her solo set was punctuated with quiet big moments that left a lasting impression. The finale for the night was an all-star tribute to the late Patrick Haggerty, with an army of musicians and vocalists gathering onstage to celebrate the storied creator of the genre Queer Country.
Performers saluting Haggerty included Richelle Gordon, Hunter Kelly, Sam Subar, Iris Marlowe, Al Scorch, Abigail Austin, Aaron Smith, Lyn Rye and Andrew Sa. Though this tribute was somber (Sa was working on an album with Haggerty when he died in 2022) there were quiet selections (“Straight White Patterns”) and jolly sing-a-longs that threatened to go off the rails, like the rowdy “Crying these Cocksucker Tears.”
The final night opened with a sturdy set from the Queer Country Bandwagon, followed by a polished and giggly romp by Chicago Reader favorites Olivia and the Lovers. Ironically Olivia’s songs of misery and desperation got an unexpected lift from her jolly personality, making her songs lighter than expected.
Las Vegas via Philadelphia duo Big Benny Bailey—vocalist Shamir and accompanist Ben Peirce—lowered the tone and energy with a haunting, almost diaphanous set of songs that were performed with the hush and introspection of early Joan Armatrading. It was a set that demanded that the packed crowd listen intently—for which they they were rewarded.
Closing out the festival, Chicago gutbucket soul legend Hawk Coleman and his new band, The Talons, pretty much destroyed all of Belmont Avenue with a searing, rowdy rip through a set of southern covers. Ann Peebles’ chestnut “I Can’t Stand the Rain,” Neil Young’s “Heart of Gold,” Danny Flowers’s “Tulsa Time” and Jimmy Webb’s “Wichita Lineman” all got a hardcore raw treatment while Colman and lead guitarist Goldie maintained the original’s hickory- smoked flavor.
