King Dream and sol nectar

Summertime is for lovers. Shakespeare set his notorious rom-com at the height of this season for the very reason that everything seems possible, nothing looks ridiculous, and dreams simply want to come true. It is time for the new and daring to flourish, and we celebrate the bold among us who step forth with innovation that connects hearts and opens minds. King Dream and Sol Nectar both embody fearless forays into the wild unknown, their music so very much their own that our delight lies in the anticipation of meeting someone, and something, dramatically unique. For the Folks was made for bands like this, for discovery and jubilation and love, and it’s no coincidence that it all comes together when the summer itself is stretching its wings.

King Dream rose from the dust of a world that had taken a turn toward the darkness, and instead of throwing up their hands or falling in line, they diverted their course and forged a path for others to follow. When the world loses its mind and tilts off-kilter, we look to art to bring us back to our axis, and King Dream has undertaken this role with bravado. Their music doesn’t simply state who the artists are, but who we all are, and what we’re capable of becoming. Nothing that refuses to change can live, and their music embodies a growing, adapting force that can be anything it needs to be. Mystical yet focused, delicate while powerful, it reflects those who make it and those who listen to it, and it calls for us all to create the world we want to live in. They are a dream for sure, one they have the courage to chase and to live and to share with anyone willing to open their ears.

Sol Nectar doesn’t want to take you to a different world, they want to transform the one we live in to the dazzling, love-filled nexus too often attained only in fantasy and make-believe. Their groove grows from deep within, is never rushed, and flourishes before the audience in a flurry of smiles and gleeful glances. Each instrument speaks a shared language in its unique voice, and the delight each member takes in listening to the others is a remedy best prescribed for the world at large. Their performances emanate the innocence often attributed to that which is new, but it stems rather from the hope and faith in an existence that matches their expectations. They may take you to another place, but it is still this place- same hills, same sea, same sun in the daytime and moon at night, just a lot more of the magic we tend to overlook.

The most famous of poets wrote, “Love looks not with the eyes, but with the mind,” and perchance we may add, the ears. FTF is made for the brave, the hungry, and the reckless dreamers, and each night we get together is our chance to open our arms and show the love that defines us. Both of these bands have jumped off cliffs with the hopes of soaring out toward the horizon, and on June 28, we get to lift them up into the stars. What a dream it will be.