Montezuma Rising, a celebration of community and local talent, will return for its second year on Saturday, May 24 and Sunday, May 25, expanding to a two-day event at Fenceline Cider, 141 S. Main St. in Mancos.
The festival was launched last year as a way to unite residents of Montezuma County through music and community connection. The festival, according to organizers, was an overwhelming success. After hearing attendees refer to is as “first annual” and expressing their excitement about the event, it was decided to bring the festival back this spring.
“Last year's event was such a beautiful day and people kept saying that it was the ‘first annual,’ and that they ‘couldn't wait til next year's,’ so I took the hint and decided to put it on again for a second year,” Desert Music co-founder and event organizer Zac Carr told The Journal. “There are so many talented musicians and artists in our area, so I decided to try this year as a two-day event.”
The festival will feature an eclectic lineup of local bands. On Saturday, Influsense, Little Brother, Mojobirds, and Yope will take the stage, followed by Lavalanche, Hotel Draw, Thylan, and Desert Child on Sunday. Several acts, including Mojobirds, who recently recorded in Nashville with a member of the Wood Brothers, have sold out the Animas City Theatre in Durango multiple times. This diverse musical showcase promises a variety of genres and styles.
“The ‘rising’ in Montezuma Rising is about people coming together and rising up in community, but it's also about spring rising up out of the winter,” Carr said. “Fenceline’s patio on the Mancos River is the perfect place to celebrate spring as a community.”
Beyond music, Montezuma Rising will highlight the region’s artistic community with vendors offering fiber art, paintings, vintage clothing and henna tattoos.
“I hope that people can come out and celebrate what an awesome community we have in Montezuma County,” Carr shared. “People are good neighbors here, and we have so many talented individuals for such a small place. Fenceline Cider is an amazing place. How many rural communities have a craft cidery? How many rural communities have two days worth of fully original music, all by local artists? I hope that everyone can have a moment standing under a cottonwood tree by the Mancos River, listening to a local band, drinking craft cider and say, ‘Wow, I sure am lucky to call this my home.’”
Doors open at 1 p.m. each day, with performances running until 10 p.m. Tickets are available online at www.eventbrite.com under “Montezuma Rising,” with one-day passes priced at $30 and two-day passes at $50. This family-friendly event also allows children nine years old and under to enter for free. Only 350 tickets will be available each day.
