The Dewey Beach Music Conference and Festival Sep. 25-28 featuring 150 bands, and the Americana Music Fest featuring 40 bands Oct. 17 and 18 are upcoming.

Thanks to Ryan Star I have become aware of some interesting events in the music community, like the Dewey Beach Music Festivals. I recently attended the Dewey Beach Popfest, which is about as far from Bonnaroo as you can get. The annual event is held in the Delaware seaside resort town of Dewey Beach. Since 2005 the event has featured 30+ performers per year. Over the course of two nights the mini concerts are held on four stages in the Rusty Rudder, located in the Ruddertowne complex, and at some of the other participating clubs in the area. There are a total of six events at Dewey Beach scheduled from April to May and Sept. to Oct. each year ... and all of the nightly festival shows are free.

Travel tips: Hotel reservations were easy to obtain online, and despite being fairly booked, all rooms were not sold out. However, there is an early reservation warning on the website for the Music Conference. If you're planning to drive, be prepared for the chicken farms, and remember to check ferry schedules to be sure they are running.

Closing time at the clubs is 1 a.m. so it might be an earlier night than some of you are used to. Parking is available, but I suggest you carpool or grab a cab.

Exploring the side streets and neighboring towns is one way to kill some daylight, assuming you're um ... daylight tolerant after the first night. Rehoboth/Dewey Beach is also home to outlet stores and many other shopping and dining options to keep you busy. Weather permitting, there is public access to the beaches, and people tend to take advantage of that.

With two bars and four stages, the crowd at the Rusty Rudder was easily accommodated; and thanks to an attentive staff, wait times at the bars were short. The two-deck stages had wind breaks installed to cut the sound of the side breeze, and portable heating units in place to keep it comfortable. Mid-April weather in Delaware can be a bit hard to predict, but the event is enjoyable rain or shine; and snow (though unlikely) would just add to the adventure.

More good news: The restrooms had attendants.

Dress code: Officially no bandannas or tank tops.

What they were wearing: Polos and docker style shorts or jeans for the guys, some dresses, nice shirt & jeans/dress shorts for the girls (club casual?).

Links: 

• www.deweybeachfest.com or www.myspace.com/deweybeachmusicconference
• www.rstar.net
• www.benjelen.com or www.myspace.com/benjelen
• www.myspace.com/rustyrudder

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3.25 Copyright (C) 2007 Alain Georgette / Copyright (C) 2006 Frantisek Hliva. All rights reserved."