We ended out our 13th Annual Deepwells Music Festival the same way we ended our first outdoor concert 13 years earlier – with Long Island’s most prolific band, Miles To Dayton. The M2D recipe is simple: four-part vocal harmony, clever songwriting, improvisational violin and cello, and an infectious rhythm section that stirs up the creative stew. Having built a large grass roots following of fans young and old, Miles to Dayton has headlined performances at the Patchogue Theater and sold out the Boulton Center, with notable gigs at the Paramount Theatre, Great South Bay Music Festival and the NoFo Rock and Folk Festival. They’ve been the featured artist at the Acoustic Long Island Podcast and Summer Concert, emerging artist at the Falcon Ridge Folk Festival, and have performed in intimate listening rooms such as Club Passim in Boston, and the Living Room in NYC. Equally at home in the acoustic or full band setup, m2d has shared the stage with the likes of The Infamous Stringdusters, Rhett Miller, The Subdudes, Jorma Kaukonen, The Dirt Farmer Band, Tom Paxton, Southside Johnny and the Asbury Jukes, and Richie Havens, to name a few. Photo courtesy of Steve Caputo.

After our first act, Sir Cadian Rhythm, set the energy on full tilt, our second act took it to an even higher level. Kerry Kearney, a slide guitar master, plays and works his instrument to limits that amaze even the most seasoned musician or cultured music fan. The sounds Kerry creates from his vintage, stock and custom made guitars are as unique as his song writing and original melodies. Kerry was voted “Best Guitarist of 1999” by the LI Voice and “Bluesman of the Year 2004” by the LI Blues Society. He is also the recipient of the prestigious Long Island Sound Award (L.I.S.A.) from the LI Music Hall of Fame and most recently, in 2013, he and his band mates were each inducted into the New York Blues Hall of Fame. Photo courtesy of Steve Caputo.

The first of three featured acts for the night, Sir Cadian Rhythm kicked things off in grand style with an amazing set of their originals including their highly touted single, “Not Quite Done Yet”, which went viral on social media platforms and has accumulated close to a half a million streams on Spotify since its release. The hit song was featured in the blockbuster video game “Nascar Heat 2” this past fall. The bands song “Run Around Town” was also featured in the film “Back in the Day” starring Alec Baldwin. Photo courtesy of Steve Caputo.

It was a beautiful day for our 13th Annual Deepwells Music Festival, this year featuring 100% Long Island talent. The great weather brought out a crowd of over 700 people which pretty much created the perfect setting for an awesome concert. Warming up the night was Long Island singer-songwriter, Katie Pearlman. Give a listen. Photo courtesy of Steve Caputo.

Our August concert was on a really hot night, but we all chilled to the sounds of Toronto’s The Young Novelists. The Young Novelists craft contemporary folk songs with harmonies reminiscent of Simon & Garfunkel or The Civil Wars. Their last album “made us strangers” earned them a number of accolades including a Canadian Folk Music Award for New/Emerging Artist and the Colleen Peterson Songwriting Award. They were also finalists in the New Song Music Competition and won the Grassy Hill CT Folk Songwriting Competition. This husband-and-wife duo balance tender harmonies with darkly poetic lyrics. When their songs go to their heaviest depths, they are always balanced by their obvious enjoyment for making music together. Photo courtesy of Howard Greenberg

Warming up our August concert was Long Island native, Andrew Fortier – joined by his two children Andie and Cole. Together they’ve been writing and touring as the group “Tricycle.” Andrew Fortier is a New York composer and performing songwriter whose urgent voice weaves stories of a life in progress through truthful, heartfelt lyrics and haunting melodies. Andrew has worked with legendary Beatles producer Sir George Martin producing international New Zealand soprano and songwriter Hayley Westenra, who sang Andrew’s original song “I Say Grace” with the London Philharmonic, with Westenra selling over 2 million albums and giving him a great complement from a Broadway stage in New York. Photo courtesy of Howard Greenberg

Jesse Terry is an internationally touring, award-winning singer-songwriter whose intimacy with audiences, sincerity, and approachability has solidified him as a favorite at festivals and live venues nationwide. With four full-length albums under his belt, The Runner, Empty Seat On A Plane, Stay Here With Me & Stargazer, Terry’s lyrical mastery, emotional depth, and soothing voice have often been compared to the likes of Ryan Adams, Jackson Browne, Paul McCartney and James Taylor, reaching deep into listeners’ hearts to envelope them in shared joy, sadness, love, and unrelenting hope. The Grand Prize winner of The John Lennon Songwriting Contest and The CMT/NSAI Song Contest, he has garnered worldwide acclaim including the elite honor of performing for US and NATO troops stationed at Thule Air Base in Greenland, and an official endorsement by Stonebridge Guitars International. Person by person, state by state, country by country, his fans, supporters, and colleagues have grown exponentially in the past few years, including at multiple gigs where he opened for major artists such as Darrell Scott, Paula Cole, Tony Lucca, Red Molly, Kim Richey, Liz Longley, and founder of Jefferson Airplane, Marty Balin. Photo courtesy of Steve Caputo.

Opening our July concert was The Whispering Tree. At the heart of The Whispering Tree are singer/songwriter Eleanor Kleiner and multi-instrumentalist Elie Brangbour. With their deep-reaching sound, haunting vocals and vivid lyrics, this Franco/American duo have been captivating audiences around the world since meeting in London. Keyboard Magazine said The Whispering Tree “tastily combines wistful folk, mellow rock, and pinches of gypsy jazz and bluegrass into a compelling compilation of tightly written tunes” and Deli Magazine deemed them “one of the most talented duos to take stage in NYC.”

With a new setup of electronics and string accompaniment (Kelly Hallorin on violin and Rachel Coats on upright bass), Seth Glier amazed our Deepwells audience with some of his new material as well as some old favorites. His latest release, Birds, is steeped in conflict and contradiction; there’s grief and loss, but also strength and resilience; doubt and dismay, but also a sense of optimism as Glier confronts heavy topics and wrestles them into the daylight. The album began taking shape after Glier lost his brother, Jamie, who died in October 2015, and inspired a TED Talk performance that Glier gave in 2016. The songs range from personal to political, and are bound together by the awareness that our world is a fragile place. He has quickly become known for his passionate live sets and powerful command of both piano and guitar.

Ethan Pierce opened our June concert with his trademark passion and vocal skills. From the Philly area, this singer songwriter counts as his influnces Damien Rice, Ray LaMontagne Sam Cook and Otis Redding He has performed at such notable places as the World Cafe Live as well as the Philadelphia Folk Festival. Photo courtesy of Howard Greenberg