Brian Michael – An Interview with James Mullen

GLENS FALLS – Dear reader, please allow me to set a scene for you; it’s mid to late summer in the Adirondacks, and the sun is shining bright on the east end of Hometown USA as an enthusiastic and groovy crowd converges on the courtyard lawn of The Shirt Factory, a historic collection of local artisans and shops right at the heart of Glens Falls’ booming Arts District. The main stage sits at the edge of the lawn right in front of the warehouse, and while the gate for this stage and the courtyard requires a ticket, the surrounding campus hosts a bona-fide, shakedown street-like collection of local artists, merchants, and food trucks selling their wares. Last year, they even had a tattoo artist doing some awesome work on site (which included a “band tattoo” session for members of Joe Mansman and the Midnight Revival Band)! Some might call Glens Falls a sleepy, small town compared to some other cities in New York and even in the 518, but I can assure you there is nothing small or sleepy about the scale of this local music and arts lovefest. I caught up with festival organizer Brian Michael and asked him some questions about GEM Fest; how it started, how it’s grown, horror stories and more ahead of this year’s edition, the 7th incarnation of the festival on July 21st and 22nd in Glens Falls.

RRX: Some have said that GEM Fest has grown into the largest local music and arts festival in this entire region; How did you get started, what was your inspiration and what’s the story of that first ever GEM Fest and how it grew into a two-day event?

BM: Has GEM Festival grown into the largest local music festival? I’ve seen a lot of people take a swing at that title! We aren’t really going for that. It’s been a very natural thing for us, growth wise. We are now in our 7th year of production, and what started as a single venue event concept at the now Putnam Place in Saratoga – has become an urban music festival, which is happy to bring together over 40 performing bands, a dozen highly vetted fine artists, and over 30 craft vendors. It’s like a reunion at this point for us all – every year we can get together and have a great time.

RRX: What’s been the biggest challenge in keeping GEM Fest going every year? And is there anything that’s been easier than you expected?

BM: The hardest thing for me is the leap of faith we take every year getting this thing off the ground. It’s a lot of hours to plan, hundreds of emails, dozens of excel sheets, hiring staff/training, hospitality, contracts, etc… At the end of the day I personally feel that every year could be its last – because every single year we put everything on the line.
The easiest thing for me is the leap of faith we take every year getting this thing off the ground. GEM Festival enjoys the support of a great network of musicians, engineers, fans, and patrons. Without this network, GEM Festival would not be possible, and thanks to them we are able to say that every year the hardest part gets a little bit easier.

RRX: It’s no secret that running a show this big is incredibly complicated; Tell us your worst festival logistics horror story.

BM: My best worst logistical horror story was when I agreed to allow a bride and groom to hold a ceremony at the festival. We have a VERY tight schedule at GEM – but you cannot plan for a late bride, and butterflies! As a festival operator the fact that we ended up 30 minutes behind schedule made me want to puke – but I did actually shed a little tear once vows were FINALLY exchanged.
We don’t do weddings anymore at GEM Festival.

RRX: I saw that they put up a banner across Glen Street right in downtown Glens Falls advertising the festival this year. How does it feel for the community to embrace GEM like that?

BM: If you’ve ever spent time in Glens Falls, I think the first thing you would realize is that we live in a supportive community in general. As someone with experience working events in other cities, all I can really say is that there is something special about Hometown USA.

RRX: In addition to your work as a promoter with GEM, you’re also a local musician. How would you describe your band, Terrallite?

BM: I would describe my band Terrallite as a group of friends first, and a band second. I appreciate that they let me sing weird songs, and I enjoy writing riffs over their own tunes as well. We try to keep a positive vibe as a group, and we hope that positivity shows to our fans and comrades of the scene.