Little BIG fest grows, moves to fairgrounds

By PATRICIA GUTHRIE

Special to The Record

Ever been to a silent disco party?

Strike a yoga pose on a fair midway?

Dance with your kid under a glowing jellyfish?

Such activities are just a few quirky offerings at Little BIG Fest, a three-day music and arts festival scheduled Aug. 11-13 at Whidbey Island Fairgrounds and Events Center in Langley.

Featuring 25 bands from around the Northwest, the festival also showcases Whidbey artists and benefits local high school students, said organizer Keegan Harshman.

“Little BIG Fest features an eclectic mix of music ranging from roots and world music to jazz, rock, funk and beyond,” Harshman said. “We want to provide a weekend of amazing live music, arts, family fun and give people some great moments to remember.”

This is the third Little BIG Fest but the first one taking place at such a large venue. In 2018 and 2019, smaller versions took place on the private land of a South Whidbey restaurant with about 300 attending. When COVID-19 interrupted plans the last three years, Harshman said he used the time to plan a bigger, better show.

“This really started out as a grassroots idea five years ago and has grown with the support of our community and sponsors,” he said.

Profits from ticket sales will pay musicians and bands and go toward music education scholarships for local high school students.

Camping is an added bonus this year for festival-goers at the fairgrounds with sites available for tents, cars and RVs.

“Our best guess is maybe 500 to 700 people could come this year,” Harshman said, “so we’ve doubled in size.”

The festival is also one of the largest to book the fairgrounds for an event since the Port of South Whidbey added “events center” to the location several years ago.

“We’re excited to be at the fairgrounds this year,” said graphic designer Jeanne Juneau, one of many festival volunteers. “They’ve been incredibly welcoming and supportive to work with and we couldn’t be more grateful.”

Bands will rotate between two stages, playing for one to two hours. The schedule is staggered between two stages so patrons will be able to see all the shows.

The outside stage is located where the fair’s amusement rides are set up every July; another stage will be inside the Pole Building.

Art installments too big to miss are planned for both stages. Think mandalas, giant murals, ultraviolet sea creatures and forests full of glowing mushrooms. They are being created by Whidbey artists Max Takanikos, Carie Elder and Siobhan Wright.

Both Friday and Saturday headliners are described as soul and funk bands.

Friday night’s headliner, Outer Orbit from Portland, features an eight-piece band playing original tunes while drawing on a range of influences from Sly Stone and The Meters to Aretha Franklin.

Six-piece band, Seattle’s F2D (Funky2Death), will headline Saturday night’s show. Closing the festival Sunday evening is Portland’s Scott Pemberton O Theory.

Seemingly one of the busiest, most-booked music man on Whidbey Island (and son of longtime South Whidbey High School music teacher Chris Harshman), Harshman will be playing upright bass in three local bands at the festival — Janie Cribbs and the T. Rust Band, Nathaniel Talbot and Doctor Savage.

“Bass is one of those instruments considered endangered so not many people play it,” he said.

After graduating South Whidbey High School in 2010, he played in various bands at gigs and festivals in San Luis Obispo, before returning home to raise a family and open a music store.

“When I moved back to Whidbey Island,” he said, “I missed a part of that culture, atmosphere and camaraderie of music festivals, and thought, ‘Instead of searching for it elsewhere, why not bring it here?’”

Eight food vendors and two beer gardens are planned for the festival. A family zone, an area for retail, arts and crafts and a shaded area to chill out of the sun are also planned.

Besides the two stages, look for the “activity zone.” Here’s where offerings such as yoga take place by day and silent disco boogies at night.

“Silent disco is a way to keep the party going without causing any noise pollution,” explained Harshman. The festival has been granted an extension of the nightly noise ordinance to 11:30 p.m, 90 minutes later than the usual cut-off time in Langley.

Even after the bands pack up, festival-goers can still plug into headsets and dance away in the “silent disco zone.”

Headsets are programmed to various channels that play different music and a variety of songs.

There’s no sound, except in your own head.

“Each channel of music has an LED color so people can be dancing to music and look around and see if others are tuned to the same song,” Harshman said.

“It’s extremely hilarious and extremely entertaining.”

Tickets are $35 per day in advance or at the gate or $105 for three-day pass. For tickets, schedule and information, visit www.littlebigfest.org.