Day 2, Bohemian Nights at NewWestFest: As Killer as the First

by Leah Johnson
Fort Collins, Co—Today started off just as exciting as yesterday. After a dynamic performance, that rocked more that 15,000 people last night by Melissa Etheridge—people flowed back into Old Town Fort Collins for the second day of Bohemian Nights at NewWestFest. The weather held out and the cool temperatures made for a perfect Colorado day to enjoy great local music and national headliner and two time Latin Grammy winner Ozomatli.



The day got off to a TNT start with ACDC cover band High Voltage. The group of teenagers had the heads banging on Walnut Street early in the day. Quemando filled the Mountain Stage with the pulse of Latin rhythms that people couldn’t help but salsa too, and School of Rock packet the Kids Music Adventure—with a energy that only come from a group of kid rockers.
“Wow what a festival! We thoroughly enjoyed ourselves and all the great music today. It is wonderful to come out to an event that highlights such great musical talent from all over Colorado and National Headliners. We could also listen to all types of Music: Rock or Country, Jazz or Blues, Regge or R&B – this festival has something for everyone,” said Chris Kupac who came out to enjoy the festival on Sunday.
“We had a great weekend. The collaboration between the Downtown Business Association (DBA) and Bohemian Nights helped to make this weekend a success! Great music was the theme of the weekend—and we hope that we exposed Fort Collins to new bands,” said Merry Hummel, Director of the Bohemian Nights.
The day ending with a explosion as Ozomalti took the stage to an energetic crowd of 8000 on the Mountain Stage—the group who came from LA brought their unique flair to Fort Collins. Their music-- a notorious urban-Latino-and-beyond collision of hip hop and salsa, dancehall and cumbia, samba and funk, meringue and comparsa, East LA R&B and New Orleans second line, Jamaican reggae and Indian raga-- has long followed a key mantra: it will take you around the world by taking you around L.A. That is certainly what they brought to Old Town Square.
“This is a Beautiful, Beautiful Festival you have here in Fort Collins, this is how music should be,” said Wil Dog on stage to the liveliest crowd the festival had seen all weekend.