Cabin Fever Music Festival rocks out in Riverhead

The final show of the 17th annual Cabin Fever Music Festival is all set to ‘rock’ Übergeek Brewing Company in Riverhead this Saturday starting at 3 p.m.

This year, the festival has offered something for a wide variety of tastes, from punk rock to folksy acoustic the last two shows, to straight-up rock’n’roll this week, with two dates held at Übergeek Brewing Company and one at North Fork Brewing Company.

The festival was inspired by Brendon Henry in the middle of the winter doldrums of 2007. In the winter months, the music lover struggled to find any local venues hosting live shows. That’s when he decided to organize a winter-time music festival that would benefit both the bands and the venues, naming it after the stir-crazy feeling of being stuck inside: the Cabin Fever Music Festival.

“The winters out here used to be brutal, no one was around,” Mr. Henry said. “So we kind of came up with an idea to get bands exposure,” he said, adding that getting more people into local establishments at the slowest time of the year (February) was also a goal.

That first festival in 2008 featured nine bands, and they played almost every weekend for all of February at bars and venues along the South Fork.

“The first year was a little rough because I only had three venues,” Mr. Henry said. “It was the Fisherman’s Quarters, which was my father’s bar, the Southampton Publick House and Tom McBride, which is no longer even around … The turnout was amazing. There were 100-plus people [at] every show we did.”

Photos are courtesy of the Cabin Fever Music Festival

The festival’s mission is to emphasize original music. While cover bands are fun and accessible, it was important to Mr. Henry to showcase the breadth of original songwriting and musical talent available on Long Island.

“This was always started to focus on original music of the East End and get that out. Because a lot of bands don’t get the opportunity to play their original music, and this is the perfect opportunity,” he said. “So we’re focused on pushing original music and getting artists out there.”

Rachelle Rossi, a solo artist who performed at the acoustic night last Saturday night at North Fork Brewing Company, credits Cabin Fever for helping her showcase her music as an emerging artist.

“It’s always given people an opportunity to have somewhere to play in the off season, which is really what this is for most musicians,” Ms. Rossi said. “This gives me an opportunity to help keep music alive out on the East End of Long Island, because there aren’t always places for people to play, and this is a nice opportunity to get people out.”

The Cabin Fever shows are open to all ages, reflecting Mr. Henry’s own changing life. “When I started this, I was 27 years old,” he said. “I wasn’t married, didn’t have kids, so back then it was basically living that lifestyle. And now with the whole family, I try and make things family inclusive. So we try to keep as many shows as we can all ages.”

Another factor in the new schedule is how the East End has changed, with more people living in the area permanently. “We can’t run those eight- to 10-show schedules anymore, because February isn’t what it used to be. It’s not like it’s dead anymore. Places are busy, and people are out and about.”

Übergeek has had food trucks available during the concerts, and the brewery even makes a special, limited-edition Cabin Fever beer for the festival.

“I think it’s so important for people to have a place to go, especially in light of this whole boom of technology where everybody just sits and looks at their phones,” said Jeanne Smith, Übergeek’s operations manager. “It’s such a great experience for people to come out and enjoy music and enjoy that lively scene that I feel has been lost for, like, the last 30 years. The ones that we do are mostly punk, metal, rock. There’s been rap and reggae.”

John Holub, of Hubba Promotions and Mr. Henry’s promotional partner, has been instrumental in bringing new bands into the fold.

“We bring them together and introduce bands to other bands to build a community, because the East End of Long Island lacks a little bit of the music community,” Mr. Holub said, adding “and a lot of people make friends from it, lifetime friends from playing at our festival, and connections with sponsors and venues.”

Kevin Saboe, featured on the rock night ticket this Saturday, is a Cabin Fever veteran, having played the festival almost every year since its inception.

“There’s nights where it’s singer-songwriter, nights when it’s punk blasting off. There are nights when it could be just about anything… [the festival] gives artists the chance to really be artists, I think that is the best part of it,” Mr. Saboe said.

VJ Hannemann, frontman for the Huntington-based punk band Flak Jacket, has been participating in Cabin Fever for more than five years. With more than 30 years in the Long Island music scene, he has seen a number of changes. The one thing that keeps him coming back is the people.

“The community is just amazing,” Mr. Hannemann said. “It’s not even that they’re punk rockers, they’re my family now and then they’re my good friends. Cabin Fever, especially when they’re doing it at places like these, you’re no longer working. It’s like, you don’t even look at it like that. You really are going out to have a punk rock hangout with all your friends and family. And it’s like, the most wonderful, celebrated thing.”

Mr. Henry said he’d like to expand the festival in the future, and possibly revive the summertime companion “Cabana Fever” festival. 

Mr. Holub also hopes to keep expanding in order to bring more bands and listeners together.

“I just see it growing and the community getting stronger,” he said. “I see the smiling faces and the good times they’re having, and they tell their friends, and they just like bringing good vibes all around and helping out people who work hard to try to boost their careers.”