Mountain Affair had its first return since the pandemic, and the enjoyment shared by students made the question arise: has it returned to its former glory?
photo by Hannah Rodehaver
Last year, Covenant College replaced the annual Mountain Affair concert with the outdoor student-dubbed Covid-chella. This year, not all the chapel seats were filled, but the energy was high. “It was my first Mountain Affair. I was promised hype, and I was delivered hype,” said Freshman Abigail Cargo.
With a wide variety of genres and instrumentation from EDM (electronic dance music), bluegrass, indie, folk, and rock, there was something for everyone, and the crowd was supportive of the many acts in all their glory with professional sound equipment and personalized lighting designs for each performance. The performance was live-streamed on YouTube for those that could not attend and was viewed by about 300 people the night of the event. The live stream footage is still available on YouTube.
Mountain Affair was an opportunity to express the talents and passions of Covenant College students. “It was a chance to see talented people that I didn’t know were so talented and it built community,” said Cargo.
photo by Hannah Rodehaver
The winner of this year’s Mountain Affair was the bluegrass group titled “The Biscuit Boys and the Sundry Jams” consisting of Aden Hunt, Josh Parry, Luke Bolton, Sloane Hopkins, Emma Luke, and Cade Horton. They put together a medley of various famed bluegrass pieces with plenty of instruments to pool into the grand bluegrass sound. Combining stand-up bass, fiddle, mandolin, guitar, and even the jaw harp, The Biscuit Boys and the Sundry Jams kicked off the second half of Mountain Affair with a happy and multi-layered piece.
“We worked on it all together, and we spent a lot of time going over possible biscuit recipes in the process,” said senior Cade Horton. “I think that it all came together so well because we were all such good pals. Coincidentally, Sloane, Josh, and I had acquired a love for bluegrass at about the same time, and the car rides with our RA compatriots while listening to bluegrass definitely fueled our fire,” said Horton. The group jumped up and down on stage at the win and their hard work was rewarded.
The show ended with a medley of all the performers combined to perform the Beatles’ “Let it Be” and “Hey Jude.” Mountain Affair came the week right after Spring Break, and the event just preceded Spring Formal which was the following night, giving students a lively and elaborate weekend of being able to indulge in arts of all kinds.
photo by Hannah Rodehaver
The bands that participated were well-received and most of them take part in many shows and events elsewhere to refine and enjoy their music. Along with that, a lot of them are part of the chapel worship program and were familiar faces to the students already. The Mountain Affair directors were happy with the program and were hopeful in telling the performers via email that they are confident that Mountain Affair will soon return to its former glory and gather even more people next year.