As far as first year festivals go, The Hudson Project had some shortcomings. Not to knock on them, this sort of thing can be expected during the first year, and sometimes even at the more veteran fests. They clearly undersold tickets to test out the audience size, and that’s totally understandable. What they didn’t account for is the unbalance that this would have when you book larger acts against smaller bands. So while Atmosphere drew large amounts of people to the main stage, Small Black were doing their thing at a tent stage. Even though it was under a tent, the entire area was filled with unflattering mud – not the most welcoming thing to see. Unfortunately all of these factors added up to a disappointing crowd for Small Black, who deserved much better.
You can tell a lot about a person based on how they handle situations of adversity. This can also be applied towards bands who play in situations that are less than ideal. Many bands may have opted not to play or would have put on a half-assed show just to get it over it. But Small Black put on the same sort of quality show that they did when they played a packed out Bowery Ballroom earlier in the year. They still gave great care and showed the same level of energy and emotion. I already was a fan of the band, but the handling of this situation made me an even bigger fan of them.
Well done, Small Black.
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