Well, what started out as a few folks reminiscing over old RANCHfest posters and memorabilia has turned into a grand reunion!

Ana Bon Bon, now based in the UK, first posted one of the RANCH promo postcards from 2003 and started a flurry of responses reawakening stories from the magical RANCHfest past. Keith Rose of Hard Rock Miners, now based in Italy, suggested we whip up a reunion of sorts when both he and Ana return for summer visits in Vancouver and voila! –  RANCHfest 2012 is born (re-born)!

There will be TWO events on the SATURDAY, JULY 28th.

A singer-songwriter night at Little Mountain Gallery – in the heart of the neighborhood where RANCH was born. This will feature Petunia, Rodney Decroo and Minimalist Jug Band and starts at 8pm.

Then, at The WISE Hall (one of the original RANCHfest venues) we have a full out dance party with Butch Murphy & The Greasy Kings, Howard Rix & The Stingin’ Hornets, Doug Andrew & Circus In Flames, hosted by The Krikeys (Hard Rock Miners’ Keith Rose, Rob Thomson and Ike Eidsness) and the lovely Ana Bon Bon. There will be a few surprise guests jumping on stage too. All in all, tons o’ fun on a hot summer night.

RANCH HISTORY

RANCH was first formed in 1996 as a focus for Vancouver’s thriving roots scene. Initially, at the Main Street Ranch (Main & Kingsway), a hep coffee shop/art gallery/venue boutique ran by Shelley Campbell and Butch Murphy. Following the eventual demise of the Ranch storefront, Shelley registered the RANCH collective as a legitimate non-profit society with a simple three-fold mandate:
1) to introduce and celebrate the scene with Vancouver (via RanchFest);
2) introduce the scene to the rest of Canada (via touring/booking and a 20 artist RANCH compilation called Showdown, distributed via Universal/Black Hen); and
3) introduce the scene to the world

The first Ranchfest was in 2000 and by 2002 the British press
were already stating things like:

“If the alt-country world was in a small sweaty club in Brighton, then it would already be rammed with luminously talented Canadians and most of them would be from the same few streets in Vancouver. Vancouver, it would appear, is the new Chicago.”

and

“…the third brilliant debut out of Vancouver in less than a year, and another reason we should be paying more notice of the place than we are of New York.”

…even Mojo magazine praised Vancouver’s Flophouse Jr. as their album of the month.

…and locally, Terminal City stated:

“the RANCH scene in this town can now boast one of the coolest and funnest week long parties anywhere! Vancouver now hosts some of the finest of the genre.”

…and RANCH bands were also making the covers of Georgia Straight, Exclaim!, Discorder, Terminal City and Vancouver magazine.

A list of RANCHfest alumni really brings it home, as the annual multi-day multi venue celebration was truly a grass roots festival and envy of any music scene around the world.

RAY CONDO • HERALD NIX • CAROLYN MARK • RADIOGRAM • CHRIS HOUSTON • RODNEY DECROO • AUBURN • FLOPHOUSE JR • PETUNIA • BIG JOHN BATES • BUTTLESS CHAPS • DAVID P. SMITH • ASHLEY PARK • COAL • BUGHOUSE 5 • RONNIE HAYWARD • SWANK • ANA BON BON • JOHN GULIAK • AMY HONEY • ELDORADO • RICH HOPE • ROCKIN DADDIES • GOLDEN WEDDING BAND • JACK HARLAN • MAC PONTIAC • JT KING • LINDA MCRAE • GRAHAM BROWN • DEADCATS • ROCKET FINS • EVIL NORTON NIELS • BA JOHNSTON • PARLOUR STEPS • WHISTLE PUNKS • COUSIN HARLEY • GEOFF BERNER • LAZY SUSANS • SLACK • CIRCUS IN FLAMES • TENNESSEE TWIN • PLOUGHBOYS • THE LOWBROWS • BOCEPHUS KING • BUTCH MURPHY & THE GREASY KINGS • CONRAD • ANDREW VINCENT • VEDA HILLE and many many more!