Bottlerock Day 2
- Cheryl Alterman | The Music Soup Editor
- 6 days ago
- 5 min read
The magic of music in Napa Valley!
Saturday at Bottlerock had numerous fantastic artists throughout the day. Headlining on the Jam Cellars Stage (the main stage) was Justin Timberlake. I had planned to get to the festival to see Kate Hudsons' performance but due to bad timing on my part, I missed her set by seconds. I did hear that she was wonderful. One of the photographers later that day showed me stunning photos he shot of her and said her performance was great, but how could it not be, as she was born into a musical family. One of the Hudson Brothers is her father....makes perfect sense. Through the 3 day weekend, Bottlerock has more than 150 acts, going on 8 stages throughout the days from noon until 10 pm. It's impossible to catch everything, so I plan my days according to who I'd like to see or who is recommended to me, usually by the other photographers in the media bldg and/or friends.
4 Non Blondes played on the Jam Cellars Stage at 4.30. For my friend, that was the main band she had hoped to see this weekend. She thought they were the bomb! I saw their set and thought they were okay. Music is so personal. Everyone knows what they like and don't like and although I love to see a band that surprises me and takes my head off that I never had seen or many times not even heard of before, some are simply okay, and passable. For me, this band was just that. I liked the Led Zeppelin song they started their set with a couple intro notes from their most famous song, "Whats Up" then they went into full Led Zeppelin. Linda Perry the lead vocalist had a good and very recognizable voice with a decent stage presence. So I cannot fault the band. And like I said, they were definitely okay. They've been around for a long time, the audience seemed enthusiastic during their set and my friend who is a big fan thought they were fab!
Kaleo is a band I've seen several times and I like very much. They are an Icelandic contemporary rock blues style band with a great original sound. They played a set on the Verizon stage. Kaleo is a solid band and they seemed to have a big fan base present. Then I saw Ice Cube, (prompted by my fellow photographers) and I wasn't at all disappointed in either. It was an entertaining set with another big fan base. Then I caught Bob Schneider, and then G. Love with Donovan Frankenriter before the headliner, Justin Timberlake took the main stage.
Not my first time seeing JT, G.Love, Schneider, Kaleo etc. and they all played great sets. Benson Boone hit the stage just before JT and the photographers in the pit were perched for his flip at the beginning. I wasn't tall enough to get the shot over the height of the stage. And I was trying to figure out how to see him. At the start of Boones' set a trail of celebs walked through the pit to watch his set from a 'special' place in the phot pit. Kate Hudson, Steph Curry, and about five others walked thru and in front of me. I was really concerned with
how I'd get the Benson Boone flip shot so I wasn't concentrating on the celebs walking by. But afterwards in the media bldg, another photographer noticed my FF logo (Foo Fighters) on my jacket and said you musta been thrilled to see Dave (Grohl) in the pit with us! OMG, I was so disappointed I didnt even notice! He's one of my faves. Apparently he was incognito with his hair tied back and was wearing a baseball cap. It would've been very cool to see Dave Grohl standing beside me in the pit....Hopefully next time.
On the way to the pit, the photographers were stopped to allow Benson Boone and his entourage to cross over the street backstage to the main stage. It was sweet to see Benson and his girlfriend holding hands on the way. Then, one of the photographers shouted out, "Hey Benson how bout a selfie" Benson looked at us and laughed whilst he made his way up the stairs. Super cute! His set was great, he was adorable. Full of smiles and lotsa personality. Super fans in the audience behind me had their signs out for Boone. All had a super good time, including him!
Justin Timberlakes' set was the headliner on the big stage, and it was quite the fiery performance. The dancers and Timberlakes' stage presence were all very lively as you'd imagine. JT, (now 44 years old) began his career as part of the boy band, NSYNC. He is now married to Jessica Biel and he is still an amazing performer/dancer. Perfect boyband material! He was all over the stage with strong vocals and a heavy dose of dance moves spread throughout the entire show. The crowd loved him to bits and everyone in the audience was dancing and singing during his two hour set. Whilst JT' performed I was walking around shooting from all different angles as there was so much to see. Not only plenty of dance moves by JT himself but his dancers and the pyrotecnics made this set truly a sight to see from a distance as well as up close. At one point during the show a fan asked him to sign her denim jacket - and he did!
Saturday Bottlerock was fun and full of good music, a lot of people watching, and for me, lotsa photography! Bottlerock also offered a silent disco all through the weekend, which really spoke to my friend, Thea.
She went back several times and danced to her hearts content. The silent disco seemed to be her happy place at BR! This year there was also a rollerskating rink which was another popular area. I even saw a couple people bringing their own skates! But skates were provided to anyone who wanted them. There's also a culinary stage with demos all day long. One demo included Green Days' drummer Tre Cool.
Last year Tommy Lee was a fun participant at the culinary stage. He played the drums with meat bones during his demo! At BR, there were also Botox booths (which strangely seemed to appeal mostly to teens and twenties). Massages and spa services were offered all weekend long in a dedicated building for spa type things. Bottlerock is always a lot of fun for those who love music and don't mind navigating through big crowds. I have loved every year that I've been going, since the first in 2013. Thanks to Monty, Kellie and Tom for doing the work to make this an excellent event!
Please check out my You Tube channel for videos from the weekend and more: youtube.com/@TheMusicSoupVideo?sub_confirmation=1 ©Cheryl Alterman Photography 2025
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