Mulberry River Jam coming to Byrd’s Adventure Center April 29-30

Now that Wakarusa has settled in the area, and the Yonder Mountain String Band Harvest Music Festival has taken off, the Mulberry River is already home to some pretty amazing music festivals.

If it were possible for those two festivals to mate, and they were able to conceive a baby music festival, that festival might be something like the brand new Mulberry River Jam, set to debut on April 29-30 at Byrd’s Adventure Center.

The two-day event will feature 12 bands, hiking, mountain biking, food vendors, and other outdoor activites.

“We wanted to create a festival with a relaxed, outdoor theme,” said Clint Keller, one of the organizers of the Mulberry River Jam. “It’s really going to be about more than just music and camping because of how great the festival site is.”

Event poster

Keller organized a similar small festival on his own in the area last year, and decided to team up with Maurice Elliot (Fayettechill) with hopes to create a new spring tradition in Northwest Arkansas.

“We definitely have plans to make this an annual event,” Keller said. “Hopefully we can make it grown to bring in even bigger acts in the future.”

The music lineup for the festival includes performances by Archnemesis, Space Capone, Fatty Lumpkin, Gravity Feed, Melody Memory, 1 oz jig, The Euphio Question, Goose, The Swoops, DJ Baxstar, and DJ Jason Sterling.

The schedule for the bands hasn’t been determined, but Keller said there will be music beginning in the afternoon until late into the evening on both nights.

Turner Bend and Byrd’s Adventure Center will offer equipment rentals during the festival, and kayaks, canoes and rafts are now available from both excursion companies for reservation on a first-come, first-served basis.

Tickets to Mulberry River Jam are on sale now at fayettechill.com and range from an “early-bird” price of $30, to $50 for last-minute tickets.