For 15 years, New Sweden’s Thomas Park rang with the sounds of the Arootsakoostik Music Festival, founded by local musician and songwriter Travis Cyr.
Now, Cyr and bandmate Laura Bagley, who perform as 40 Thieves, are spearheading a new festival this month that will bring folk and roots artists back to The County.
The inaugural Coddiwomple will feature five bands over five hours at the historic park’s amphitheater. Musicians from southern Maine and elsewhere will join the local band. It’s a continuation of the Arootsakoostik spirit that aims to showcase the roots music scene with a new vibe, according to Bagley — hence the catchy name.
“‘Coddiwomple’ means ‘to travel in a purposeful manner toward an unknown destination,’” Bagley said. “We might not know where we’re ending up with this, but we can travel in a purposeful way. We thought it was a fun name for a new event here.”
You won’t find the word in Merriam-Webster. It apparently originated fairly recently through internet slang, and is proposed as a new word in Collins Dictionary.
Cyr has played music for more than 20 years across Maine and New England. Arootsakoostik ended its run last year, having brought numerous Maine artists to New Sweden, including popular acts Ghost of Paul Revere and the Mallett Brothers Band, along with a variety of country, folk, psychedelic rock and blues musicians.
He and Bagley formed 40 Thieves about a year and a half ago.
Bagley described their sound as “cosmic folk and roots.” They focus on close harmonies and include some distortion and spacy sound effects.
Cyr plays guitar and uses pedals to produce a wide range of tones, while Bagley sings and plays a bit of handheld synthesizer. It’s a big sound that’s unexpected from folk musicians, she said.
The musicians joining them have all played at Arootsakoostik in the past, Bagley said.
Hailing from the Portland area are Van Buren native Matt LaJoie, who plays solo psychedelic guitar, and Dark Hollow Bottling Company, an Americana and bluegrass string band. Joining them are Hymn For Her, a family country blues band based partly in Florida, and Vermont-based Jaded Ravins, a duo playing gritty roots rock.
Bagley and Cyr wanted to host an event that united musicians who are familiar in Maine at the same spot where Arootsakoostik took place. Coddiwomple embodies the same spirit of building community through music, Bagley said.
Earlier this year, 40 Thieves released a new album with original songs, which was another reason they wanted to create a musical celebration.
“We feel very grateful and blessed,” Bagley said. “We wanted to play that stage ourselves to celebrate the year we’ve had. The sound is amazing in there and it’s a great area for this sort of event.”
The festival came together with community support, especially from Matt Holabird of Caribou, she said. Holabird owns Bennett Drive Redemption and helped fund the event. Cyr reached out to some fellow musicians, who were eager to return to Thomas Park.
They looped in printmaker Risica Caputi of Island Falls for the artwork. Caputi designed an image of a medieval-styled traveling minstrel under a starry sky, with the names of the bands lettered alongside. The image will appear on limited-edition shirts as well, Bagley said.
Coddiwomple is slated from noon to 5 p.m. on Saturday, Sept. 13. Gates will open at 11 a.m. and the event is family friendly, Bagley said. There is a playground at the park for kids, along with walking trails that people can explore while listening.
Local vendors will offer food and drink, including Storibord Coffee from Fort Fairfield, Maine-ly Meat ‘n Potatoes from Grand Isle and Harper’s Brain Freeze with snow cones.
Admission is $20 per person, cash only, at the gate. Children under 12 are admitted free.
Bagley is happy to see the park used for more music and to share the event with the community.
“The intention has always been joy,” she said. “We wanted to bring some joy to the area, to foster community through music, to focus on Maine art, original music and highlight some really great talent from our state.”
