I’m beginning to get quite excited about going to 10KLF this year. This will be our third 10K in a row – and while we had some debate about trying Rothbury this year, eventually our past enjoyment of the easy vibe at Detroit Lakes won out.

Of course, the headline acts - Dave Matthews Band and Wilco - will be fantastic. That's why they are so big. And I look forward to seeing Widespread Panic for the first time... But my experience at festivals past has always been that some of the best times are found among the lesser-known bands!

One of the acts I’m looking forward to seeing this year at 10KLF is Pretty Lights - one of the musical monikers for Colorado-based producer Derek Vincent Smith, accompanied in the live setting by Cory Eberhard on drums.

Pretty Lights offers his albums for free download at prettylightsmusic.com. I recently downloaded his first two releases - Taking Up Your Precious Time and Filling Up The City Skies and have been diggin’ them ... a lot. Mad beats and vintage samples. His publicity folks described it well: “electro organic cutting-edge party rocking beats.” (Well-worth a donation, IMHO.)

“I love using obscure old vinyl, analog synthesizers, and vintage dub gear in my beats; because there are no replacements, no imitations, and no substitutions that come close to the sounds that this stuff creates.” – Derek Vincent Smith

It really hits my sweetspot... My advice: Listen to these albums, then go out and groove along at the High Noon Saloon. It promises to be a good party…

Pretty Lights has also got a new album coming out any day - Passing By Behind Your Eyes – Look for free download on prettylightsmusic.com.