The McDowell Mountain Music festival has come and gone once again in Arizona, however, this year they brought a special treat. On Saturday Dispatch opened for Slightly Stoopid providing the audience with some of the best music ever created. Dispatch had a great performance sounding as good if not better than their album. But why would someone pay money to see an album they already own played live? Dispatch answered this question quite well with various change ups in the songs and improvisations that gave their performance a great feeling. Later in the night, the headliner, Slightly Stoopid performed. If you’ve never heard of Slightly Stoopid before, take a chance to listen to them. They sounded absolutely amazing on stage with their mix of reggae guitars, amazing drums, great vocals, and beautiful sounding horns. Besides the music there is another aspect to make a concert great, the fans. Everyone in the audience was extremely friendly and very outgoing. Many of them traveled as far as Vermont to see these bands play and were some of the nicest people I have ever met. Another aspect is the venue. The festival took place in a park in phoenix which provided an atmosphere away from the desert and made it look as though we were in a forested area such as the south instead of the Mohave. In the end, thanks to the help of Slightly Stoopid and Dispatch, the McDowell Mountain music festival was absolutely fabulous, I would give it a 10/10, would go to again.