One of the best things to happen in the last couple of years was having Sludgeworth reunite. Not only have they played a handful of really good shows but they even put out a new single! Thankfully they still seem to have plenty more in the tank as they headlined the relatively new Edgewater Music Fest on Saturday night. This will be their only performance this year so it was something pretty special already.
The festival was held in Edgewater (obviously) on Broadway Street and had two stages, one on the north end of the fest and one on the south end. Between them was lots of vendors and things to do. It really was a nicely put together and well run festival and the weather was very cooperative for the weekend.
Sludgeworth closed the north stage out with a set that lasted a little over an hour. They opened with “Together” which is about as strong of an opener in their excellent repertoire as you could hope for, as if that wasn’t enough, they quickly followed it up with “Two Feet On The Ground” from their first 7″! They were on fire from the get go and honestly while watching them perform you would have thought they’ve been active for all these years and didn’t take the better part of the last three decades off aside from a couple of reunion shows. Next they played a brand new song, “Simulation” that will be on the new album they have planned for next year! It was fantastic and the thought of a new Sludgeworth album is very exciting. This band has always been something pretty special, and the world needs more Sludgeworth music in it.
The band played a great set full of old favorites plus a bunch of the new material we have yet to hear on a record and all of it was flawless. The crowd ate it all up like candy and really liked the new songs too. As has been a recent tradition, for one song the band was joined by drummer, Brian McQuaid’s son Max, who drummed for that song, and that kid killed it again! He was great and now we have two generations of Sludgeworth drummers during a show which was a lot of fun and that has to be a proud dad moment for Brian. Max has a band of his own that is well worth checking out called Feral Tact.
When the dust settled and the band left the stage, the crowd was all smiles. The band drew a great crowd of old friends and newer, younger faces, and everyone was way into it. It was the best way to spend a Saturday night and the smiles on those faces will last for many days beyond last weekend. 2026 is going to be an exciting year for Sludgeworth fans with the coming of a new album and some more live shows. I can speak for everyone when I say that we can’t wait!
