When you imagine Minnesota in February, what comes to mind? Maybe live music isn't the first thing to pop up, but a new music festival in Red Wing is hoping to change that.

Big Turn Music Fest will take place in downtown Red Wing on Feb. 16 and 17, and will feature nearly 100 bands and 17 venues. Headliners include Porcupine, Caroline Smith, jeremy messersmith, Heiruspecs, Toki Wright, and Dave Simonett (of Trampled by Turtles). The festival is organized by Red Wing native Sam Brown, who founded the Mid West Music Fest in 2010 in Winona.

The name "Big Turn" comes from the sharp bend in the Mississippi River in Red Wing. The name also marks a symbolic shift in the trajectory of the town, which organizer Sam Brown hopes will allow people to "experience Red Wing through music."

Big Turn will bring music to 17 venues in downtown Red Wing, including the Sheldon Theatre. When he came up with the idea for Big Turn, Brown knew that he wanted to incorporate the Sheldon. "It’s really exciting that I’m able to work with them and bring Big Turn into the Sheldon’s walls," he said. In addition to hosting music, the Sheldon will also run the box office for the festival.

Among the festival's headliners are La Crosse, Wisc. band Porcupine. This choice of headliner is a serendipitous one for Brown. Porcupine helped him establish Mid West Music Fest in Winona back in 2010 and have performed at the festival every year since. "Porcupine headlining Big Turn Music Fest this year is one of the most exciting moments I’ve had in all of my music organizing history," he said.

Last year, Porcupine added Hüsker Dü basist Greg Norton (and current Red Wing resident) to their lineup. Norton dabbled in Red Wing's culinary circuit by opening the (now closed) restaurant, The Norton's. This year, he is turning to the town's music scene with Porcupine as they headline the Sheldon Theatre at Big Turn.

Other acts on the festival's lineup include Caroline Smith, Dave Simonett (Dead Man Winter, Trampled By Turtles), Lydia Liza, Twilight Hours, Little Fevers, LOTT, and Jillian Rae. In crafting the lineup, Brown aimed to keep it varied. "I pride myself on trying to keep it eclectic and trying to bring something for everyone," he said. "There’s a lot of synergy with this lineup even though it may not appear so." 

While February may not be the most conventional time of year for a music festival, Brown is hoping that the festival's date will bring visitors to Red Wing during an otherwise slow time of year. The choice to hold the festival in the dead of winter in Minnesota may not seem like an obvious choice to some, but Brown described the timing as an affirmation of Red Wing's vibrancy year-round. "We still exist in February just as much as we exist in the summer in Minnesota, and we still like music, right?"

Brown calls this festival "an outstanding homecoming" for him. After spending time in Winona organizing the Mid West Music Fest, he is excited to be back in Red Wing to help visitors and natives alike experience his hometown through Big Turn.

Tickets for Big Turn Music Fest can be purchased online at bigturnmusicfest.com or via the Sheldon Theatre.

Complete lineup

Porcupine

Caroline Smith

jeremy messersmith

Heiruspecs

Dave Simonett

Rogue Valley

Twilight Hours

We Are The Willows

Apollo Cobra

Jillian Rae

Trapper Schoepp

LOTT

Ben Weaver

Little Fevers

Lydia Liza

General B and the Wiz

Ali and the Scoundrels

Brothers Burn Mountain

The Ditch Lilies

Ruben

Early Eyes

The Ultrasounds

Mike Munson

The Heavy Set

Gabriel Douglas

Matt Monsoor

Karate Chop, Silence

Busey

Dirt Train

The Lowland Lakers

Fletcher Magellan

Jake Manders

Poor Lemuel

Wastrels

Jacob Grippen

Mista Clue

Barbaro

Second Story

Meadowlark Valley

Jeff Arundel and the Hammsmen

Niki Becker

Universal Music Center Students

Tommy Bentz Band

Ryan Traster Band

Red Sky Warning

Clams

Fugnacious

Northern Shoveler

Beef Slough Boys

Colby Kent & The Stompin Ground

Autokab

Israel Roemer

H2

Deathless Dogs

Alluvion

David and Esther

Sterling Haukom

The Andy Nelson Galactic Trio

My Grandma’s Cardigan

Matt Ray

Twisted Humor

Barely Losing

MIDWEST VOLTAGE

Liquor Beats Winter

Loons in the Attic

Brooke Elizabeth

Joey Flip

Mudcat

Amanda Grace

Ryan Mingone

Etumu Elmari

Double Down Daredevils

Parasympathy

A Constant Cough

Henry James Patterson

Charlie Brown

Patrick T Walsh

Burke Band

Boulevard X

Levi Besaw

George Knobloch III

Sojourner

Beebe + Keeley

Wing Dam Jammers

bo.monro

TOPO

Pelly

Colleen Cowie is a student at Macalester College. She hosts the show Locally Sourced on WMCN.