The Gentlemen of the Road music festival took place this past weekend in Waverly and had more than 16,000 guests in attendance.

Waverly is a small town in Northeast Iowa and is home to the Wartburg Knights. It was a shock to many Iowans when they heard that Grammy-winning British folk band, Mumford & Sons, would be headlining the June 20 shows at the festival this year.

“The location was great. I may be a little bias because I’m from the area, but I was really excited when I heard it was coming to Waverly,” said ISU alumna Samantha Henke. “It’s a great town along the river with a pretty little main street.” 

Each stopover is a two-day event that combines the intimacy of a community celebration with the excitement of a world-class music festival. Along with the amazing music, there was also a series of smaller events that took place involving local businesses, venues and people in the town of Waverly.

Along with Mumford & Sons, there were also many internationally acclaimed artists including the Flaming Lips, My Morning Jacket, Dawes, Jenny Lewis, the Maccabees, the Very Best, Rubblebucket, JEFF the Brotherhood, Blake Mills and many more.

“I was beyond excited to see Dawes, The Flaming Lips, and of course, Mumford & Sons,” Henke said. “I had been wanting to see The Flaming Lips for years because of the show they put on. It’s full of confetti, balloons, blow-up butterflies and rainbows. And Wayne Coyne surfs the crowd in a human hamster ball. It’s one of those shows that engages the entire crowd, front to back, and creates such a positive atmosphere.” 

When it comes down to the music, Mumford & Sons stole the show, as expected. The group did a short acoustic set that silenced the crowd in the middle of the show. It was a high energy show, everyone in the crowd knew the lyrics and were singing along to every song.

Many patrons were worried about the large amount of rain Waverly received the morning of the festival, but the rain stayed away for the night shows.