A diverse mix of Rock, Country, Blues, Hip Hop and Soul with touches of Folk and R&B filled Louisville’s Waterfront Park at this year’s Forecastle Festival headlined by Modest Mouse, Chris Stapleton, and Arcade Fire.
Forecastle Festival returns to Louisville for its 16th year supporting Art, Music, and Activism. What began as a small festival in 2002 has grown into a highly anticipated annual event drawing more than 60,000 fans from all over the country, featuring more than 60 bands and DJ’s on 5 stages at Waterfront Park in downtown Louisville. Proceeds from the Festival go to the Forecastle Foundation, whose mission is to protect endangered areas of the planet.
Friday, July 13, 2018: Opening Day
There were no bad omens this Friday the 13th, just 1000’s of music-hungry fans converging on Louisville’s Waterfront Park as the 2018 Forecastle festival gets off to a roaring start.
Headliner Modest Mouse returned to Forecastle after a 3-year hiatus with a rousing set in front of a jam-packed “Mast Stage”. Their set opened with” The World at Large” and included several fan favorites like “Black Cadillacs,” “Dramamine” “Cowboy Dan”. Clearly drawing the largest crowd of the day Modest Mouse closed out opening day of Forecastle in style with “Tiny Cities Made Of Ashes”
Friday highlights start with Nashville based singer-songwriter Devon Gilfillian. Opening the Main Mast stage, Devon and the guys came out blazing with a top set opening with “Hole,” “Dangerous,” and “Old Friends” in rapid-fire succession. Devon closed out his time at Forecastle with his latest single “Troublemaker” which just went over the 1,000,000-stream mark setting the bar for the rest of the day’s performers.
Less than 2 hours after Devon Gilfillan’s set, also on the main stage were AJR. The indie pop band composed of multi-instrumentalist brothers Adam, Jack and Ryan Met had the entire crowd jumping and moving from their opening chords.
As the temperatures outside finally started to dip a little the performances definitely did not as Rainbow Kitten Surprise took their turn in front of a large crowd of energetic fans. Pouring out energy on stage Rainbow Kitten Surprise didn’t waste even a minute of their hour-long set with an amazing set which included their hit song “Devil Like Me”.
Last but definitely not least was an outstanding set by Father John Misty (FJM). Opening their set with “Nancy From Now On,” “Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins),” and “Total Entertainment Forever” FJM gave his fans everything they wanted to see and hear, certainly capturing new fans along the way.
Also performing on Friday were Arlie, Yardij, I’m With Her, Flagship, Lucero, Berhana, Kurt Vile and the Violators, Jai Wolf, Vance Joy, and Louis The Child.
Saturday, July 14, 2018:
The hottest day of the summer in Louisville greets festival goers to Saturday’s events and it seems everyone is talking about tonight’s headliner, Lexington, KY native Chris Stapleton. Saturday is a sell-out for Forecastle and you can definitely feel the excitement in the air. Despite the large crowds the Festival seemed to handle everything easily.
With the sun setting over the Ohio river creating a dramatic backdrop Chris Stapleton comes on to the main stage greeted by a huge roar from the massive crowd packed around the Mast Stage. Opening the set with the Steel Drivers cover of “Midnight Train to Memphis,” “Nobody to Blame” and “Them Stems” his headline performance starts off strong and does not disappoint. Over the next 90-minutes, Stapleton has a little something for even the casual fans as he rolls through “Outlaw State of Mind” “Fire Away” “Might As Well Get Stoned”, ultimately closing the memorable performance with “Tennessee Whiskey.”
This day is filled with one memorable performance after another: Even though their appearance on the main Mast Stage was early in the day, Jimmy Eat World simply rocked the house. It seemed that everyone in the attendance was singing with Jimmy Eat World as they closed their set with the “The Middle”, creating a very special moment.
A little bit later in the afternoon, there was an explosion occurring at the Ocean Stage. An explosion of energy as the dynamic EDM duo, Hippie Sabotage blew onto the stage. Composed of brothers Kevin and Jeff Saurer, Hippie Sabotage has the large, swarming crowd bouncing and jumping for their entire set.
During a set that isn’t long enough to satisfy this crowd, The War on Drugs walked on to the Boom Stage with a purpose. Delivering a dynamic set beginning with “Arms Like Boulders,” “Burning,” and “An Ocean in Between the Waves” before ultimately ending their set with “Baby Missles”. The War on Drugs left a lasting impression with both old and new fans.
Also performing on Saturday were Brent Cobb, Spencer Lee Band, Prvis, Hiss Golden Messenger, Margo Price, Morgan Saint, Jenny Lewis, Houndmouth, and T-Pain.
Sunday, July 15, 2018: Closing Day
Much appreciated cooler temperatures and rain greet festival goers as Forecastle Festival kicks for their third and final day. One of the greatest things at Forecastle every year is the diverse array of musicians and performances that are scheduled, with today’s lineup proving to be a perfect example. A solid stream of fans flood into the festival grounds despite threatening skies, eager to see headliner Arcade Fire bring this year’s festival to a close. Arcade Fire’s set does not disappoint the solid crowd of loyal fans as they end the night with “Everything Now” and the giant sing-along song “Wake-Up” putting a giant exclamation point on a spectacular day and festival.
Memorable performances abound throughout the day: After a brief rainstorm passed over the festival grounds, Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit rolled out a sharp and spot on 11-song set which included Drive-By Truckers covers of “Outfit”, “Never Gonna Change,” “Goddamn Lonely Love,” before closing the set in a great way with “Super 8”.
Also performing on Sunday were Colony House, Ron Gallo, Matt Maeson, White Reaper, Tyminski, Saint JHN, Trampled by Turtles, Ok Wonder, Punch Brothers, Courtney Barnet and Vic Mensa.
Further cementing its place in the local Louisville community, the Forecastle Festival is always well organized and well run with ample amenities to make the entire weekend a pleasure to attend. 3 days, 60+ bands and DJ’s, more than 70 separate performances across 5 different stages leave the 2018 Forecastle Festival goers tired, sunburned (wet on Sunday) yet thoroughly satisfied: Who’s ready for 2019?
