Oriental’s 9th Annual Ol’ Front Porch Music Festival, Oct. 6-7, will recapture the bluegrass and Americana roots that dominated the fall festival when it began almost a decade ago.
The two-day festival along Oriental’s riverfront will feature three emerging bands, Driftwood, and Damn Tall Buildings, both of which build on bluegrass influences to create unique sounds, and The Well Drinkers, which describes itself as “Neo-Appalachian Newgrass, with a twist of Swampgrass and Delta-Blues.”
Also in the bluegrass tradition, Liam Purcell & Cane Mill Road returns this year, as well as local favorite Moores Creek Bluegrass.
And speaking of bluegrass, Oriental’s own Harbor Sounds, a band integral to the festival’s beginnings and a longtime donor to local causes, will kick off the festival on Friday with its final concert. Festival organizers will honor the band’s commitment to the festival and the community.
Even with this focus, the festival remains an entertaining mix of musical genres and tastes, with 25 bands on the schedule, ranging from bluegrass, Americana and folk, to country, gospel, rock, and jazz. As usual, all performances are free.
Driftwood, from Binghamton, NY, will headline the festival on Friday on the Riverfront stage across from Lou Mac Park. While its music is described as Americana and folk, the band uses bluegrass instruments and influence, and “makes that sound much more interesting…with a punk-rock attitude that embraces country and rock ‘n’ roll,” according to Glide Magazine.
Damn Tall Buildings, of Brooklyn, NY, describes itself as “bluegrass at heart,” but its music, according to No Depression, the Roots Music Journal, “is influenced by jazz, swing, Americana, and old-time music.,” The band will headline the festival on Saturday on the Riverfront Stage.
Other newcomers this year include Christie Lenée of Asheville, a singer-songwriter and award-winning guitarist; Triangle jazz musician Al Strong, co-founder of the non-profit Art of Cool Project; Lua Flora, an Asheville, NC-based reggae-influenced folk group; Lou Hazel, a Chapel Hill folk singer-songwriter; Minda Lacy, a singer-songwriter from Portland, OR; and Lydia Salett Dudley, a jazz singer and musician from Raleigh.
Returning to the festival are John Bemis and Greg Hanson, Hooverville, and local favorites Gospel Ensemble, Ken Belangia, Hoff ‘n’ Finch, Brant Island Strings, Dust Parade, the Pamlico County High School Jazz Ensemble, TerryLynn Melody, Pamilco Flutes, UHOOs, and Down East Dulcimers.
The full weekend schedule, performer bios, craft and food vendor lists, festival map and more, can be found at olfrontporch.org, where you can also donate to help fund the festival, which is free to the public. The event is supported by business and individual sponsors, and grants.
The Ol’ Front Porch Music Festival celebrates the musical heritage of North Carolina the first weekend in October with two days of roots music on the front porches of homes around Oriental and on a Riverfront Stage. The festival also features a Village Market showcasing dozens of local and regional artisans and crafters, and a Food Park that offers selections from area restaurants in cooperation with local nonprofit organizations.
Ol’ Front Porch Music Festival, Inc., is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Its purpose is to provide the region’s multi-cultural and racially diverse musical talent with support, promotion and performance venues and encourage development of roots music appreciation and skills in Pamlico County, in particular among its youth.
The festival receives financial support from many businesses, organizations and individual donors, and from the Harold H. Bate Foundation; South Arts; the North Carolina Arts Council, an agency of the Department of Cultural Resources and the National Endowment for the Arts; and the Pamlico County Arts Council. Media sponsors are TownDock.net, Public Radio East, and Inner Banks Media. It is because of their generosity that the festival can be offered free to the public. Contributions are tax deductible to the extent allowed by law.
FESTIVAL SCHEDULE
Friday, October 6
Harbor Sounds: 12-1pm • Riverfront Stage
Pamlico Flutes: 1-2pm • 209 Mildred St.
John Bemis and Greg Hanson: 1-2pm • 500 South Ave.
Lua Flora: 2-3 pm • Riverfront Stage
PCHS Jazz Ensemble: 3-4pm • Stallings House
UHOOS: 3-4pm • 304 Neuse St.
Minda Lacy: 3-4pm • Marsha’s Cottage • 204 Wall St.
Well Drinkers: 4-5pm • Riverfront Stage
Lou Hazel: 5-6pm • New Village Brewery 702 Broad St.
Ken Belangia: 5-6pm • 901 South Ave.
Brant Island Strings: 5-6pm • 502 South Ave.
Driftwood: 6-7pm • Riverfront Stage
Saturday, October 7
Christee Lenee: 12-1pm • Riverfront Stage
Gospel Ensemble: 12-1pm • Oriental United Methodist Church • 404 Freemason
Minda Lacy: 12-1pm • Nautical Wheelers 411 Broad St.
Dust Parade: 1-2pm • 304 Neuse St.
Down East Dulcimers: 1-2pm • 209 Mildred St.
Hoff n’ Finch: 1-2 pm • 209 Neuse St.
Al Strong: 2-3pm • Riverfront Stage
Moores Creek Bluegrass: 3-4pm • 209 Neuse St.
TerryLyn Melody: 3-4pm • 305 Freemason St.
Lydia Salett Dudley: 3-4pm • 502 South Ave.
Cane Mill Road: 4-5pm • Riverfront Stage
Gospel Ensemble: 4-5pm • Oriental United Methodist Church • 404 Freemason
Christee Lenee: 5-6pm • New Village Brewery • 702 Broad St.
Hooverville: 5-6pm • 500 South Ave.
Damn Tall Buildings: 6-7pm • Riverfront Stage