By ANDREW SPIESS
BG Independent News
Think of BG Porchfest as an annual block party, reaching down Eberly, and taking a few turns around the immediate neighborhood. During the bright afternoon on Saturday, Porchfest kicked off with the Brazilian rhythms of Samba Bateria, comprised of members of the BGSU Falcon Marching Band’s drumline.
Crowds lined the sidewalks and lawns of the 11 porches, eager for the music, food and camaraderie that Porchfest offered.
Arlyn’s Good Beer offered another focal point in the festival, serving drinks all day and hosting a handful of performances inside the bar.
Food and beverages were provided by food trucks and pop-up food vendors. The Tucker Truck, offering Australian cuisine, parked on the north side of Eberly, and Now Serving, a local pop-up offering sandwiches and sides, made another welcome appearance, setting up next to Arlyn’s.
Brian Young – one of three head organizers, along with Bob Midden and Mary Dennis – confirmed that the turnout would be bigger than previous years.
Young spoke about the evolving complexities of producing the event. “There’s a lot of moving parts,” he said. “But it’s not like it was when we first started, when it was two moving parts. Now we have porta-potties, and now we have garbage cans, and now we have signs and sponsors, and we’ve got to take care of the sponsors and make sure they’re out there and things like that.”
Noted on the website, Porchfests are held in many places across the nation. BG resident Bonna Boettcher spent time in Ithaca, New York, where the first Porchfest was held. While Ithaca’s Porchfest now takes up “three times this space [of Bowling Green’s],” she conceded, “It too started very small.” The music at Bowling Green’s Porchfest offered a good diversity, with the Samba Bateria as one of the highlights, she said.
For Bowling Green, Porchfest is a unique experience. People are invited to sit in lawn chairs and spread blankets across the grass while bands and singer/songwriters set up their equipment for hour-long performances on the designated porches.
Audiences were full and diverse, with plenty of space for everyone. The festival offered a relaxed, comfortable experience for all involved.
At Arlyn’s, KASE Quartet was eager to make their festival debut, despite having played at the bar’s weekly jazz night. The group is comprised of four former BGSU students with varying musical specializations, all of whom consider Arlyn’s to be “home turf.” Saxophonist Will Edwards said, “Porchfest is a large event for the Bowling Green community and being so music-centric, music students are bound to hear about it, play on it, attend it.”
A band that has been together for 10 strong years, The Battle — composed of Donne on drums, Chris on guitar, Dan on bass, and Ron on guitar and synth — is a four-piece band from Cleveland that plays instrumental post-rock songs that swell deep in your chest.
They’ve never played at an event like Porchfest, although they admitted that they were excited. “We are kind of a play-anywhere-for-anyone kind of band, so if there’s a gig and we think it sounds like it could be interesting or cool, then we will probably do it.” Their set was the first of several shows they have planned for this summer, including Post Festival in Indianapolis July 23-25.
Ethan Marc of Ethan Marc Band, a group from Detroit, acknowledged that playing at this humble event was a nice change within their recently busy touring schedule.
“For the whole tour we’re playing venues, and then [Porchfest] was a more organic show to end the tour off on,” Marc said.
“A lot of our music touches on mental health and substance abuse and just dealing with personal stuff,” he said about the value of live music. “I feel like music’s a great medium to kind of connect with people and bring people together.”
Katie Hicks and Emily Connors made the trip from Detroit exclusively to listen to the Ethan Marc Band. “We love their music and saw they were to perform at BG Porchfest and decided to make the trip,” Connors said.
“Porchfest is phenomenal. I’ve never heard of anything like this,” Hicks said. “Everything about the event is perfect: the weather, the variety of music and the atmosphere.”
On Eberly, folks gathered to hear the entrancing Celtic tones of Toraigh, embodied by Bob Midden on flute, Thomas Wheeler on guitar, and Brendan Fitzgerald on the fiddle.
Reflecting on the value of togetherness, Wheeler mused about the overall setting. “We just look around and look at all these people, and it’s just the most beautiful day. It’s playing outside on the most beautiful day in nature, surrounded by a whole bunch of people in this small-town community.”
Wheeler’s opinion is undeniable. A significant element of Porchfest lies in the way the festival brings people together. It’s an exercise in strengthening community sentiments. It’s seen in the way people occupy the same outdoor space, some of them strangers to each other, some local, and some from out of town, sharing the experience of listening and watching musicians perform live. And in the moment, it’s a good time.
