Porchfest

Yesterday afternoon, I took a little trip down to the commons with my brother to grab some lunch and go on a stroll around the Porchfest festival. I honestly wasn't really sure what Porchfest was going to be like, all I thought was that there would be a lot of fiddles, banjos, and old-timey folk music. And while I did in fact see fiddles, banjos, etc. when I got there, I was very surprised by the variety of music that was actually played. Even though I didn't stay for long (only strolled around for around 20 minutes) I was bombarded by a a large variety of musical genres and instruments. Everywhere I walked, I would encounter very different sounds.

For the most part, none of the music I heard was very refined. Now that's not to say there weren't great musicians, it's just that it was usually very relaxed. The musicians took their time, and just had fun with it. It was a very different experience than most concerts, as it felt like there was more of a connection between performers and listeners. Because of this, I definitely found it harder to listen analytically to the musical phrasing and whatnot. So, in general, I just listened casually and enjoyed the music. 

The most interesting thing I saw was this 3-piece band with a sort of 70s funk-rock guitar sound. (sort of like "Phish", jam-band esque) I don't recall the name, but It was just so completely different from anything I would have expected to see there. Again, these didn't seem like the most refined musicians, it was just some guys having fun doing what they loved. That relaxed atmosphere is  what I thought was really cool Porchfest, and made me really enjoy my brief stroll through.