Skipping Railbird? Try Porch Fest, Lexington’s free concert series this weekend

For those who aren’t attending the Railbird Music Festival at Red Mile, there’s another option in town: the second annual Lexington Porch Fest will take place this weekend.

Porch Fest hosts free, family-friendly concerts throughout the city on Saturday, June 6, and Sunday, June 7, with shows scheduled from 12 p.m. – 6 p.m. The full schedule and map of concerts can be viewed here.

Presented by Smiley Pete Publishing and BACK Construction, the festival will feature over 40 local and regional musicians. Attendees can choose from a variety of genres, including Americana, bluegrass, R&B, alternative rock, blues, singer-songwriter and more.

Porch Fest debuted last year as part of Lexington’s 250Lex celebration, and was held the weekend after Railbird. While this year’s overlap with Railbird, where weekend passes cost nearly $300, was accidental, event coordinator Saraya Brewer said she still expects a strong turnout.

“At first I was like, ‘Oh no, it’s the same weekend as Railbird,’ and then I realized, this is a very different event. It’s easy to pop out and still take care of having your downtime on the weekend,” Brewer said. “So, for folks who maybe aren’t into the big festival, this is another fun and interesting, free opportunity to experience live music.”

The event’s webpage encourages Lexingtonians to attend as many of the concerts as they’d like and “prepare to be surprised and find something new.”

Take, for example, local quartet Nero’s Fiddle, returning to Porch Fest with their unique “Appalachiacana” sound.

Founded by banjo and dulcimer player Carl Wagoner and his wife Tina, Nero’s Fiddle uses the instrumentation of “old-time” fiddle tunes to cover everything from classic rock and gospel to Johann Sebastian Bach, Antonio Lucio Vivaldi, Stephen Foster and John Prine.

The festival is the group’s “easiest gig of the year,” Wagoner said, because they get to play from the comfort of his front porch.

“You don’t have to pack up the car, you don’t have to drive, you know, five, 10, 20, 100 miles. All of our gear’s here,” Wagoner said. “We just move it outside. My neighbors get to come by, and we get to sit around, and it’s just fun.”

While bands aren’t paid to play Porch Fest’s shows beyond the optional tip jars, Wagoner said it’s more than worth his group’s time.

“All of us have been playing music professionally for 50 years, and we know we’re not going to make any money,” Wagoner said. “We do it because we are friends, we like the music we play, and people seem to like it, and it’s just pure joy for me.”

Nero’s Fiddle will play at 2 p.m. on Saturday at 852 Robin Road.

Not everyone will play from their own porch this weekend. Brewer said part of her job was “matchmaking” bands that didn’t have porches with hosts.

“It’s kind of like a social experiment, leaving it up to people to figure it out, coordinate all the details that they need to with the musician, even if they’ve never met them,” Brewer said. “It’s been really awesome to see how many people are just up to participate in something like this when they have no idea what to expect.”

For Brewer, this collaboration between strangers is what makes Porch Fest special, creating new connections throughout the community.

“A lot of these are bands that rarely play outside of their garage,” Brewer said. “They’re bands that are just playing for fun, and so this is for them an opportunity to have a really fun, low-key way to connect with a new audience.”