This past weekend, Aug 28-29, LouFest took place in Forest Park. I have to say, I was extremely impressed.
Each day, the music began at noon and went until about 11 p.m. and though I didn’t necessarily love every band, there was a ton of variety in the music. Anyone who attended could find at least one band they liked.
Everything was on time and because the acts switched between two stages, there was hardly any waiting in between bands.
Because of the amount of volunteers and how smoothly everything ran, it certainly did not seem as though this was LouFest’s first year. Beyond that, the headlining bands were all impressive and energetic.
The energy of the entire festival was great. Many of the bands seemed so genuinely excited to be there and that happy energy seemed to leak onto the crowd. There was one band in particular that did this excellently.
The Carolina Chocolate Drops is a three-piece band that plays old jazz, blues and bluegrass. The members all sing and play a variety of instruments such as banjo, violin and guitar. The band played in the early afternoon on Aug 29 and was as cheery as the weather that day. It seemed as though everyone in the crowd was clapping or dancing along with the music.
The food at the festival was incredible. I had a crepe for dinner one night, that’s how good the food was. Whether you were vegetarian, vegan or a meat lover, there were many options to choose from at a relatively low price.
LouFest captured the “green” element almost flawlessly as well. There was a water station set up as well, where anyone could fill their water bottles up for free. It definitely reduced the amount of water bottles being bought, which meant less trash. There were recycling areas set up with volunteers to answer any questions about what could and couldn’t be recycled.
All in all, I think LouFest will have a very positive effect on St. Louis in the next following years. I believe more and more people will be attracted from around the country to come and who knows, it might turn into one of the major music festivals in the U.S.
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