Forecastle Festival 2018: Day One Recap

Another year, another Forecastle Festival. With this year’s lineup, it was an easy decision to make the three hour drive down to Louisville. Today alone we saw Lucero, Kurt Vile, Father John Misty, and Modest Mouse.

Walking through the gates I was immediately swallowed by the Forecastle spirit. This is my third year at Forecastle, so the feeling was a familiar embrace.

This year we brought a friend, a festival virgin. We were so excited to show him his first music festival, and what better starter festival than Forecastle? We were showing him around the grounds like proud parents.

Our day started with Lucero. We were melting in the Kentucky sun, which meant we had something in common with Ben Nichols. He sighed between every song reminding us how he’s from the south, but even this heat was intense for him. They tried to cool themselves down with PBR after PBR – right on brand for them. Lucero is like that really good local band you saw in a dive bar one time, except they got signed and now tour the world. But their brand still remains PBR, plaid, trucker hats, and jeans.

After Lucero, we checked out the Bourbon Lodge – worth every penny each year. The air conditioning alone is worth the additional $30 for the weekend. $10/day for limitless access to air conditioning? That would be worth it even without the air conditioned restrooms, private seating area, whiskey tastings, and all the other bonuses.

Kurt Vile should always be listened to with a bourbon in hand, which is exactly how we did it. While we were a little surprised not to see any guest appearances (ahem, Courtney Barnett), he gave an incredible performance.

This is my second time seeing Father John Misty this summer…and I’m not totally sure how I feel about his new reticent, mum thing he has going on. I get that it’s kind of the theme of the new album. But he used to tell jokes, interact with the audience, he used to put on a SHOW. His talent is still undeniable, it’s just different than what his shows used to be. Even so, he still has the voice of an angel, and his songs are masterpieces. We grabbed a spot on the back of the lawn and soaked in the whole festival. The sunset behind him just made it all the more magical.

Modest Mouse closed out night one. The crowd sang along to nearly every song. Unfortunately, that was not enough to help with their obvious sound issues. The band was continuously messing with their in-ears, they were playing all their songs really fast, and Isaac Brock was clearly frustrated. This was all masked by the fireworks show during their first few songs. Cheery enough to veil any blunders. Even though we all realized the performance was off, we still had the time of our lives. Musical ability was never really their appeal anyway.

At the end of the day, we made our way back to the beautiful Brown Hotel to reflect on the amazing day we just had, and rest up for day two. See you tomorrow, Forecastle!

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