LibertyFest!!! – 2009

To learn about the 2012 LibertyFest, visit the Facebook event page.

The July 4th weekend comes upon us once again, and like many other traditions of our day, Smith Hill will be host to the grandest neighborhood party in all the land, the 10th annual LibertyFest!

This annual event hits it’s decade mark this year, and will be located in a new location, West Park Street. With 22 bands going from noon on to the late evening (10 – 11ish), you get to catch the full spectrum of Providence’s music scene, and even some friendly visitors from across the northeast. Having brought memorable performances in the past from such bands as Mahi Mahi, Deer Tick, What Cheer? Brigade, and other high-caliber locals, this year’s line-up seems fit to carry the torch in superb fashion, and has three stages on which to do it. Red Hat Records has taken the task of arranging the bill this year, and has succeeded fantastically in assuring the cream of the crop from nearly every genre. There will also be activities for children ( and the young at heart ) as well, so this is an awesome event for families.

Beer will be all local, and is being provided by Narragansett Brewing Company, Block Island Blonde, and Basement Brew. The volume has always seemed enough, but this years reserves seem to be of an astounding quantity. Oh yeah, did I mention this is all free?

Food will be potluck, so feel free to contribute your own specialties, or mooch off of others as you wish. It’s a karma payment plan sort of thing. The roasting an entire goat over an open fire will carry on this year as well, a tradition that has almost become a symbol of the event, or at least a commonly told detail in many stories.

The line-up of acts is as follows, in no particular order:

• White Mice
• The Butcherings
• The Viennagram
• Llove
• The Warmingtons
• Blizzard of ’78
• Brownbird Rudy Relic
• Midnight Mongo Sound System
• Slave
• Valu-Pak
• Orb Mellon
• Triangle Forest, GlassAndSteel, Pet Set, Chris Rosenquest, Vibe Police, Caroline Hecht, Chris Hansen, Industrial Sonic Echo, Brokedown Serenade, The Atlantic Thrills, and The DEM.

If you’ve never been to LibertyFest, it’s a must that you attend at some point in your life. Living in Providence, I’m sure we’ve all come to learn that outdoor music in the summer is quite possibly one of the best things about this city, and this is one of it’s premier examples.

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