Poorcastle is the 'festival for the rest of us'

• The Poorcastle Festival began as a reaction to the rising cost the Forecastle Festival.
• Poorcastle features only local artists and charges $5 per day or $10 for three days.
• Poorcastle is now a benefit for Louisville's Crescent Hill Radio.

The Poorcastle Festival began three years ago, literally as a joke.

Kevin Gibson and Butch Bays were hosting their Flies on the Wall show on Crescent Hill Radio, talking about how tickets to the Forecastle Festival had gotten too expensive. Louisville needed a cheap alternative showcasing nothing but local music — a festival for the rest of us, they called it.

Friends Shaina Wagner, Adam Crowhorn and James Ryan Bohr were hanging out with them in the studio. They took the joke a bit more seriously.

"We mentioned it on the air and when the show was over, they said 'You know we're going to do this, right?'," Gibson said. "That's how it started."

Poorcastle has quickly become a thing. After drawing more than 700 people to Apocalypse Brew Works in 2013, it doubled its crowd while expanding to two days. This Friday, Saturday and Sunday it becomes a full-blown festival with sponsors and 33 bands playing.

And it's still cheap: $5 per day or $10 for a three-day pass. Proceeds benefit Crescent Hill Radio, 100.9-FM and streaming at www.crescenthillradio.com, a station dedicated to local music of all genres.

Last year, Gibson suggested making Poorcastle a station benefit for a couple of practical reasons. One was the $4,000 it raised for the station.

"As it started to pick up some buzz, we were a little worried that Forecastle would stomp on it," Gibson said, "so we thought it might be better to make it a community thing, because if we're not making money on it they might leave us alone.

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"I hear third-hand that they're OK with it, so we always do it the weekend before Forecastle because it sort of helps get people in the mood."

Here the 2015 Poorcastle lineup, with bands listed in the order in which they'll appear.

Friday — Freddie Was a Boxer, Owoso, Echopathy, In Lightning, Aby Laby Land, Hal Dolls, The Uncommon Houseflies, Violet Knives, Plastic Bubble, D.T.B.P, The Monolith.

Saturday — Frederick The Younger, Stuart Wicke, Typhoid Beach, Jack Holiday & The Westerners, Cliffs, Brent Mathis, Ted Tyro, Phourist & The Photons, Tall Squares, Dream Eye Color Wheel, Howell Dawdy.

Sunday — Bookshelf, Rand Paul Stanley, Kaleidico, Solenodon, The Hart Strings, Tender Mercy, Twenty First Century Fox, New Bravado, Cher Von, Black Birds of Paradise, Twin Limb.

Reporter Jeffrey Lee Puckett can be reached at (502) 582-4160, jpuckett@courier-journal.com and on Twitter, @JLeePuckett.

What's going on around town this weekend...

• POORCASTLE: Band list for weekend festival
• PUCKETT'S PICKS: 5 shows to see July 9-15
• AROUND TOWN: Fun things for week of July 9-15
• ON STAGE: Theater and comedy lineup for July 9-15
• CONCERTS: Top 3 concerts to check out July 9-15
• BARS & CLUBS: 5 spots for live music July 9-15
• TAKE THE KIDS: Top 3 fun things for families July 9-15

Poorcastle Festival

WHEN: 2-11 p.m. Friday through Sunday

WHERE: Apocalypse Brew Works,1612 Mellwood Ave.

COST: $5 per day, $10 for weekend passes, at the gate or www.poorcastle.com.