Swampscott PorchFest Staging A Comeback This Saturday

SWAMPSCOTT, MA — The streets of Swampscott will be filled with the songs of the season on Saturday when PorchFest returns for the third year.

The day of rock and roll, acoustic folk, bluegrass, Irish music, poetry and more will run from noon to 6 p.m. through the areas of Olmstead and Monument Avenue.

"The feedback from the 2019 and 2021 Swampscott PorchFests was phenomenal," organizer Philip Alexander told Patch. "Everyone loved it. But many people still ask: what is a PorchFest? It's a celebration of community and music. How does it work? It's like the Uber or Airbnb of Music
Festivals.

"Why? Because with Uber, if you've got a car, you're a taxi. With Airbnb, if you've got house, you're a hotel. At PorchFest, if you've got a porch, then you've got a stage and your home is a concert venue."

Organizers have lined up more than 20 porches across the neighborhoods with performers and are also planning a Children's Music Porch from 2 to 4 p.m.

A full schedule and Google map of the performers can be found here later this week.

Local artists set to perform include The Strung Out Playboys, One Dime Band, The New Normals, Philip Alexander and the Wild Things, The Stacking Stones, Turtle on a String, Johanna & Pat, Navigators, TNB, Leland Hussey, Jermaine Kelly, Lynn Manderson/the Madd Hatter, Christine Lucas, Painters, Sean Atch Music, Moretti Family Band, Brison — Barney & Friends, Cindy and Greg, Jim Zartman, The Relix And Antarctica.

The kick-off will be at ReachArts, 89 Burrill Street at noon.

While the weather looks good for this upcoming weekend, a rain date of Sunday has been scheduled just in case.

ReachArts presents Swampscott Porchfest will the assistance of the Swampscott Summer Concert Series, and the Swampscott Recreation and Public Works Departments.

(Scott Souza is a Patch field editor covering Beverly, Danvers, Marblehead, Peabody, Salem and Swampscott. He can be reached at Scott.Souza@Patch.com. Twitter: @Scott_Souza.)