Porchfest brings music to front lawns of Deering Center for 10th year

Sep. 8—PORTLAND — Neighbors, musicians and fans descended on Deering Center on Sunday for its annual Porchfest event and celebrated a decade of community-centered music.

Organized by the Deering Center Neighborhood Association, the walkable concert literally brings music into peoples' front yards. In its 10th year, Porchfest 2024 had 67 acts assigned to 54 "hosts" — residents who opened up their porches, decks, lawns and driveways as temporary stages.

"I've just been floored by the music and the outpouring of involvement and love," said Amy Thompson, one of Deering Center Porchfest's original organizers. Thompson brought the event to Portland 10 years ago after moving from Ithaca, New York, where she was inspired by a similar event.

The event kicked off with a parade procession down Brentwood Street, led by the booming brass of the Ideal Maine Social Aid and Sanctuary Band.

At 1 p.m., 17 bands — stationed in a loop from Brentwood Street to Pleasant Avenue — started their hourlong sets. A new slate of bands took over on the hour, every hour from 1 p.m. to 5 p.m. to play concurrently in front of houses around the neighborhood.

Like the house belonging to Amber and Scott Bloomberg, who hosted Elise and Anthony, a ukulele duo, on Alba Street.

"We tell our friends, 'Hey, this is a cool thing our neighborhood does, come check it out,' " Scott Bloomberg said.

Festivalgoers strolled and biked along the sidewalk-chalked streets of Porchfest, stopping to say hi to neighbors and listen to musical acts.

It's a kind of rite of passage to host a band if you live within the Porchfest route, and once you get hooked, there's no going back.

"We bought a house last year in the neighborhood, and who we were buying from said, 'Hey, you're signed up for Porchfest,' " said Deering Center resident Abby Welbourn.

After hosting her first band last year, Welbourn joined the committee organizing the event. This year, her porch was home to freestyle beatboxer and comedian Unique Unknown and three-piece bluegrass act The Earthtones.

Volunteers like Welbourn worked all summer to bring in acts like the K-58s, who drew a crowd on Richardson Street during their 1 p.m. performance.

The father-son surf rock band comprised of Bobby and Mason Shaddox, of Portland, performed together for the first time ever at Porchfest. Though his dad had played previous Porchfests with two other bands, the set marked 14-year-old Deering High freshman Mason Shaddox's musical debut.

"We've been playing in the basement now for a couple months, and coming out and playing in front of a live audience, it energizes you, it brings out the rock 'n roll energy in a totally new way," Bobby Shaddox said.

Performing everything "from Bach to the Beatles," 35-person band The FLUKES (Fun-Loving Ukulele Society) played their fifth Porchfest this year.

"We love doing this because it's such a wonderful day, people are so happy," FLUKES member Lynne Gammon, of Gorham, said.

With musical acts of all genres, the event sought to bring together a wide community with a shared appreciation of music. And for Thompson, it was all about getting to know your neighbors a little bit better.

"Porchfest is one of the gazillion things that is about imagining something doable, and not giving up on it," Thompson said. "Beautiful things happen when people say 'yes' together."

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