185 bands scheduled for Oakhurst Porchfest

On Saturday, Oct. 8, 12-6 p.m., 185 bands will perform on an equal number of porches and lawns throughout Decatur’s Oakhurst neighborhood in what’s now become the largest organic, free-range, crowd-sourced music festival in the state of Georgia.

It’s community-run, open to all, and free.

A joint collaboration of resident Scott Doyon, local blog Decatur Metro, and the nonprofit Decatur Arts Alliance, the Oakhurst Porchfest will transform the neighborhood into an expansive, musically-diverse event a square mile in size where all responsibility for managing the day’s logistics falls to the more than 800 volunteers offering up their porches or performing hour-long sets.

“We set the schedule, arrange for port-a-johns, and promote,” says Doyon. “Everything else — performance logistics, keeping order, providing food — gets delegated to the neighborhood. And they handle it beautifully.”

The result is a largely self-managed, neighbor-to-neighbor celebration of music and community.

Mirroring an event born in Ithaca, New York, in 2007 and since embraced by over 60 cities around the continent, the Oakhurst Porchfest is set to feature rock, pop, funk, folk, jazz, blues, bluegrass, country, gospel, soul, electronica, and more. Porches and lawns throughout the neighborhood serve as stages and anyone is free to walk or bike around, enjoy great music, hang out on lawns and sidewalks, and connect with neighbors old and new.

Parking is available on-street or in decks and lots throughout the neighborhood, though visitors are strongly encouraged to arrive on foot, by bike, via carshare, or by exiting MARTA’s Blue Line at the East Lake Station.

Everything you need to know about attending, including the complete schedule, is available on the event’s website:www.oakhurstporchfest.org.