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The heat wave will end, and when it does, there will be the sweetest li’l porch music festival waiting on the other side.
Milwaukie Porchfest started as a small festival during the first pandemic fall of 2020 as a way for people to safely see live music outdoors (and to give bored musicians a gig). But Porchfest was such a smash that this is now the fifth annual iteration of the suburban event, which returns with more than 80 free concerts in neighborhoods across Milwaukie from 6:30 to 8:30 pm Fridays, July 12, 19 and 26.
Porchfest is a volunteer-run, free event, though attendees are encouraged to tip the performers if they can. Samantha Swindler, Milwaukie Arts Committee chair, took a break from driving around Milwaukie handing out Porchfest signs at the host homes and businesses to talk about the event, which she says is “just so cute.”
“It’s very much a community-building, neighborhood-building event,” Swindler says. “You’ll see families on bikes and people walking around, introducing themselves to neighbors they’ve never met because they’ve never had a reason to before.”
The 27 (and counting) performances at the July 12 event cover a wide range of genres, including Americana band Cahoots, “minimalist post-proto-punk indie” indie trio Merwulf, blues, funk, folk, honky-tonk, and even a karaoke “cul-de-sac singalong.”
Also on July 12, there will be a food truck and drinks available at the Chapel Theatre, where two bands—Vierra’s Gold and Grand Head—will perform from 6 to 8 pm. While the event is called Porchfest, the organizers are all-inclusive about infrastructure, and some concerts are in driveways, parking lots and garages.
Other notable acts on the bill this summer include the Star Wars-themed doom metal band SandKrawler and John the Red Nose, a duo performing medieval music on early instruments, both on July 26. What either of those sound like is anyone’s guess.
“Sometimes it’s just a dude on his porch strumming his guitar, and sometimes it’s really great bands in Portland,” Swindler says. “But it’s very low key—you’re right there with the performer.”