The Black Keys @ Forecastle Festival in Louisville, KY 7-10-09

I'm a tad bit late on this blog, but here it is. I went to see The Black Keys @ Forecastle Festival in Louisville, KY this past Fri. night (7/10). I saw them last year @ The Ryman briefly, but left after about 6 or so songs. The reason I left is because I heard from friends that Hank III was going to be playing @ Layla's down on Broadway. If I would have known that he was going to have a standing Wed. night gig for the next 6 or so weeks, I would not have made that decision. Therefore, since making that decision I told myself that I would make the trip if The Black Keys were somewhere close.

This was my first trip to downtown Louisville, so when I got there I went to check out the 4th St. Live area. Grabbed an appetizer of Fried Green Tomatoes Oscar and a Maker's Mark w/ Ale81 (regional to KY soft drink that tastes like ginger ale) @ the Maker's Mark Bourbon House & Lounge. Twas definitely a good choice all around and a good start to the night.

There is a live show every Fri. night @ 4th St. Live. I looked at the schedule of performers and it looked to be mostly new country acts. Wonder why Nashville doesn't have anything like that? The new"Live on the Green" music series that is starting in Nashville in Sep. is comparable, but it is not the same type of setup w/ bars & patios like 4th St. in Louisville. I believe that Broadway should be blocked off and stages should be setup either in front of Sommet like CMA Festival or right in the middle of damn Broadway. There should be plenty of country acts (old & new) in town to fill the calendar. Ok, enough of that thought.

On to the show...Pretty Lights were finishing their set as I approached the main stage. I was able to hear about 3 songs & I must say I was diggin' it. The group consisted of a DJ and a drummer.

One of the few negatives I experienced during the trip & @ the festival was the requirement to buy beer & food tickets. I'm not sure why beer is sold this way, but I do know it always cuts down on my beer consumption for some reason.




The Black Keys were as bad ass as I knew they would be. It is hard to believe that all that sound is coming from just 2 guys! The crowd grooved w/ the duo the entire performance. They played for abut 2 hours w/ what seemed like a longer wait for an encore.

Set List:

(trying to find it - wanna help?)

I am very much looking forward to the recently announced Dan Auerbach show here in Nashville on Nov. 21. I wish it were going to be @ The Ryman, but @ least he's coming to Music City....was beginning to think we may be left out!