Sunny skies prevailed on Festival International’s fourth day. Starting bright and early at 9 a.m., the music got off to a slower start with roots band Sassafras Jubilee on the Scène Chevron Héritage stage. Not until 11:30 a.m. did more acts begin to play across the other stages.
The comfortable temperatures and lack of rain made for a winning combination in the afternoon festival hours. Street performers jammed out at nearly every street corner, and there were multiple sightings of two large, paper mache puppets.
Crowd size was considerably larger than Friday, most like due to the weather and the acts scheduled to perform. The number of fans attending the Saturday festival were likely triple that of Friday’s event.
As the sun sank from its noon position, more and more popular bands and musicians took to the stage to perform for scores of people. The Sainte-Anne Alumni Allstar Band entertained its crowd with a medley of old-fashioned folk and contemporary Cajun music. All musicians were once students in the immersion program at Université Sainte-Anne, located in Pointe-de-l’Église, or Church Point, Nova Scotia.
Typically reserved for lesser-known bands, the Scène Popeyes Pavillon de Cuisine is a small stage located in Festival International’s eating and rest area. Though still on the rise, University student band Burris took to the pavilion at 6:15 p.m. to wow the crowd as it enjoyed some of the rich and filling foods from vendors lining the streets.
Opening with the original song “Mother Nature,” Burris was quick to surprise the crowd looking on. Lead singer and guitarist Chris Hochkeppel urged the audience to stand up and dance to the second song, appropriately titled “Dance.” People college-aged, younger and older all stood up and began dancing energetically to Burris’ funk.
The TV5MONDE Lafayette stage, which features mostly French music, received abundant attention and an enormous swell of people around 6 p.m., around the appearance of Louisiana favorite Feufollet. The band has long been the face of Cajun music’s modernization in the age of indie rock.
As Feufollet drew fans to the Lafayette courthouse area, Zydeco accordion player Terrance Simien dominated the Scène Lafayette General Fais Do Do stage. Simien and his band, The Zydeco Experience, brought just that to the people of Festival International — an experience of the music made popular by artists like Simien and the late Clifton Chenier.
Though not the final act of the night, many attendees stuck around for Brass Bed, the indie pop quartet that hails originally from Lafayette. Starting at 8 p.m., a guitarist was quick to note it was the band’s first time playing Festival International past sunset. Brass Bed held a solid presence on the TV5MONDE Lafayette stage, ending around 9:15 p.m. before the final band, DakhaBrakha of Ukraine.
A member from the band Burris plays electric violin on Saturday, April 25, 2015 during Festival International de Louisiane in Lafayette.
