Two bands — Big Boom Theory, out of Nashville, and 9DayTrip, from South Carolina — will play Saturday evening for an outdoor concert, Lights Out Festival III, at Casey Jones Distillery. It’s billed as the Rock of the Ages with music from the 1960s, ‘70s and ‘80s.
The concert starts at 6 p.m. on the lawn in front of the distillery, but the gates will open at 10 a.m. and early patrons who purchase general admission tickets will be able to find the best spot to set their lawn chairs and blankets. Reserved table seating is also available.
About 1,000 tickets had been sold as of Monday afternoon, said Peg Hays, who co-owns the distillery with her husband, Arlon Casey Jones. They anticipate 1,500 to 1,800 guests. Advance tickets start at $19.99 and can be purchased online.
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“It’s a great way to be able to get back together and enjoy the outdoors,” Hays said.
Hays said coronavirus precautions for the concert will include a request that everyone practice social distancing. The outdoor tables will be spaced apart for distancing, she said, and hand sanitizer that the distillery manufactures will be available in numerous places.
“I feel like we are doing everything we need to do,” she said.
The Centers for Disease Control and Prevention says people who are not fully vaccinated should wear a mask in indoor public places — and in areas with high transmission, such as Christian County, masks are recommended indoors even for vaccinated people to maximize protection against the delta variant. Masks generally are not needed outdoors, but in areas with high COVID-19 case numbers, people should consider wearing a mask at crowded outdoor places where unvaccinated people are present, the CDC advises.
Hays added, “When we see visitors show up with masks on, we are asking, ‘Do you want us to be masked?’”
Four food trucks — Burgasm, La Eloteria, No Way Jose and Junior Auxiliary — will start serving at 11 a.m.
The distillery will be open for bar sales, tours and tastings when the gates open. Non-alcoholic drinks will be sold also — and Hays said the festival is family-friendly, so children are welcome to attend.
A few hours before the music starts, the bands will go through their sound checks. Many concert-goers enjoy this part of the day because it’s like a tune up for the crowd as well.
“There is the anticipation,” Hays described. “They will play a little bit of a piece and they stop in the middle … and you hear, OK, it’s going to be great.”
The music will include classic rock, soul and pop.
9DayTrip describes its Americana sound as a “recipe of soulful blues, homegrown Carolina country and rock-n-roll roots mixed with psychedelic jam.”
Big Boom Theory is 10 musicians from Nashville, including two who are originally from Hopkinsville — guitarist and singer Mark Jones and bass player Chip Graham. Many of the same musicians played in a band called 1971 — The Greatest Year in Music that had a show at the Alhambra in June 2019.
The female lead singer for Big Boom Theory, Jonell Mosser, has a big following of fans in Hopkinsville, said Hays. Originally from Louisville, she played at the Alhambra with Jones and Graham, and she’s often at the Kenlake summer blues festival.
At the end of the concert, the two bands will play together for a special finale.
Hays said she had an idea what was planned but she was “sworn to secrecy” so it would be a surprise for the audience.
The first Lights Out Festival was in 2017 for the solar eclipse. The second festival was in 2019.
Casey Jones Distillery is at 2815 Witty Lane. More details about the festival are available here.
Jennifer P. Brown is co-founder, publisher and editor of Hoptown Chronicle. You can reach her at editor@hoptownchronicle.org. She spent 30 years as a reporter and editor at the Kentucky New Era. She is a co-chair of the national advisory board to the Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, governing board president for the Kentucky Historical Society, and co-founder of the Kentucky Open Government Coalition.
