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The 2013 Lakewood Music Fest brought out big crowds.

(Lonnie Timmons III, The Plain Dealer)

PREVIEW

Lakewood Music Fest/LKWD Music Fest



When:

2 p.m. Saturday, Aug. 23.

Where:

Mahall’s 20 Lanes, 13200 Madison Ave., Lakewood.

Tickets:

$25 at the door or go to

.

After party:

El Carnicero, 16918 Detroit Ave., Lakewood, from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.

LAKEWOOD, Ohio - The Lakewood Music Fest is more than just what its name implies. Yes, it's at Lakewood retro cool bowling alley/concert club Mahall's 20 Lanes. And yes, music is the main draw, with more than 30 local and national acts performing on Saturday.

(For five-must see acts, go here.)

But it's the "fest" part that is key to this event, now in its third year.

"Last year was great – it was, like, triple the size of the first year. We had 1,200 through the day," says Mahall's owner Kelly Flamos. "We sold out, we brought in a bigger headliner and had an outdoor stage, and a lot of people really liked [going] outside. People like it because it's more than a concert. It's a day of music and food and vendors selling locally made goods."

Flamos says being a part of the vibrant community of Lakewood helps the fest – but it's not just a local event.

"I've lived in Lakewood since 2008 and attended community events like the Lakewood dog parade and art fest and Christmas events, and they are all so well-attended. People who live in Lakewood want to support the events going on here.

"But we attract people from all over, definitely from the East Side. That's one of the reasons we wanted to do the fest in the first place. The fest has exposed us to more people."

The festival takes place on indoor and outdoor stages, as well as the basement Locker Room stage. Food trucks and vendors will line the curb lane of Madison Avenue in front of Mahall's. And yes, the bowling lanes will be open, too.

Flamos expects even bigger crowds this year at the event that begins at 2 p.m. Saturday. That's in part because of a big-name headliner, The GZA (of Wu-Tang Clan fame), and in part because organizers have expanded their vendor area, in co-operation with the Cleveland Flea.

"Our market will be more goods-heavy this year, with fewer food vendors, so those we have can make more money. We're excited to be working with The Flea, which has such a following."

The Flea itself will have a cabana and be selling market bags. There will be 20 other vendors, including Mac's Backs, Bus Boutique, Future No Future men's clothes, Great Lakes Outfitters and Guide to Kulchur books.

Leigh Ring of Le Sueur, Minnesota, who specializes in hunt/gather jewelry, will be returning to Lakewood for her second year at the fest.

"It's always a great time. Quality music, tons of vintage/handmade goods, and super-tasty food," says Ring, who describes her jewelry as "inspired by folk art, alchemy and indigenous cultures around the world."

"Last year, I got the opportunity to talk with a bunch of new customers that I wouldn't have otherwise met," she adds.

Food vendors include Dewey's Pizza and Six Point Brewery, from Brooklyn, New York.

Other offerings you won't find at a typical concert include a light show and African dance.

Drippy Eye Projections, an offshoot of the famed Joshua Light Show, will be putting on a psychedelic show on the main indoor stage as bands play from 10 p.m. to 2 a.m.

Cleveland-based Djapo Cultural Arts Institute Dancers & Djembe Orchestra will also perform.

"When I began booking the fest in early winter, I was reading the biography of Alan Lomax and was inspired by how he gathered folk musicians from all over the world," says Flamos. "Early music festivals were diverse in genre, with jazz and blues and early rock 'n' roll. That inspired me."

"Diverse" is an apt word to describe the 30 acts that will be taking the stage this year, including many bands that have played Mahall's far-ranging concert club over the last few years. They range from hip-hop to indie, punk rock, folk-rock, alt-rock and Americana.

Headliner The GZA, known for his groundbreaking and poetic rap style, was a personal choice for Flamos. "I have loved Wu-Tang Clan since I was a kid," she enthuses. He'll take the stage from 8 to 9 p.m.

The GZA will be preceded by radical Oakland, California, political hip-hop crew The Coup. Earlier highlights include Akron blues-rockers Shivering Timbers, Grand Rapids, Michigan-based dream-folk rockers The Soil and The Sun, Cleveland poet RA Washington, Maryland baroque pop band Cotton Jones and many more.

"I think that all these musicians are connected in a way," says Flamos. "I like the idea of having them all together one day performing in the same space, from psychedelic rock to Fela Kuti music," the late Nigerian multi-instrumentalist.

The Soil and The Sun are a rising name in the indie folk world. The group is making its second Mahall's appearance on Saturday, touring in support of the its CD, the lush, folksy "Meridian."

"We love touring – there's something special about the live show. It's a pretty unique experience compared to listening to listening to music on albums," says lead singer and guitarist Alex McGrath. "The live performance is always at the forefront of our thoughts."

McGrath says he's excited about the festival aspect of the gig, too.

"I love playing shows like that, because you never know what you're going to get. It's also a petty cool opportunity for a band like us to play to a diverse audience, and that's not going to happen regularly when you're just playing bars," he says.

"There's a certain type of person who goes to a music venue, but a fest gets families and older people and people who just might not be going to a bar late on a weeknight. Fests are a lot of fun and much more broad."