Back when LouFest was in its infancy, one of us from IWTAS spent several hours volunteering with one of its founders, Brian Cohen, at a very stormy Earth Day talking to fellow St. Louisans about what would, in just a couple years time, become the Little Midwestern Music Festival That Could. It seemed crazy there in the rain, talking to this ambitious, bespectacled dude about how he, along with partners Rich Toma, Mike Van Hee, and Natalie Lakeman, were going to help put St. Louis back on the national music map.

Now in its 4th year, LouFest has expanded and adapted to larger crowds and is bringing in higher profile bands without losing its commitment to sustainability and locality.

In honor of LouFest’s 4th birthday, we’re posting a 4-part series of preview posts, highlighting what we think are the greatest aspects of LouFest: The Bands (duh), The Food, The Location (3-1-4Ever), and The Memories. Saddle up:

BANDS NOT TO BE MISSED AT LOUFEST 2013:

Annie

Local Natives: I’ve been following Local Natives since their Daytrotter session in 2009 and I finally get to see them live. I like their toe-tappable rhythms/beats/music and smart lyrics; they even reference public radio in a song!

Dave

Julie

Toro y Moi: I haven’t seen him since he opened for Caribou at The Firebird in June of 2010 (which was EPIC).

Desert Noises: Can’t wait to see Desert Noises for the very first time, since I whiffed on the show at Plush in March.

Jess

Icona Pop: Can we explore for a second the huge window for fun that will exist between 5:30 and 6:30pm on Sunday, September 8th? By then, I assume each of you will be sufficiently sun-kissed and hydrated (or voluntarily dehydrated, your choice). The heat will be breaking for the day, and two lady pals from Stockholm are going to light you the fuuuuck up with their addictive pop anthems. Feel free to replace those two other songs with “I Love It” when choosing the #1 spot on your ‘SUMMER 2013 JAMZ!!!’ Spotify playlist.

Wilco: And now I confess that which I’ve never shared with another person, much less our entire blog readership. I have lived in the St. Louis region for almost 28 years, and have yet to see a Wilco concert, here or anywhere else. I don’t have an aversion to the band at all, in fact their stuff falls into the “Music That is Relevant to My Interests” category. So if you love ’em or not, Wilco headlining the first night of LouFest in Forest Park will indeed be something to remember.

Come back here tomorrow for Part II of our LouFest preview series, and follow along at www.loufest.com for schedule info, transportation tips, ticket giveaways, and much more.