Tripping Billies, a Dave Matthews Band tribute act, is the headliner for this year’s WAMMfest. The annual festival, scheduled for Saturday, celebrates wine, art, music and microbrews, all while raising money for community charities and causes.
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THROUGHOUT the day at this year’s WAMMfest, attendees will find themselves taking a musical journey through the decades.
Explore the grimy sound of ’60s era and beyond Rolling Stones. Dance to Motown and classic rock, headbang to the best of the 1980s or don your best flannel shirt for the songs of Alice in Chains, Nirvana and Stone Temple Pilots.
Then to top the night off, jam to the nation’s premier Dave Matthews Band tribute acts.
While the music will serve as the centerpiece for this year’s festival, the success of WAMMfest are the four components found in its moniker. One of Johnson County’s most popular annual events, the fest brings together a slate of the region’s best bands, works from 65 visual artists and selections from 13 local breweries and wineries.
Since the festival was founded 13 years ago, it has drawn thousands of people each summer to Craig Park in Greenwood.
More importantly, while everyone is having a good time, they’re also helping organizers to make massive improvements to the community around them.
WAMMfest was created in 2009 by the Sertoma Club, a philanthropic organization focused entirely on raising money for community causes. The idea was to put together a cultural showcase in Greenwood that would appeal to a wide variety of people, therefore generating more money for good causes.
They focused on four main cultural areas —wine, art, music and microbrews.
“Sertoma in Greenwood exists to give back to the community. WAMMfest is our only fundraiser of the year, so all of the net profits we get go back directly into the community,” said Josh O’Neal, marketing chair for the Sertoma Club of Greenwood. “After all of these years, we’ve given back close to $1 million to the community. It’s a great opportunity for us as individuals to give back.”
Modeled on popular Indianapolis events such as the Broad Ripple Art Fair and the Penrod Arts Fair, the festival was an immediate success. More than 4,500 people attended the inaugural WAMMfest, and attendance has grown steadily over the past decade.
Through ticket sales, the Sertoma Club has been able to donate more than $890,000 to local causes. In the past, the club was able to support efforts ranging from the Greenwood parks, police and fire departments to Girls Inc. of Johnson County to the White River Township Fire Department’s Christmas Angels program. The club was also a major contributor to Greenwood’s City Center Park project.
The ability to support the community in so many different ways, while offering local residents an expansive afternoon of entertainment, is something the Sertoma Club takes pride in.
“This is one of the biggest events in the area that solely exists to give back to the community, and I think that’s pretty special,” O’Neal said.
The backbone of the event is always the entertainment.
This year’s headliner comes from Chicago with eclectic jam-band sounds. Tripping Billies has been bringing the music of the Dave Matthews Band to audiences all over the country from nearly 20 years. The six-piece group brings crowd favorites and deep-cut classics together with a stunning visual show.
“A lot of concertgoers in our area love the Dave Matthews Band, so we wanted to mix it up and give this a Dave Matthews spin,” O’Neal said.
But throughout the day, festivalgoers can find music to fit nearly any taste. Rocks Off is a loving tribute to the swagger of the Rolling Stones. Woomblies Rock Orchestra includes a four-piece string section that allows it to capture the grandeur of 1970s rock and R&B.
Hairbanger’s Ball, a Johnson County favorite, captures the decadence of hair metal era bands such as Guns N’ Roses, Motley Crue and Def Leppard. That ’90s Band brings the alt-rock anthems of the grunge era and beyond to life.
“We always try to mix it up a little bit. There are some bands that we share through events because people love them. Then there are other bands that we book to make ourselves stand out, bands that people aren’t used to seeing,” O’Neal said.
But every with the attention the music gets at the festival, the other elements of the WAMMfest equation are just as popular.
Organizers have lined up eight breweries, including Johnson County favorites Taxman Brewing, Hoosier Brewing, Oaken Barrel Brewing, Planetary Brewing and MashCraft Brewing, to serve pints throughout the event.
If wine is more your thing, five wineries are taking part: Mallow Run Winery, Ash and Elm Cider Co., Holtkamp Winery, Cedar Creek Winery and Daniel’s Vineyard.
With a beverage in hand, you can peruse the more than 40 booths laid out in an area known as “Artist’s Alley.” People can find paintings, sculpture, glasswork, jewelry, multimedia works and much more from the juried slate of artists.
“We try to focus on a higher level of art, by people who truly create things,” O’Neal said. “The artists are a big part of this event. They are one of the pillars of WAMMfest.”
