The 6th annual Slopfest at Little Kings Shuffle Club will kick off on Thursday, July 24 with a free pre-party. The pre-party will include music from several different local bands as well as a magic show.

In 2009, Slopfest was born after the death of Popfest. Derek Wiggs wanted to keep the spirit of the festival alive and created Slopfest as a tribute.

“Slopfest started when Derek was talking to people about how he was sad that Popfest was dwindling away,” said Madeline Hassett, an intern at Crashing Through Publicity. “I think this was after they had taken a year off doing Popfest and come back with a smaller one. They decided to try and imitate it with what became Slopfest.”

After a sloppy start, Slopfest has been fairly successful and doesn’t seem to have the same fate as its predecessor. Unlike other festivals, Slopfest has a carefree spirit and allows musicians to be who they are and play what they want.

“Slopfest is definitely associated with and has the spirit of Popfest. It ihas more of an indie/townie vibe than say Athfest does,” Hasset said.

Since its creation, Slopfest has developed quite the reputation and is now a popular festival for musicians in Athens and elsewhere. The festival has extended beyond Athens, bringing in some Atlanta bands including Forces, Seagulls, Tha Hugs, The Trespasser, Nashville’s Faux Ferocious, St. Augustine’s Early and a few others. For the first time, Slopfest will feature two touring bands from Louisiana, The Lovie Dovies and The Opposable Thumbs.

With 30 bands in the line-up including Deep State, Muuy Bien, Monsoon, Grape Soda, Double Ferrari and Cinemechanica, the festival should be jam packed with local talent for three straight days.

Tickets are $5 at the door or $8 for both nights.

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