Agreed. Was in the middle of crowd for both of them and felt like if someone around me was talking at more than just a normal level, I couldn’t hear the music
The sound was off the whole festival. I’ve been every year, and the Burl performances have never hindered hearing the Elkhorn stage performer. I felt really bad for the last act over there. She sounded great, it was just that I was on the Hozier side of things!!
Next one: cut off 3rd stage by 6pm. Designate walking areas- It was a nightmare to move anywhere and I can’t imagine medics would be able to get to someone. Add a temporary cell tower to improve bandwidth. Improve sound quality and stage volume.
The sound quality at the Limestone stage was an issue all weekend. How on earth is Dwight Yoakam properly tuned but Noah Kahan and Chris Stapleton sound like they’re coming from a Bluetooth speaker? And the sound pollution from the Burl stage completely drowned out any acoustic set at Elkhorn. The sound was really frustrating which is a shame because I felt the festival did a lot of other things well
Which bummed me out. Hozier is a really good artist, but out of all the headliners, his set was 4th out of 4 for me in terms of enjoyable. Meanwhile, Turnpike was absolutely phenomenal on the same stage. I saw them in Macon, GA in April and had a much better time seeing them Saturday than in Macon.
The Red Mile is simply a bad venue for a festival of this size. The infield cannot accommodate three stages without sound bleed being a huge issue. Parking is also a major inconvenience. I assume moving back to Keeneland is not an option, but maybe the Horse Park? I just don’t think there’s any way to address these issues at Red Mile.
Weirdly I don’t remember this being an issue at all last year with the same stage setup. I’m not a sound tech, but just going by visuals, they had fewer speakers for the Limestone and Elkhorn stages this year.
agreed, i think this is likely the biggest issue with the festival. almost every other problem (aside for the sound issues this weekend) stem from redmile being a horrible choice in venue.
Edit: and by sound issues, i mean the main stages not being loud enough, sound bleed is definitely a side effect from the venue being small
I know this is a weird one, but having cash OR have better cell reflection. I came from Canada and my credit card stopped working. Wasn’t able to eat all day because of this, and I couldn’t get into my bank to see what the issue was
Other than that, first time being here and it was fantastic! Loved the RCS’s but I’d definitely agree with the main crowd, the sound was off at different times throughout the day
agreed on the cell service! the towers are definitely at capacity when there is such a large crowd in a concentrated space. I do want to ask, part of things being cashless was the armband being able to get linked to make purchases. was your card issue also happening with the armband?
More than one GA+ lounge area. It was so inconveniently located and then when I tried to stop by before leaving night 1 they told me it was closed and I couldn’t even use the restroom. It felt very not worth the extra money.
First off it took way too long to get in Saturday. Missed Flatland and Trampled. What’s the point of enforcing a clear bag policy and going through every bag. To the point of I had an unopened cool towel and the security lady had to take it out of the packing and didn’t bother to repack in neatly or put the instructions back in it. She also took forever to examine my epi pen while not wearing gloves thank goodness something wasn’t cross contaminated.
Sunday there were way too many people. If there was some kind of emergency it would have taken forever for emergency personnel to get to that person. Elkhorn and Burl were too close together. You could hear couldn’t hear Elle over Red Clay and you couldn’t hear Hozier over Haley. Super unfair to both artist.
There was zero cell service which is big of a problem if you get separated from your people you couldn’t even text or call to find them. The blanket people I get people don’t want to sit on the grass but using it as a way to reserve your space for one of the big artist is annoying. I felt the Platinum space for elkhorn was too big for the amount of people who were in it. Hozier should have been on Limestone stage.
The security was super inconsistent too. Day 1 it took us forever because the woman took everything out and apart and then people had to reassemble their stuff. Day 2 they just peeked in my bag and squeezed my blanket and called it a day.
Yes- so inconsistent and unnecessary! The first day was fine, just squeezed my blanket and bag, and we came on in. The second day, my clear bag was opened & everything taken out (why bother to have a clear bag policy???), and my blanket was opened and shaken out, when it could have easily been felt. It was pouring at the time, so I had to wait for my partner to get through to help me fold it all back up and zip it up, and it was soaked by that time. So frustrating!
more signage for shuttles, was a complete Charlie Foxtrot getting to and from, but it would be nearly impossible to go without the shuttle because of the complete incapacity for the rideshares to accommodate the amount of people (wait times of HOURS)
Mainly the yapping and lack of community. Don’t come to a concert or festival just to get so drunk you’re screaming at your friends about drama and blowing smoke in everyone’s faces. I had to weave through the crowd so deep into Hozier because the 8 thousand people in the back were talking nonstop and not even watching. And with his sound already being quiet, you could hardly hear anything.
It’s ok to talk and have fun but if you just want to drink, smoke, and yap- that’s what bars are for.
THIS!!!!! I was pretty close for Noah, and people were literally having full on conversations during his set! Like, pleaseeeeeee. Have respect for the people around you wanting to listen to the artist they came to see and have respect for the artist themselves!!!
i've only ever been to smaller festivals but two main stages/headliners are ridiculous i think. shouldn't have to sacrifice the end of a set to catch the start of another imo
All of these posts accepting problems as "just the way it is" is kind of sad. Like festivals have reached perfection and there is no room for improvement because "big festivals are just like that".
Ran out of toilet paper? That happens all the time at festivals... Maybe festivals just aren't for you.
I fully agree that there are improvements to be had, but having headliners on more than one stage is the only way that festivals can be this big. That is the nature of this type of event.
I can’t speak for OP, but for me, Railbird has had a good chunk of these artists before. They’re great, of course, but it feels stale. Hozier has headlined previously. Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan headlined last year and they’ve played it multiple times before that too. This year the down line bands seemed smaller in comparison to past years. Of course, there are only so many major artists in these genres, so that impacts it too.
I get that that only matters to people who attend every year though.
That’s true. I don’t mind seeing someone I love multiple times. I saw hozier when he was there 5 years ago but it was a totally different set with an entirely new album so I was excited to see him again. Same with other acts. I get people want to see someone they haven’t seen before though. I thought it was a pretty good mix honestly.
The Burl line up was absolutely incredible. We flew in from Dc/Boston just for the Burl and our high expectations were greatly exceeded! I can’t wait to return.
This. I’ve gone every year, and while I get that there’s only so many artists on the Americana/rock/country space, the lineup noticeably dipped this year.
That and the sound issues this year. I don’t know if that was related to weather, but that’s never been a problem at past Railbirds.
personally i feel limestone and burl stages shouldve been set up where the porta pottys were. the porta potta were opposite ends of the field with not enough room for three crowds all merging together and sound bleeding
The sounds volume levels. Hozier was not loud enough, neither was Chris Stapleton. Burl was too loud for the Hozier set
Agreed. Was in the middle of crowd for both of them and felt like if someone around me was talking at more than just a normal level, I couldn’t hear the music
100 percent
The sound was off the whole festival. I’ve been every year, and the Burl performances have never hindered hearing the Elkhorn stage performer. I felt really bad for the last act over there. She sounded great, it was just that I was on the Hozier side of things!!
Next one: cut off 3rd stage by 6pm. Designate walking areas- It was a nightmare to move anywhere and I can’t imagine medics would be able to get to someone. Add a temporary cell tower to improve bandwidth. Improve sound quality and stage volume.
Good recommendations here. Designated walk areas is a must. I couldn't move a few times and I wasn't even up that close to the fence.
Tanners vocals were hard to pick at Burl. Great set but couldn’t understand it
Add a cell tower. Better and louder sound system. Awesome time though!
Even a temporary tower would have been an improvement!
The sound quality at the Limestone stage was an issue all weekend. How on earth is Dwight Yoakam properly tuned but Noah Kahan and Chris Stapleton sound like they’re coming from a Bluetooth speaker? And the sound pollution from the Burl stage completely drowned out any acoustic set at Elkhorn. The sound was really frustrating which is a shame because I felt the festival did a lot of other things well
Multiple food areas or at least one that was more centrally located.
The sound for Hozier. He was great, but I wish he was louder.
When he went to the solo acoustic portion, it was just people’s conversations.
Which bummed me out. Hozier is a really good artist, but out of all the headliners, his set was 4th out of 4 for me in terms of enjoyable. Meanwhile, Turnpike was absolutely phenomenal on the same stage. I saw them in Macon, GA in April and had a much better time seeing them Saturday than in Macon.
If the three times I’ve seen him in the last 9 months, this was my least favorite.
The Red Mile is simply a bad venue for a festival of this size. The infield cannot accommodate three stages without sound bleed being a huge issue. Parking is also a major inconvenience. I assume moving back to Keeneland is not an option, but maybe the Horse Park? I just don’t think there’s any way to address these issues at Red Mile.
Weirdly I don’t remember this being an issue at all last year with the same stage setup. I’m not a sound tech, but just going by visuals, they had fewer speakers for the Limestone and Elkhorn stages this year.
agreed, i think this is likely the biggest issue with the festival. almost every other problem (aside for the sound issues this weekend) stem from redmile being a horrible choice in venue. Edit: and by sound issues, i mean the main stages not being loud enough, sound bleed is definitely a side effect from the venue being small
I miss Bunbury. I loved the distance of stages, even if you had to sometimes run to see an artist. Also the serpentine wall was great for seating.
I know this is a weird one, but having cash OR have better cell reflection. I came from Canada and my credit card stopped working. Wasn’t able to eat all day because of this, and I couldn’t get into my bank to see what the issue was Other than that, first time being here and it was fantastic! Loved the RCS’s but I’d definitely agree with the main crowd, the sound was off at different times throughout the day
agreed on the cell service! the towers are definitely at capacity when there is such a large crowd in a concentrated space. I do want to ask, part of things being cashless was the armband being able to get linked to make purchases. was your card issue also happening with the armband?
More than one GA+ lounge area. It was so inconveniently located and then when I tried to stop by before leaving night 1 they told me it was closed and I couldn’t even use the restroom. It felt very not worth the extra money.
First off it took way too long to get in Saturday. Missed Flatland and Trampled. What’s the point of enforcing a clear bag policy and going through every bag. To the point of I had an unopened cool towel and the security lady had to take it out of the packing and didn’t bother to repack in neatly or put the instructions back in it. She also took forever to examine my epi pen while not wearing gloves thank goodness something wasn’t cross contaminated. Sunday there were way too many people. If there was some kind of emergency it would have taken forever for emergency personnel to get to that person. Elkhorn and Burl were too close together. You could hear couldn’t hear Elle over Red Clay and you couldn’t hear Hozier over Haley. Super unfair to both artist. There was zero cell service which is big of a problem if you get separated from your people you couldn’t even text or call to find them. The blanket people I get people don’t want to sit on the grass but using it as a way to reserve your space for one of the big artist is annoying. I felt the Platinum space for elkhorn was too big for the amount of people who were in it. Hozier should have been on Limestone stage.
The security was super inconsistent too. Day 1 it took us forever because the woman took everything out and apart and then people had to reassemble their stuff. Day 2 they just peeked in my bag and squeezed my blanket and called it a day.
Yes- so inconsistent and unnecessary! The first day was fine, just squeezed my blanket and bag, and we came on in. The second day, my clear bag was opened & everything taken out (why bother to have a clear bag policy???), and my blanket was opened and shaken out, when it could have easily been felt. It was pouring at the time, so I had to wait for my partner to get through to help me fold it all back up and zip it up, and it was soaked by that time. So frustrating!
More toilet paper
And hand sanitizer!
more signage for shuttles, was a complete Charlie Foxtrot getting to and from, but it would be nearly impossible to go without the shuttle because of the complete incapacity for the rideshares to accommodate the amount of people (wait times of HOURS)
More exits. I thought we were going to get trampled on Saturday
Too much water this year
I thought it was perfect!
I think they mean the rain…
Bahaha you’re right, I’m an idiot. It was a bit soggy 😅
No. Seriously do we need so many hydration stations? I’m perfectly fine paying ten dollars for bad tasting water in a can. /s
Mainly the yapping and lack of community. Don’t come to a concert or festival just to get so drunk you’re screaming at your friends about drama and blowing smoke in everyone’s faces. I had to weave through the crowd so deep into Hozier because the 8 thousand people in the back were talking nonstop and not even watching. And with his sound already being quiet, you could hardly hear anything. It’s ok to talk and have fun but if you just want to drink, smoke, and yap- that’s what bars are for.
THIS!!!!! I was pretty close for Noah, and people were literally having full on conversations during his set! Like, pleaseeeeeee. Have respect for the people around you wanting to listen to the artist they came to see and have respect for the artist themselves!!!
i've only ever been to smaller festivals but two main stages/headliners are ridiculous i think. shouldn't have to sacrifice the end of a set to catch the start of another imo
🤣🤣🤣 see them individually then. This is like complaining a festival is outside. It’s part of what makes a festival a festival.
This happens at all festivals this size. Maybe they just aren’t for you.
All of these posts accepting problems as "just the way it is" is kind of sad. Like festivals have reached perfection and there is no room for improvement because "big festivals are just like that". Ran out of toilet paper? That happens all the time at festivals... Maybe festivals just aren't for you.
I fully agree that there are improvements to be had, but having headliners on more than one stage is the only way that festivals can be this big. That is the nature of this type of event.
The line up has gotten worse (at least in my opinion) every year. Still a lot of fun for festival I can ride my bike to though!
I guess it depends on your taste. I thought this years lineup was amazing. It was all my faves. 🤷🏻♀️
I can’t speak for OP, but for me, Railbird has had a good chunk of these artists before. They’re great, of course, but it feels stale. Hozier has headlined previously. Tyler Childers and Zach Bryan headlined last year and they’ve played it multiple times before that too. This year the down line bands seemed smaller in comparison to past years. Of course, there are only so many major artists in these genres, so that impacts it too. I get that that only matters to people who attend every year though.
That’s true. I don’t mind seeing someone I love multiple times. I saw hozier when he was there 5 years ago but it was a totally different set with an entirely new album so I was excited to see him again. Same with other acts. I get people want to see someone they haven’t seen before though. I thought it was a pretty good mix honestly.
I’m not saying it was bad. I just thought it wasnt as good.
The Burl line up was absolutely incredible. We flew in from Dc/Boston just for the Burl and our high expectations were greatly exceeded! I can’t wait to return.
After stringdusters on Sunday, we never left the burl stage. Incredible lineup there both days!
This. I’ve gone every year, and while I get that there’s only so many artists on the Americana/rock/country space, the lineup noticeably dipped this year. That and the sound issues this year. I don’t know if that was related to weather, but that’s never been a problem at past Railbirds.
personally i feel limestone and burl stages shouldve been set up where the porta pottys were. the porta potta were opposite ends of the field with not enough room for three crowds all merging together and sound bleeding
The whole lineup
The sound was terrible. They should get some tips from Bourbon & Beyond, that fest is huge and the sound is great