CULLMAN — Grammy award-winning Christian rock band Switchfoot is set to headline the annual Youthquake music festival this Saturday, marking one of the biggest mainstream acts to ever play the event.

Doors open at noon on Saturday, October 6 at the Cullman County Fairgrounds with music beginning at 2 p.m. Switchfoot is scheduled to take the stage at 8 p.m.

Organizer Shane Quick, who founded the festival 11 years ago, said he believes the buzz could make the 2012 edition the biggest yet.

“It gets smoother and smoother every year as we gain more local support and more great volunteers,” Quick said Tuesday afternoon. We’re pretty excited about this year and it looks like we’ll have great weather coming up, like we have the past four or five years. The interest level seems to be higher than ever and I think Switchfoot really draws a wide variety of ages, as well as teenagers who might not normally come to an event like this.”

The annual festival has steadily grown in recent years, bringing in just under 10,000 attendees in 2011. With any luck, Quick said they might even beat those numbers this year.

“Early ticket sales are right in line with where they were last year with Skillet [as headliner] and we’re looking to track about what we did last year, if not grow a little bit,” he said. “Between what should be some great weather and the success of Switchfoot, we feel we’ll have a big week and another huge crowd this year.”

The full line-up includes Willet at 2:15 p.m.; Bread of Stone at 2:40 p.m.; Da T.R.U.T.H. at 3:15 p.m.; Disciple at 3:55 p.m.; Family Force 5 at 4:55 p.m.; Generation Band 6:20 p.m.; speaker Josh Kimes at 6:35 p.m.; Youthquake Worship at 6:55 p.m. and Switchfoot at 8 p.m.

The festival is scheduled to end at approximately 9:15 p.m.

Tickets are $10 in advance or $15 at the gate. They can be purchased at Yates Chance Christian Bookstore in Cullman; Borden Family Pharmacy in Cullman; Hayden Health Mart Pharmacy in Hayden; Lifeway Christian Store in Decatur; Lifeway Christian Store in Birmingham; and the Lifeway Christian Store in Florence. Tickets are also available online at Youthquake.org.

As the event has grown over the years, Quick said it’s gotten easier to book major acts to the local concert — plus, it provides a way to keep the line-up from getting stale.

“We try to keep it diverse and keep new headliners every year, and a lot of people have enjoyed Skillet, and we’ve had Casting Crowns play here before,” he said. “But we’re pretty determined to make sure we keep it energetic, like by bringing Family Force 5, and that we do keep it true to its roots. I like to say it’s designed for young people of all ages.”

Due to scheduling issues the concert will have to contend with the annual Cullman Oktoberfest in downtown this year, which kicks off on the same day, but Quick said he doesn’t expect any problems.

“One thing Youthquake has to do to keep ticket prices low is we have to bend to the touring circuit and get tours to stop in at Youthquake, that’s why it kind of fluctuates,” Quick explained. “We always try to keep it in October, and this year it just so happened to land on the first Saturday, and that’s a big weekend for Cullman County. It’ll be a huge boost for the local economy, and I think people that go to Oktoberfest is a totally different crowd than what comes to Youthquake. But, for the crossover, you’ll have Oktoberfest going for the rest of the week and the next weekend.”

With the event flirting with capacity at the fairgrounds, Quick said he’s open to considering at different locations for the festival. But, not matter what, Youthquake is staying in Cullman.

“We’re close to capacity now and we’ll be looking around, and hopefully if they’re able to get a new complex out on County Road 222, that could be the new home of Youthquake in the future,” he said. “But, we’ve had offers from Birmingham and Huntsville to move there, but this was born and bred in Cullman, and it’s heart and soul is in Cullman. Oktoberfest isn’t going anywhere.”



* Trent Moore can be reached by e-mail at trentm@cullmantimes.com, or by telephone at 734-2131, ext. 220.