Fireworks are back at West Chicago Railroad Days
This year’s West Chicago Railroad Days on June 27-30 will feature a stacked lineup of up-and-coming artists from throughout the Chicago area and the return of the fireworks show.
The large-scale community event is organized by the Western DuPage Chamber of Commerce and features a carnival, live music, activities for children, and the fireworks, sponsored by the City of West Chicago.
The festival will be 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday, 5:30 to 11 p.m. Friday, 1 to 11 p.m. Saturday, and 2:30 to 10 p.m. Sunday at Pioneer Park, 479 W. Forest Ave.
The fireworks show will be at dusk on Saturday. Avoid traffic and take a free shuttle bus to Pioneer Park between 6 and 11:30 p.m. The buses will be running in 15-minute intervals. For a map of the stops, go to www.westchicagorailroaddays.com.
Kicking off the fest on Thursday will be Murfee, a local artist who will be bringing some hip hop and R&B flavors. Also performing will be Double Ontendre, an independent hip hop artist and emcee from the western suburbs.
At 7:10 p.m., rap artist Only ABG, which stands for “Authentic Bars Guru,” will take the stage, followed by Machin at 8 p.m. The three Cicero brothers were influenced by their dad’s classic music tastes, from Def Leppard and Motley Crue, to Soda Stereo and Heroes del Silencio. The trio also creates their own original music.
At 9 p.m., it will be Josh Spinner whose music is characterized by complex jazz guitar influences and a growing repertoire of original songs that capture the mood of the modern music scene. His releases, “Sunshower” and “End of Summer,” showcase his jazz roots with a harmonious mix of guitar, saxophone, and keyboard melodies.
On Friday, local favorite Sammy & the Knights take the stage at 5 p.m. The musicians, who are members of the Knights of Columbus, play for charity and give back to the community.
At 7 p.m., enjoy the music of The Pretenders and other classic rock song selections with the Karen Hart Band.
At 9:15 p.m., the pop punk/emo band Fueled by Emo will play the likes of Fall Out Boy, Paramore, Panic! At The Disco, The Used, Taking Back Sunday, Yellowcard, Anberlin, Jimmy Eat World, All Time Low, My Chemical Romance, and more.
On Saturday, the School of Rock Geneva students will open the evening’s music stage at 5 p.m., followed at 6 p.m. by Lake Effect, an eight-piece band covering music from classic rock, swing, and R&B.
At 9 p.m., the evening will close out with Sacred Dawn who transformed the Chicago metal scene with an innovative mix of progressive metal and old-school hard rock.
On Sunday, get your groove on with DJ I-Tech at 3:30 p.m.
La Reserva, an Aurora music group which innovates within the Banda genre, will take the stage at 5 p.m.
Christian Zepeda, an up-and-coming Aurora artist making waves with his powerful corridos, will perform at 6:30 p.m.
At 8:30 p.m., the four-day festival will close out with Alexis Valdez. Though primarily focused on corridos, he brings a fresh perspective to traditional Hispanic music.
Unlimited carnival rides for $35 will be offered from 5:30 to 10 p.m. Thursday, 1 to 5 p.m. Saturday or 2:30 to 6:30 p.m. Sunday. For more, go to www.westchicagorailroaddays.com.