Irish on Ionia heats up Grand Rapids for St. Patrick’s Day, plus Quinn & Tuite’s revelry, Willy Porter, The Wonder Years: The weekend photos

West Michigan’s live music assault had a distinct St. Patrick’s Day flair in weekend photos shared at Spins on Music. (Photos/video)

With the temperature in a decidedly un-March-like mid-20s, Casey McGuire and Jessica Peters arrived at the gates for downtown Grand Rapids’ outdoor Irish on Ionia celebration at 6:30 a.m. Saturday, pumped up about celebrating St. Patrick’s Day with 14,000 other crazily clad, emerald-hued revelers downing green beer and dancing to the music of Celtic folk and rock bands.

At 4:30 p.m., as the sun peeked through the clouds on the chilly afternoon, they were still grinning and swaying to the Irish fusion music of Ann Arbor’s Millish.

“I love it,” said Peters, of Kent City, who has attended all three Irish on Ionia bashes. “What other excuse is there to drink all day?”

McGuire, attending his first Irish on Ionia, professed to “especially love the dancing,” provided partly by Arden Academy of Irish Dance’s performance Irish dance troupe and partly by the gleeful sold-out crowd.

And how long did he intend to stick around? “Until I can’t stand no more,” he insisted.

With Liam “the extra large” Leprechaun leading the way in announcing bands, the day-long party that kicked off at 7 a.m. on the fenced-in site on Ionia Avenue SW south of Fulton Street featured performances by Peat in the Creel, An Dro, Gasta, Millish, The Billies, The Crane Wives and The Waxies, with DJ-driven dance and hip-hop music blaring in between sets.

with a high of 28 degrees, the temperature at the third annual Irish on Ionia affair was 50 degrees colder than last year, but that didn’t seem to faze most of the 20-something revelers who either danced and drank away the cold, or huddled inside the packed warming tent. The sellout meant lines were everywhere: lines to get in, lines to buy beer, lines to use the porta-potties, lines to get into McFadden’s Restaurant & Saloon within the festival site, even lines to get out.

QUINN & TUITE’S IRISH SPIRIT PACKS THE HOUSE

A few miles away, at Quinn & Tuite’s Irish Pub on Plainfield Avenue NE, things were just as crowded, but the vibe was decidedly more authentic and far cozier — and warmer — with a more diverse crowd, age-wise, getting into the Irish spirit thanks to music by Five Leaf Clovers, Conklin Ceili Band, and yes, The Billies and The Waxies (who earlier played Irish on Ionia).

Irish-flavored folk music and snowflakes were in the air this weekend across West Michigan as pubs, restaurants and one particularly huge Grand Rapids festival uncorked St. Patrick’s Day celebrations that had eyes smiling, feet dancing, ale flowing … and heads likely pounding with hangovers today.

Based on photos shared at Spins on Music, the revelry began early with talented Irish folk group Lunasa playing a sold-out show Tuesday night at Fenian’s Irish Pub in Ottawa County’s Conklin and continued through the week at a host of different venues, including Peat in the Creel and An Dro playing Rockford Brewing Co..

Not all of the music, of course, was from the Emerald Isle: The Wonder Years pumped up an enthusiastic crowd with their pop-punk in a sold-out show Thursday at The Pyramid Scheme, acclaimed guitarist-singer Willy Porter delivered a bracing “Pindrop Concert” at Spring Lake’s Seven Steps Up on Friday, up-and-coming young singers and musicians played the Rockford High School stage at the Rockford Community Expo on Saturday, and California’s Slightly Stoopid revved up a hefty crowd at The Orbit Room on Sunday night.

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