Roxfest rolls on with more diverse lineup

August 23, 2012 at 12:00a.m.

By GUY D’ASTOLFO

With Vexfest taking (at least) a year off, the title of biggest local music festival goes to Roxfest, which will be this weekend at Buffalo Hollow.

Roxfest will feature about 30 acts over two days. Organizers expect it will easily top 1,000 in attendance.

Not bad for what started as a keg party five years ago.

“Every year Roxfest continues to grow,” said founder Roxanne Johnson, who is also the drummer for Skull’Rz Bane. “It is amazing.”

The event started as a hard rock festival but as of this year, it’s getting more diverse.

“We are opening up to all kinds of different genres and styles,” said Johnson. “We have added cover acts such as Signal Seven, Green Beans and Riff Raff, as well as acoustic, folk rock and rock.”

Billie Anzevino, a dancer who won an Ohio Hip Hop Award, is slated to perform.

One goal of Roxfest is to help local talent get seen and heard, and attract new fans.

“The music scene is this area has been struggling for a while now and with so much talent in this area, we are trying to give them a place to perform that is on the scale of the bigger music festivals that don’t work with up-and-coming bands,” said Johnson. “[We want to] give them an opportunity to perform on a nice stage in a really nice venue.”

Buffalo Hollow is an outdoor concert facility in a rural area in southeast Mahoning County, about 30 minutes from Youngstown. From Poland, take state Route 170 through New Springfield, New Middletown and Petersburg, and watch for signs to the venue.