Uprise Festival, the annual Christian music festival that draws thousands to the Shippensburg Fairgrounds at the end of every summer, put on a solid 2015 show this past weekend.

With three stages and acts from all around the world, fans were in for a treat of diverse music and fellowship.

The first night started late and slowly, as the volunteer crew worked tirelessly to prepare the massive stage for each band.

Once the music started, though, the crowd grew progressively larger, until the fairgrounds’ hillside was packed with thousands of fans.

Notable acts included For King and Country, an Australian band that focuses mainly on percussion to enforce their music, Skillet, one of the most popular Christian rock bands, Crowder, a “swampy” worship band led by David Crowder, and Casting Crowns, which headlined the first night.

Day two started at 9 a.m., with three stages — the Main Stage, the Rockstar Stage and the Wired Stage — each offering different bands throughout the hot day.

The Wired Stage featured a few local acts and was the smallest stage, offering some new up-and-coming bands like Pabrael, Backstage Royalty and The Protest a chance to get their music out to a small but eager crowd.

The Rockstar Stage was home to various heavy metal and hard rock acts, and was no stranger to mosh pits and fists in the air, thanks to Silent Planet, War of Ages, Demon Hunter and others. The Main Stage, of course, held the most popular acts, including Family Force 5, Relient K, Jeremy Camp, and Switchfoot as the headliner.

The festival had a few technical hitches. On the first night, the large screen on stage right had to be lowered and fixed as it kept turning off during some of the bands’ sets. Skillet had some microphone issues, and overall sound checks tended to take longer than expected, but this was mostly due to the lower number of volunteers at Uprise 2015.

Practically all the stage hands and workers at the festival are volunteers, and though they experienced some issues, many bands took the time to thank them, and the fans appreciated the hard work. The organizers of the festival also constantly reminded the audience to stay hydrated during the long hot day.

There were activities and bounce-castles for children, a few merchandise tents and a decent array of food from which to choose. Almost every band from the two smaller stages took the time to visit the merchandise tents and hang out with fans, while the larger acts had a meet-and-greet tent.

Fan-favorites were Skillet, who plays at Uprise every year, Demon Hunter, who easily had the most intense mosh pit at its only show in 2015. Other favorites included Relient K, whose return to music and Uprise was accepted and enjoyed, and the headliners Casting Crowns and Switchfoot.

Many of the bands traveled for hours to play at Uprise, which is one of the most popular Christian music festivals in not just Pennsylvania, but the whole country. Each band took the time during sets to talk about their personal faiths, and many took time to preach mini-sermons to the crowd between songs, a practice that is unique but appreciated at Christian music festivals.

With such a diverse backdrop of musical tastes, Uprise delivered a great show at a relatively low price.

After the dust from the large crowd literally settled, the stages were taken apart and the Shippensburg fairgrounds returned to its normal state.

Uprise brought energetic, eager and well-known Christian acts to put on a spectacular show for the local scene, something they have a knack for doing almost every year.

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