Thousands pack downtown Hamilton for Supercrawl Friday

Thousands of people lined James Street North on Friday night as Supercrawl 2016 officially kicked off.

Though rain dampened much of the previous year, the festival rebounded in a big way, with people packed in elbow to elbow on many parts of the street.

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The Trews capped things off on the main stage, with crowds singing along back as far as the Lister Block at King William Street.

"Hello Hamilton, Hello Steeltown," singer Colin MacDonald belted out before the band's hit, I'm Not Ready to Go.

Art was also a focus, with many people stopping to gawk at José Luis Torres' site-specific installation Overflows.

The two shipping containers situated near the intersection of James and Cannon were impossible to ignore. They're meant to play on society's notions of excess.

Site 3 Fire Arts' Riskee Ball also drew big crowds, with excited gasps each time someone landed a point in the reimagined arcade classic, sending bursts of fire into the night sky.

Not to be outdone, hometown boys The Dirty Nil tore through an energetic set on the Exclaim!/K-Lite stage, performing much of their new album Higher Power.

Follow along with reporter Adam Carter all weekend as he brings you the sights and sounds of the festival.

Scroll through a recap of his Friday live blog below, and follow CBC Hamilton on Facebook for live videos from stages and exhibitions this weekend.

On mobile and can't see the live blog? Check it out here.

Supercrawl runs from Sept. 9 to Sept. 11 around James Street North. For more info, visit Supercrawl.ca.