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| See what surprising festival passed the big boys and became the favorite to win Festival of the Year |
It’s getting close to festival season!
With the release of the Lollapalooza lineup last week, we
now know who will be performing at all of the major music festivals in 2014.
There are many great options and it is a bit overwhelming. I have spent some
time looking at the respective lineups and have come up with my preseason top
10. The goal is to get to at least 3 of the following 10.
Please enjoy and I hope this can help you make some
decisions on which festival to attend in 2014!
#10: Boston Calling
Boston, Massachusetts
May 23rd – 25th
Bean Town was one of the few major cities missing a music
festival until Crash Line Productions started this show last summer. Year number two displays
some solid growth. My first opinion was that it’s lacking in headliner depth -
I’m not sure how many will be excited about Death Cab for Cutie grabbing the
Saturday headlining slot.
Fortunately though, what is lacking with headliners is made
up for with solid supporting acts. I love Edward Sharpe, Bastille, Head and the
Heart, and Frank Turner, so that peaked my interest.
This festival probably could be condensed from three to two
days, but it still should be a pleasant weekend of music listening at city
hall. Overall, I’m glad Boston now has a music fest, and they did just enough
to nab the 10 slot in the countdown.
#9: Big Guava Music Fest
Tampa, Florida
May 2nd – 4th
Gotta show some love for Tampa here! I’ll admit I was
shocked when I saw this lineup. Last year, this festival was called “Funshine
Music Fest” and the largest name they drew was Train (who killed it by the
way). But this year Tampa’s biggest fest was re-named Guava and put out a
lineup on steroids.
I’m probably most excited for Vampire Weekend, performing
their new album Modern City of Vampires (it is excellent!). Foster the People
and Outkast should be entertaining. Additionally, Guava is featuring some
different bands that don’t show up on many other lineups, such as Slightly
Stoopid and Cake.
Look for Twenty One Pilots to draw one of the largest crowds
here. They are beloved by many in the Tampa Bay area, and I expect their
presence alone to have an impact on ticket sales.
#8: New Orleans Jazz Fest
New Orleans, Louisiana
April 25th - May 4th
Now this lineup features Bruce Springsteen, Arcade Fire,
Vampire Weekend, and Avett Brothers, along with legends Eric Clapton, Carlos
Santana and Phish. The argument can be made that this should be number one on
the power rankings chart.
What hurts that argument is that this music fest is spread
out over two weekends, with each band only taking the stage once. This makes it
very difficult to see everyone, unless you live locally in New Orleans.
Festival organizers really seemed to spread out the bands at the top of the
bill as well, making it difficult to choose which day to attend if opting for a
one-day pass.
Overall, it’s a great first few lines of lineup, but not a
ton of depth in my opinion. I’m sure some of these jazz bands are huge in Nola,
but unfortunately it pushes them down the list.
#7: Shaky Knees Music Fest
Atlanta, Georgia
May 9th – 11th
I think this is one of the most intriguing festival lineups,
and a show that I’m really hoping to attend. Rather than spreading out to
satisfy fans of multiple genres, it appears that Shaky Knees is trying to
attract the niche market of indie, folk-rock fans. I like this strategy!
Festival organizers started by securing the perfect
headliner to represent this genre – Alabama Shakes. I think they’re fully
worthy of this position. They then went to work building a solid body of indie
folk-rockers – Edward Sharpe, Local Natives, Gaslight Anthem, Conor Oberst,
Iron & Wine, Trampled by Turtles, Jason Isbell, Dawes, Lord Huron, Deer
Tick…the list just goes on and on!
You also have Cage the Elephant, Dropkick Murphy’s and
Airborne Toxic Event to add some alt-rock into the mix. I think this could be a
great weekend in Atlanta!
#6: Governors Ball
New York, New York
June 6th – 8th
Governors Ball once again put out a solid lineup for
NYC’s largest music fest. They secured popular headliners Outkast and Jack
White, while also adding a very nice combo with Vampire Weekend and The
Strokes.
The rest of the top of the bill shows some solid depth. Phoenix,
a headliner at Lollapalooza last year, appears on the 5th line of
Governors Ball this year. Skrillex is also further down here than most lineups
he appears on.
Overall, this show will be a bit more rap and EDM heavy that
the other festivals on this list. But I still think it’d be cool to check out.
For me, there’s lost of good support with Fitz and the Tantrums, The 1975,
Frank Turner, Bastille and Broken Bells all appearing in the middle of the
lineup.
#5: Hangout Festival
Gulf Shores, Alabama
May 16th – 18th
Hangout seems to be getting bigger and better every year,
with 2014 being no exception. What stands out for me here is a great group of
headliners. They seem to have grabbed The Black Keys for one of their only US
headlining shows. They also have The Killers, who I can confirm are
professional headliners and will appropriately “kill it” in Gulf Shores this
year. Jack Johnson and The Avett Brothers round out a really respectable group.
The only reason they can’t push pass the big guys is because
they have to work on their mid-day support a bit. They have some fun bands with
Capital Cities, Portugal the Man, Dawes, Bastille, The 1975…just not enough
though to pass Lolla yet. Don’t be discouraged though, the headliners are worth
the wait here. Plus it all takes place on the beach – sounds like a great
weekend to me.
#4: Lollapalooza
Chicago, Illinois
August 1st – 3rd
I wish I could place Lolla in a higher place than 4th,
(it was #1 last year) but their lineup just can’t measure up to 2013. What’s
lacking for me is that I’m really not excited and do not plan to see 4 of the
top 6 artists on the bill. (That’s not a good sign.) Founder Perry Farrell seems to
be going away from his alt-rock influences and moving towards a heavier rap and
house music festival, more like an Ultra Music Fest than a Bonnaroo.
Enough negativity though, there’s still TONS of positives
here. How about Arctic Monkeys appropriately being given a Friday night
headlining slot?! It’s the first time they’ll take the main stage for a US
festival, and I cannot be happier about it. AM is this years Babel, so maybe
they’ll be just as good as the Mumfords were last year.
Looking at the top of the bill, I’m excited for Kings of Leon,
Foster the People, Avett Brothers and especially Lorde. I think she’ll draw a
huge crowd and be very entertaining.
What’s most exciting about Lolla though is the outstanding
group of sub headliners. You have Young the Giant, Head and the Heart, Cage the
Elephant, Broken Bells, Portugal the Man, Grouplove, Fitz and the Tantrums,
Temper Trap, The 1975, J Roddy Walston, Phantogram, Chvurches…and oh so many
more. This is a rare festival where you may have more trouble deciding which
bands to see in the afternoon, versus the nighttime.
And although it dropped to 4, Lolla is by no means
suffering. They still sold out of 200,000+ tickets in less than an hour. This
festival takes place in gorgeous Grant Park in downtown Chicago, and features
ample after shows every night. In my opinion, it is a MUST GO!
#3: Coachella
Indo, California
April 11th – 13th and April 18th
– 20th
Two weekends for Coachella this year, adding flexibility for
festivalgoer’s and a chance for fans to see the biggest names in the business
twice. This will be the fist show of the reunion of Outkast, so that’s quite
exciting. The Saturday headliner is Muse, making a rare US headlining
appearance.
The supporting headliners are very solid. Coachella also
attracted Lorde, and added Beck and Haim. Pharrell Williams will also be huge
there! You never know who he may bring up on stage with him.
But the reason this is number three for me is because of the
Sunday headliner – ARCADE FIRE. I love Arcade Fire, and I think they should
have been headlining many more US festivals this year. They are reason enough
to look at flights to LA this April. Arcade Fire is a prefect festival band and
they will be the highlight of Coachella. I wish I could be there to see it.
#2: Bonnaroo
Manchester, Tennessee
June 12th – 15th
So many headliners here! Elton John, Jack White, Kanye,
Vampire Weekend, Avett Brothers, Arctic Monkeys, Phoenix….man how can you not
have a good time heading to the farm and camping out while listening to music
for four days?!
The body of the lineup features the usual suspects, with a
few standouts that I’d be really excited to see. I’ve been itching to see Dr.
Dog again after getting a taste of their live shows last September. I also
would love to see Jake Bugg after he’s gained some US popularity.
Unsurprisingly, Bonnaroo put out an A list lineup. Well
done.
#1: Firefly Festival
Dover, Delaware
June 19th – 22nd
Oh my…. where to begin?! Is this an alt-rock fans dream lineup
here? Out of nowhere, Firefly Festival has become number one in my power
rankings and put out possibly the best music festival lineup I have ever seen!
Let’s begin with the second line of this lineup. You have
both Imagine Dragons and the Lumineers, two really fun bands that killed it at
Lolla last year and are just so great to see live. I would have been happy if
those were the headliners!
When I went over Lolla for 2014, I mentioned Young the
Giant, Portugal the Man, and Cage the Elephant. Well all of those are here as
well, plus more!
Since I’ve started this blog, I’ve reviewed many concerts.
The only bands to receive 3.5 stars or more at a show I’ve rated is The Arctic
Monkeys, Band of Horses, and Jake Bugg. Well all three of those bands will be
at Firefly.
If that’s not enough, two of my favorite bands ever are here
– Third Eye Blind and Twenty One Pilots! It’s almost too good to be true.
This lineup is so good in fact, that my 2013 pick for Rookie
of the Year, The Mowgli’s, is on the lower half of the lineup, displaying just
how good the upper half is.
And we haven’t even made it to the headliners yet. Jack
Johnson one night, and festival favorite Outkast another. That’s acceptable,
but who will headline the third night?
FOO FIGHTERS?! Dave Grohl is like a walking God among
alt-rock fans. I can’t believe the Foo’s will be at Firefly. So far it seems
like it is their only festival appearance, and the guys have enough material to
put on a show you will never forget. This just caps off an epic festival
lineup.
You know what… a picture is not enough. Watch this festival revealing lineup:
You know what… a picture is not enough. Watch this festival revealing lineup:
Can't wait for Firefly this year!
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