Tag Archives: Another Planet Entertainment

[Festival Review] Outside Lands IX : Revisiting the Most Memorable Acts of the Weekend

OSL7In continuing to build on the foundation laid nine years ago, Another Planet Entertainment has once again outdone themselves; the final product being yet another successfully executed Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival. The 2016 version – keen on replicating the successes of previous iterations – was calculated in its approach, careful not to break the trends and quirks that have made it such a mainstay to the community.

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Instead, APE kept what has worked and improved upon it; meaning deeper lineups, aesthetically more impressive sound and lighting productions, finally allowing payment via RFID-enabled festival wristbands, and a fair amount of side stages to keep all wandering pseudo-bohemians well occupied. Unfortunately, along with the quality improvements also came a pretty substantial price adjustment – putting on a nationally recognized festival is big business, after all.

Those willing to stomach the uptick were treated to an especially diverse lineup ranging from saxophone playing acts like Kamasi Washington and GRiZ, nostalgia-inducing pop rock outfit Third Eye Blind, platinum (and featureless) hip hop artist J.Cole, EDM prodigy Zedd, the Jack-of-all-trades Garratt, and rags to riches rapper Anderson .Paak.

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Outside Lands 2016: 13 Acts To Catch Before 4 [Event Preview]

As Outside Lands approaches every year, there’s a unique buzz around San Francisco. Between those frantically searching for tickets, hashing out set conflicts, proclaiming excitement or proudly boycotting, the City’s biggest festival is on locals’ minds this week. For the last 5 years we’ve watched Another Planet Entertainment’s crown jewel grow along a similar trajectory as the Bay Area–rapidly rising in popularity (and price). Even with the ever-changing landscape that surrounds it, Outside Lands maintains a dedication to quality music, comedy and food in 2016. The lineup sticks to the tried and true formula of local / up ‘n coming acts, the years’ current headliners and a rare performance from a star of the past.

While we’d be happy to harp some more on how awesome Anderson .Paak, Rufus Du Sol or LCD Soundsystem are, we thought we’d take this opportunity to introduce all our Bay Area Ninjas to some acts they might fall in love with for the first time this weekend at Outside Lands. We know how hard it is to get your crew moving, particularly in SF, but we think these artists make accelerating your pre-game well worth it. Hope to catch some of you Ninjas out in Hellman Hollow!

Day 1

Make It Funky DJs (Heineken House, 12-1:30PM)
For the most prompt attendees, we’d recommend kicking off your weekend at the Heineken House with our friends from Make It Funky. Over the last 3 years, the DJ collective have established themselves as a staple of San Francisco nightlife. If you haven’t yet been to one of their events, their set in the Heineken House should serve as the perfect introduction to their funk/disco vibes and get you dancing from the jump. – Ash

Marian Hill (Twin Peaks, 12:45-1:30)

’Marian Hill – One Time’

Marian Hill is the cleverly titled Philly-based band consisting of Jeremy Lloyd and Samantha Gongol. While they haven’t been on the scene long, the band makes up for short-term fame in their long-term chemistry – having performed together since middle school. Since gaining notoriety behind the catchy “One Time” in early 2014, Marian Hill has been putting together jazzy-electronic tracks at a solid pace. Their debut album, ACT ONE, is out now and well worth a listen. – Dom P.

Wet (Sutro, 2:30-3:20)

’Wet – It’s All in Vain’

While riding the wave to fame behind a hipster following, Wet has taken the back roads to success, allowing their vast internet following to shower them with (well deserving) praise behind early bedroom productions. Since putting out the 2013 melodic “I Don’t Wanna Be Your Girl”, the Wet trio has signed to a major label and toured nationally. Recently reemerged from their production studio in the wooded thickets of Hadley, Massachusetts, Wet dropped their debut album Don’t You and will be certainly gaining even more followers after their OSL performance. – Dom P.

Vulfpeck (Panhandle, 2:55-3:35)

’Vulfpeck – Back Pocket’

It’s unlikely you’ll see any performance quite like Vulfpeck’s this weekend. The funk/soul band take a fully improvisational approach to songwriting resulting in a catalogue of epic, at times comedic, jams that are morphed and built on during live performance. Don’t let their light-hearted approach fool you, though, Vulfpeck are truly gifted musicians who involve the audience in their show at every opportunity. – Ash Continue reading

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[Event Review] ODESZA’s Dazzling Victory Lap at Bill Graham Civic Auditorium–SF, 12/10

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ODESZA
Memories That You Call (feat. Monsoonsiren)

Since the release of their 2014 album, ODESZA have grown into an omnipresent force in dance music appearing at nearly every major music festival and making their way across the globe on an extensive headlining tour. This year has been particularly pivotal for the Seattle duo—they’ve dropped several massive remixes, continued to expand their live set (including a full marching band at Lollapalooza) and launched the Foreign Family Collective. Through Foreign Fam, they’ve helped introduce like-minded artists such as Big Wild and Jai Wolf to larger audiences. As huge fans, the Ninja staff have had the pleasure of covering the Seattle duo’s upward trajectory and interviewing them a couple times along the way. 

In the last two years alone, the TMN writers have probably seen ODESZA a combined 20 times—my best guess for myself is 6. So, going into their show last week, I frankly wasn’t sure there was much more to see and, even if their performance hadn’t evolved, I would’ve admittedly left happy. Once again, though, ODESZA put together an awe-inspiring set fit for Bill Graham Auditorium’s grand stature. As the set began, members Harrison and Clayton emerged with their parallel MIDI and drum setup offering some words about their admiration for the SF crowd, who have shown out every time they’ve come to town. Musically, “Koto,” a gorgeous and low-key track, set the tone before the first high point hit with their remix of Sia’s “Big Girls Cry.” Granted a nearly 2-hour set, ODESZA was able to dig deep in their catalogue playing standouts from their oft-overlooked debut, Summer’s Gone, such as ”Above the Middle” all the way through the fan-favorite remixes of opener Hayden James’ “Something About You” and Zhu’s “Faded.”  DNP_9124 Continue reading

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[Festival Review] Moments & Songs from Treasure Island 2015–SF, 10/17-18

DNP_5253It’s particularly sad to say goodbye to Treasure Island Music Festival. Not only does TI mark the end of the summer festival season, but it’s also a true breathe of fresh air from the oft-overwhelming mega events that have come to dominate the space. With relief from the typical pains of festivals –trouble meeting friends, overcrowded stages, set conflicts and the list goes on–we always walk out of TI refreshed and this year was no exception. Overlooking the San Francisco skyline, Treasure Island’s serenity never fails to amaze us and it didn’t hurt that the weather was pretty much perfect all weekend.

The clear-split lineup that highlighted electronic/hip-hop on Saturday and alternative rock/pop on Sunday gave each day a vibe all its own. Take a trip back with photos and songs from the two different, but equally enjoyable, days.

All photos by Dominic Powell unless otherwise stated. 

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14 Unforgettable Sets from Outside Lands 2015 [Festival Review]

CoverIt’s been nearly a week since we first stepped into Golden Gate Park for Outside Lands, but with the return to the daily grind it feels like even longer for most of us. This year’s festival, yet another record-breaking one by attendance, featured all the amenities that make OSL special–amazing food, craft beers, a star-studded comedy lineup, the beautiful backdrop of Hellman Hollow and of course a top-notch bill of musical performances. With its rapid expansion came some growing pains as well, though, and our main gripe was the inaccessibility of the Heineken House, which featured some great DJs, due to overcrowding. At the same time, the greater depth of the lineup made the previously overlooked Panhandle stage the place to be and when the crowd came together at shows, the energy was unbelievable.

In the stupor that follows music festivals, it can be easy to allow your precious experiences to fade in the rearview of your memory bank, but there will always be sets that you’ll never forget. We’ve recounted 14 sets that have been stuck in our minds all week and also tried something a bit new with this review by asking random fans to review our favorite sets. If you were in attendance this year, we hope this brings you back and, if not, it might just make you want to check out OSL next year.

All images by Ninja Dominic Powell. All writing, unless otherwise noted, by Ash.

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Outside Lands 2015: 40+ Songs to Prepare [Festival Preview]

OL15_Website_AdMat_SeeYouInAugust (1)It’s that time of the year in San Francisco when everyone’s either scrambling to find a ticket or stressing schedule overlaps for Outside Lands Music Festival. Hosted in the heart of Golden Gate Park’s picturesque forest, OSL has quickly become the Bay Area’s most sought-after festival ticket since its inception 7 years ago. In the last couple years particularly, though, the demand has exploded with tickets selling out faster than ever and a ravenous (and frankly obnoxious) secondhand ticket market. That’s all with good reason, though, considering Another Planet Entertainment raises the stakes every year and 2015 is looking to be no different with one of the strongest lineups in the festival’s history.

As always, the Outside Lands bill combines local acts, up ‘n coming bands from around the world and established contemporary stars with a few legends sprinkled on top. There’s a marked depth to the lineup this year including the Heineken House, which will serve as the designated non-stop dance tent for the weekend. As Ninjas, and senseis in the art of festival-ing, we’ll always vouch for at least one stop a day at these stages. We’ve crafted a playlist, including our favorites from the Heineken House, in chronological order of performance that we hope helps get you prepared for OSL 2015. For all of you who won’t be able to make it, you can live stream performances from the Outside Lands website. Continue reading

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[Festival Review + Playlist] Photos & Songs from Treasure Island 2014, SF 10/18-19

_MG_1990As regular festival attendees, the Ninja staff has definitely learned to appreciate a well-organized event and last weekend’s Treasure Island Music Festival proved once again to be one of the best in the business. With no overlapping sets and plenty of room to dance, TIMF, even in its most well-attended year to date, felt like a paradise for festivalgoers who, with the current popularity of live music, have become accustomed to the more stressful aspects of music festivals. Treasure Island’s 2014 lineup featured masterful curation of diverse genres encouraging attendees to check out acts they might not have otherwise.

Check out a playlist of memorable songs to go along with some amazing photos of MØ, Chet Faker Outkast, Alt-J and more from Treasure Island Music Festival below. If you were in attendance last weekend, we hope this brings you back!

Day 1

Why we loved it: Electro-pop vocalist MØ has been on our radar for quite some time now. As a performer, she has an undeniable energy with a voice that translates incredibly well live. Due to an eye infection, she was rocking an eye patch during her set, which actually ended up making her look even cooler on stage. TIMF2014_4 TIMF2014_5TIMF2014_6

”MØ
Don’t Wanna Dance’
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