Tag Archives: Music Festivals

Noise Pop 2016: 7 Acts We Loved–SF, 2/19-2/28 [Festival Review + Playlist]

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All photos by Dom Powell except for photos of DIIV, which are by Ash. 

Over the last few years, San Francisco’s Noise Pop Festival has grown into our favorite week for music in the Bay Area. Taking place at venues across the city, the logistics can get tricky, but the venue hopping and set-time speculation is completely worth the broad variety of music the lineup offers. As is true for any festival. there’s no way to catch everything and there was plenty of FOMO to go around between the surprise guest filled late night Cafe Du Nord shows to the various events at Noise Pop’s home base, Swedish American Music Hall. With a couple years of experience under our belt, we definitely feel like this was both our best go-around thus far as well as the festival’s. The one great thing about the staggering number of events is that every publications experience is slightly different, each choosing different favorite takeaways based on their schedule. Take a trip back with some of our favorite sets, songs and moments from the week below. Continue reading

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[Festival Review] Life on the Incline: Sasquatch!, the Gorge and the Hill’s Eternal Serenity

17496069434_2c6a933028_oThere’s nothing quite like the sensation of sitting sideways atop the slope of the Gorge Amphitheater’s hill at Sasquatch! Music Festival overlooking the Columbia River Gorge. Add entrancing music to a background that no picture or piece of art could ever do justice; and, at that intersection, you’ll find the happy place Squatchers look forward to all year. The so-far-past picturesque backdrop sets the tone for the festival but, with arguably one of its best lineups yet, was a far cry from Sasquatch’s only attraction this year. Rather, the main stage’s slope served as the much-needed anchor after a dance party at the Chupacabra tent or Big Foot stage—a place to lie, head up or down, and absorb the collective consciousness of thousands of equally inspired concertgoers.

Music festivals have become such chaotic events and Sasquatch! is, certainly not an exception, but it’s that same comfort felt on the hill that permeates throughout the entire campground. No matter what you’re going through or how you’re feeling, the hill will take your emotional state to serenity, where it belongs.

18009447496_4d9cd9882f_oWords, photos and songs really can’t do justice to just how incredible the Squatch is but we’ve done our best to recap, from our perspective, the musical highlights from the 4 days. For those of you who were there, we hope this brings you back even if just a little bit and for those who weren’t, well, you’re going to want to be there next year after peeping our recap.

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Coachella 2015 – Must See Acts [TMN EDITORS’ PICKS]

TMNCoachThe spectacle and legend of Coachella Valley Arts & Music Festival seems to grow every year and, although it’s certainly reached a critical mass at this point, it proves time and time again to be worth the trip. After breaking box office records for consecutive years, Coachella continues blazing ahead in 2015 with a deep, diverse lineup and some of their most ambitious projects to date including their largest investment in art installations ever. With the first weekend kicking off this Friday, the set times for Coachella were finally let loose yesterday bringing up the regular scheduling conflicts and tough decisions. To make things easier for you all, we’ve decided to lay out our top acts to see every day chronologically. We hope this serves as a useful guide as you prepare for the whirlwind of emotion that is Coachella. Best advice we can give you all: keep good company, don’t sweat (figuratively, of course, perspiration is imminent) and most importantly be safe. Hope to run in to some of you ninjas there!

P.S. We didn’t forget the Do Lab! You can find our Do Lab picks on the final page.

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60+ Songs to Prepare for Treasure Island Music Festival in SF, 10/18-19 [Event Preview + Playlist]

timf2014-sfweekly-fullpgLineups for major music festivals often boast 100+ artists, which although in theory is a great concept, can end up being overwhelming and frustrating when you realize the impossibility of seeing every act on the bill. San Francisco’s Treasure Island Music Festival, a collaboration between Noise Pop and Another Planet Entertainment, provides one of the few exceptions to this conundrum electing to go with fewer artists and alternating sets at only two stages. Having attended last year, we found this to be a genius, albeit seemingly obvious, solution making the experience far more relaxed for festival-goers without sacrificing any quality in the music. Aside from the unique arrangement, the backdrop of Treasure Island overlooks both the Bay and Golden Gate bridges and has one of the more stunning sunsets the Bay Area has to offer. For anyone who will be attending this year, we also highly recommend checking out the non-stop Silent Disco stage courtesy Silent Frisco.

To help you all prepare for what should be an amazing weekend of music, we’ve put together a massive playlist including every single artist on the TIMF lineup because, with no overlapping sets, you will actually have the opportunity to see them all. Whether you’ve already got your ticket, are still on the fence or can’t make it this year, we hope this serves as a fun, introduction to a dynamic collection of musicians. One and two-day passes for Treasure Island Music Festival are still available so, if you like what you hear below, grab your tickets HERE.

Day 1: 

Painted PalmsNoon @ Bridge Stage. 

Sounds like: San Francisco-based, psychedelic pop.

’Painted Palms
Anna’
’Painted Palms – Here It Comes’

Tobacco (of Black Moth Super Rainbow), 12:40PM @ Tunnel Stage.

Sounds like: In his own words, “I want to make you feel paranoid in a good way.”

’Tobacco – Self Tanner’
’Black Moth Super Rainbow – Gangs in the Garden’

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MUST-SEE: Ratking1:10PM @ Bridge. 

Sounds like: Gritty, high energy New York hip-hop.

’Ratking – So It Goes’
’Ratking – Pretty Picture’
’Phantogram – Fall in Love (RATKING Falling Off Remix)’
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Outside Lands 2014: 10 Acts to See Before 3PM [Event Preview + Playlist]

With the inevitable shenanigans that occur during preparation, it can be difficult to get to a music festival in a timely manner. As a result, its fairly common for festival-goers to miss out on acts that play early in the day. While headliners rarely disappoint, there’s something incredible about discovering an artist for the very first time during a live performance–a mutually beneficial exchange between artist and fan. The first few hours of a lineup provide ample opportunity to do so without compromise often producing some of the most energetic shows of an event.

Outside Lands is coming up on Friday, and we’ve decided to do our best to compel all our ninjas to make it to Golden Gate Park early this weekend by highlighting 10 acts worth seeing before 3PM. In creating the list, we found that there is certainly no shortage of artists, both established and up & coming, that we’re excited for during the first few hours of each day. If you can’t make it in early, don’t sweat, because at least a few of these bands will be headlining festivals themselves soon enough. Check out the playlist below and we hope to see some of you at OSL this weekend!

Day 1 (08/08):

Night Terrors of 1927 (Noon, Panhandle Stage)

Sounds like: Brooding, dark pop bringing together powerful emotions on either end of the spectrum.

’Night Terrors of 1927 – Young and Vicious’
’Night Terrors of 1927 – Dust and Bones’

Aer (12:45PM, Twin Peaks Stage)

Sounds like: A sunny blend of hip-hop, alternative rock and a splash of Sublime.

’Aer – Feel I Bring’
’Aer – Won’t Laugh’

Run the Jewels (2:15, Lands End Stage)

Sounds like: Hardcore hip-hop with counter-cultural commentary.

’Run The Jewels – Banana Clipper feat. Big Boi’
’Run The Jewels – Get It’

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Northern Nights Music Festival 7/18-7/20 in Mendocino, CA [Festival Preview + Playlist]

The most common complaint about the meteoric rise of music festivals has been their commercialization. Regardless of your stance, its hard to argue that events are generally far more pleasant when there’s some room to move around and, even more so, with a scenic, temperate backdrop. For those looking for a break from the usual stress of festivals, this weekend’s Northern Nights Music Festival might be the perfect opportunity.

A few hours north of San Francisco in the gorgeous expanse that is Northern California, the festival offers a pristine setting for camping under enormous Redwoods. Its location along the Eel River lends itself to the awesomely unique option of hopping in a floaty and going for a relaxed trip downstream—something us ninjas could’ve used at this year’s blistering Coachella. Just as its more remote location might suggest, Northern Nights boasts a refreshing lineup leaning towards underground electronic and alternative genres. In addition to the music, there will also be various art exhibits, food, drinks, workshops and yoga classes.

With the live-electronic band, Beats Antique, headlining, the festival features a number of other TMN-favorite artists, which we’ve included below in our preview playlist—we’ll let the music do the talking! Don’t just take it from us, though, and make sure to check out some of the names you’re not yet familiar with.

If you’re up for the adventure, and feeling the lineup, make sure to head over to Northern Nights’s website to grab your tickets.

’Beats Antique – Roadworthy (feat Antibalas Horns)’
’ODESZA – Memories That You Call (feat. Monsoonsiren)’
’Minnesota – Float (Featuring Zion I)’
’Viceroy – The Life Feat. Penguin Prison’
’The Floozies – Love, Sex, And Fancy Things’
’DallasK – Alienz (Two Fresh Remix)’
’Giraffage – Music Sounds Better With You (Remix)’
’Mr. Carmack – another intrepidity, with evil needle’
’Lindsay Lowend – Wind Fish’
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Phantogram Talk Psychic Connections, Childhood Memories and Musical Influences at Sasquatch! 2014 [TMN Exclusive Interview]

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PHANTOGRAM
Black Out Days

Experimental-pop duo Phantogram have continued their incredible run of the last few years with the February release of their second album, Voicesa project incepted in the midst of a seemingly never-ending string of quality sold-out shows and festival appearances. Band members Josh Carter and Sarah Barthel have a knack for melding deeply emotional undertones with euphoric melodies and hip-hop inspired rhythms resulting in a larger-than-life sound. Nowhere is this style more pronounced and evolved than on Voices, their major label debut, which serves as an organic progression that takes their music to a new level of intensity.

I was lucky enough to sit down with Josh and Sarah shortly before their performance at this year’s Sasquatch! Music Festival to learn about their journey thus far. Phantogram’s show at the Gorge’s Bigfoot Stage truly embodied their collaborative artistic growth with a perfectly synced, powerful and mesmerizing experience. Check out the conversation below and make sure to catch Phantogram on one of their upcoming tour dates–it’s definitely not a show you will want to miss.

TMN: I know that you two have known each other since middle school, growing up together in New York. Were you guys already involved in playing music at all back then? Was there any indication that you might be in a band when you were older, or was that not at all in your minds yet? 

Josh: When I was a teenager, I was just really into skateboarding a lot. I was skate or die. Music was always a huge part of my life, and when I think back at growing up, I didn’t make music or anything, but I was always kind of writing songs in my head and thinking up beats. When I wasn’t skating around with headphones on, I was always kind of making beats in my head. So I should’ve known better that maybe I would start doing it, but music came into my life later. When I was in my late teens/early twenties was when I got really into it. I learned how to play guitar, drums and piano.

Sarah: For me, it was the same kind of idea. When I was a kid, I would always sing along to songs, but I didn’t think that I was going to sing. And not even close to being in a band and writing, producing and creating music until Josh and I met up together.

TMN: Does having that friendship for such a long time play a large role in your dynamic as musicians? 

Josh: Yeah, I mean, we are like brother and sister. And kind of like psychic twins artistically and emotionally too, which has a huge role in how we make music because we’re very connected and in-tune with each other’s emotions and experiences in life. Without that, I don’t think we’d make music that is so personal and emotional. I really do think that our music has a certain emotion behind it that would be lacking if we weren’t so connected.

TMN: Talk a bit about the formation of the band because I know you both were working on some music of your own at the time you joined forces, and had a band under a different name at first. How did Phantogram come to fruition?

Josh: I was playing in a band with my brother in New York and then I decided I just wanted to work on my solo career, which was basically working on my own stuff at home. Sarah and I started hanging out a lot when I moved from NYC to upstate New York, closer to where we grew up. She had finished college and came back to our home area and I was playing her a lot of my demos and solo stuff. I just asked her if she wanted to sing on some of them and she did and I think we kind of looked at each other and were like, “this sounds awesome. let’s start a band.” And then we just did it. Continue reading

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