Outside Lands Fest 2012 (more byAmoreena Lucero)

The 2013 edition of San Francisco's Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival with happen at Golden Gate Park on August 9 - 11. This year's line-up includes Paul McCartney, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Nine Inch Nails, Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, D'Angelo, Willie Nelson, Grizzly Bear, Band of Horses, Hall & Oates, Foals, A-Track, Jurassic 5, Kurt Vile and many more. Tickets go on sale Thursday (4/18) at noon PDT.

This is the sixth edition of Outside Lands, and the full announced line-up is below.

Continue reading "Outside Lands Fest 2013 line-up: Paul McCartney, Nine Inch Nails, Phoenix, Vampire Weekend, Yeah Yeah Yeahs ++ more)"

photos by Amoreena Lucero

Franz Ferdinand / Jack White / Bloc Party, Outside Lands 8/12/2012

Outside Lands might be the only major festival where 93 percent of the musical acts on the bill could walk the grounds without getting recognized.

The headliners certainly had their fans - particularly the Vermont jam band Phish, which played nearly 3 1/2 hours of droopy guitar licks to twirling dancers on Friday. But the rest of the acts on the three-day bill drew less discriminating crowds.

On Sunday, the kids waiting for the Swedish electro-pop troupe Little Dragon to take the stage in Lindley Meadow sang along to the sounds of John Fogerty floating through the trees from the Polo Field. The 66-year-old Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductee and former leader of Creedence Clearwater Revival filled his hour-long set with classic rock staples such as "Bad Moon Rising" and "Up Around the Bend."

But turntables were as prevalent as guitars. One of the biggest draws of the weekend was Girl Talk, the 30-year-old Pittsburgh DJ Greg Gillis, who on Saturday in Speedway Meadow did nothing more than stitch together hundreds of familiar riffs and beats from other peoples' songs in rapid-fire bursts.
If you didn't know where to head at any given time, all you had to do was jump into the nearest stream of young people. It was almost impossible to go wrong with more than 70 acts on the bill, including the Black Keys, Foster the People, Best Coast, the Arctic Monkeys and the Roots. - [SF Gate]

Pictures from Day 1 are here and Day 2 are here. More pictures from Sunday are below.

Continue reading "Outside Lands Festival 2012 Day 3 in pics (Jack White, Franz Ferdinand, Bloc Party, Regina Spektor & more)"

photos by Amoreena Lucero

Metallica / Sigur Ros at Outside Lands - 8/11/12

Metallica's headlining set on Saturday featured lots of the band's classic material ("Master of Puppets," "Ride the Lightning," "Creeping Death") paired with a fair amount of pyro and endless shout-outs to San Francisco. "We're very grateful to be playing in the backyard of the greatest city," said frontman James Hetfield. He also noted that a friend of his who lives a good distance from the park told him earlier that he could hear the band soundcheck all the way from his house. "So we're not only playing for you," said Hetfield. "We're playing for all of the Bay Area." [Rolling Stone]

Pictures of day 1 are HERE. More of day 2 are below.

Continue reading "Outside Lands Festival 2012 Day 2 in pics (Metallica, Sigur Ros, The Kills, Tame Impala, Explosions in the Sky & more)"

photos by Amoreena Lucero

Beck / Andrew Bird at Outside Lands 8/10/2012

Who needs to travel to Southern California for Coachella or to Texas for Austin City Limits? Certainly not music fans living in the Bay Area.

They can just stay right at home and enjoy the increasingly popular Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco's Golden Gate Park. That is, if they can get a ticket. This year's gathering of the musical tribes, which runs through Sunday, completely sold out in advance -- 65,000 tickets snatched up for each of the three days.

That's quite an accomplishment for the still-young event, which, in its fifth year, has certainly become one of the nation's premiere music festivals.
This success story is no mystery. Berkeley-based concert promoter Another Planet Entertainment always lines up terrific acts for the festival -- and that's certainly the case in 2012.

The large-scale production, which features six performance stages as well as great food and drink offerings (mostly from local providers), kicked off in triumphant fashion on Friday with sets by hometown hero Neil Young (with Crazy Horse), the Foo Fighters, Beck, Of Monsters and Men, Die Antwoord and many other talents. - [Oakland Tribune]

Continue reading "Outside Lands Festival 2012: Day 1 in pics (Beck, Andrew Bird, Foo Fighters, Washed Out and more)"

As we mentioned previously, Australia's Tame Impala are visiting this side of the globe for a few festival dates, including Lollapalooza, Osheaga and Outside Lands. While in North America, the band will play a just-added NYC show at Music Hall of Williamsburg on August 7. Tickets go on sale Friday, August 3 at noon.

If you haven't checked out Tame Impala's new single, "Elephant," you can stream it below. Their new album, Lonerism, is out October 5.

Also below: a new video from Tame Impala side project Pond.

Continue reading "Tame Impala playing Music Hall of Williamsburg next week!"

Tame Impala's new album, Lonerism, is due out in October. The Australian psych-rockers will release the album's first official single in August, a glammy stomper called "Elephant" which you can stream below. The cover art is above. Remixes will soon be available by Canyons and Todd Rundgren (!).

Tame Impala will be in North America soon for a few U.S. festivals, including Lollapalooza in Chicago, Osheaga in Montreal and Outside Lands in San Francisco. (Sorry NYC!) All upcoming tour dates are listed below, along with the "Elephant" stream and Lonerism cover art and tracklist.

Continue reading "listen to new Tame Impala single, "Elephant""

Superfly presents the Great GoogaMooga this weekend (5/19-5/20) in Brooklyn's Prospect Park. As can you can see by the posted schedule, live music will be happening on two stages concurrently with food demonstrations, comedy and other entertainment while food is being served all around. Don't have one of the free tickets, and aren't planning on buying one either? Probably best to not show up then. At least that's what festival co-founder Kerry Black of Superfly told us in the interview that you can read in full below...

Continue reading "an interview w/ Great GoogaMooga co-founder Kerry Black (about this weekend's fest in Prospect Park)"

After multiple quickly-sold-out pre-sales, tickets for Sigur Ros's Prospect Park Bandshell show will go on sale to the general public at noon today (4/20).

Since we last posted Sigur Ros dates, there have been two festival developments. Sigur Ros were announced on the lineup of Outside Lands which is on sale now, and Lollapalooza announced who was playing each day and put single day tickets on sale (Sigur Ros play on the Sunday).

In related news, Sigur Ros will be releasing two exclusive and limited vinyl pressings for Record Store Day Saturday.

Updated Sigur Ros tour dates are listed below...

Continue reading "Sigur Ros Celebrate Brooklyn tickets; Lollapalooza & Outside Lands on sale too"

"Another Planet Entertainment, Superfly Presents and Starr Hill presents, in a partnership with the San Francisco Recreation and Park Department, are proud to announce the lineup for the fifth annual Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival. The world's only gourmet music festival will once again take place in San Francisco's historic Golden Gate Park August 10 - 12, 2012. Tickets will go on sale Thursday April 19 at 12 noon PDT via www.sfoutsidelands.com. A significant portion of every ticket sold will directly benefit San Francisco's Recreation and Park Department."

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2012 lineup (Metallica, Stevie Wonder, Neil Young, Jack White, Foo Fighters, Beck, Skrillex...)"

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah @ BAM in 2009 (more by Natasha Ryan)

"We have a new album coming out! It's called Hysterical, and it will be available on September 20th in the US, and September 12th in the UK, Europe, Japan, and Australia. ALSO, we are re-issuing our 1st album on vinyl. It has been remastered. We always thought the vinyl could sound better. That will be available on June 14th." - Clap Your Hands Say Yeah

A Clap Your Hands Say Yeah album teaser video and some initial tour dates, Outside Lands Festival included (they were not part of the festival's lineup announcement), below...

Continue reading "Clap Your Hands Say Yeah return, new LP & dates announced"

The Outside Lands Festival, which runs from 8/12 - 8/14 in Golden Gate Park in San Francisco, released their 2011 lineup in April (and now it's May, so consider this a catch up post). Tickets are on sale.

This year's fest will appearances from The Shins, Muse, Arcade Fire, Arctic Monkeys, The Black Keys, Phish (two sets), !!!, Erykah Badu, Big Audio Dynamite (who played Coachella and are also playing Lollapalooza), Girl Talk and many more. The full lineup is below.

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2011 lineup"

photos by Vincent Cornelli

"You ready for some Grateful Dead action after this?" asked singer Julian Casablancas early in the Stokes set, referring to Furthur, the band led by the Dead's Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, already in progress at the eastern edge of the polo field. The uncertain response suggested fans were staying put - just as others were for Furthur. The Strokes sounded exceptionally muscular in the park's expansive setting. Fabrizio Moretti contributed heavy beats to "Vision of Division" and "Reptilia," as Casablancas eased his vocals from deadpan to excited and back again. "This is It" slowly built to a sing-along as Albert Hammond Jr. and Nick Valensi created an intricate overlap of guitars. "I remember playing these songs in front of four people," Casablancas said, looking out on the tens of thousands of fans. "It's really surreal." Even, apparently, after all the year's of the band's success. -[Rolling Stone]

"...At about 5:50 PM, one of the day's best acts appeared at the Outside Lands Festival.

The music was thumping, adrenaline pumping, the sun shining, and many in the crowd -- tapping into a singular energy -- could hold back no longer. They put their inhibitions aside and let themselves be drawn to the beats blasting from the Twin Peaks Stage. Some ran, jumped and moved like they never had before, heading toward a common purpose.

Of course, I'm referring to the bum rush of fans that managed to scramble past the guards and bust down part of the fence along John F. Kennedy Drive, allowing scores of people to hustle in before the riot control guards on horsies and the rent-a-guard dudes in orange t-shirts could stop the inflow." - [San Francisco Chronicle]

Videos of the incident, with the rest of our pictures from the 2010 Outside Lands Festival, below...

Continue reading "more pics from Outside Lands (where fans crashed through a fence to get in) (videos of that too) "

photos by Vincent Cornelli

"...if you were to take a poll of what was the No. 1 fan-favorite set of the 2010 Outside Lands festival, my guess is that the Reverend Al Green would come out on top - by a large margin. The 64-year-old gospel/soul/R&B star was in legendary vocal form as he led his band, featuring a dynamite horn section, through such immortal tracks as "Tired of Being Alone," "Let's Stay Together" and "Love and Happiness," which, on Sunday, sounded pretty much like the greatest tune of all time...." [Mercury News]

Continue reading "Al Green played Outside Lands (pics & video) - NYC tonight, other dates "

photos by Vincent Cornelli

"Though he was handed a somewhat awkward time slot (between 4 and 5 p.m.), the first day of Outside Lands did not start until Lorin Ashton of Bassnectar said so. A San Franciscan by birth, Ashton's all-encompassing formula of serrated dubstep has won the hearts and minds of local natives since he began experimenting with sub-bass frequencies and supermassive sampling in early 2000. The result is a form of music that you can quite literally feel when you experience it live -- that is, until the sound cuts out, as it inexplicably did 20 minutes into Ashton's Saturday evening set. The ensuing half hour was filled with frantic roadies rushing around on stage, starry-eyed candy kids fretting in the crowd, and a lot of people being unhappily reminded of this festival's notorious penchant for suddenly killing their performers' sound. At one point, Ashton came out with a megaphone and actually pleaded with the crowd, attempting to explain over the din of a dazed, music-less multitude that the power to the entire stage had died, and that there was nothing he could do but wait. Surprisingly, the vast majority of people devotedly hung around until the power was restored, and, even more surprisingly, Ashton recovered from such egregious circumstances with a killer comeback that featured his flagship remixes of Beastie Boys' "So What'cha Want," Massive Attack's "Inertia Creeps," and Metallica's "Seek & Destroy" -- though notably missing was his rework of "Where is My Mind."" [Santa Barbara Independent]

If you head to Electric Zoo this weekend expecting Japanese dudes with double-necked guitars, you will be disappointed. That said, Electric Zoo will feature tons of artists of the electronic and DJ persuasion including Bassnectar, headliner The Chemical Brothers, Major Lazer, Diplo solo, Erol Alkan, Pretty Lights, Flying Lotus, Moby, Armin Van Buuren, A-Trak, the OTHER Boris and oodles of other crews bound to get you moving.

The four-stage festival goes down on SATURDAY & SUNDAY (9/4, 9/5 - set times are posted) at Randall's Island with after-parties later that night that you'll probably want to avoid. Tickets are still available OR you can try your luck at winning a pair!

Contest details, more pics from San Francisco, and all Bassnectar dates, below...

Continue reading "Bassnectar played Outside Lands (pics), ELECTRIC ZOO FESTIVAL THIS WEEKEND (win tix) & other tour dates"

photos by Vincent Cornelli

DOWNLOAD: Carl Broemel - "Heaven Knows" (MP3)

Carl of My Morning Jacket at Outside Lands

Jim James of My Morning Jacket said it himself during his band's opening set. We were all about to have a great time, he assured us, listening to the Heartbreakers. Not Tom Petty, or "Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers," as they were always billed in their '80s MTV videos. Just the Heartbreakers.

James may not have been trying to make a point, but a point was made nevertheless. Petty's combo has always been a collaborative project: a band in the truest sense, and often one of the most engaging, if not always the most creative, on the Billboard charts.

...My Morning Jacket continue to split the difference between polite college rock and proggy, Phish-like jam band lunacy. That makes them better than any college rock band, but not as fun as Phish. Jim James favors a rotating setlist, but at Izod Center, My Morning Jacket played most of their best-known material, including "I'm Amazed," the reggae-funk "Off The Record," and the guitar-heavy "One Big Holiday." The popular Louisville quintet isn't desperate for new fans, but they certainly made some last night.
-[NJ.com review from the Izod Center]

My Morning Jacket's Carl Broemel will play a solo show that night at Joe's Pub, showcasing material from his upcoming LP All Birds Say. Tickets are on sale. Order All Birds Say in multiple digital/vinyl/CD/T-Shirt configurations, and check out "Heaven Knows" available for download above.

My Morning Jacket (with Carl Broemel) also played the Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco on Saturday August 14th. Pics from that show adorn this post. More of them setlists, all dates, and some video recorded in a recent session with Carl Broemel below...

Continue reading "My Morning Jacket opened for Petty, played Outside Lands (pics); Carl Broemel releasing an LP, playing shows (dates) "

Outside Lands 2009 (more by Chris Graham)

San Francisco's Outside Lands Festival 2010 takes place in Golden Gate Park from August 14th-15th. Headlining acts for the fest include Kings of Leon, Furthur featuring Phil Lesh and Bob Weir, The Strokes, My Morning Jacket, Phoenix, Social Distortion, Levon Helm and Al Green. Other acts include Nas & Damian "Jr. Gong" Marley, The Budos Band, Dawes, Gogol Bordello, Cat Power Janelle Monáe and Tokyo Police Club. The full lineup (which will be added to) is below.

Two-day passes go on sale Tuesday, June 2nd at 1pm EST. Single day tickets go on sale Sunday, June 6th.

Check out pictures from all three days of Outside Lands 2009 (which as you may have figured out was one day longer than this year's).

A video trailer for this year's fest and the lineup is below...

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2010 lineup announced"

photos by Chris Graham

Happy Holidays! I take on more than I can handle. That results in a lot of unposted content. In the name of catching up, while also taking it easy during this final week of the year, here's some of that lost material.

For what was the worst day weather-wise for San Francisco's Outide Lands Festival, its last day (Sunday, August 30th) may have been the best musically. Cold fog and wind took the place of cloudless, sunny skies, but those who attended witnessed sets by Modest Mouse, the Dead Weather, the Avett Brothers, Band of Horses, Calexico, Matt & Kim , and soul legends Robert Randolph and Betty Layvette, and MIA, who complained via Twitter about the fest's substitution of Tenacious D for the Beastie Boys, then covered two Beasties songs, "Intergalactic" and "Sabatage, in her set.

Scrambling to find replacement headliners for the Beastie Boys was a common theme for festivals in summer '09, after the group was forced to cancel all dates when Adam Yauch was dianosed with cancer (he's since had sugery, and reports say that part of his health regiment is a vegan/organic diet). Beastie Boys' slot was filled by Jay-Z at All Points West and Yeah Yeah Yeahs at Lollapalooza

More pictures from Day Three below...

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2009 - Day 3 pics (Tenacious D, MIA, Ween, Modest Mouse, Band of Horses, Dead Weather, more)"

photos by Chris Graham

Happy Holidays! I take on more than I can handle. That results in a lot of unposted content. In the name of catching up, while also taking it easy during this final week of the year, here's some of that lost material.

Sporting a beard that complements the music he's making these days, Conor Oberst and his Mystic Valley Band closed down [Outside Lands' Day Two] Sutro Stage with songs that are more down-home than downtrodden. One highlight of the set was when he brought out Jenny Lewis to perform Rilo Kiley's "Portions for Foxes," though Oberst outdid himself in the end with a beautiful rendition of the sparse and gorgeous "Milk Thistle." [MTV]

More pictures from Day Two, below...

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2009 - Day 2 pics (Conor Oberst, Jenny Lewis, TVOTR, Mastodon, Deerhunter, Mars Volta, Bat for Lashes)"

photos by Chris Graham

Happy Holidays! I take on more than I can handle. That results in a lot of unposted content. In the name of catching up, while also taking it easy during this final week of the year, here's some of that lost material.

The 2nd Annual Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco this past August benefited from a combination of improved planning and the luck of some of the nicest weather the city had seen all summer. The result was a far more pleasant and exciting experience for festivalgoers at this food, wine and music extravaganza.

The venue for the festival is extraordinary, taking up about a third of the massive Golden Gate Park. Once inside, it's hard to believe you're in the middle of a large city. Giant trees and grassy meadows block out any view of outside buildings, and the festival is arranged around the topography so that each group of stages has its own unique look and feel. There were many secluded areas and empty meadows nearby for those in need of respite from the music. Thanks to the efforts of innovative organizers, Outside Lands truly becomes a world unto itself. [Beachside Resident]

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2009 - Day 1 pics (Pearl Jam, The National, Q-Tip, Tom Jones, Akron/Family, Built to Spill, more)"

photos by Chris Graham

After six years retooling its sublime noise and handling its tortured business, Los Angeles art-rock trio Autolux is releasing its highly anticipated Transit Transit in January. Now it just has to settle on who's going to release the full-length, which is finished.

"We're not signed right now, and all the labels we're talking to don't want to put it out in the fourth quarter," explained titanium-enhanced drummer Carla Azar. Wired.com caught the band on the road to the Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival in San Francisco, the first stop on Autolux's national tour. "Decision on a label has been tough for us, because we've maintained ownership of our music, and we'll be giving that up."

More Autolux tour dates, and pictures, and a video, from their August 28th performance at Outside Lands in San Francisco, below...

Continue reading "Autolux played ATP & Outside Lands (pics, video), updated 2009 Tour Dates (NYC Monday & Tuesday w/ Sleepy Sun) "

"CANT BELIEVE THEY REPLACED BEASTIES WITH TENACIOUS D ??????????????????????AND IF I PULL OUT THEY SUE! SO REALLY? TENACIOUS D AFTER ME? P.S I ORIGINALLY BOOKED ON SHOWS COZ BEASTIES WERE HEADLINERS , BUT NOW THEY AINT DOING IT AND I JUS WANNA SAY , WE HAVE TO GO HARD!!!" - M.I.A.

When Tenacious D was asked - eventually - to step in as the closing act for the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival next Sunday after the Beastie Boys were forced to drop out at the last minute, the guys didn't hesitate. In their mind, the substitution seemed like a natural fit.

"I think there are more similarities than differences, really, when you put us together," announced Jack Black, who formed the folk-metal duo with his friend Kyle Gass long before he became a big-time Hollywood star. The band may not have been up to much since starring in the feature film "Tenacious D in The Pick of Destiny" three years ago, but when we spoke to them last week they promised, "The D will be in fine form."

SF GATE: Who got the call when the Beastie Boys had to drop out?

Jack Black: I assume they just called our manager. We actually have the same manager as the Beastie Boys.

Neither M.I.A. nor Tenacious D will be viewable on the stream, but Built to Spill and The Dead Weather will be. Full lineup below...

Continue reading "Outside Lands Fest in SF this weekend, streaming on YouTube -- Tenacious D playing, M.I.A. not happy"

After cancelling their appearance at the first-ever ATP NY festival in 2008, it was no surprise to see them on the lineup for 2009. Now, like Dirty Three, Deerhoof, Jesus Lizard, and the Boredoms, LA band Autolux have announced a show (or two) in NYC too. And to make it even sweeter, they'll be joined at both NYC shows by ATP recording artist Sleepy Sun who are also playing ATP NY this year. The dates and NYC venues are September 14th at Bowery Ballroom (tickets on sale now), and September 15th at Music Hall of Williamsburg (tickets on sale now).

According to Wiki, "Transit Transit is the upcoming sophomore album by Autolux, tentatively scheduled for release 'sometime in 2009'."

Sleepy Sun are also playing the just-announced "Ten Years Of ATP" festival happening in Minehead in the UK from Friday 11th December to Sunday 13th December, 2009. Other confirmed artists on that so far are Explosions in the Sky, Dirty Three, Shellac, Tortoise, Melvins, Mudhoney, The For Carnation, Papa M, Deerhoof\, F**k Buttons, The Drones, and Bardo Pond. Tickets are on sale.

You can also catch Autolux at this year's Outside Lands Festival in San Francisco, and a few more places. All dates, videos, and the full Outside Lands Fest lineup (by day), below...

Continue reading "Autolux & Sleepy Sun touring - ATP NY, Bowery, MHOW & Outside Lands (full San Francisco fest lineup) "

Bat For Lashes @ MHOW in May (absolutelyaudrey)

Anyone with prior reservations about Bat For Lashes' ability to command a stage the size of Primavera's Estrella Damm are fools. That much is clear from opener 'Glass'' first chiming chorus; not only is her delivery spot on but she looks like she's well and truly at home up there, stalking the stage and delivering her ethereal set with the sort of gusto a first album Natasha Khan might have baulked at. She's grown as a performer and a songwriter since then, that much is clear, and whether the slightly more electronic direction of second album Two Suns is one that strikes a chord with you or not, the pop brilliance of a song like 'Daniel' is practically irrefutable. And, let's face it, a set filled with 'Sarah's and 'Prescilla's probably isn't quite what a beer-filled festival crowd is looking for. A canny move, then, and one that our ears are left thankful for this evening. And is that Charlotte Hatherley up there with her? Why, yes. Bonus. [Drowned in Sound]

Continue reading "Bat For Lashes - 2009 Tour Dates (Webster Hall) "

Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival is taking place this year August 28th-30th at Golden Gate Park. Tickets for the fest go on Visa presale Wednesday, April 15th at 1pm ET, and general sale Sunday, April 19th at 1pm ET.

Like last year, the San Francisco fest shares a headliner with NJ's All Points West. In 2008, it was Radiohead. In 2009, it's the Beastie Boys.

Also on the schedule for the fest is the Dead Weather, Jack White's new band. Dead Weather plays its first show tonight (April 14th) at the Bowery Ballroom.

M.I.A., Ween, TVOTR, Mastodon, Os Mutantes, Extra Golden, Tom Jones, and many others are also playing. Full Outside Lands line-up and poster below....

Continue reading "Outside Lands 2009 festival lineup, Dead Weather tonight"

Another Planet Entertainment, Superfly Productions and Starr Hill Presents, in a partnership with the San Francisco Recreation & Park Department, are proud to announce the second annual Outside Lands Music & Arts Festival. The second installment of this dynamic entertainment experience will once again take place over three days in San Francisco's historic Golden Gate Park. The dates for this year's event are August 28 - 30, 2009.

Video highlights from last year's fest below...

Continue reading "San Francisco's Outside Lands Festival: Aug 28-30, 2009"