It’s festival season again… the Austin City Limits line-up was finally released after weeks of guessing and speculating and full-schedules are rolling in left and right. Here’s our list of select festivals across the country with artists like Stevie Wonder, Calexico, The Dead Weather, The Avett Brothers, Richard Thompson and The Dave Rawlings Machine all hitting the festival circuit.
Wakarusa: June 3-6 (Mulberry Mountain, Ozark, Ark.)
Headliners: STS9, Umphrey’s McGee, Black Keys, Blues Traveler, Widespread Panic
Also: John Butler Trio, Tea Leaf Green, Black Joe Lewis, JJ Grey & MOFRO, Todd Snider, Split Lip Rayfield, Truth & Salvage Co., Stephen Kellogg & the Sixers, Great American Taxi, Last Waltz Ensemble
Mountain Jam: June 4-6 (Hunter Mountain, NY)
Headliners: Gov’t Mule, Levon Helm (with Sam Bush, Steve Earle, Ray LaMontagne, Donald Fagen…), Alison Krauss & Union Station
Also: The Avett Brothers, Toots and the Maytals, Drive-By Truckers, Grace Potter and the Nocturnals, Dr. Dog, Justin Townes Earle, Allison Moorer, These United States, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue
Bonnaroo: June 10-13 (Manchester, Tenn.)
Headliners: Dave Matthews Band, Stevie Wonder, Jay-Z, Weezer, Dead Weather, Phoenix, Norah Jones, AvettBrothers, John Prine, Umphrey’s McGee, She & Him, Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon Rangers, Jimmy Cliff, John Fogerty, Tori Amos
Also: Brandi Carlile, Nitty Gritty Dirt Band, Calexico, Punch Brothers, They Might Be Giants, Dave Rawlings Machine, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros, Dr. Dog, Gaslight Anthem, Daryl Hall & Chromeo, Tori Amos, Kris Kristofferson
Thirsty Ear June 12-13 (Santa Fe, N.M.)
Headliners: Sam Bush, Asleep at the Wheel, Dave Alvin & The Guilty Women
Also: Hayes Carll, Po’ Girl, JT & The Clouds, Jeremy Lindsay & Allison Russell
Pretty solid line-up, but it’s an awkward weekend for the festival with Telluride being so close both geographically and on the calendar.
Telluride Bluegrass Festival: June 17-20
Headliners: Lyle Lovett, Court Yard Hounds, Yonder Mountain String Band, Leftover Salmon, Alison Krauss
Also: Ben Sollee, Brandi Carlile, Carolina Chocolate Drops, Dave Rawlings Machine, Sarah Jarosz, Cadillac Sky, Drepung Monks
It’s certainly not last year’s monumentally fantastic line-up, but it’s nowhere near shabby. Some old favorites are returning, the House Band is still intact and The Drepung Monks are still playing Sunday morning. All is right in the world.
Mile High Music Festival: August 14-15 (Denver, Colo.)
Headliners: Jack Johnson, Dave Matthews Band, Weezer, My Morning Jacket, Steve Miller Band, Phoenix, Train, Jimmy Cliff
Also: Derek Trucks & Susan Tedeschi, Drive-By Truckers, Railroad Earth, Punch Brothers, Oh My Stars, Amos Lee, Keller Williams, Danielle Ate the Sandwich, Rusted Root
High Sierra Music Festival: July 1-4 (Quincy, Calif.)
Headliners: Widespread Panic, The Black Crowes, Avett Brothers, Ozomatli, Railroad Earth
Also: Dr. Dog, Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue, The Carolina Chocolate Drops, Carolyn Wonderland, The Infamous Stringdusters, Beats Antique, Great American Taxi, Truth & Salvage Co., Preservation Hall Jazz Band, Jerry Joseph & Wally Ingram
Rocky Mountain Folk Festival August 13-15 (Lyons, Colo.)
Headliners: Ani DiFranco, The Swell Season, John Prine
Also: Tit Merritt, Jonatha Brooke, Gregory Alan Isakov, Jenny Lewis, The Waifs, Richard Thompson, Michelle Shocked, Joy Kills Sorrow
No Depression: August 21 (Redmond, Wash.)
Headliners: The Swell Season, Lucinda Williams, The Cave Singers
Also: Punch Brothers, Chuck Prophet, Alejandro Escovedo
Austin City Limits: Oct. 8-10 (Austin, TX)
Headliners: The Eagles, Muse, Phish, The Stokes, M.I.A., Flaming Lips
Also: Spoon, Richard Thompson, Monsters of Folk, Ryan Bingham, Martin Sexton, Asleep at the Wheel, Band of Heathens, T. Bird & The Breaks, Those Darlins, Carolyn Wonderland, Caitlin Rose, Jones Family Singers, Amos Lee, Lissie
We’re not incredibly impressed by the line-up… we love the Eagles as much as the next person but as a headliner? At least some long-overlooked local acts are getting in on the festivities.
