The bottom half of the 2019 Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival poster is rich with amazing acts. This might be the strongest “undercard” assortment Outside Lands has ever had, with a little something for pretty much everyone. One could probably wander aimlessly during the early part of the day and not be disappointed. However, since you are reading this, I suspect you are like me and tend to plan out every moment of your day when you head out to a music festival. So here’s the early stuff I’d jump on!
Cherry Glazerr
Cherry Glazerr’s 2017 release, Apocalipstick, brought the band outside of their original, lo-fi comfort zone and gave us a monster of a guitar rock record. This is one of the biggest and most cathartic records of the last decade, and this year’s Stuffed & Ready builds on that explosiveness. Expect a loud and lovely set from Cherry Glazerr in the park. It’s also one of the only times all weekend you’ll be able to ensure a pit.
Miya Folick
Miya Folick sends shivers down my spine. Her sound is something along the lines of ferociously delicate … . She would be PJ Harvey incarnate, except PJ Harvey is still alive and kicking. She may manage to turn the “outdoors in a park” setting into a tiny, intimate club with just her guitar and voice.
The Sheshen
The Sheshen feel like one of the Bay Area’s best kept secrets. They are a full R&B band that borrow as much from Massive Attack and Bjork as they do Isaac Hayes and Sade. It’s gonna be a smoldering Friday afternoon, no matter the weather.
The Marias
LA based psychedelic soul duo the Marias will send your head swimming in a beautiful, bilingual way. We don’t condone illegal drug use at festivals, but if you were to use them at this event, one could say that this set is the time you’d want to “peak.”
cupCakKe
cupCakKe, by virtue of merely existing, makes the world a better place. Every year, there’s one deliciously vulgar artist on the Panhandle stage, to make the folks there for the folkier acts a bit uncomfortable. This year, cupCakKe is going to take it to the next level.
Taylor Bennett
Yes, Taylor Bennett is the little brother of Chance the Rapper. Although I don’t understand why he’d change his last name from “the Rapper” to “Bennett,” his birth name is very appropriate for his profession.
All joking aside, Bennett has some excellent mic skills and has developed his own, unique, voice. He really deserves to be set apart from his brother.
Edie Brickell & New Bohemians
Edie Brickell was one of my earliest musical memories. This song was one of those songs that I LOVED as a young child, and it’s surprising how happy it still makes me. Live shows are somewhat rare for her, too, so this is almost as special as getting a set by her husband, Paul Simon. I’m so stoked to finally see her.
Boyfriend
New Orleans rapper Boyfriend is nearly impossible to Google. But it’s well worth it once you come up with the right keywords. This is gonna be a solid dance party!
Alex Lahey
There is simply too much good music coming out of Australia these days. Courtney Barnett, Wing Defence, Julia Jacklin, Camp Cope—the list goes on and on. Alex Lahey is also from this very fertile scene of great music from down under. Catch her now because, next time she’s here, you’ll be stuck seeing her from the rafters of an arena.
Brasstracks
Brasstracks are deeply intertwined with the NYC jazz scene doing, well, horn heavy jazz. Yet, somehow, hip hop has embraced their traditional jazz sound, and in return, Brasstracks have embraced hip hop. Has this been done before? Sort of, but not like Brasstracks. Instead of hip hop dominating the sound, the jazz and the horns are the forefront, and the hip hop element comes second.
