Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival is right around the corner. We want to share with you our list of the must see artists at this event. We dug deep to feature some of the indie buzz bands along with giants Tom Petty and Radiohead. Without further adieu:
Friday August 22
Lands End Stage 8:00 PM: Radiohead
This one is a no-brainer. Radiohead have earned their stripes over many albums and a career that has spanned almost 20 years. Touring in support of the bands much hailed 2007 release In Rainbows, you can always expect a stellar performance.
Lands End Stage 6:15 PM: Manu Chao
Manu Chao's masterful blend of reggae, soul and latin beats is simply not to be missed. This undoubtedly will be the festival highlight.
The Avenues Stage 7:15 PM: Lyrics Born
Bay Area native Lyrics Born brings his full live band to blow your head off with his killer rhymes and his own style of hip hop that almost lands closer to the spectrum of vintage funk.
Twin Peaks Stage 5:30 PM: Black Mountain
Vancouvers BC's Black Mountain brings the heat with their blend of psychedelic, garage and shoegaze. Performing in a rare festival setting, this should be a perfect fit for the kids that still love Rock N' Roll in the purest sense of the term.
Sutro Stage 5:25 PM: Cold War Kids
Cold War Kids hail from Southern California and have blown up in the last few years due to their sonic blend of punk and soul. Nonstop touring have honed the band's live chops.
Saturday August 23rd
Lands End Stage 7:55 PM: Tom Petty and the Heartbreakers
"Refugee", "Free Fallin", "I Won't Back Down", "Learning to Fly", the list goes on and on. Tom Petty has written so many classic songs in his career, it almost feels unfair to other songwriters. These guys are getting pretty old, but as evidenced from their recent super bowl performance the fire is definitely still there!
Twin Peaks Stage 6:40 PM: Primus
After a long hiatus, Les Claypool and Co. return to play anthems from classic albums such as "Frizzle Fry", "Suck On This" and "sailing The Seas of Cheese".
Twin Peaks Stage 3:35 PM: Lupe Fiasco
The man behind the 2006 skateboard anthem "Kick, Push" returns with a new album and plenty of fresh rhymes.
The Avenues Stage 2:05 PM: The Coup
Oakland's own the Coup bring their unique blend of funk, soul and hip hop to the big stage.
Panhandle Stage 2:55 PM: Liars
Liars post punk and weirdo synth anthems have been bubbling up to the surface for some time now. With a frentic live show and a stint supporting Radiohead this summer, you can expect to hear much more from Liars in the years to come.
Sunday August 24th
Lands End Stage 4:10 PM: Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings
After a 30 plus year career as a vocalist, Sharon Jones is finally getting her due thanks in part to her cameo in the Denzel Washington film, the Great Debaters. Brooklyn's nine piece Dap Kings back her with pure soul power that would make James Brown roll in his grave.
Panhandle Stage 4:25 PM: Cool Kids
Like contemporaries Spank Rock and Kid Sister, Chicago's The Cool Kids refreshing take on old school 80's and 90's hip hop is a much needed breathe of fresh air in the often stagnant world of hip hop.
Twin Peaks Stage 5:00 PM: Broken Social Scene
19 piece rock orchestra Broken Social Scene's live set is considered to be second to none. Armed with deep, whimsical sounds, this Canadian tour de force brings an epic air to an already epic festival line up.
Panhndle Stage 3:00 PM: K'naan
K'naan is a different sort of hip hop artist. Taking major cues from the beat poetry rap that legends The Last Poets spearheaded in the 70's, K'naan is helping to bring political awareness and themes of social justice back into the mainstream lexicon. The man is worth checking out for his killer freestyle raps alone.
Presidio Stage 3:10 PM: Bon Iver
This singer/ songwriter is armed only with an acoustic guitar and his soulful voice. Plus he lives in a cabin in the remote wilderness of Northern Wisconsin. Nuff' said.
You can view the full schedule at the Outside Lands website
There it is, the essential Outside Land events. Have fun, be safe, smoke em if you got em!