Outside Lands has confirmed its major lineup announcement, with Stevie Wonder, Metallica, Neil Young & Crazy Horse and Jack White leading the way for the weekend music and food festival.
The San Francisco event runs Aug. 10-12 in Golden Gate Park. Tickets go up via the Outside Lands website on Thursday (April 19) at noon PST and, judging from years past, get ’em quick: it will likely sell out, particularly with a few factors in mind…
First, Metallica’s from there, folks, and have no other U.S. tour dates on slate this year except for June 23-24 at their own Orion Music + More Festival in Atlantic City, N.J. Furthermore, the Metallica 3-D movie is slated to start shooting in August, and you can bet there will be footage taken at this Outside Lands gig. If you’re a fan, fight to the front.
Neil Young & Crazy Horse are releasing their first new album in 15 years (“Americana”) on June 5, but the band’s status in rock annuls was marked by their electric live concerts. The collaborative group has only played one show this year, and this gig is only their second announced.
Stevie Wonder — for all anybody cares — can just continue being Stevie Wonder as his marquee moment this year.
Jack White seems to be sticking largely to festival bookings to support his solo album; Beck already signalled a return to the stage with his headlining gigs at the Governor’s Ball in New York and Sasquatch! in Washington state; and, yesterday, we explained that the Foo Fighters were plotting to record new material later this year, in addition to promoting Dave Grohl’s “Sound City” documentary.
What sticks out somewhat is that it takes ten slots to get down to the first lady on the list, the ever-soothing Norah Jones who has a new album to promote. The Kills have no other North American date on slate, and I feel like I haven’t heard anything from them since their tour this winter. It’s good to see Alabama Shakes continue to climb up the lineup rungs.
Evergreen, older-dude acts headlining music festivals is nothing new, and the biggest fests this year are separating this notion in varying degrees: Coachella put Dre. Dre and Snoop (and Tupac) together and Radiohead returned. Lollapalooza is the only American fest so far to lay claim to the “reunited” “Black Sabbath” (which should just be called Ozzy & Associates). Sasquatch! welcomes back Beck, who hasn’t released a complete new studio set since 2008. Bonnaroo called dibs on the Beach Boys reunion, plus Red Hot Chili Peppers (who are also playing Lolla).
I look forward to a day when gangbuster female-led acts like Feist, Metric, Florence + the Machine and Neko Case or artists with shared fronting duties like Fitz & the Tantrums, Rodrigo y Gabriela and Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros get higher billing.
At this point, the very biggest festival lineups have all announced their wares. I have yet to attend Outside Lands, which boasts a foodie and wine program to boot, but in my head it would be a nice place to see Sigur Ros.
Here is the confirmed Outside Lands 2012 lineup:
Stevie Wonder
Metallica
Neil Young & Crazy Horse
Jack White
Foo Fighters
Beck
Skrillex
Sigur Ros
Justice
Norah Jones
Dispatch
The Kills
Regina Spektor
Passion Pit
Andrew Bird
Grandaddy
Big Boi
Bloc Party
Explosions In The Sky
Franz Ferdinand
Mstrkrft
Rebelution
Die Antwoord
Fitz and The Tantrums
Portugal. The Man
Amadou & Mariam
Wolfgang Gartner
Fun.
Dr. Dog
The Walkmen
Washed Out
City and Colour
Two Gallants
Of Monsters and Men
Mimosa
Alabama Shakes
Reggie Watts
Trampled By Turtles
Tame Impala
Jovanotti
The Be Good Tanyas
Geographer
Sharon Van Etten
Yacht
Sean Hayes
Bomba Estereo
Dirty Dozen Brass Band
Big Gigantic
Thee Oh Sees
Wallpaper
Tennis
Zola Jesus
White Denim
Allen Stone
The M Machine
Michael Kiwanuka
Tanlines
Father John Misty
Electric Guest
Caveman
Yellow Ostrich
Papa
Honey Island Swamp Band
Animal Kingdom