Shakori Hills announces full Spring lineup

Shakori Hills' spring festival will take place on
April 17-20 in Silk Hope, N.C

Back in February we reported on the initial lineup announcement for Shakori Hills' spring 2014 festival, one that boasted a stunning array of both local and national acts including everyone from Ben Sollee and Morning Brigade to Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the effing Indigo Girls. Since then the festival has been slowly and silently adding artists to the lineup with little fanfare involved. Acts like Des Ark and Diali Cissokho & Kaira Ba were added alongside folks like Phil Cook & The Guitarheels and DJ Gonzo, bulking up the local anchors for this already excellent lineup. But earlier this week the good people of Shakori Hills have unveiled the full festival lineup for their April 17-20 festival. With a remarkable combination of world music, funk, Americana, folk, soul and dance music, Shakori Hills has once again proved to be one of the most consistent festivals around.

It feels like with each festival Shakori Hills tries to expand their reach a little bit more, and when they're adding invigorating acts like Miami's Afrobeta, an avant dance-duo and Congolese-Belgian hip-hop artist Baloji & L’Orchestra de la Katuba, one can't help but get excited. Shakori is a festival of exploration, dabbling into new musical territories that may seem a bit overwhelming at first but end up welcoming you in with open arms. I'll never forget my first brush with Afrobeat, my first dance party lead by the Latin funk crew Suénalo or my first (of many) encounters with the washboard slappin', festi-freak rousing antics of Donna The Buffalo. Shakori Hills radiates positivity, and when it falls on Easter weekend it always makes for memorable camping stories. Whether you're waking up to the Meadow Stage's morning musings or cheerfully greeting every passerby, it sure beats the hell out of chocolate binging until you vomit (which no doubt would still probably be pretty awesome at Shakori).

This Spring's headliners are packing quite the punch, Shakori is usually a festival that gets by on its solid undercard. While you may not be jumping at the bits to check out folks like the Indigo Girls or last fall's headliner Yonder Mountain String Band, there's always a few high-tier acts that will rouse up some new and insanely dedicated fans on the farmlands. Ben Sollee's virtuosic cello skills will be a certainly soothing excursion (here's to hoping for an evening set-time) while Dirty Dozen Brass Band will lead a wildly exciting dance party filled with their amorphous blend of jazzy tunes. But artists like The Last Bison and J.P. Harris & The Tough Choices are just as excitable as the top-tier acts, which is arguably the best aspect of the festival. Lump all of those in with some of the finest locals from across the state and baby you got a stew goin'!

Tickets for Shakori Hills are available for purchase at shakorihillsgrassroots.org, a 4-day weekend pass is $100 with individual day passes ranging from $23 to $43. Shakori Hills takes place in Silk Hope, North Carolina on a semi-annual basis. Check out the full lineup on the website and be on the lookout for our regular series "Shakori Spotlights" to find out who we're most excited for at Shakori.

Drumstrong announces 2014 festival lineup including Kopecky Family Band, Felice Brothers & more

Drumstrong is a non-profit festival that will take place
on May 16-18 in Weddington, N.C.

Since 2007 Drumstrong has been hosting an annual festival to raise money for cancer organizations and in 2014 they're seriously upping the ante with their lineup. This week the Charlotte based organization announced the lineup for their forthcoming event, set to take place on May 16-18 at the Misty Meadows Farm in Weddington, N.C., and it's an impressive combination of beloved national acts and some of the top tier talents that the state has to offer.

Railroad Earth sits atop the lineup as the marquee headliner, but the strength of the festival lies within the diversity of each act on the bill. Names like Kopecky Family Band and The Felice Brothers are right alongside North Carolina acts like Chatham County Line and American Aquarium. Those four alone warrant a pretty exciting group of bands, but Drumstrong's strength lies in the fact that they've pulled some of the most exciting acts from every corner of the local scene. Lost in the Trees and The Love Language stand alongside acts like Bombadil, Dom Flemons (of Carolina Chocolate Drops), Marley Carroll, Junior Astronomers, HRVRD and even Yo Mamma's Big Fat Booty Band.

Drumstrong's dazzling lineup boosts it right towards the top of my local festival list, not just because of the inclusiveness of it but because of the totality. I'm a sucker for local-heavy lineups and quite frankly Drumstrong has done an awesome job of straying away from boring, genre-based lineups to provide an eclectic and exciting weekend of music.

Best of all, festivalgoers will be able to camp out over the weekend on the gorgeous Misty Meadows Farm, just four miles south of Charlotte. There's just something about camping festivals that produces a much more communal environment then traditional street-based events and it's one of my favorite draws for the event. Friday's festivities kick off at 2 pm and last until 11, Saturday runs from 10 am to 11 pm and Sunday from 10 am to 6 pm. Tickets for the event are available in the form of a $50 weekend pass ($80 at the door) or day passes that run $15 for Friday ($25 at the door), $30 for Saturday ($40 at the door) and $15 for Sunday ($25 at the door). Alternatively you could pay $200 in advance for the VIP Passes that grant special VIP access and food and drinks.

Tickets go on-sale today at 11:00 am. For more information and the full lineup you can head to Drumstrong.com

Shakori Hills announces initial lineup for Spring 2014

Indigo Girls will be performing at Spring Shakori
alongside The Del McCoury Band, Ben Sollee,
Dirty Dozen Brass Band and more

It's never to early to get amped for Shakori, the semi-annual music and arts festival that takes place in Pittsboro, NC. At this point it almost goes without saying that I'm beyond excited for these events, and with Shakori's recent land purchase there's a whole lot to be excited about now. Organizers plan on making improvements to the festival grounds and it seems as if the number of events taking place on this beloved farm are going to start increasing as well. With the hefty land acquisition behind us now, one can only imagine how thankful and excited all of the attendees for this spring's festival are going to be. Those that attend Shakori can attest to how regularly every hoped and wished for this very purchase to go through, solidifying Shakori's permanence around the community. And so far it looks like the festival is going to be giving us a lot to celebrate, as they just announced a very brief but impressive initial lineup.

Rounded out by two highly revered acts of widely different stylings, Spring Shakori brings The Del McCoury Band and Indigo Girls to the farm and helps prove the leaps and bounds that traditional folk and bluegrass music has made. Del McCoury is one of bluegrass' gatekeepers, a living legend in the genre that will be making his long awaited return to the farm (his band last performed in Fall 2007). While McCoury's band is steeped with traditionalism, Indigo Girls are a Grammy award-winning contemporary folk act that brilliantly melds a variety of rustic stylings with rich storytelling to create a moving product of folk-rock excellence. While big-name acts like McCoury and Indigo Girls always brings a slew of new-comers to the festival, the best parts of Shakori always lie within the undercard. Widely heralded acts like the Dirty Dozen Brass Band and the virtuosic cellist Ben Sollee will be making their Shakori Hills debut (Sollee is one I've been hoping for since I first started attending Shakori nearly four years ago) alongside Grassroots favorites like JP Harris & the Tough Choices, Driftwood and Donna The Buffalo.

Other standouts include The Last Bison, Baloji & L’Orchestra de la Katuba and local standouts Morning Brigade. Spring Shakori will be taking place from April 17-20 in Pittsboro, NC. Tickets are currently on-sale at ShakoriHillsGrassroots.org at the early-bird rate (until Feb. 23) of $90 for a 4-day weekend pass. Daily passes will become available during the regular pre-sale period of Feb. 24 - April 14. Keep an eye out for more lineup announcements, we'll keep you posted as soon as we get news!

No Age, Kool Keith & White Fence to headline Phuzz Phest 2014

Phuzz Phest is held from April 4-6 in Winston Salem, NC

Throughout the past few years the Winston-Salem music scene has slowly been revitalized, thanks mostly in part to the good folks behind Phuzz Phest. Whether it be their recently started record label (aptly titled Phuzz Records) or their work within Estrangers, it seems like Winston is firing on all cylinders lately. While previous incarnations of the festival have boasted some pretty impressive lineups, none have been as large as the just announced 2014 roster. In previous years local and regional standouts like William Tyler, Lost in the Trees and The Love Language would headline the festival, but this year there's a crew of highly esteemed nationally acclaimed acts that have filled in the marquee slots with a diverse array of locals rounding out the undercard.

Headlining this year's Phuzz Phest, which will take place at various venues around Winston Salem from April 4-6 will be No Age, Kool Keith, White Fence and Jessica Lea Mayfield, providing an incredibly rounded group of widely respected acts from multiple genres. No Age have been spearheading a new wave of D.I.Y punk, taking part in every aspect of the release of their latest album An Object (that includes packaging, recording, producing AND writing). Kool Keith has long been heralded as one of the premiere experimental hip-hop MCs, whether it be through his variety of pseudonyms like Dr. Octagon (an extraterrestrial gynecologist from Jupiter) or under his regular alias, Keith weaves together bizarre images with lyrical acrobatics that leave the listener yearning for more. White Fence is the name that Tim Presley has adopted for his fuzzed out, crackling brand of intimate rock n' roll that will fit in perfectly with the Phuzz Phest aesthetic. Jessica Lea Mayfield rounds out the national headliners with an earnest burst of heartfelt songwriting inspired by equal parts folk and country for a set that's sure to tug at heartstrings.

And while the top bills are pretty damn impressive for this local festival in its fourth year, the undercard shines just as bright. Diarrhea Planet will be bringing their highly buzzed about brand of guitar rock to Winston alongside touring acts like Ex-Hex, Yip Deceiver, Woodsman and Ex-Cult. However, the local aspect of Phuzz Phest is certainly where fans like myself are foaming at the mouth. Standouts like Mount Moriah and The Love Language are on the bill alongside punk rock mainstays like Brain F≠ and Whatever Brains. Local favorites T0W3RS, Josh Moore, Loamlands and seldom seen Trioscapes will be performing in Winston as well. Really I could just run down the entire lineup with enthusiastic boasts about these performers, but I'll leave that until closer to showtime.

Tickets for Phuzz Phest are now available on Phuzz Phest's website. A 3-Day pass runs a cool $50 while single-day wristbands are $20. Phuzz has also taken on some non-musical activities this year as well as well, as daytime events include bike races, hangover curing brunches, and a skate competition. The festival will take place across various venues in Winston-Salem including The Garage, Krankies, Ziggy's, Single Brothers Bar, Small Beer Batch Co. and West End Mill Works. Be on the lookout for more Phuzz Phest updates as they come in!

Moogfest Adds Flying Lotus, M.I.A & more to 2014 Lineup

Electronic producer Flying Lotus
will be joining Chic, Kraftwerk and
more at Moogfest 2014
from April 23-27

Last December we reported on the stellar Moogfest lineup announcement, an event that proved to any and all naysayers that the lack of AC Entertainment at this year's event means little in terms of how impressive this festival can be. The initial lineup combines some of the most compelling gatekeepers of electronic and dance music with some of the most swiftly rising stars in the still burgeoning genre. Although Moogfest announced a rather robust lineup in December, there were still over 70 acts left to be unveiled, and this morning they've once again chipped away at the unknown by adding Flying Lotus, M.I.A, Pet Shop Boys, Dillon Francis and more to the April festival's lineup.

As previously reported, the festival has expanded to an enormous five-day event that will include daytime panels from esteemed electronic pioneers like Giorgio Moroder and film composer Cliff Martinez. Moogfest also announced another handful of speakers for the event this morning, including Deerhunter's Bradford Cox, Yeah Yeah Yeah's Nick Zinner, Dan Deacon and Futurama creator David X. Cohen.

While this still leaves an insane amount of artists left to be announced, these four nighttime additions helps round out this already impressive lineup even more. M.I.A provides a larger contemporary name to the marquee acts like Chic and Kraftwerk while Flying Lotus and Dillon Francis help to round out the electronic side a bit more with some larger names from the genre. It's clear that Moogfest is revamping all aspects of the festival since the last installment in 2012, one that boasted a spastic lineup including Primus, Santigold, GZA and Orbital. 2014's lineup stands at dead center of the intersection between specialized once in a lifetime acts and beloved frontrunners of the dance music scene. Additional acts included to the lineup today include Factory Floor, YACHT, Moderat, Machinedrum, Riff Raff, Black Dice, Jimmy Edgar, Holly Herndon and locals Body Games, RBTS WIN and Heads on Sticks.

Tickets for Moogfest are available in various packages including night-only passes for $199, day only passes for $249 or a night + day deal for $299. You can find the lineup and more ticket information on Moogfest's website. Be on the lookout for more Moogfest updates as the festival gets closer!