PavementJames Blake, Kurt Weill, Courtney Barnett and more have been announced as headliners for the 2024 edition of Seattle's acclaimed Bumbershoot Arts and Music festival at the Seattle Center. Kim Gordon, Freddie Gibbs, Aly & AJ, Cypress Hill and Marc Ribillet will also perform at the 51st edition of the festival, which is scheduled to run from August 31 to September 31. 1.
The Labor Day weekend staple returned last year for its 50th anniversary with new production partners the New Rising Sun coalition, in the process restoring a sense of local identity to the long-running event.
Last year's comeback “was a huge success,” says McCaw Hall GM Joe Paganelli, who also leads New Rising Sun. “We wanted to realign the festival with the changing growth, purpose and needs of Seattle. We dug deep and invested heavily in the visual arts and trying to create a spirit of discovery.”
After a three-and-a-half-year hiatus due to COVID-19, the revived festival was a hit last year with Pacific Northwest bands like Sleater-Kinney, Band of Horses and Sunny Day Real Estate. This year, organizers dug even deeper into the festival's roots and brought back booker talent Chris Porter, who previously booked Bumbershoot for 18 years. Paganelli initially contacted Porter for advice on the 2024 line-up before asking the veteran booker to return.
“I didn't see it coming, but I was very moved and honored,” says Porter, who adds that New Rising Sun “brought [the festival] back with a very similar spirit of eclecticism and discovery as we did in previous years, so I wanted to pick up where we left off.”
With a lineup that also includes Badbadnotgood, Chvrches' Lauren Mayberry, Carl Cox, Lee Fields, St. Paul & the Broken Bones, The Polyphonic Spree, Madison Cunningham and Andrew Bird, Porter focused on two key elements to close this year's festival: discovery and value.
“It's great if people go to see their favorite bands or artists play, but hopefully they'll find their new favorite band there as well,” says Porter. “The only thing I wanted to do a little bit differently than last year is maybe expand it a little bit, cater more to some global/world music sounds and broaden the demographics.”
The full Bumbershoot lineup also includes Acid Tongue, All Them Witches, Angélica Garcia, Automatic, Balthvs, Black Belt Eagle Scout, Corridor, Dean Johnson, Disq, Emi Pop, Flesh Produce, George Clanton, Gold Chisme, Grynch, Helado Negro, Hurray for Riff Raff, I Dont Know How But They Found Me, k.flay, Kassa Overall, King Buffalo, Kultur Shock, Ladytron, Lemon Boy, Linda from Work, Lol Tolhurst x Budgie, Me First and the Gimme Gimmes, Mercury Rev , Moor Mother, NAVVI, Neal Francis, Oh, Rose, Parisalexa, Pink Siifu, Pom Pom Squad, Psymon Spine, Pure Bathing Culture, REPOSADO, Rocket, Spoon Benders, Squirrel Flower, Stephanie Anne Johnson, Sux, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists , TEKE::TEKE, The Divorce, The Groovy Nobody, Thee Sacred Souls, TK & The Holy Know-Nothings, Tres Leches and Warren Dunes.
“We're lucky to work in Seattle and do this [festival] in this area. The community is very open-minded and open to discovering different sounds and different art,” says Porter. “It's really rewarding and I hope people like what we've done this year.”
In addition to music, Bumbershoot will continue with its famous visual arts component. The festival strengthens its commitment to the local community with the return of fan favorites such as the Fashion District, the Out of Sight exhibition and a film program, while also introducing new programming, including a unique partnership with NASA, a deepfake Bigfoot animation contest and many other.
In addition, the Century 21 area at the Pacific Science Center will feature a “Sculpture Parking Lot” featuring large-scale contemporary sculpture. “Songs for Space,” in partnership with NASA, will project images of the James Webb Space Telescope in the PACCAR IMAX theater along with a variety of vocal groups including gospel, opera and Gregorian chant.
The Recess District will showcase performance art with rollerskating, gymnastics, breakdancing, double dutch rope and cheerleading as well as a skateboarding competition and a wrestling showcase called Bumbermania!
New Rising Sun's commitment to Bumbershoot is only in its second year, and Paganelli says growing the festival's presence is a priority going forward. “We're going to supercharge and expand the Bumbershoot brand with new and different opportunities throughout the year, including a concert venue that will return to Andy Warhol's factory,” he says. “Additional programming branches will come out next that we're not ready to release yet, but are already in the planning process.”
tickets for the 2024 Bumbershoot Arts and Music festival are on sale now. Head here to see the full lineup along with the festival's culinary and visual arts programming.
from our partners at https://www.billboard.com/business/touring/bumbershoot-2024-lineup-pavement-james-blake-kurt-vile-1235688428/
