GUIDEBOOK: SUMMER FESTIVALS 2010

Ah, summer. A time when consuming alcohol in public parks seems appropriate, and almost necessary. A time, coincidentally, for sunglasses, to hide drunkenness. A time for less clothing. And most of all, a time for the best place to strip naked, get drunk, and wear sunglasses: music festival. That's right ninjas, it's festival season. Check out our list of essential summer festivals, complete with quick details on the big bands, timetables, and more!* Click through to the fests website if you want more info/want to know if you can get a hotel or have to wear the same clothes for three days. No advice on controlled substances, except that you might need them. Good luck!

_{*Probably not much more than that.}

Lollapalooza

Indie meets major in a pretty awesome way. The Full lineup is sick.
LOCATION: Grant Park, Chicago, IL
DATES: August 6-8
PRICE: 3-day reg pass: $215
MONEY MAKERS: Sound Garden, Green Day, Lady GaGa, Arcade Fire, The Strokes, Phoenix

Coachella

Along with Lolla, an essential. I hope you like the desert.
LOCATION: Coachella Valley, Indio, CA
DATES: April 16 - 18
PRICE: It was $269, but forget it now... these suckers are gone, baby gone.
MONEY MAKERS: Jay Z, Muse, Tiesto, Them Crooked Vultures, LCD Soundsystem, Gorillaz, Pavement, Thom Yorke

Bonnaroo

AKA the shrooming capital of the world.
LOCATION: Manchester, TN
DATES: June 10 - 13
PRICE: $234.50 for Gen. Admission
MONEY MAKERS: DMB, Kings Of Leon, The Flaming Lips (performing Dark Side Of The Moon), Conan O'Brien (!), Jay-Z, Weezer, Tenacious D, Jeff Beck, Steve Martin?, LCD Soundsystem, whoa.

Pitchfork

AKA Hipsterfest.
LOCATION: Union Park, Chicago, IL
DATES: July 16 - 18
PRICE: $40/day
MONEY MAKERS: Pavement, Modest Mouse, LCD, Broken Social Scene, Wolf Parade, Big Boi, Major Lazer (but notable: Free Energy, Real Estate, Neon Indian, everything super hip really)

Siren Fest

Thanks Village Voice! A mini-one day festival of hip acts in Brooklyn.
LOCATION: Coney Island, Brooklyn, NY
DATES: July 17th
PRICE: Free
MONEY MAKERS: TBD, last year's headliners were Built To Spill and Spank Rock. I saw BSS here in 2008.

Northside Fest

An up and coming multi-day festival in Brooklyn, put on by L-Magazine..
LOCATION: Williamsburg, Brooklyn, NY
DATES: June 24 - 27
PRICE: TBD, $45 last year for early sale
MONEY MAKERS: TBD, last year The Hold Steady, Free Energy, and Real Estate would suggest it will be pretty hip.

Bamboozle

I can't believe New Jersey has a bigger festival than all the NYC ones combined. And it isn't even exclusive to the East coast.
LOCATION: The Meadowlands, East Rutherford, NJ
DATES: May 1 - 2
PRICE: $57/day
MONEY MAKERS: MGMT, Weezer, Drake, Girl Talk, Paramore, Matt & Kim, and Ke$ha, who will perform both days (vomit).

Sasquatch

It does exist!
LOCATION: The Gorge Ampitheatre, George, WA
DATES: May 29 - 31
PRICE: SOLD OUT AGAIN!
MONEY MAKERS: My Morning Jacket, Vampire Weekend, BSS, LCD, The National, Wale, Massive Attack, Kid Cudi, They Might Be Giants

SF's Outside Lands

A big one, still TBD.
LOCATION: Golden Gate Park, San Francisco, CA
DATES: Late August, 2010
The lineup is TBD, but with last years roster (Beasties were headlining before they had to pull out, MIA, DMB, Incubus, Pearl Jam, Black Eyed Peas) suggests that Outside Lands is in direct competition with Lolla for "most mainstream US fest". We'll see what they whip up in the coming weeks.

Essence Music Fest

A definitive jazz, soul and R&B festival put on by the magazine Essence .
LOCATION: The Superdome, New Orleans, LA
DATES: July 2 - 4
PRICE: "Terrace" seats for the weekend start at $149
MONEY MAKERS: Janet Jackson, Mary J Blige, LL Cool J, Alicia Keys, Earth Wind and Fire, Gladys Knight, Jill Scott

Summerfest

Billed as "The World's Largest Music Festival", which is probably true. 11 days, 11 stages, over 800 bands.
LOCATION: Milwaukee, WI
DATES: June 24 - July 4
PRICE: Daily: $8 before 4 PM on weekdays, $15 after 4 PM on weekdays and all day weekends
MONEY MAKERS: Tim McGraw, Tom Petty, Jeff Beck, Justin Bieber?, Santana, Eric Clapton, The Hold Steady, The Roots, Rush, Modest Mouse, Sheryl Crow, more TBA probably.

Bumbershoot

The other Seattle festival.
LOCATION: Seattle Center, Seattle, WA
More information should pop up after Coachella, we hope.

All Points West

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That's all for now! Stay tuned for more festival news as it drops. This is Joe reminding you to stay hydrated, even when running through the sonic forest on PCP. -joe puglisi