At Wonderfront, we are firm believers that every festival lineup is only as strong as its legs. Festivals have a responsibility to their emerging artists; to be a place of curation, to be a serving ground for the listener to find – and more importantly, to experience – the music of the artist that they didn’t know they loved yet. This is where the fan goes to feel a shift within their ever expanding musical sensibilities, and we are so very passionate about bringing the very best of the best to our main stages, especially when we are digging a few feet into the underground. So let’s get into it!
Our Friday focuses on all things hip-hop, house, indie groove pop and beyond. Our parameters were simple; youthful, energetic, passionate, ground-breaking. Perhaps no act on our Friday lineup enunciates this better than Los Angeles based hip hop duo Paris Texas. With their raw, intense blend of indie sleaze energy and post punk dialogue, their sound is primed to take over the world in the coming months, and we wouldn’t be one bit surprised if they followed in JID’s footsteps by returning to Wonderfront a few years from now to headline.
Another entry on Wonderfront’s list of ‘catch the wave before it turns into a tsunami’ artists is the Brooklyn based, indefinable Phony Ppl. Their harmonious, groove riddled blend of Neo-Soul, R&B, hip-hop and jazz is impossible to not get absolutely down to. For the fan of an Anderson .Paak, an Outkast, an Al Green or a Robert Glasper, tap in and get acquainted now so you can be singing every word by the time they hit our stage.
Keep a special eye out for the lovely, love-filled summer jams of Amo Amo, the perfectly balanced experimentalism of Meridian’s chillwave electronica, the undeniable charm of backpack indie legend Healy, and the uplifting fluidity of Bakar’s modern sing along anthems.
Moving into Saturday, where we seek to blend the nostalgic power-pop rock of the 00s with the generation of indie pop/rock that its influence gave birth to. We couldn’t be more excited to bring some of these incredible artists into our fold. And where else could we start but with the SoCal Surf Rocker’s ideal band: Sun Room. Sun Room is the modern embodiment of the beach boy’s dream, and the smell of a sandy bonfire next to your crush is palpable in each note.
An up and comer you simply cannot afford to miss this year is Q, who’s soulful psychedelia is sure to put your heart in a headlock and some stank on your face. His beautiful falsetto mixes so perfectly with the funky drive of his kick drum that you’ll be telling everyone about how you saw the modern Prince at Wonderfront before he exploded into the stratosphere for decades to come.
The live experience is everything to us, which is why we went to great lengths to ensure the presence of bands whose live reputations cannot be eclipsed. Prepare for BadBadNotGood to melt your mind, for Unknown Mortal Orchestra to feed your soul, and for Poolside to move your ass straight onto the dancefloor. Kid Bloom’s electric smile will have the Dominic Fike fan in shambles, and Proxima Parada’s whitewater licks will set the Weezer fan right at home.
Sunday is a special type of day to us, a truly unique lineup in the often cookie-cutter world of festivals, and we are ecstatic to present it to you. Organic grooves reminiscent of orange wine, smooth and intellectual sounds deserving of the perfect sunsets that kiss our coastline, powerful and purpose driven artists; a day for the true music lover.
The Dead Head in all of us needs to spend some real listening hours with LA based, Latin infused Mapache. The sunshine of a bright, early morning spills from their acoustic pickings, and their sonnets increase the gravity between lovers in the crowd by a steady 20 percent.
San Diego bound all the way from South Africa, Alice Pheobe Lou is dead set on a direct collision course with your favorite playlist forever more. Her powerful pop and her beautiful ballads leave a taste reminiscent of a 21st century Billy Joel meets Stevie Nicks. You will dance. You will cry. Just the way it should be.
Samm Henshaw brings the gospel soul and lust for life we all need to be reminded of from time to time. JD Clayton and Abby Anderson bring the red dirt of Americana to our wave lapped paradise. Rayland Baxter is an enigma, a powerful, versatile artist not to be missed, as his capacity to bring truth to sound is truly unique. Saint Cecilia comes at us all the way from Costa Rica, here to remind the USA that their classic rock inspired sound is a global centerpiece that continues to score the world far and wide.
This is all to say that we couldn’t be more excited to bring you this lineup. And we haven’t even gotten to our true emerging artist stages yet! Soon enough, we will announce our lineup for the diamonds in the rough, the artists fighting tooth and nail to get the recognition they are so, so incredibly deserving of. Stay tuned for that, but for now… you got a lot of music to go listen to. Get to it!
Lineup Curation and Blog Post by Jaxson Power-Thornton (@jaxsonpower)