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After last year, MusicfestNW presents Project Pabst has a lot to live up to. The inaugural edition of Portland's music festival Voltron sold out Waterfront Park, making good on its unspoken promise to be bigger together than either festival was on its own. So, what would it do to follow up?
Well, here you go: Beck, Iggy Pop, Nas and Father John Misty are heading down to the Willamette this summer.
That's pretty good, right? Obviously, we're a bit biased around here—MFNW is, of course, a Willamette Week joint—but two '90s icons from the alt-rock and hip-hop worlds, the godfather of punk and the soft-rock Andy Kaufman is damn solid. Still not totally sold? Other performers include returning indie-rock stalwarts Spoon ("the most consistent rock band of the 21st century," says Esquire), South African rave-rap freaks Die Antwoord and feel-good-as-hell singer-rapper Lizzo, who had to cancel last year to take an MTV hosting gig.
Related: "The World's a Mess, but Lizzo's Feeling Good As Hell."
There's some fine stuff among the smaller print as well. FIDLAR, Pup, White Reaper and RVIVR bring the garage-punk energy, while San Fermin, Frankie Cosmos and Whitney provide different strands of contemporary indie-pop feels. Portland itself represents with the Last Artful, Dodgr, WW's reigning Best New Band Lithics and a rare live show from newly formed supergroup Filthy Friends, which features Sleater-Kinney's Corin Tucker and Peter Buck of R.E.M. And then there's Chicago rapper Noname, who stands to be the sleeper breakout of the weekend—her earthy mixtape Telefone was one of 2016's best debuts. Check out her recent NPR Tiny Desk Concert for a taste of what to expect.
MFNWpPP—yep, that's still what we're calling it—is Aug. 26-27 at Tom McCall Waterfront Park. Tickets go on sale Friday at 10 am over at projectpabst.com. Check the launch video and the poster below for the daily lineups.
Related: "The Best Things We Heard and Saw at MusicfestNW presents Project Pabst 2016."
