Festival season might seem a million sad pajama days away, as omicron has prompted another round of sporadic cancellations at local clubs. Nevertheless, festival producers are busy behind the scenes dialing in their poster fonts ahead of what could be a bounce-back summer. Lineups are already … lining up, and organizers of several events that sat out an abbreviated and unpredictable 2021 have declared their intentions to return this year.
Monday brought the first major lineup reveal, with Beyond Wonderland PNW organizers unveiling a typical slate of EDM stars. Topping this year’s bill are progressive house mainstays Kaskade and Alesso, Porter Robinson, Canadian bassheads Zeds Dead and Australian house thumper Fisher.
Also on deck for the two-day rager at the Gorge Amphitheatre: Acraze, Black Tiger Sex Machine, Bijou, CloZee, Dombresky, Ekali, Elderbrook, Green Velvet — an old-school Chicago house lord who’s carved a lane in the EDM world — John Summit, Moore Kismet, Sidepiece, U.K. producer TroyBoi and many more across three stages.
Powered by Insomniac Events, one of the top dance music promoters in the country, the second-year Beyond Wonderland PNW took over as Washington’s premier EDM festival after Paradiso’s downfall amid legal woes and allegations of unpaid bills against co-promoter USC Events. The Alice in Wonderland-themed fest will light up the Gorge June 18-19, and tickets go on sale at 12 p.m. Jan. 27. According to its website, presale passes start at $199.50.
We already know Bumbershoot’s new organizers are taking the year to rejigger the Labor Day classic, but several other Seattle-area staples are on track to return, with more details expected soon.
After two years off, Capitol Hill Block Party’s comeback is set for July 22-24.
That same weekend, the laid-back, Northwest-centric Timber! Outdoor Music Festival (July 21-23) heads back to Tolt-MacDonald Park in Carnation, and U.K. trance titans Above & Beyond revive their Group Therapy Weekender (July 22-24) at the Gorge.
In Snohomish County, the jam/electronic leaning Summer Meltdown will celebrate its delayed 20th year July 28-31. After 14 years in Darrington, the scrappy mom-and-pop fest moves into a new home at Sky Meadows Park along the Skykomish River in Snohomish. According to organizers, owners of the Darrington venue are “reorganizing due to COVID” and decided not to rent out their property during the process, hence the move.
Capitol Hill Block Party’s sibling mini fest, Day In Day Out, is on for Aug. 13-14, after an inaugural 2021 keeping Bumbershoot’s Labor Day weekend slot warm.
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