From new events like Napa’s Blue Note Jazz Fest and the forthcoming Portola electronic music festival, to the youth culture extravaganza that is Outside Lands, there’s plenty of festival fun to be had. But none of them are quite like Hardly Strictly Bluegrass.
After several years of COVID-19 cancellations, the three-day multistage music festival is scheduled to take place in Golden Gate Park this year from Sept. 30 through Oct 2. Now in its 22nd year, the festival is and always has been free, thanks to subsidizing by investment banker F. Warren Hellman, who died in 2011 but continues to fund the fest. In contrast to Outside Lands, there will be no alcohol served onsite, but beer, wine and food are permitted to be brought inside.
As far as bookings go, the lineup is less focused on trending acts, with more emphasis on legacy performers and acoustic upstarts (although as the name suggests, it’s not just bluegrass music).
Yesterday, the festival announced the second round of bands on the bill. Joining previously announced artists like Sam Bush, Galactic and Marcus Mumford, the newly announced artists include HSB mainstay Emmylou Harris, Talking Heads alums Jerry Harrison and Adrian Belew (performing “Remain in Light”), folk songwriter Tre Burt, Bay Area Ethio-American vocalist Meklit and Afrobeat revivalists Antibalas. Jake Blount, The Brothers Comatose, Seratones, The Tallest Man On Earth and Sarah Shook & the Disarmers are also slated to perform.
There’s still one more wave of bands to be announced, but as for now, see the full list of confirmed artists from Hardly Strictly.
Read More: SF’s Hardly Strictly Bluegrass music fest announces bands