This 10th year anniversary of Outside Lands was an incredible event to witness. Located in the bustling city of San Francisco, Golden Gate Park was a surreal venue to experience. Trees were shrouded by curtains of light fog and mist hung heavy in the air, curating an otherworldly atmosphere to the amazing food, art, and most importantly, music.
FRIDAY – DAY 1
Outside Lands has 8 different stages all spread across the park: Lands End, Sutro, Twin Peaks, Panhandle, The House by Heineken, The Barbary, Gastro Magic and the Presidio. The immense amount of people and shows to see is exciting; Outside Lands weekend has just begun and it’s brimming with possibilities.
Top acts on Friday were Dwilly—from the Berklee College of Music, Tove Lo, Kali Uchis, Noname Gypsy, DJ Umami and Future Islands. Harmonies and rhythms rang out all over the park, and you were constantly surrounded by music and fellow music lovers. The night ended spectacularly with Gorillaz and Alt-J closing the night with sweet jams and amazing performances.
Tove Lo’s sultry performance was highlighted by flashing the crowd
The crowd couldn’t get enough of Gorillaz’s set
Unfortunately, Tribe Called Quest canceled on Friday due to “unforeseen travel issues.”
SATURDAY – DAY 2
Public transportation using BART and the MUNI is the optimal way to get to Golden Gate Park. Parking is extremely rare to find, and if found it can cost between $40-$60. BART and MUNI were filled with festival-goers.
Friday was incredible, but it was a teaser for the rest of the festival. Saturday continued to exude contagious energy with crowd-cheering performances from Thundercat, Vance Joy, Kaytranada and Cage the Elephant.
White tents lined all the stages filled with foods from sriracha and mayonnaise covered tater tots to ramen-burgers (which use fried ramen instead of buns). Funnel cakes, ice cream tacos, and churros were abundant to satisfy your sweet tooth.
The glorious ramen-burger
A Tribe Called Quest was rescheduled for tonight, but shortly before their new time, they canceled once again. People crowding Twin Peaks began a mass exit as the Outside Lands app notified fans of the disappointing cancellation.
As the sun began to set, the evening was buzzing with activity as Metallica and Empire of the Sun took on the mains stages to close the night. Metallica was legendary as fans young and old gathered together to rock on alongside each other.
SUNDAY – DAY 3
Sunday was the final day of Outside Lands. The excitement was clear as bigger crowds were present at the park and the usual buzz was now pure energy and anticipation. Artists gracing Outside Lands on Sunday included Action Bronson, K.Flay, James Vincent McMorrow, Rebelution, and Schoolboy Q.
Schoolboy Q’s performance had the crowd riled up as he acknowledged that he was one of the few rap artists at Outside Lands. He fulfilled his promise to deliver a phenomenal show.
Lorde also amassed a huge crowd as she performed at Lands End right before The Who. She spoke to the crowd about the beautiful setting of Golden Gate Park and how incredible the venue was.
Big names closing Outside Lands was The Who and Solange. The Who had a massive two-hour set and the crowd was utterly packed. Solange’s voice beautifully hung heavy in the San Francisco air as she closed the show as well.
Solange made a remark to the crowd to “just let it out and dance” and “you matter… you belong” as she commented on the rough couple of days it’s been with the tragedies in Charlottesville. Indeed did the crowd dance, an almost cathartic experience as the stage was bathed in red fluorescent light.
Solange closing on Sutro Stage
Leaving Outside Lands was bittersweet. It was a three-day festival exploring fantastic music, mouth-watering food and meeting new people from different walks of life. Saying goodbye to the ginormous figure of Ranger Dave and leaving the two infamous huge windmills at Polo Field was an experience in itself.
Outside Lands is definitely a festival to look out for next year, as this tenth anniversary more than delivered on cherished memories and awe-inspiring music.
