As we end this whirlwind music, I definitely began to feel the toll that three days of festival life takes. Coupled with the real life day job getting in the way this morning, Sunday was off to a late start. I caught the tail end of Nate Ruess (of fun. fame) set and enjoyed his rendition of “Some Nights” and “Carry On” solo. The rest of the evening until the final two bands I saw was spent wandering the grounds of Outside Lands. Here is a final recap of some of the highlights of the festival:
Best Food: Chicken and Bacon Waffle Sandwich
This delicious menu item was so good, we had to have it twice! Exactly what it sounds like, just done so well.
Best “Best Kept Secret”: Camp Underground Digital Detox
No cell phones, work talk, or social media allowed! Hangout doing arts and crafts, reading a book, or listening to one of the hidden bands in a tent up in a remote part of the grounds. It’s basically like summer camp for adults, and a great way to escape the crowds, hashtags, and selfie sticks.
I’ll probably got a lot of flack for this one, but honestly the highlight of the evening for me was seeing Mac Sabbath – a Black Sabbath cover band that dresses up like McDonald’s Happy Meal characters, changes the lyrics to fast food themed, and showers the audience with fries and McNuggets rather than picks and drumsticks. It was one of the most bizarre performances I have ever seen, and frankly in a festival with so much of the same, these guys were a welcome change of pace. It was so much fun to rock out with them for a little while, and I will gladly attend a show in the Bay Area if they come back around soon.
The Fan Favorite (and mine too): Sir Elton John
It’s Elton John playing his heart out to a sold out festival crowd, yet he is as humble and generous to the fans as if it was a local piano bar. His sheer power and talent come across in each song he plays. While we were hoping for a few more songs (such as “Circle of Life” from The Lion King) we were incredibly satisfied with the hits. Singing along to “Tiny Dancer” with 9,000 friends is a life-altering moment!
In Summary:
While I throughly enjoyed myself this year, the Outside Lands lineup was not the strongest compared to years past, or even other like festivals of this year. I would have liked to see an increased focus on getting some more rock and roll artists on the roster, less focus on what I call “chillwave pop” or psychedelia that is enjoyed best by standing and swaying – or relegating it to a specific stage, and a more diverse lineup with like acts less stacked. There were a few times where there would be nothing I was interested in for a few hours, then everything at once back to back. A more diverse lineup (which it appears Outside Lands is going for each year) will allow for a better schedule.Overall though, the crowd was very pleasant and I did not encounter any rudeness or pushy people. Everyone was there to have as great of a time as I did – and this at a concert is worth as much as the admission to see the artist.
And thus concludes our coverage of Outside Lands 2015. We are already excited for next year!