The Red Sky Music Festival returns July 18-21, 2012 at Ameritrade Park in Omaha, Nebreska. The Midwest mega-fest debuted last year with six days of national and local acts like Journey, 311, and Kid Rock while boasting an attendance of 80,000, This year it’s been dialed back to four days.

The 2012 lineup so far is heavily focused on country acts. July 18th will feature Rascal Flatts, Eli Young Band, Little Big Town, and Edens Edge. July 19th is Brad Paisley, The Band Perry, and The Lost Trailers. Saturday is home to eighties hair bands Def Leppard and Poison along with Lita Ford.

So country fans are stoked, but there’s more than a few disappointed Omaha locals:

The Lazy-i.com, a local music blog had this to say:

MECA, the folks behind Red Sky, is like a group of out-of-touch parents planning a senior prom.

Brad Dickson writing a weekly humor column for the Omaha World-Herald:

This just in – NASA announced plans to go to Mars in an attempt to discover the last country music act in the universe to not play the Red Sky Music Festival.

Christopher Mertz on the Red Sky Music Festival Facebook Page:

To me I find it insulting to even call it a music festival. It seems more like a state fair, and what was RATT and Billy Ray Cyrus too busy to make it?

Full post here: Red Sky Music Festival 2012: Brad Paisley, Rascal Flatts, Poison

The always excellent Pygmalion Music Festival released the first batch of artists for their annual indie show. Dinosaur Jr., Grizzly Bear, Cloud Nothings, and Tennis will headline the September 27-29, 2012, festival held in Champaign-Urbana, Illinois. More acts will be announced in the upcoming weeks.

Pygmalion runs similar to a SXSW type of festival with artists playing in venues around town. Local, regional, and national acts will all be in the mix — a crowd that has grown substantially since the first Pygmalion back in 2005.

Initial Lineup for Pygmalion 2012

GRIZZLY BEAR
DINOSAUR JR.
TENNIS
WILLIS EARL BEAL
FRANKIE ROSE
BIG FREEDIA
LORD HURON
JULIA HOLTER
LOTUS PLAZA
CLOUD NOTHINGS
CRAFT SPELLS
OWEN
OH NO OH MY
ZEUS
MY JERUSALEM
AN EVENING WITH YOUR MOTHER
ANNA KARENINA/ANNA KARINA
COMMON LOON
THE CURSES
DEATHTRAM
THE DIRTY FEATHERS
ELSINORE
EVIL TENTS
GRANDKIDS
JARED BARTMAN
MEGAN JOHNS
MIDSTRESS
MY WEREWOLF DIARY
NEW RUINS
PAMELA MACHALA
PSYCHIC TWIN
SANTAH
TAKE CARE
THAT’S NO MOON
WITHERSHINS

Early bird tickets sold out in eight minutes, but there’s plenty of regular GA passes priced at $75. Click here for more ticket info.

via Pygmalion Music Festival

Full post here: Pygmalion 2012 Initial Lineup 2012: Grizzly Bear and Dinosaur Jr.

Ghostland Observatory stopping to ask for directions.

What The Festival already captured our hearts with a first round lineup that included Beats Antique, Holy Fuck, and Emancipator. Now they’re filling out the July 27-29, 2012, show with a second batch of artists. Ghostland Observatory, Big Gigantic, and Mimosa will play the Oregon festival. See the full lineup in our What The Festival 2012 Guide.

Tickets: What The Festival is $160 for a three day general admission pass which comes with free walk-in camping. Parking passes for camping are an additional $50. The OMG Experience (VIP) is $275 for GA and $375 with car camping.

via What The Festival 

Second Round Additions

Ghostland Observatory
Big Gigantic
Mimosa
EPROM
Kitty-D
Natasha Kmeto
Danny Corn
Kepi and Kat
Geno Cochino
Smokey and the Bandit
Jupit3r
Reva DeVito
DJ Dials
Tyler Tastemaker
Substance D (Sidestep + JMFS)
Celoso
Anna Langley
Halo Refuser
Shovelman
Mr. Wu

Full post here: What The Festival 2012: Ghostland Observatory, Big Gigantic, Mimosa

Camping will be offered for the first this year at The Voodoo Experience

For weeks, our email has been blowing up with festival fans digging around for The Voodoo Experience 2012 lineup. The three day Halloween flavored bash returns to City Park in downtown New Orleans this October 26-28, 2012 and has released an initial lineup.

Voodoo Experience alumini, Green Day, will headline the 14th annual festival. First timers Neil Young & Crazy Horse will join festival whores Skrillex and Justice. Other artists in the first round: AWOLNATION, Bootsy Collins, Tomahawk, the Preservation Hall Jazz Band, K’Naan, and Gary Clark Jr.

Other huge news is that for the first time ever, festival fans will be able to camp out in City Park, a rarity for downtown music festivals. Camping packages are sold separately from tickets with campsites starting at $150 for a GA camping pass for two people. Yeah, that sounds expensive, but once you start looking at hotels near the French Quarter, camping in the swamp is a steal.

Three day general admission tickets start at $175 and VIP will cost you $500. Stay tuned for plenty more lineup announcements during the summer. See the official site for more ticket info.

via The Voodoo Experience

Full post here: The Voodoo Experience 2012: Green Day and Neil Young!

Bjork cancels a bunch of European festivals dates.

There’s not really that many major “headliners” on the music festival circuit each summer. These are the artists that you build an entire festival around so it’s a big blow when you lose them in the lineup. This week, we’re still reeling from the dual blows of cancelled appearances from both Blink-182 and Bjork.

Blink-182 drummer, Travis Barker, needed an urgent tonsillectomy, which required the band to cancel all May North American tour dates including The Bamboozle. They are still planning on hitting the European leg of their tour which kicks of June 7th.

Icelandic indie queen, Björk, won’t make appearances at Primavera Sound, Optimus Primavera Sound, Colours of Ostrava, Balaton Sound, and Afisha Picnic in Russia due to badly needed vocal rest. On her site she says, “I am very sorry and embarrassed about having to cancel things and having promised things and then not being able to keep my word, truly breaks my heart. Especially to people who have already bought tickets.”

Full post here: Blink-182/Bjork Cancel Music Festival Dates

I Love This City debuts this summer in San Francisco and San Diego

San Francisco’s newest super-rave, I Love This City, will be moving from their previous downtown location to Shoreline Amphiteater in Mountain View. It’s a fairly major last-minute change for a festival that goes off May 25-26, 2012.

The original location at The Lot at AT&T Park was scrapped because “production challenges at The Lot are resulting in what would be a compromised experience for both the artists and fans,” according to the announcement on Facebook. All of the same artists (Tiesto, Duck Sauce, Steve Akoi) are still on board at the same times.

Understandably, fans have responded harshly to Live Nation yanking the rug out from under them. What was to be a unique, massive event in downtown San Francisco with easy public access has been shafted to an amphiteater over thirty miles away. But hey, you can still catch a free shuttle. In another big middle finger to the fans, the 18+ age restriction has been dropped to 16+ so get ready to party with ecstasy dropping underage teenagers.

Sean P. Ryan from the ILTC Facebook comments sums up the changes thusly:

The show should be renamed “we fucked this city” instead.

Full post here: I Love This City San Francisco Moves to Different City

Jay-Z is getting his own two day music festival this fall. The Made In America Festival will premiere September 1-2, 2012, in Philadalphia at Fairmount Park. Last week, a mysterious teaser appeared on Jay-Z’s YouTube channel alluding to the festival. At a press conference today, Jay-Z confirmed that there will be around 30 acts and will include rap, rock, R&B, Latin and dance performers.

Tickets go on sale May 23, 2012, through Live Nation and Ticketmaster.

Full post here: New Festival Alert! Jay-Z to Host New Philadelphia Festival

Coachella 2013 tickets go on sale this week.

Coachella has been teasing us with a big “announcement” since last week, but my five year old nephew could have guessed that the news would be the dates for 2013. The major goodie is that Coachella will once again go two weekends. Looks like their gamble of going double paid off in a big way.

Weekend One: April 12-14, 2013
Weekend Two: April 19-21, 2013

Advance tickets go on sale on Thursday, May 17th 10:00am PDT. And this year, ticket prices will reflect all fees. This year, general admission will start at $349 with camping passes at $85.

From the website:

We are excited to announce Coachella 2013 will again be held over two consecutive weekends. Advance passes go on sale beginning this Thursday, May 17th, 2012 10:00 am PDT through the following Thursday, May 24th, 2012 10:00 pm PDT. This advance sale will be the only opportunity to take advantage of the Coachella Purchase Plan. New for 2013, the price you see is what you pay — prices reflect all fees included. The general on sale will happen early next year

Will you be a part of the pre-sale? Will other festivals follow the “double weekend” model? Will Coachella 2013 be nothing but holographic performances? Let us know below.

via Coachella

Full post here: Coachella Announces 2013 Dates

Grace Potter and friends will play this September in Vermont.

Last summer, Grace Potter & The Nocturnals, hosted the Grand Point Music Festival in Burlington, Vermont. They’ll be returning this September 14-15, 2012, for a second edition that includes some of the jammiest bands on the festival circuit like The Avett Brothers and Dr. Dog.

Advance tickets are available at $65 for two days and it takes place on the shore of Lake Champlain at Waterfront Park.

Grand Point North 2012 Lineup
Grace Potter & The Nocturnals (2 sets)
The Avett Brothers
Dr. Dog
Galactic
Carolina Chocolate Drops
Sam Roberts Band
Nicki Bluhm & The Gramblers
Ryan Power
Brenda
Tooth Ache Waylon Speed
Gregory Douglass
Heloise & The Savoir Faire
Bow Thayer
Bob Wagner Band

via Grand Point North Festival

Full post here: Grace Potter and Grand Point North Festival Returns This Fall

Re:Generation 2012 will not be rocking Oregon this summer.

Organizers of the STS9 curated Re:Generation Festival held in Oregon have cancelled the show. The following message is from the official festival website.

We regret to announce that 2012′s RE:Generation Festival has been cancelled.

All customers who have purchased tickets will automatically receive a full refund, which will be issued to the card used on the original order or payment. The refund process is underway, and you should see the credit within the next 5-7 days, if not sooner. If you do not see the credit by May 18 then please contact us via email, support@fgtcustomerservice.com or phone, 888-512-SHOW

No official reason has been provided although that hasn’t stopped fans on Facebook from speculations that range from poor ticket sales and a thin lineup to possible competition from Colorado’s Sonic Bloom Festival happening during the same weekend. Regardless, more than a few STS9 fans are pissed after buying non-refundable plane tickets to the festival.

Full post here: Re:Generation Festival Cancelled for 2012

The Silversun Pickups join the Firefly Music Festival

The Firefly Music Festival, which already boasts a buzz-worthy lineup, will add eight more acts. The new additions include Bassnectar, Silversun Pickups, Fitz and the Tantrums, Polica, The Knocks, Moon Taxi, Turf War, and Lower Case Blues. The debut edition of Firefly takes place July 20-22, 2012, in Dover, Delaware.

Previous headliners announced: The Killers, Jack White, The Black Keys, Death Cab for Cutie, John Legend, The Flaming Lips, Passion Pit, Cake, Lupe Fiasco, and Girl Talk. See the most current lineup in the MFJ Firefly Music Festival Guide.

Tickets are running at $198 (plus fees) for a three-day pass. Expect these to sell out. When they do, the price goes up to $218 (plus fees). Purchase Firefly tickets through the official website right here.

via Firefly Music Festival

Full post here: New Additions to Firefly Fest: Bassnectar, Silversun Pickups & More

Seattle's Bumbershoot has released their 2012 lineup.

The Bumbershoot lineup was dropped this morning for the September 1-3, 2012, show in Seattle. Jane’s Addiction, Skrillex, Tony Bennett, Mac Miller, Big Sean, M83, M. Ward, Passion Pit, Keane, Blitzen Trapper, and Mudhoney are just a few of the numerous artists. See the full lineup right here or scroll down to announcement video below.

Tickets are going to be $118.75 for an early bird three day pass. This will jump up to $165 closer to the start of the show. And there’s also single day tickets for $51. Click here to buy tickets.

Bumbershoot 2012 Lineup Video

via Bumbershoot

Full post here: Bumbershoot 2012: Jane’s Addiction, Tony Bennett, M83, Passion Pit

Temperatures are heating up along with the music festival season. New York City continues to crush The MFJ 50 during the month of April capturing nine of the top twenty spots. New entries into the list include some our picks of the best free 2012 festivals. Come on and dip your toe the April edition of The MFJ 50.

Full post here: The Music Festival Junkies 50: April Recap

Hey girl, want to go the Great Googa Mooga and see us?

The Great Googa Mooga Festival will be kicking this month with a fantastic lineup of fancy-pants breweries/wineries and tasty local foodgasms, but this is MFJ and we want a music lineup! The first year fest will treat Brooklyn hipsters to some of their favorites including Hall & Oates, The Roots, Holy Ghost!, and Fitz & the Tantrums who will rock Prospect Park from May 18-29, 2012. The bill also includes an all female Led Zepplin cover band and a Van Halen cover band.

The good news is that the show is free. The bad news is that you already missed your shot at getting in for nothing. The only option left is a hefty $249.50 for the weekend. Before you click off the page, know that this monster VIP ticket provides all-inclusive food including booze as well private entrances and your own private viewing area.

Here’s your daily breakdown of the tunes:

SATURDAY MAY 19
The Roots, Holy Ghost!, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Pedrito Martinez Group, Naomi Shelton & the Gospel Queens, Bear Hands, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Unchained “the Mighty Van Halen Tribute”, Fort Lean

SUNDAY MAY 20
Daryl Hall & John Oates, Fitz & the Tantrums, Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, Escort, Lez Zeppelin, Peelander-Z, We Barbarians, Lucius

And of course here’s a video of John Oates and his mustache fighting crime or saving the world or something.

Full post here: The Great Googa Mooga Lineup…Plus Hall & Oates Overload

I can’t help but think that the people behind the Mayhem Festival could have come up with a much better name for their December cruise festival. With bands like Lamb of God, Hatebreed, Anthrax, and Machine Head they could have gone with something super metal…like Ship of Death Cruise. On second thought, it’s probably difficult to market a cruise with the word “death” in the title. Better that the Mayhem Festival Cruise (the real title) captalize on the popularity of their traveling fest of the same name.

The Mayhem Festival Cruise sets sail December 7-10, 2012, from Miami to the Bahamas. Package plans are available now with everything from windowless shoeboxes to baller penthouse suites.

Mayhem Festival Cruise 2012

Full post here: Mayhem Festival Cruise: Lamb of God, Anthrax, Hatebreed