The Cure, Florence And The Machine Headline This Year’s Sasquatch! Music Festival
Legendary British alternative rock band The Cure will make it’s triumphant return to the Gorge Amphitheater in George, Washington, to support for this year’s Sasquatch! Music Festival. This year’s lineup was announced during the annual festival lineup announcement show, which took place at the Neptune in Seattle.
Rumors had speculated for months by fans if The Cure would indeed be playing after the band had announced it’s tour plans for 2016 in November. Although no Seattle dates were announced at the time, the tour schedule had many pondering if a Sasquatch would be on the tour, as a show listed for Vancouver B.C was announced the same weekend. This will mark the first time in over seven years that The Cure not only has played the festival, but it’s also the first time that The Cure has played anywhere near Seattle.
The official Sasquatch! press release reads as follows.
“The festival’s stellar lineups have featured a blend of established and emerging artists at the stunning Gorge Amphitheatre set atop the cliffs overlooking the Columbia River, making this festival an international destination as well as a uniquely Pacific Northwest mainstay.”
Joining The Cure as headliners are English indie-rock band Florence + the Machine, who recently played a sold-out show at Seattle’s KeyArena. It also marks the first time the band has played the festival. English electronic duo Disclosure and Major Lazer, an electronic group created by producer Diplo that also spun off into an animated series shown on FXX’s Animation Domination, are also scheduled to appear. The Lucas Bros. will also headline the comedy tent. The Lucas Bros. were originally scheduled to perform at last year’s festival but had to cancel.
Rounding out the lineup for Sasquatch! this year are Alabama Shakes, Sufjan Stevens, A$AP Rocky, Jamie xx, M83, X Ambassadors, Leon Bridges, Mac Demarco and Big Grams, which feature Big Boi known for being one-half of legendary hip-hop duo Outkast, and indie rock darlings Phantogram.
This will mark the 15th year of Sasquatch! In previous years, Sasquatch! has grown from being a one-day festival featuring artists like Jack Johnson and Ben Harper to the four-day festival it is today. In 2013, there were plans to split Sasquatch! into two weekends (Memorial Day and 4th of July) with two different lineups. This plan was ultimately cancelled due to low ticket sales, with the 4th of July festival getting the axe, leaving fans disappointed in the process since many who had bought tickets for the 4th of July weekend which also boasted a lineup including Soundgarden and New Order, just to name a few. The Memorial Day weekend lineup included Queens of the Stone Age and Foster The People as headliners.
According to the press release, “Sasquatch consistently sells out with a rock-solid roster of past performers that reads like a history of alternative and indie music: Arcade Fire, Beastie Boys, Beck, Bjork, The Black Keys, Coldplay, Foo Fighters, Jack White, Kanye West, Kendrick Lamar, LCD Soundsystem, Mumford & Sons, Outkast, Pixies, R.E.M., Wilco plus top comedians like: Zach Galifianakis, Flight of the Conchords, Sarah Silverman, Nick Offerman, and Maya Rudolph.”
Last year’s festival sold out in minutes and boasted a massive lineup, including Lana Del Rey, Robert Plant, Kendrick LaMarr, Modest Mouse, and a reunion of Seattle/Portland indie rock trio Sleater-Kinney, whose members include Carrie Brownstein. Brownstein is well known as one half of the hit IFC TV show Portlandia with SNL alum Fred Armisen, who also serves as band leader for Late Night with Seth Meyers on NBC.
Tickets will go on sale January 12 at 10 a.m. Pacific standard time.
