FESTIVAL GUIDE: Pitchfork Music Festival 2017

LCD Soundsystem, A Tribe Called Quest, & Solange Headline This Year’s Pitchfork Music Festival

Three Day Passes: SOLD OUT | Single Day Tickets ($75) & +PLUS Passes Available Here

We are just days away from what we at Needle & Thread like to call “Christmas In July” — Pitchfork Music Festival is coming back to Union Park in Chicago on Friday, July 14. This year, Pitchfork Fest will continue to build on the festival’s uncanny reputation to deliver a festival on par with any in America, if not surpassing most of them.

But it isn’t just the headliners that make Pitchfork Music Festival our favorite weekend of the year. This weekend is perennially a can’t miss event because of many factors: the venue, the food & drink, the #culture, the after parties, and of course… the music. Below we take a look at each of these aspects, all of which makes Pitchfork Music Festival uniquely special.

THE MUSIC

The artist lineup is the most important factor in any music festival (duh). So let’s take a look at a day-by-day breakdown of what we’ll be checking out this weekend. The full schedule is below, and there are inevitable conflicts between acts. Below is a tentative road map as to where we’ll be each day, followed by some important points to keep in mind.

1pm – (Red Stage) Madame Gandhi

1:45pm – (Green Stage) Priests

2:30pm – (Blue Stage) Dawn Richard

3pm – (Red Stage) Hiss Golden Messenger

4pm – (Green Stage) Vince Staples

4pm – (Blue Stage) William Tyler

5pm – (Red Stage) Thurston Moore Group

5:15pm – (Blue Stage) Frankie Cosmos

6pm – (Green Stage) Danny Brown

6:30pm – (Blue Stage) Kamaiyah

7pm – (Red Stage) Dirty Projectors

7:45pm – (Blue Stage) Arca & Jesse Kanda

8:10pm – (Green Stage) LCD Soundsystem

1pm – (Green Stage) Vagabon

1:45pm – (Red Stage) Jeff Rosenstock

2:30pm – (Green Stage) Weyes Blood

2:45pm – (Blue Stage) Cherry Glazer

3:20pm – (Red Stage) Arab Strap

4pm – (Blue Stage) Mitski

4:15pm – (Green Stage) George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic

5:15pm – (Red Stage) The Feelies

5:15pm – (Blue Stage) Francis And The Lights

6:15pm – (Green Stage) Angel Olsen

6:30pm – (Blue Stage) Madlib

7:25pm – (Red Stage) PJ Harvey

7:45pm – (Blue Stage) S U R V I V E

8:30pm – (Green Stage) A Tribe Called Quest

1pm – (Green Stage) Kilo Kish

1:45pm – (Red Stage) Colin Stetson

2:30pm – (Green Stage) NE-HI

2:45pm – (Blue Stage) Derrick Carter

3:20pm – (Red Stage) Isaiah Rashad

4pm – (Blue Stage) Joey Purp

4:15pm – (Green Stage) Hamilton Leithauser

5:15pm – (Red Stage) Ride

5:15pm – (Blue Stage) Pinegrove

6:15pm – (Green Stage) The Avalanches

6:30pm – (Blue Stage) Jamila Woods

7:25pm – (Red Stage) Nicolas Jaar

7:45pm – (Blue Stage) American Football

8:30pm – (Green Stage) Solange

 

Some quick thoughts:

  • Each day offers minimal conflict at the start of the day, with the first acts spaced out 45 minutes. Do not sleep on the artists opening each day — Vagabon, Kilo Kish, and Madame Gandhi all will be worth getting to the festival early, and this is not an understatement.
  • While all three days offer some schedule conflicts, Saturday is clearly the day with the most, with plenty of choices throughout the day. Will you choose the noise pop of Cherry Glazerr or airy, experimental psych folk from Weyes Blood? At 4pm, you have another choice, Mitski, who has set the blogs on fire with hype, or the classic grooves of George Clinton & Parliament Funkadelic? Quite possibly the most difficult decision on Saturday will be Angel Olsen vs. Madlib at 6pm. My advice: follow your mood when making these decisions, and let the day decide for you.
  • Sunday has its fair share of conflicts too. Hamilton vs. Joey Purp? NE-HI vs. Derrick Carter? Ride vs. Pinegrove? I know in the previous point I said let your mood decide these for you, but do not take these decisions lightly; your choice can effectively ruin your afternoon. Do some research, listen to a few songs from each artist before going in if you’re not familiar with the acts, so you’ll have a better idea of what each set will hold.
  • Speaking of research, here’s a good place to start: We’ve curated a Spotify playlist containing 1-2 songs from each artist playing the festival each day (in order of their start time). Stream the playlist below, or click here to open the playlist in iTunes.

 

As mentioned countless times before (in writing and IRL), Pitchfork Music Festival stands out from the crowded festival scene with what it provides its attendees in other areas. Click below to read on, and preview the other factors that we’re most excited about this weekend.

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