April 14, 2014
Sneaking under the radar to surprise everyone with one of the best music festival lineups of the summer, British Columbia’s Pemberton Music Festival has announced its 2014 lineup. The festival takes place July 18-20 in one of the world’s most beautiful festival settings: the idyllic Pemberton Valley near the foot of the 8,300-foot Mt. Currie, located 30 minutes north of Whistler and 2.5 hours north of Vancouver. The festival was held once before, in 2008, but is marking its long-awaited 2014 return with one of the most diverse lineups of the entire festival season.
The festival features relatively rare headlining sets by ‘90s alt-rock icons Nine Inch Nails and Soundgarden, as well as dubstep pioneer Deadmau5 and everyone’s favorite returning hip hop champions Outkast, who are also performing at a long list of other summer festivals including Coachella, Sasquatch, Governor’s Ball, Firefly, Summerfest, Big Guava, Hangout, and Forecastle.
But what makes Pemberton unique is its wide-ranging lineup of secondary headliners, who include everyone from indie rock legends Modest Mouse to Snoop Dogg himself. Rounding out the headliners list are hip hop heavyweights Frank Ocean and Kendrick Lamar, EDM heroes Above & Beyond and Empire of the Sun, and early wave indie greats TV on the Radio and Metric.
The festival also includes reunion sets from ‘80s greats Violent Femmes and Blondie, party-starting mashup king Girl Talk, and the eye-popping experimental antics of The Flaming Lips. Other bands of note include contemporary rockers Cage the Elephant and Young the Giant, trending hip hop stars-in-the-making Tyler the Creator and Schoolboy Q, “Harlem Shake” creator Baauer, and offbeat indie darling St. Vincent.
A little down the lineup list, fans will be treated to a heavy dose of hidden gems including the enigmatic magic of electro experimentalist Dan Deacon, the model-quality good looks of singer/songwriter ZZ Ward, the heavy blasts of noise from cult ‘90s legends Dinosaur Jr., the bouncy dance music of Big Gigantic, the unclassifiable chopped-up beats of Flying Lotus, and ear-pleasing indie sets from Canadian bands New Pornographers and Stars.
But Pemberton Music Festival isn’t just about the music. It’s also here to make you laugh, boasting one of the best comedy lineups of the festival season. Performers include Canadian mockumentary stars Trailer Park Boys, creepy voice of the dad from How I Met Your Mother Bob Saget, off-the-wall Canadian shock comic Tom Green, Blades of Glory stalker Nick Swardson, Canadian SNL vet/friend of Adam Sandler Norm McDonald, 30 Rock/Broad City writer Hannibal Buress, and foul-mouthed insult comic Lisa Lampanelli.
In between the music and comedy, Pemberton Music Festival also offers a scenic mountain panorama so good you won’t want to leave: which is why the festival also includes on-site camping (and well as shuttle service to nearby Whistler for those seeking fancier accommodations.)
Tickets go on sale Friday, April 11, for a starting price of $279, plus a choice of camping or shuttle privileges for $89. Pemberton Music Festival is produced by New Orleans-based Huka Entertainment, co-producers of a variety of music festivals including Gulf Shores, Alabama’s Hangout Music Festival and Ft. Lauderdale’s Tortuga Music Festival.
