OUTSIDE LANDS 2018 – Friday
Our annual San Francisco festivity was another success. Outside Lands 2018 was full of surprises and some special moments. 2018 marked my 7th year attending the festival and the place has only gone up in festival-going experiences from food choices to interactive booths scattered throughout the polo fields. I have no doubt that this was one of the best years of the festival as a whole, despite having arguably better or more favorable lineups in the past. The reason is simple. The overall experience has gotten better.
The location of The Barbary changed since last year but has been a great permanent move. More people are able to walk-up and attend various sets in addition to an organized scheduled ticket structure. Maintaining that space has kept the crowd controlled and The Barbary has integrated itself into a festival mainstay. Now that I think about it, there was never a point during the weekend where I felt overwhelmed from walking through the park.
Something people often overlook is the maintenance of the ever feared port-a-potties. The cleanliness was superb. Water and paper towels were constantly refilled and I never had issues with waiting either! I was either incredibly lucky or it was actually maintained well.
Mikky Ekko, Dermot Kennedy, and Shannon and the Clams were amongst my favorite discoveries of the entire weekend – and all happened to be on Friday. Dermot Kennedy in particular was hauntingly beautiful. Perfectly situated at the Sutro stage, his set had a gorgeous flow that brought magic into the atmosphere of Golden Gate Park that day.