This year’s Boston Calling music festival will surely be one for the books, with an eclectic group of artists taking over Harvard’s Athletic Complex throughout the weekend.
The festival, set to run May 25-27 in Allston, Massachusetts, will kick off at Harvard for the second year in a row. Boston Calling usually includes artists of various different genres to be inclusive for all concert-goers, but usually has a hefty amount of indie/alternative artists. This year is no different – some of the biggest rock artists in the industry will take the stage: The Killers, Paramore, and Jack White. However, a huge crowd will attend for the legendary hip-hop star, Eminem, along with Tyler, The Creator, Belly, and Stormzy.
But for all the indie-heads, don’t worry, 2018 won’t let you down. St. Vincent, The Decemberists, Dirty Projectors, and Big Thief are just a few to take the stage, along with other notable acts like The National, Fleet Foxes, and Maggie Rogers. Fans should also expect a handful of local, underground artists who are on the horizon, ready to make their big break.
Weakened Friends consists of three friends from Boston and Portland, Maine who are on the verge of something big. In 2017, they were voted Unsigned Artist of the Year at the Boston Music Awards and Best Indie Act at the Portland Music Awards. The praise came after their 2016 EP, Crushed, and the 2017 single “Hate Mail.” Hailing from New York City, Charly Bliss is also on the verge of pushing the boundaries with a unique “bubble-grunge” sound. The quartet released their debut album last year, Guppy, featuring the fun, bubbly tune “Percolator.”
Another noteworthy act to look out for is Citizen, a five-piece group from Ohio. Citizen merges the likes of indie, rock, emo, and pop into their music; definitely an act for the moshing/head-bangers. They’ve made appearances on Warped Tour, and are best known for their 2013 record Youth, which features hit tracks “Summer” and “Sleep.” Late last year, they released As You Please, which the band states is their best work to date, and 2018 marks the release of a new single, “Fever Days.”
Check out the full line-up below:
In addition to the music, others will contribute to the festival on the arena stage, including Natalie Portman, David Cross, Jo Firestone and Max Silvestri. The day is truly a full experience, with food vendors, bars, interactive games, merchandise, and even a ferris wheel. In an effort to make this year even more impressive, art installations will be scattered around the complex, entry point capacity will be doubled, and improvements to the complex’s Wi-Fi has been made.
“Each year we continue to push ourselves to bring fans the very best festival experience,” Brian Appel, co-founder and chief executive officer of Boston Calling Events said in a press release. “With some new changes and features already announced for this year’s festival, and many more on the way, we are ready and excited to treat our fans to an incredible weekend of performances from some of the world’s most iconic music acts.”
Three-day general admission passes and single day general admission tickets are still available. Visit Ticket Club to snag a pass to this year’s festival – with an impressive three-day lineup, you won’t want to miss it.