 From March through September, the indie world blossoms thanks to several relatively new, massive festivals in the United States, and the old reliables in the UK. These are excellent places to spend a weekend seeing bands from big to small in (for the most part) the great outdoors. Here's a quick-hitting guide to the most essential festivals in the US, so you can get your fix:
 What: Coachella Where: Indio, California When: April 27-29 Who: Rage Against The Machine, Björk, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Arcade Fire, Crowded House, The Jesus and Mary Chain, Sonic Youth, Willie Nelson, Interpol, Travis, LCD Soundsystem, !!!, The New Pornographers, Ghostface Killah, The Roots, Air, The Decemberists, Faithless, and many more Why: Still the biggest & baddest one out there, Coachella redid the game in 2004, and still ranks as America’s top indie music festival. Some may say it’s trailed a bit to the mainstream with headliners Björk, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and Rage Against the Machine, but this is Rage’s big reunion – and who could ever accuse Björk of being ‘mainstream’? More importantly, Coachella still features the kind of indie acts you’d pay to sit in the southern California desert sun for three days for, and there’s plethora of up-and-coming (or already-here) bands to catch, so you can then forever after say, “I saw them when…” Web: www.coachella.com
 What: Highline Where: Westside Manhattan, New York When: May 9-19 Who: Arcade Fire, Air, Polyphonic Spree, Deerhoof, The Secret Machines, and more Why: Brand-new on the festival scene, this collection of big name, cutting edge acts (all chosen by David Bowie!) play across Manhattan in May, in benefit of the High Line, the abandoned elevated rail that shoots down the island’s west side. Friends of the High Line just began turning the overgrown architecture into the kind of park that never been done before, and the Thin White Duke’s got The Arcade Fire (at Radio City Music Hall!), Air, and even Ricky Gervais performing in support. Web: www.highlinefestival.com
 What: Sasquatch! Where: Gorge Amphitheatre, Washington When: May 26-28 Who: Björk, Beastie Boys, Arcade Fire, Interpol, Spoon, Polyphonic Spree, Neko Case, The Hold Steady, Grizzly Bear, Clinic, The Long Winters, Loney, Dear, Aqueduct, Money Mark, and many more Why: This year’s big up-and-comer, Sasquatch! has grown from a strictly Pacific Northwest festival into something much larger, headlined this year by Atlanticists Björk and the Beastie Boys. With them, The Arcade Fire, Interpol, Spoon, and many more, Sasquatch! looks to seriously break-through this year (like Bonnaroo last year, and Coachella in 2004). And the Memorial Day Weekend affair is being held in The Gorge, North America’s best outdoor venue. Web: www.sasquatchfestival.com
 What: River to River Festival Where: Downtown Manhattan, New York When: June 1-August 24 Read our full schedule here Who: Spoon, Menomena, Animal Collective, New Pornographers, Camera Obscura, The National, Shearwater, Au Revoir Simone, Ra Ra Riot, Fujiya and Miyagi, Bishop Allen, Drive-By Truckers, and more Why: Every summer since 9/11, the southern tip of Manhattan holds a series of outdoor events to attract visitors an area best known for Wall Street and Ground Zero. Included in this are a number of indie-rock concerts, all of which are free. It's always a bit of a grab-bag, and spread out across the entire summer, but with acts like Spoon and Camera Obscura, all scheduled on weekdays at seven, River to River can be the perfect way to unwind after work, in one of the hardest-working places in the country. See our ongoing reviews, photos, and recaps here Web: http://www.rivertorivernyc.com/home.php
What: Bonnaroo
 What: Pool Parties Where: Brooklyn, New York When: June 24-August 19 Read our full schedule here Who: TV On The Radio, Superchunk, Blonde Redhead, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Ghostland Observatory, Man Man, Octopus Project, YACHT, Oakley Hall, I'm From Barcelona, +/-, The Thermals, Illinois, Birds of Avalon, and more to come Why: The crumbling, abandoned, empty WPA-era community pool next to McCarren Park in Brooklyn becomes hipster central on Sunday afternoons this summer with Pool Parties. This set of shows features a sort of run-down urban America of the past meets the shiny, corporate-sponsored festivals of today, and everything's free. Worth visiting just for the biggest collection of porta-potties in the five boroughs, a nice collection of acts will be performing on the massive pool's massive stage, including Brooklyn's own über-hip TV On The Radio, with nineties alt-grunge gods Superchunk starting things off, in only their second show in four years! See our ongoing reviews, photos, and recaps here Web: www.thepoolparties.com/
 What: Citysol Where: East River, New York When: July 12-14 Read our full schedule here Who: Les Savy Fav, Menomena, Land of Talk, The Besnard Lakes, Dragons of Zynth, O'Death, Beat the Devil, The Budos Band, Frankpollis, and more Why: Solar One, New York's first solar-power "Green Energy, Arts, and Education Center" lets the music shine along the East River with the three-day Citysol. Whether you believe in global warming or not, music powered by the sun sounds just as sweet, from South Street Seaport to Stuvesant Cove Park in southeast Manhattan. See our ongoing reviews, photos, and recaps here Web: citysol.org
 What: Pitchfork Where: Chicago, Illinois When: July 13-15 Who: Sonic Youth, of Montreal, The New Pornographers, Cat Power, Clipse, Iron & Wine, Girl Talk, Grizzly Bear, Jamie Lidell, and more to come Why: From that indie music rag you love-to-hate and hate-to-love, comes this three-day fest in Chicago’s Union Park. Saturday and Sunday lean towards the singer/songwriter and neo-jam band, but for the first night, Sonic Youth is playing their landmark 1988 masterpiece, Daydream Nation. All of it. Web: www.pitchforkmusicfestival.com/
 What: Siren Where: Coney Island, New York When: July 21 Who: New York Dolls, We Are Scientists, Matt and Kim, Voxtrot, The Black Lips, Cursive, Noisettes, Lavender Diamond, White Rabbits, M.I.A., The Detroit Cobras, Twilight Sad, and more Why: Now in its seventh year, alternative weekly godfather The Village Voice are putting on a one-day festival on Brooklyn's famed Coney Island. Acts include one old-school Big Apple band, one big-name from today's New York, and some compelling up-and-comers - all in one day, at one easy place, and unlike almost all the other festivals here, it's free. The two stages at the end of the streets might create unfortunately cramped crowd areas, but that's more than made up for by the sights & sounds of Coney Island itself, including the iconic 'Shoot the Freak', Cyclone rollercoaster, Wonder Wheel, and especially the Circus Sideshow. Read more in our recap here Web: www.villagevoice.com/siren/index.html
 What: Lollapalooza Where: Chicago, Illinois When: August 3-5 Who: Pearl Jam, Daft Punk, Muse, Modest Mouse, Interpol, My Morning Jacket, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Kings of Leon, Spoon, TV On the Radio, LCD Soundsystem, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Yo La Tengo, Blonde Redhead, !!!, Peter Bjorn and John, Cold War Kids, Annuals, Electric Six, Juliet & The Licks, and many more Why: The granddaddy of America's alternative music festivals, Perry Farrell's traveling side-show of the nineties was revived in 2005 as a three-day event in Chicago's Grant Park. This year, Lollapalooza has its biggest and best line-up since putting down roots, with headliners Pearl Jam bringing it back to that grunge-era flavoring. It's got enough great bands to rival the big boys, and in a much more accessible (and habitable) location. Web: www.lollapalooza.com
 What: Virgin Festival Where: Baltimore, Maryland When: August 4-5 Who: The Police, The Smashing Pumpkins, Modest Mouse, Interpol, Spoon, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, TV On the Radio, Cheap Trick, M.I.A., The Crystal Method, Beastie Boys, Wu-Tang Clan, Incubus, Amy Winehouse, and many more Why: Something for everyone - young, old, hip, or not. Two days at Pimlico Race Course with, pound for pound, one of - if not THE - best lineups of the summer. Old school (The Police, Cheap Trick), radio-rockers (Incubus, Smashing Pumpkins), alt-kings (Spoon, Interpol, Yeah Yeah Yeahs), and hip-hop acts (Wu-Tang Clan, Beastie Boys) grace the fest. Web: www.virginfestival.com 
What: Bumbershoot
What: Monolith
What: Treasure Island
What: Austin City Limits
What: Swerve Festival |
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