For the past few weeks we’ve been rolling out spotlights on the Main Stage performers playing Saturday’s Sound Of Our Town music festival, but what about the event itself? Here’s a handy guide to hopefully answer any questions you might have, listed in bullet-point form because studies show that people love bullet points.
1. Important Stuff: Sound Of Our Town runs from 3 p.m. to 10 p.m. at the Lawn On D, an outdoor park space located at 420 D Street (pretty much the best address in Boston). It’s technically in Southie, right next to the Seaport District. The area is so hot right now that you’ll probably see a few yuppie condos spring up next door during Speedy Ortiz’s set.
2. More Important Stuff: Sound Of Our Town is FREE, all-ages, and all are welcome. It’s a rain-or-shine event, and there’s plenty of room on the open grass field to bring the family, or bring some grass of your own instead of the family (disclaimer: we don’t condone drug use, but the address seems to suggest otherwise).
3. 2014 Boston Music Awards Nominations: Sound Of Our Town is a Boston Music Awards event with a lineup curated by Vanyaland, so BMAs producer Jake Brennan and I will take to the stage at 3:20 p.m. and announce this year’s ballot. VOTING THEN OPENS. People at Sound Of Our Town can then vote via mobile or smart phone, and results will be displayed in real time on an LED screen. The votes will be tallied throughout the afternoon, displayed like standings in the AL East, and on-site votes will count more than the online voting that will open next week or whenever. So get your thumbs ready.
4. The Lineup: The inaugural Sound Of Our Town festival features something for everyone, including a mix of Boston bands and those raised here, with a sound ranging from pop to hip-hop to folk to psych. And Aaron Eskeets will be doing way-cool live visuals all day behind the bands. The set times are below…
SOUND OF OUR TOWN MAIN STAGE:
3:00 – 3:15 p.m.: The Grownup Noise
3:35 – 4:05 p.m.: Parks
4:25 – 4:55 p.m.: Dutch ReBelle
5:20 – 5:50 p.m.: Hooray For Earth
6:15 – 6:45 p.m.: Quilt
7:10 – 7:40 p.m.: Speedy Ortiz
8:05 – 8:35 p.m.: Eli “Paperboy” Reed
9:00 – 10:00 p.m.: The Both
5. Oh Snap There’s a Tent Stage Too?: You are correct. Earlier this week we stacked the deck and announced a tent stage, mixing performers with DJs to ensure seven straight hours of entertainment. It’s the NFL Red Zone of music festivals. Here’s the lineup:
SOUND OF OUR TOWN TENT STAGE:
4:05 – 4:25 p.m.: DJ Chris Ewen
4:55 – 5:20 p.m.: Soft Pyramids
5:50 – 6:15 p.m.: Leandro Pellegrino
6:45 – 7:10 p.m.: Louie Bello
7:40 – 8:05 p.m.: Louie Bello
8:35 – 9:00 p.m.: DJ Frank White
6. This All Leads Up To The 2014 BMAs: This year, the Boston Music Awards will be held at the Revere Hotel in the Theatre District on December 14. We are told that there is only ONE FLOOR of action going on this year, so say goodbye to those elevators and stairwells that made the Liberty Hotel so fucking charming.
7. Will There Be Alcohol?: Yes. There will be booze. Drink it responsibly. This is still Boston.
8. Who Else Says We Should Spend Our Caturday At This?: There’s James Reed in the Boston Globe, Martin Caballero in the Dig, Alexandra Cavallo in the Improper, Jed Gottlieb in the Boston Herald, Pat Healy in the Metro, and others!
9. Will Luke O’Neil Or Richard Bouchard Be There?: Probably. UPDATE 10:23 a.m.: Bouchard is “confirmed.”
10. Can We See The Awesome Flyer Designed By Nicole Anguish of Daykamp?: Definitely.
