We hope to see you down in Atlanta May 8th-10th for the third annual Shaky Knees Music Festival. This is a line up you do not want to sleep on. There are a few artists in particular that we think you should make a point to go see.
Starting things off on Friday, the delightful slack-rocker Mac Demarco will be performing on the Ponce de Leon Stage at 4:15. Check out his newest album “Salad Days”. It is the third album that Mac has written, played, and produced all by himself which we think is down right groovy. Then at 8:15 James Blake will be taking the Buford Highway Stage. He is one the many brilliant artists bridging the gap between electronic and traditional music, but he has his own unique style. I personally had a chance to catch James’ set at Bonnaroo last summer where he seamlessly transitioned between his earlier electro-house style into his haunting piano-driven ballads that made chills run down our spines.
Saturday promises to be another wonderful day of music. Do not be late for the red hot German duo Milky Chance at 6:45 on the Boulevard Stage. Closing things down on Saturday is a band that is very near and dear to my heart, The Avett Brothers. Bands like this who continuously reinvent themselves are the type that will be remembered long past their life span. After seeing this group countless times, it has become evident they never disappoint. One moment they will be singing a simple, tender folk song with only an acoustic guitar to rocking the crowd’s faces off with full blown stadium sound.
Shaky Knees is going out with a bang on Sunday. If you are just planning on buying a one-day pass to the festival, we recommend you save it for the last day. Mini Mansions, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Heartless Bastards, The Mowglis, Dr. Dog, Ryan Adams, and Old Crowe Medicine Show all in one day? Is this real life? Oh and I forgot to mention some band called Tame Impala who will be closing out the entire festival at 9:00pm on the Peachtree Stage. If you can only see one artist at this whole festival… go see Tame Impala. Lead singer and band-leader Kevin Parker who wrote, played on, and produced the first two records Innerspeaker and Lonerism, is arguably one of the best musicians of our time. On April 5th it was announced that their third album Currents will be released at some point this year. They have already released two singles: Let It Happen and Cause I’m a Man. The songs sound amazing, and we are licking our lips for Currents to come out.
Thank goodness that festival season has begun. We will see you soon Atlanta.
Written By: Eric Owings