All the Festivals You Need to Know About This Summer
by Krishanu Ray
JUNE 14
Georgetown Carnival
Ten hours of fun à la Georgetown, which means power-tool races, carnival games, people walking around on stilts, food trucks, and music from bands with names like Jack Endino's Earthworm, Dynamite Nugget, and Ancient Warlocks. And the retro trinketry of the Georgetown Trailer Park market goes on full display, while a Georgetown Brewing beer garden pulls a draft you ought not dodge. Georgetown, free,
georgetowncarnival.com
JUNE 15
Father's Day Music Festival
Featuring Danny Newcomb & the Sugarmakers; Rusty Willoughby, Jason Staczek, and Jennifer Sutherland; and Poultry in Motion. Also wine, spirits, wood-fired pizza, and yard games. All to benefit Vashon Island Pet Protectors. Seattle Distilling, Vashon Island, seattledistillingcompany.com
JUNE 15–AUG 3
Seafair
Seafair pretty much lasts all summer, with events like the Festival Kick Off at Westlake Park on June 15 and Pirate Landing at Alki on June 28 buoying the first half, then the parade of ships on July 30 followed shortly by the climactic Seafair Weekend (air show and hydroplane frivolities) August 1 to 3. Various locations around Seattle, seafair.com
JUNE 19–22
HONK! Fest West
Tubas, trombones, French horns, trumpets, and more assemble into jaunty lines and crisscross our streets. Performing this year are Black Sheep Brass Band, Chaotic Noise Marching Corps, the Garfield High School Drumline, Yes Ma'am Brass Band, and many more groups of exuberant brass-wielders. Various venues around Seattle, free, honkfestwest.com
JUNE 20–22
Capital City Pride Parade & Festival
Olympia's gay pride festival and parade features performances from Thea Austin, JLine, Paris Original, and Full Moon Radio, plus a "rainbow fleet of Mini Coopers." Olympia, free, capitalcitypride.net
Fremont Fair
The Fremont Fair needs no introduction. Among the attractions: naked cyclists painted to look not naked (or mercilessly unpainted), a parade with no written words (refreshingly primal), and a wacky car show that looks like an Electric Kool-Aid Acid Test demolition derby waiting to happen. Also catch the bands in the concert series: Built to Spill, Tacocat, the Flavr Blue, Blue Scholars, and others. Fremont, concert series $25 one-day/$35 two-day, fremontfair.com
4 Peaks Music Festival
Enjoy the splendors of Central Oregon (a region that countless people died trying to reach) with the sounds of Dumpstaphunk, Pimps of Joytime, Poor Man's Whiskey, Hot Buttered Rum, and more. Rockin A Ranch, Bend, OR, $135, children under 10 free, 4peaksmusic.com
Seaprog
Dave Segal is excited for this thing, so unless you think you know more about music than him (which you don't), you should be, too. With performances from Autumn Electric, Midday Veil, Being John McLaughlin (clever), and more. Columbia City Theater and Royal Room, $60 two-day pass, seaprog.org
JUNE 21–22
Sweet Onion Festival
Decidedly sweeter than typical onions, though not nearly as sweet as things like cotton candy and ice cream, the Walla Walla sweet onion enjoys the benefits of hitting the sweet spot of sweetness. This festival has live music, traditional onion dances, onion demonstrations, onion-related competitions, onion beer and onion wine (just kidding), and caramel-covered onions (not kidding). Walla Walla, free, sweetonions.org
JUNE 27–28
Paradiso Festival
This utopian dance and electronic music festival also features carnival rides. With performances from Bassnectar, Zedd, Above & Beyond, Krewella, and many more. Inferno provided by the weather and purgatorio by the traffic. Gorge Amphitheatre, George, two-day pass $180/VIP $300, paradisofestival.com
JUNE 27–29
MAVI Summer Festival
Are you looking for a music festival to attend but suffering from a crippling fear of glow sticks, teens, and neon paint? Have no fear, because MAVI stands for Max Aronoff Viola Institute, and this is a three-day festival of classical chamber music concerts. With lovely pieces from Bach, Mendelssohn, Vieuxtemps, and all those guys. Bastyr University, Kenmore, $10 suggested donation, viola.com/aronoff
JUNE 27–29
Pride Weekend
Saturday is family day in Cal Anderson Park with music and games, and a street festival on 11th Avenue features food trucks, DJs, drag queens, and a beer garden. Sunday is the downtown Pride Parade with grand marshal George Takei and PrideFest at Seattle Center. Various locations, free, seattlepride.org
JUNE 28
Warped Tour
With Falling in Reverse, Mayday Parade, Neck Deep, Anberlin, Chunk! No, Captain Chunk!, Beebs and Her Money Makers, and more of the pop punk, hardcore, and metalcore pantheons. White River Amphitheatre, Auburn, $23.50–$48.50, vanswarpedtour.com
JULY 1–5
Victoria Ska Fest
The 15th annual Victoria Ska Fest includes Shaggy, Fishbone, Barrington Levy, the Aggrolites, and more. Various venues, Victoria, BC, $69.50 partial pass/$129.50 full festival pass,
victoriaskafest.ca
JULY 8
Mayhem Festival
With Avenged Sevenfold, Korn, Mushroomhead, Asking Alexandria, and other bands that are loud. White River Amphitheater, Auburn, $30–$105, rockstarmayhemfest.com
JULY 11–13
West Seattle Summer Fest
It's West Seattle's big annual to-do, wherein the Junction is populated with live music, art, local vendors, and more. West Seattle Junction, free, wsjunction.org/summerfest
JULY 12
Bastille Bash
Madison Valley throws a Bastille Day fete every year featuring wine tastings from 11 wineries, food specials from excellent restaurants like Crush and Bar Cantinetta, and live music, as well as some obligatory miming and a high concentration of people in horizontal stripes. Madison Valley, free admission, madisonvalley.org
JULY 12–13
Ballard Seafood Fest
This year marks the 40th anniversary of the street fair, which includes live music, a beer garden with many local brews, and of course pounds and pounds of aquatic comestibles. Ballard, free, www.seafoodfest.org
JULY 12–20
Harrison Festival of the Arts
Locally made handicrafts and artwork with some folksy music on the beach. This year's bands include Bruit Court dans la Villa, Ache Autentico, Cannery Row, BC Fiddlers, and more. Harrison Hot Springs, BC, $25 daily/$175 full festival pass, harrisonfestival.com
JULY 16–20
Kla Ha Ya Days
What's your favorite Kla Ha Ya Days event? There is a parade, a frog-jump contest, a cherry-pit and watermelon-seed spitting contest, a mud run, and a Neil Diamond tribute band. Snohomish, free, klahayadays.com
JULY 17–20
Substrata 1.4
A series of musical and video compositions that dwell in the hazy realms of experimental music, with performances from Julia Kent, Koen Holtkamp, Sanso-Xtro, Markus Guentner, Mamiffer, and others. Chapel Performance Space, irisarri.org/substrata
Northwest String Summit
With Yonder Mountain String Band, Railroad Earth, the Infamous Stringdusters, Dave Johnston's Banjo Strummit, and more. Horning's Hideout, North Plains, OR, $175 three-day pass/$195 four-day pass, stringsummit.com
JULY 18–19
Basin Summer Sounds
This festival is completely free, and it will feature performances by Jars of Clay, Little Texas, Cody Beebe & the Crooks, Hamilton Loomis, and more. There's also a car show and a three-on-three basketball tournament. Ephrata, free, basinsummersounds.com
JULY 18–20
Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival
The 27th annual Winthrop Rhythm & Blues Festival features music from Charlie Musselwhite, the Soul of John Black, Too Slim and the Taildraggers, and more. Blues Ranch, Winthrop, $90 adv/$100 at the gate, winthropbluesfestival.org
Vancouver Folk Music Festival
Featuring performances from Joan Baez, Andrew Bird and the Hands of Glory, Great Lake Swimmers, Mary Lambert, and many more. Jericho Beach Park, Vancouver, BC, $50–$85 day pass/$170 weekend pass, thefestival.bc.ca
JULY 24–26
Timber! Outdoor Music Festival
Artist Home (co-organizers of the Doe Bay Fest) presents Rocky Votolato, Damien Jurado, Charles Bradley and His Extraordinaires, J Mascis, Horse Feathers, Julia Massey & the 5 Finger Discount, the Physics, Cumulus, and a covered-wagon-load of other types. Tolt-MacDonald Park, Carnation, $65, timbermusicfest.com
JULY 25–27
Capitol Hill Block Party
Ah, Capitol Hill! This musical fruit of her gilded womb includes performances from Spoon, XXYYXX, A$AP Rocky, Chromeo, Matt and Kim, the War on Drugs, Katie Kate, and tons more. Capitol Hill at 10th and Pike, $125 three-day pass, capitolhillblockparty.strangertickets.com
Photosynthesis Festival
Mikael Stavostrand, KMLN, KiloWatts, Tara Brooks, Jay Tripwire, Halo Refuser (please no more halos), and several others. You probably expected there to be vendors, but did you know there'd be healing workshops, too? Masonic Family Park, Granite Falls, $145, photosynthesisfestival.com
AUG 1–3
Pickathon
Don't forget your "Strumming Is for Suckas" T-shirt! With performances from Nickel Creek, Blind Pilot, Destroyer, the Black Lillies, Angel Olsen, Those Darlins, People Under the Stairs, and several others! Pendarvis Farm, Happy Valley, OR, $260, pickathon.com
Watershed
This year's festival features Tim McGraw, Jake Owen, Lady Antebellum, and several more entertainers of that ilk. And if that sounds like something you'd want to go to, you should have had the good sense to buy your tickets early, because it's already sold out! Gorge Amphitheatre, George, $175, watershedfest.com
AUG 7–10
Summer Meltdown
A great way to celebrate the summer, with the magic of music and camping underneath Whitehorse Mountain. Whitehorse Mountain Amphitheater, Darrington, summermeltdownfest.com
AUG 7–11
Doe Bay Fest
Situated on the hyper-scenic shores of Orcas Island, this music fest had yet to announce their lineup at press time, but last year's lineup included some terrific acts, and there are clothing-optional soaking tubs to sit in. Doe Bay Resort, Orcas Island, $100, doebayfest.com
AUG 8–10
Squamish Valley Music Festival
The lineup of more than 50 bands and DJs includes Bruno Mars, Eminem, Arcade Fire, Broken Bells, Tune-Yards, Mayer Hawthorne, and more than a couple more. Logger Sports Grounds and Hendrickson Fields, Squamish, BC, $149 single-day ticket/$325 weekend pass, squamishfestival.com
AUG 8–11
Shambhala Music Festival
With Moby, Bassnectar, Beats Antique, GRiZ, Sweatshop Union, and many more. Salmo River Ranch, Salmo, BC, $330 four-day pass, shambhalamusicfestival.com
AUG 9
Northwest Tequila Fest
No one would deny that sitting around in a parking lot drinking tequila all day is a recipe for a good time, but today may be your only chance to engage in this activity within the framework of socially acceptable behavior. More than 130 bottles of primo tequila and mezcal await your arrival. Phinney Neighborhood Center, $45–$125, nwtequilafest.com
AUG 14–16
Total Fest
The lineup for this DIY, volunteer-run festival features underground acts from Missoula, the Northwest, and all across the country. A record swap and barbecues are also promised. Various venues, Missoula, MT, $50 weekend pass, totalfest.org
AUG 15–17
Hempfest
Did you know that hemp, ounce for ounce, is approximately 10,000 times stronger than titanium? Sign the petition to build the next space shuttle out of hemp, and help humanity explore the outer reaches of time-space in peace forever. Myrtle Edwards Park, free, hempfest.org
AUG 16–17
Viking Days
The Nordic Heritage Museum does its damndest to whip together a sunny and joyful rendition of what's generally thought of as having been a very unpleasant time to be alive. With delicious Scandinavian treats, bloodless sword combat, a cool Viking longship on display, and free admission to the museum. Nordic Heritage Museum, free, nordicmuseum.org
MusicfestNW
With performances from Girl Talk, Spoon, Phantogram, Fucked Up, Future Islands, Run the Jewels, and others. Waterfront Park, Portland, OR, $65 single-day pass/$100 two-day pass, musicfestnw.com
AUG 22–24
Seattle International Beerfest
How many beers? Two hundred beers, yo. Specializing in rare, hard-to-find, and exotic brews? You better bet your brew they are, bro. Live music? The organizers have emphatically guaranteed it. Seattle Center Fisher Pavilion, $25–$45, seattlebeerfest.com
AUG 30–SEPT 1
Bumbershoot
Ah, the end of summer. "Back to school" is getting tossed around, sweaters are once again becoming fashionable with mannequins, and Bumbershoot lumbers into Seattle Center like a large, confused grizzly bear of arts and entertainment. Performers this year include the Wu-Tang Clan, Elvis Costello and the Imposters, the Replacements, Panic! At the Disco, Big Freedia, and Architecture in Helsinki. Also, there's plenty of theater, short films, corn dogs, comedy, and art as well. See the full lineup at bumbershoot.org. Seattle Center, $50 single-day pass/$120 three-day pass, bumbershoot.strangertickets.com
SEPT 11–14
Rifflandia
No announcement at press time as to which bands will be here, but they've got all summer to figure that out. Victoria, BC, $136.25 full pass, rifflandia.com 
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