It’s Friday, 7 August, and there’s a fresh vibe in the air as music fans descend on Golden Gate Park for the annual Outside Lands Music Festival. Launched as a rock festival in 2008, Outside Lands has shifted gears, along with the City of San Francisco, over the past decade toward a more pop- and EDM-focused format aimed at a younger audience. Many American rock fans started moving to Denver instead of San Francisco because of the rising cost of living.
However, executives may also have decided to let BottleRock Napa take the torch for rock so the two festivals wouldn’t compete for the same acts. Yet the San Francisco music scene was forged on rock in the 1960s, so it’s been a strange change for longtime local music mavens.
2026 is another story, however, as the first day of Outside Lands is front-loaded with rock bands. The Friday lineup includes Wet Leg, Sierra Ferrell, Geese, Turnstile, and pop icon Charli XCX as main stage headliner, now on tour behind her bold new single “Rock Music”. The Strokes are also in town to headline Saturday night, a refreshing change of pace for those who missed the festival’s formative years, with headliners like Radiohead in 2008, Pearl Jam in 2009, Furthur in 2010, and Phish, Muse, and Arcade Fire in 2011. There’s still plenty of pop, EDM, and hip-hop in the lineup on Saturday and Sunday, but it feels like there’s a worthy experiment in motion to see what happens.
Media members who pick up their wristbands on Thursday night at the Bill Graham Civic Auditorium could find they’re just a few blocks away from the Black Cat, a classy jazz club in the much maligned Tenderloin neighborhood that’s actually one of San Francisco’s hidden treasures.
Even more so here with Instant Alter as an unofficial Night Zero show to kick off a four-night residency. The spiritual jazz fusion group builds on their impressive April appearance at SFJazz with another dazzling performance from ace saxophonist Emilio Modeste and enchanting vocalist Natasha Agrama. The inspiring sound in songs like “Golden Dawn” is just what this crazy world needs more of, and it could make Instant Alter a great fit for Outside Lands next year on an intimate stage like Cocktail Magic or Duboce Triangle.
Friday, 7 August
Getting a half day off work and making it to the park by 3:30 pm in time to catch Wet Leg at the main Lands Stage at 3:55. Charismatic vocalist Rhian Teasdale and her bandmates have played to massive crowds overseas at the Glastonbury Festival. Hence, it’s not their first big rodeo. When they hit the stage with “Catch These Fists”, the vibe is lit from the start as Teasdale implores everyone to “Level up!” She rocks a translucent yellow BC Rich Firebird guitar on “Wet Dream”, before strutting around to the festive swagger of “Liquidize” from 2025’s stellar sophomore album Moisturizer. The big crowd rocked out and loved every minute.
A vexing dilemma soon occurs, though, with Sierra Ferrell hitting the Sutro Stage just 15 minutes after Wet Leg went on, a tough call to make. Yet if one caught Wet Leg’s sensational show at the Fox Theater in Oakland last year but missed Ferrell’s acclaimed show at the Warfield Theater in San Francisco, one might decide to check out Ferrell even though it means missing really groovy tunes like “Davina MCall” and hot rockers like “Pillow Talk”.
There’s a compelling vibe when you arrive at the Sutro Stage area as Sierra Ferrell leads her band through a dynamic set of Americana-flavoured tunes that kinda rock in their own way. She’s oddly dressed in a puffy clown outfit, in front of a carnival-looking backdrop that perhaps suggests a theme of running away to join the circus. “Jeremiah” has a country/western vibe mixed with bluesy rock for a crowd-pleasing sound, and it’s clear Ferrell has developed an enthusiastic fanbase.
The new “Trying to Love You” has an ambient but sweetly soulful vibe, as Sierra’s voice sounds like sonic honey for the soul. “We’re all just walking each other home… It doesn’t matter what you look like or where you’re from,” she sings as the song seems to evolve from a theme of mere romantic longing into a spiritual journey.
She speaks of the importance of “focused prayering”, suggesting that if we direct our prayers toward a purpose, “I think we can change the world y’all.” Her impassioned vocals on “Years” are mesmerizing, before she picks up an acoustic guitar for “In Dreams”. The interplay with the band gets the crowd clapping for a festive mood.
“Listen y’all, the world is full of hate, we have got to love as much as we can, loving yourself is the rebellious thing to do these days,” Sierra says, winning another cheer as the set starts to feel like a spiritual revival. “Dusty Foot” features an upbeat Nashville vibe, while “Don’t Let Your Deal Go Down” moves in a bluesier yet still energetic direction with a smoking fiddle solo.
“We’re all just out here flailing about, uneducated shamans. We gotta start focusing and paying attention right, where we’re putting our energy, where we’re putting our money, what companies are doing what,” Sierra advises on the intro to “American Dreaming”. She seems like an old soul who wants to help lift society, and it’s a popular sentiment here at Outside Lands, as she gets the audience waving their hands and singing along to the chorus.
“Free Palestine, free Iran, free Afghanistan, free Albania, free the Congo, free Native Americans, free all the people that are being oppressed by these motherfuckers who are leading us. We the people, we can make a difference. We gotta start paying attention to where we spend our money, alright?” Sierra emphasizes again before she starts banging a big bass drum that says “Heavy Petal Music”. The phrase seems to emphasize that this is still some heavy music, even if it’s got more of an Americana sound as she sings of “Just trying to survive” on “Fox Hunt” to close out a triumphant set.
Brooklyn indie rockers Geese take the Sutro Stage 40 minutes later and throw down a powerful set to confirm that the buzz around the band is legit. The inflatable geese balloons in the crowd add a festive vibe to the scene as singer/guitarist Cameron Winter shows off his impressive vocal range on “Husbands”, before the band rocks out on “Getting Killed”. The mashup of avant-garde and post-punk influences makes for a fresh flavor to heat things up under the cool overcast sky. “Crusades” brings an early 1970s rock vibe into the mix, and the audience loves it.
The short but wild “2122” cranks up the energy as Outside Lands becomes immersed in rock power in a surreal way that feels like another era. Winter uses his cell phone to play a clip of Glee’s cover of Journey’s “Don’t Stop Believin'”, noting they couldn’t license the original version and that he’s a San Francisco native. The crowd sings along joyfully on the “Took the midnight train going anywhere” line, before Winter cuts it off for singalong rocker “I See Myself”. Guitarist Emily Green plays freaky notes, while bassist Dominic DiGesu and drummer Max Bassin throw down a wild groove.
Those seeing Geese for the first time might flash on their first Ween show, as the band and audience have a seemingly arcane yet clearly tangible connection on these unusual songs. “Cowboy Nudes” is another winner, with a more melodic, groovy dance vibe as Winter sings, “Be my warrior / Be my loving light / Be my warrior / And I’ll be alright” before a freaky bridge that returns to the feel-good groove. “100 Horses” has an edgier hard rock sound that gets some mosh action going as Winter sings, “All people must smile in times of war / All people must go dancing / But we have danced for too long / And now I must change completely.”
“This song is about normal life,” Winter says to introduce “Bow Down” as he sings of being a sailor, then a boat, then a car, then the road, over a syncopated groove with a fierce beat. Geese’s sonic diversity is impressive, as it’s impossible to pigeonhole their sound, a sign of true talent pursuing its muse.
“Taxes” gets the crowd literally jumping for joy as Winter sings, “If you want me to pay my taxes, you’re going to have to nail me down” over shimmery chords. It’s probably the best song about taxes since the Beatles‘ “Taxman”, generating yet another zeitgeisty fan favorite. The dissonant “Trinidad” starts as a heavy dirge before it explodes when Winter sings, “There’s a bomb in my car!” The crowd up close with the inflatable geese go nuts, and it’s great to see this kind of excitement for rock at Outside Lands again.
PopMatters wanted to check out some of the set from Goldie Boutilier in the same time slot, but Geese were rocking too good to bail out on. We still want to give Goldie B. some love, though, after becoming intrigued with the Canadian singer-songwriter’s unique “guitar-driven noir-pop” sound. Her persona is like a cross between a rebellious femme fatale and a damsel in distress who decided to start a band to get back at the wise guys keeping her down. She’s doing it with some stylish tunes, so here’s to hoping she’ll be back in the Bay Area sooner rather than later.
Labrinth hits Lands End at 6:30 pm with a vibe that blends cinematic overtones with futuristic soul and gospel blues influences. He also plays guitar and keyboards, showcasing a multi-talented persona. At times, the sound feels like a cross between the R&B soul of Leon Bridges and the guitar blues of Gary Clark Jr., and it comes across in vibrant fashion.
The Sutro Stage remains the hot spot when Turnstile hit at 7:20 pm. The title track from 2025’s Never Enough opens with what sounds like synthpop at first, but it’s a fakeout as the song explodes with punk rock fury. The vibe is electrifying, and it gets even more so when the next song, “T.L.C. (Turnstile Love Connection)”, conjures furious mosh-pit action that makes it feel like Outside Lands has morphed into the Aftershock Festival in Sacramento.
When the Baltimore-based band shift into a heavy metal tease on Sly & the Family Stones’ “Thank You (Falettin Me Be Mice Elf Agin)” with singer Brendan Yates belting out the chorus, it feels like a collective thanks to festival organizers for letting Outside Lands rock again.
“Endless” finds Yates going out past the edge of the stage to lead the crowd in going bananas. Everyone’s rocking out on “I Care” with more of a 1980s new wave sound, before a heavier chorus with the crowd singing along and going wild on the hard-rocking jam at the end. It’s starting to feel like we’re on another planet now, and maybe this is what Another Planet Entertainment had in mind to mix things up in 2026? “Drop” from 2016’s Nonstop Feeling sounds like a cross between Metallica and Guns N’ Rose, and the crowd is loving it.
Drummer Daniel Fang is a beast with his hard-hitting beats, and bassist Franz Lyons throws down a fierce low end throughout the set, while guitarists Meg Mills and Pat McCrory rock with incendiary fury. The bass line intro on “I Don’t Wanna Be Blind” from 2018’s Time & Space sounds a bit like Jane’s Addiction, conjuring a furious punk/alt-rock surge. The fact that there’s a raging circle pit going for most of the set is simply amazing, with more energy all around as well.
The hard-hitting “Holiday” from 2021’s Glow On sends the mosh pit into another celebratory frenzy, and it’s fun to rock out and watch the crowd having such a blast. The wild scene continues through the set as Turnstile throw down one furious banger after another. The group’s unique blend of hardcore punk, heavy metal, alt-rock, and shimmering power pop surely wins Turnstile a lot of new fans here at Outside Lands.
When Charli XCX hits the Lands End stage at 8:40 pm, a jolt of electricity seems to shoot through the massive crowd. Opening with “Rock Music” after all that’s gone down so far at the Sutro Stage feels like a brilliant way to crank the vibes back up. When she sings “Me and my friends / We go out / We take pictures,” it sounds like an instant festival anthem. The chorus guitars hit hard, and when she sings, “I think the dance floor is dead / So now we’re making rock music,” it feels like a prophetic vision of this whole Friday at Outside Lands. It’s too bad the song is only two minutes long, but the vibe carries over as “Yeah” keeps rocking in a similar way.
“Apple” from 2024’s Brat has more synths, but with a groovy, upbeat energy. “Wink Wink” features a vibrant power pop sound propelled by the prominent bass line as Charli sings, “You don’t get me / I’m not a bad girl anymore / Yeah people can change”. The 23-song set features almost all of her new Music, Film, Fashion album, plus eight songs from Brat that lean more into a dance/synthpop direction, with a glamorous dance team to match.
The high-tempo electro-synth sound on “365” feels like a wild late-night club freak-out enlarged to prime-time festival level as dance-party energy surges. The whole band returns on “2007”, another of the more rock-oriented tracks from the new album that puts it all together. When Charli sings “I can take you to heaven like it’s 2007,” it feels like there’s some synergy with how Outside Lands launched in 2008 when San Francisco could still make a claim as the best city for live music in America. “Playboy Bunny” and “SS26” rock too, and there’s an electricity in the spectacle that caps the day in a big way.
The closing track of the show (and the new album) features film director David Cronenberg commenting on how a great artist’s work could conceivably last for thousands of years, but “No one lasts forever / They’re dead / They are gone.” The track ends with him saying, “Oblivion is freedom.” The sentiment is a bit nihilistic for some, yet it’s a thought-provoking theme. Whether any pop stars of the 21st century will have a repertoire that endures as the classic rock artists of the 1960s (The Beatles, Bob Dylan, Jimi Hendrix, Rolling Stones, Grateful Dead, Led Zeppelin, Pink Floyd) seems like a long shot, but tomorrow never knows.
It’s been a heck of a Friday at Outside Lands, with the exhilarating feeling that comes from seeing band after band after band crushing it like they were all the headliners. What a day in the Park!
Saturday, 8 August
It’s another cool overcast day in Golden Gate Park with little in the way of sunshine, but it’s not too chilly. Those who went hard on Friday might not be able to make it back to the park until late afternoon and may be in more of a casual mode out of physical necessity. This is part of the beauty of a big festival like Outside Lands, though. You can go all in on the day you’re most amped for, then ease up on the other days while still catching more highlights.
Chatting with other attendees about who they might recommend could lead to a tip that the singer/guitarist from Djo is the actor who plays Steve in the Netflix smash-hit series Stranger Things, which ups the curiosity factor, kind of like Dogstar with Keanu Reeves at BottleRock in 2023.
Djo hits the Lands End stage at 6:50 pm, and the celebrity actor factor seems to play a role in the festive vibe. Yet singer/guitarist Joe Keery started pursuing music around the same time as acting, and his band deliver a high-energy set. “Change” has fresh synths over rocking beats, then shifts into the infectious melodies of the hit song “Basic Being Basic” from 2025’s The Crux. The song reminds some folks they know a Djo song they dug on indie radio last year, which seems to pull the crowd in even more.
“Potion” is another tune from the same album that gets a cheer with Keery on acoustic guitar, before he switches to piano for “Charlie’s Garden” to get hands in the air on a song with a Beatle-esque melodic quality and a clip of a voicemail from Charli XCX. He switches back to electric guitar to rock on “Gap Tooth Smile”, a solid tune about a special lady with a great smile. “Delete Ya” seems to start with a verse melody similar to “Basic Being Basic”, yet it spins off with another hook in the chorus. “Y’all are fantastic. Thank you so much. It’s giving me so much energy,” Keery says toward the end of what’s been a pretty solid set.
When the Strokes take the Lands End stage at 8:45 pm, Outside Lands feels lit like Friday again. Something about how this group maintain their turn-of-the-millennium retro cool with modern rock currency makes them a great fit here, and the audience is into it from the start.
“Hard to Explain” from 2001’s breakthrough album Is This It gets things rocking with that classic sound of guitarists Albert Hammond Jr. and Steve Schiltz (filling in for Nick Valensi on a leave of absence) laying down tasty riffs over a tight beat from drummer Fabrizo Moretti and a steady groove from bassist Nikolai Fraiture. The Saturday night dance party is in effect as singer Julian Casablancas leads the quintet through “Going Shopping”, the lead single from 2026’s new Reality Awaits album, with lyrics that target modern consumerism.
The new album is full of lyrics that go deeper than one might ascertain from a casual listen, with Casablancas earning extra cred for embracing the rock elder role that the Strokes have grown into over the past 25 years. “Juice Box” from 2006’s First Impressions of Earth kicks the party into high gear with hot riffage and laser beams, as the Strokes crank up the psychedelia that helps make them a larger-than-life rock ‘n’ roll band.
“How you San Fran psychos doin’ tonight?” Casablancas asks, and the crowd cheers. “Thanks so much, it’s good to be back in the dive bar capital of the world.” The feel-good fun continues with “Someday”, another essential tune from the debut album that conjures nostalgia for that era when rock still ruled America. Yet the Strokes are still rocking at a high level, so it feels like the flux capacitor is working well.
The vibe soars again when Julian announces a special guest. “Ladies and gentlemen, yes, we had a great battle… Congratulations, you have defeated us in the album sales, your new queen of everything, Charli XCX!” Friday’s headliner re-appears for a sensational duet on “Take It or Leave It”, as Charli and Julian trade lines while the audience revels in a gleeful Outside Lands team-up for the ages with the dynamic duo. “You wanna fuckin’ mosh?” Julian asks Charli playfully in the middle of the song. They both go over and playfully bump into Hammond, with the crowd loving it and screaming in ecstasy when the song ends.
“Welp, she won. She won by a lot. She’s a giant pop star, in our defense,” Julian deadpans as he alludes to that larger question of the weekend. A lot of top pop stars might trend bigger than rock stars in the 2020s, but will they be remembered like rock stars in the long term? Only time shall tell, but for now the Strokes will keep rocking out. “Life is Simple in the Moonlight” from 2011’s Angles features a laid-back vibe that takes off when the beat picks up in the chorus, before the rocking “Reptilia” from 2003’s Room on Fire ignites the night again with killer riffs and green lasers for a glorious spectacle.
“Last Night” cranks up the fun-loving dance party again with instantly recognizable chords that nick the intro from Tom Petty’s “American Girl”, conjuring a synchronistic flashback to the debut Outside Lands in 2008, when Petty and the Heartbreakers were the Saturday headliner. The Strokes keep the groovy good times rolling through the set before encores with “You Only Live Once”, another classic from 2006 with more of the signature melodic riffage and hip vibe that embodies the band’s enduring appeal.
That enduring appeal is the topic of music critic and author Steven Hyden’s new book Is This It: The Never-Ending Rise and Fall of The Strokes (and Rock ‘N’ Roll), which analyzes the band’s place in rock’s longtime cultural allure. The book is timely, given how the Strokes can still come in as a Saturday night headliner at Outside Lands, with the cultural cache to top the bill at a festival where rock is not necessarily the ruling genre it once was.
Hyden identifies rock music as a way for a group of friends to transcend their mundane lives by taking up instruments to “adopt a collective identity based on fantasies implanted in their psyches by the bands that came before them”, a time-tested formula. “Wanting to be one of the Strokes is about more than just wishing you could join a band. It’s also about feeling a certain ache for a world that no longer exists,” Hyden writes, explaining how the early 2000s felt like “the last moment in human history when it was possible for a band like the Strokes to be looked at as saviors of modern music.”
This is a significant point, given how many current grade school kids prefer pop or hip-hop to rock. Yet while Hyden’s examination of the Strokes’ career is a fun and enlightening read, he seems to be reaching a bit on that “last moment in human history” assertion since fans could argue that a band such as King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard defies such a definitive conclusion. This point is underscored upon learning that the members of Geese went to see King Gizz in New York in 2018 and were so inspired that they concluded, “‘Oh, my God, band music is back, baby. We gotta lock in and be like those guys.'”
Yet Geese’s surging status after being inspired further by seeing King Gizz also validates Hyden’s larger working thesis that rock can never die due to its uniquely inspiring sonic power. A great quote in the book from Julian Casablancas spells out exactly why: “The most powerful aspect of music is that it can open your eyes to the frustration of everything and give you the adrenaline and faith to go on with the ideal that you can make it better if you do your thing.”
This universal longing to use music as a personal means of spiritual catharsis and to transcend the shortcomings of our short-sighted, rat-race society will remain alluring to each new generation. Rock music’s return to Outside Lands suggests that this cycle is in motion once again, same as it ever was for three chords and the truth.
Sunday, 9 August
It’s still more grey, with overcast skies over the park when Sunday afternoon rolls around, but it feels a little bit warmer. The lineup doesn’t seem as stacked, though it’s all in the eyes of the beholder, as there are EDM fans who skipped Friday and went all in for Saturday and Sunday.
There’s an intriguing early-day artist, though: Marlon Funaki. The Southern California singer-songwriter/guitarist’s profile on the festival app describes his sound as an “ethereal yet emotive brand of floaty psychedelia… with youthful, guitar-driven energy into cinematic songflow”. Funaki hits the Sutro Stage at 1:50 pm, and Sunday funday vibes set in as an enthusiastic crowd digs his melodic tunes and soulful voice. “Cosmic Departure” is an early highlight: an upbeat song that gets the crowd dancing and smiling, boosted by bluesy lead guitar over a psychedelic soundscape. “Thoughts” is another crowd-pleasing mid-tempo rocker as Funaki sings about some youthful soul-searching.
“Metaphor” slows things down as an atmospheric ballad, yet beach balls appear among the crowd to keep a festive vibe going. “Why Can’t You Be Mine” gets the crowd grooving again as Funaki sings of bluesy frustration with being unable to get out of the friend zone. Lead guitarist Jared Costa adds strong harmony vocals before ripping a hot solo, while the band’s cohesive sound and chemistry keep impressing.
“When Sunday Comes Around” from 2022’s debut LP Monterey Village is another winner as the intro melodies bring cheers from ladies in the crowd, who recognize the song and start clapping on the beat. Funaki closes the 40-minute set with “Red Hearts”, which starts slow but picks up for a rocking finish. “Outside Lands, this has been a dream come true, thank you so much, we’ll be back soon,” Funaki says.
Catching up with Funaki for a few minutes in the media tent reveals a down-to-earth troubadour who’s excited to be at Outside Lands and understandably so. Golden Gate Park is a fantastic setting for live music, and Funaki’s set helped illustrate why. When asked about early influences, Funaki cites the diverse music his dad would play at home.
“He played anything from Bob Marley to Morrisey, the Smiths, to the Chili Peppers, the Doors, Ween, it ranged so much, he was the big music head growing up in the family…” Responding to the question of a concert that impacted him, he cites Philadelphia-based indie punk rock band Mannequin Pussy as “a band that blew me away”. Queried about his connection with his lead guitarist, Funaki says that Costa “has been my best friend since maybe sophomore year of high school. Everyone on that stage, either I knew from before I was making music, or high school, or they’re family friends. Everyone I work with, actually, I try to keep it close.”
Day We Ran brings alternative indie-pop rock flavor to the intimate Duboce Triangle stage at 3:25 pm for a high-energy half-hour set. The small stage in the shady tree area just past the back of the Polo Field is a great spot that lets fans get up close while also offering a little seating. The Australian band features brothers Michael, Matthew, and Daniel Lough, along with a “drummer from another mother.” The hit song “Foaming” stands out at the end with bright chords and lyrics about a girl on the run chasing the sun, which could describe any lady in the audience hoping the sun breaks through the clouds.
The tabling area in the corridor past the Duboce Triangle stage on the way to the Panhandle and Twin Peaks stages features a familiar organization with HeadCount, which has been registering music fans to vote for more than two decades. Fans can score a limited-edition Outside Lands Ranger Ruth “Vote” pin for participating, and word comes down that more than 2,800 fans became Good to Vote by taking action with HeadCount during the festival. These actions included checking their voter registration, signing up for election alerts, and registering to volunteer with HeadCount in the future. More than 60 fans also registered to vote for the first time.
The other bands on the Sutro Stage couldn’t conjure the energy from Friday. Still, Marlon Funaki delivers again with his second set of the day, playing the Duboce Triangle stage at 6:15 pm, where the intimate setting helps create a rocking atmosphere. “Novocaine” stands out as a groovy song not played earlier about feeling “tongue-tied” and “brain fried”, which may fit the mood for those who have been out here at the festival all three days.
Empire of the Sun are yet another Australian artist that draws a big crowd to the Lands End stage at 6:45 pm. With a theatrical Samurai/Kabuki style costume, frontman Luke Steele seems like he could be a mystical character from John Carpenter’s Big Trouble in Little China as he spearheads a surreal electropop duo with keyboardist Nick Littlemore. The upbeat groove of “Changes” has ladies dancing way back by the food area before “Half Mast” from 2008’s Walking on a Dream album cranks up the dance party action even more. Then Steele starts tearing it up on some lead guitar over some spacey synths, and the vibe gets even more lit.
In the end, it’s the epic first day that becomes the talk of the town, with one local outlet calling Friday “the best day for rock at Outside Lands in a decade”. It feels like legit praise, with each intoxicating set building on the last to deliver a truly festive, memorable occasion that stands as one of the best days of live music in America in 2026. Rock music is hopefully back to stay at Outside Lands, even if only for one day out of three. There’s an audience that’s clearly still ready to rock, as Friday at the Sutro Stage proved beyond question.