Although the Midwest festival season grows closer to an inevitable end, there are still a plethora of different festivals waiting for their moment to shine. Next weekend, festivalgoers will descend upon the beautiful rolling hills of Northwestern Wisconsin for the third annual Summer Set Music Festival held in Somerset, WI.

With the final lineup announced and the secret guests unveiled, the annual YarmonyGrass is ready to roll this weekend, August 15-17.

The FREE 1st annual Shakedown Street Festival honors the Grateful Dead and 50 years of music that has never stopped.

YarmonyGrass is excited to announce the addition of Shockenaw Mountain Boys featuring members of Railroad Earth including Tim Carbone, John Skehan, Andy Goessling and Johnny Grubb plus Allie Kral as they’re the group known as ‘Secret Special Guests.’ No longer!

San Francisco’s biggest music festival is set to take over Golden Gate Park for its seventh year next week. This year Outside Lands sold out in record time, within just hours of single day passes going on sale.

The Newport Folk Festival may not be a monster fest on the order of a Bonnaroo or a Coachella, but it has rejuvenated itself over the last half dozen years into a premier summer stop for a broad range of alternative, indie, country-rock and folk acts. Much of the rejuvenation has been the result of a conscious decision by festival organizers to loosen the definition of “folk” to include a much wider swath of bands – really anybody who could plausibly include an acoustic guitar at least somewhere in their set list.

The pop-up and its small footprint we would call home for the next 4 nights was ready. The sun had long since set and the kids were happily snuggled under doubled over blankets in the 1975 Apache Mesa. The evening’s cold temperatures were more than the few packed layers of cotton could defend against, so Laura and I were doing our best to think warm thoughts and be thankful for the reprieve from last year’s unbearable heat as we sat outside in the still and dewy night.  Her vapor filled exhalation was caught in the beam from her headlamp, over top of the festival’s program.

Called “one of summer 2014’s must-see music festivals” by Rolling Stone Magazine, Gathering of the Vibes is in full swing building out a temporary city to accommodate and entertain 20,000 + fans daily. From world-class music on three stages, to one-of-a-kind crafts; from community engagement in the Non-Profit, Sustainability Village, to panoramic views from atop an 85-foot Ferris wheel; Vibes has something for everyone.

The first official day of Pemberton Music Festival’s stacked three-day weekend went off with just a few hitches, but the chaotic atmosphere (much like the temperamental weather) did little to dampen the spirits of attendees. Despite the ups and downs of the weekend, you were hard-pressed to find a face that wasn’t smiling.

Another year and another successful Bonnaroo adventure can be checked off the list.  It seems like it was just yesterday that I was rocking out to Sir Paul with my parental units at Bonnaroo 2013.  Where does the time go?  With each year I attend this festival, one thing does remain constant, change.  I was in attendance the first few years when Bonnaroo was in its infancy, going just as a fan to see 'The Dead