A guide to 7 music festivals this fall in Las Vegas
Fall is here, time to (Block) party.
As temperatures kinda, sorta start to cool in Vegas, the city’s festival schedule takes the opposite trajectory: heating up with one major music gathering after the next through November.
And it all begins with the debut of A Big Beautiful Block Party on Friday and Saturday on the Plaza grounds.
An offshoot of the multigenre Life is Beautiful music and arts fest, which debuted downtown in 2013 and has been put on hold this year, the Block Party boasts an eclectic lineup of electronic- and funk-leaning acts in Justice, LCD Soundsystem, Jungle, Peggy Gou, Jamie xx, James Blake, Thundercat, Toro y Moi, BadBadNotGood, Neil Frances, LP Giobbi, Empress Of, John Talabot and Fifi.
Running from 5 p.m. to 2 a.m. each day, the event promises no overlapping set times for nonstop music nightly.
The Beautiful Block Party marks the first LiB-affiliated event with Rolling Stone and parent company Penske Media taking over as full owners of the brand, having initially bought into the company in February 2022.
“We wanted to put something on that is fun and celebratory and can have an impact in this community, even if it’s a little different than what the large-scale Life is Beautiful has been in years past, but move people and give people something to go out and kind of let loose and enjoy in downtown,” Rolling Stone CEO Gus Wenner told the RJ this year upon the announcement of the fest.
“The block party concept was something that we developed along the way,” he continued, “and said, ‘Hey, we can put out something really unique this year, honor and celebrate the community, as we kind of look long term at the larger-scale, full-blown Life is Beautiful and bringing that back, which is something probably due starting next year.’”
In the meantime, the Block Party will launch a loaded festival calendar. Here’s a rundown:
Reggae Rise Up, Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, Oct. 4-6
■ The lowdown: Prepare to be walloped upside the head with good vibes for three days when Vegas’ largest annual reggae gathering returns. This fest is the musical equivalent of opening up an economy-size can of Raid on bad attitudes: Be happy or else.
■ Anticipated highlights: Slightly Stoopid’s blend of bad grammar and good times; Wiz Khalifa’s reefer-abetted rhymes; Atmosphere’s emotive hip-hop; Rebelution’s rock-informed reggae.
■ Random factoid: At every show, reggae/dub sextet Stick Figure is joined on stage by rescued Australian shepherd Cocoa, who travels with the band — and barks at the crowd, upon occasion.
Best Friends Forever, Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, Oct. 11-13
■ The lowdown: Break out the fainting couches for all the old-school emo and indie rock heads who will undoubtedly struggle to maintain consciousness amid the joyous delirium this new fest is sure to inspire. With an impeccably curated collection of dozens of acts who rarely — if ever — play Vegas, this one promises to be a truly unique addition to Vegas’ festival circuit, which has exploded in recent years.
■ Anticipated highlights: Emo forebears Cap’n Jazz reuniting for their first show in seven years; the always-over-the-top Jesus Lizard, who haven’t played here since ’96, touring in support of their new album, “Rack”; the Murder City Devils bringing the howling, curled-lip rock ’n’ roll; the gloriously noisy Unwound playing Vegas for the first time this century.
■ Random factoid: The last time emo favorites Sunny Day Real Estate and The Dismemberment Plan performed locally, it was in 2000 at now-defunct venues — the former at the Sanctuary, the latter at Cafe Espresso Roma.
When We Were Young, Las Vegas Festival Grounds, Oct. 19-20
■ The lowdown: We all know that those sadder-than-thou emo kids are always getting all wet-eyed, but expect only tears of happiness upon When We Were Young’s return for year three. (Settle down, emos. We’re only kidding. Kind of.) Their elation is understandable, thanks to a new twist this go-round: Most every band, save for headliners Fall Out Boy and a couple of others, will be playing songs exclusively from one of their most beloved albums.
■ Anticipated highlights: Scene titans My Chemical Romance delving into “The Black Parade”; the equally catchy and caustic The Distillers performing “Coral Fang”; indie rockers Pretty Girls Make Graves playing “The New Romance”; post-hardcore favorites Thursday airing “Full Collapse.”
■ Random factoid: Vegas’ own Escape the Fate will revisit their second album “This War Is Ours,” which debuted at No. 35 on the Billboard Top 200 back in 2008.
Our Big Concert, Desert Breeze Events Center, Oct. 26
■ The lowdown: Once an annual Vegas hard rock highlight held at Sam Boyd Stadium featuring big names such as Stone Temple Pilots, Rob Zombie, System of a Down and more, X107.5’s Our Big Concert is back as OBC Re-Imagined. What’s new? The fest moves to the Desert Breeze Events Center. What’s not? The lineup remains impressively tight top to bottom.
■ Anticipated highlights: The white-hot Falling in Reverse headlining with hip-hop-tinged metalcore; rockers Awolnation blamin’ it on their ADD; Vegas rapper Ekoh getting bigger and bigger by the week, it seems; fellow locals The Nocturnal Affair earning some significant hometown exposure.
■ Random factoid: Falling in Reverse frontman Ronnie Radke, a Vegas native who once fronted Escape the Fate, recently bought a home in the Hollywood Hills for $9 million.
SEMA Fest, Las Vegas Convention Center, Nov. 8
■The lowdown: Concerts are loud. Hot rods are loud. So, why not combine the two into, like, a really loud thing? Hence the advent of SEMA Fest, done in conjunction with the automotive aftermarket industry-centered SEMA Convention. In its second year, the fest goes from two days to one, moving from the Las Vegas Festival Grounds to the Convention Center lot.
■ Anticipated highlights: Rockers Cage the Elephant playing here for first time in support of new album “Neon Pill”; ska/reggae punks Sublime performing with Jakob Nowell, son of the band’s late, original singer Bradley Nowell; the horn-fired Fitz and the Tantrums goosing adrenal glands; the “Optima Unleashed” drifting and stunt bike action.
■ Random factoid: The inaugural SEMA Show took place in 1967 in the basement of L.A.’s Dodger Stadium. The event moved to Vegas in 1984, where it’s since become one of the city’s largest conventions.
Neon City Festival, downtown, Nov. 22-24
■ The lowdown: New for 2024, this “festival without fences” will range from the Fremont East District to the Fremont Street Experience and the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center, including the Arts District and The Strat. The first-of-its kind, all-ages music, art and culinary event will feature local food and beverage vendors, art shows, fireworks and music spanning a variety of genres. And did we mention it’s free?
■ Anticipated highlights: Alison Wonderland’s big-box EDM, Seven Lions’ pummeling dubstep; Russell Dickerson’s well-whiskeyed country; Neon Trees’ Day-Glo new wave revisionism.
■ Random factoid: Not one to miss a gig, Wonderland performed while nine months pregnant at 2023’s Electric Daisy Carnival. That’s dedication.
Contact Jason Bracelin at jbracelin@reviewjournal.com or 702-383-0476. Follow @jbracelin76 on Instagram.