Five months away from Moogfest‘s inaugural installment in Durham, the festival’s got its lineup set. It’s an impressive, dense set of bookings that includes multiple-night residencies by Gary Numan and GZA in top slots, with Laurie Anderson, Sunn O))), Bootsy Collins, Blood Orange, Explosions in the Sky and more performing over four days downtown.
The festival won’t be your standard collections of 45-minute sets: one component, dubbed Durationals, will be four-hour experimental presentations by drummer Greg Fox (who was this year’s last-minute improviser-in-residence at Hopscotch) and others. One by ambient composer Robert Rich will stretch for 10 hours.
And as you may have noticed with the likes of drone metal outfit Sunn O))) as a major headliner, Moogfest performers are hardly limited to electronic-exclusive artists. Hip-hop artists like King Mez and Well$ are on the bill, as are experimental outfits like the Sun Ra Arkestra and former Battles member Tyondai Braxton. Daniel Bachman—whose ample acoustic guitar meditations are about as far as you can get from synth-made music—will perform, and Mac McCaughan and Explosions in the Sky will represent more rock-minded music. The festival will announce even more acts in February.
One of the biggest questions buzzing around Moogfest has been that of where, exactly, the festival is supposed to fit in a modest downtown. It will use some existing, familiar music spaces—Motorco, the Carolina Theatre, The Pinhook—but will also make use of other spots downtown. The Durham Armory, the Durham Arts Council building, the 21c Museum Hotel, Motorco’s parking lot and the First Presbyterian Church are all among the approximately two dozen venues that will become Moogfest stages. Some of these will be parceled into even smaller spaces—there will be two within 21c and three within the Carolina Theatre, according to a Moogfest rep.
The full, alphabetical lineup is as follows, and you can dig further into the festival’s numerous auxiliary offerings on its site:
Actress, ADULT., Alessandro Cortini, Amos Gaynes, Angus Taylor, Anna Friz, Antenes, Arthur Russell’s Instrumentals, Ben Frost, Ben Russell, Bicep, Blazer Soundsystem, Blood Orange, The Body, Bootsy Collins, Christian Rich, Chuck Lightning, Daniel Bachman, Daniel Lanois, Dave Tompkins, David Katz, Dawn of Midi, Dawn Richard, Daye Jack, Demo Taped, Dennis Bovell, Denzel Curry, DJ Harvey, DJ Lance Rock & Yo Gabba Gabba, DJ Nanny Cantaloupe, Dorit Chrysler, Earthly, Emma Coates, Empress Of, Explosions in the Sky, Floating Points, Gary Numan, Gil Weinberg & Shimon Project, Greg Fox, Grouper, Gwenno, GZA, Hanz, The Haxan Cloak, Heathered Pearls, Hieroglyphic Being, Hundred Waters, I Speak Machine, Jaakko Eino Kalevi, Jaron Lanier, Jeff Kolar, Jlin, Jon Wiley, Julia Holter, Juliana Huxtable, Julianna Barwick, Justin Grotelueschen, Kaitlin Prest, Karen Gwyer, Kate Stone, King Mez, Kode9, Kristen Gallerneaux, Kyle Hall, Kyle McDonald, Larry Gus, Laurel Halo, Laurent “Tippy” Alfred, Laurie Anderson, Leopold Ross, Lister Hewan-Lowe, Lotic, Lunice, M. Geddes Gengras, Mac McCaughan, Mad Professor, Made of Oak, Mark Mothersbaugh, Dr. Martine Rothblatt, Mike Dean, Modular on the Spot, Moses Sumney, Mykki Blanco, Neil Harbisson, No Effects with Jesse Cohen, ODESZA, Olivia Block, Oneohtrix Point Never, Onyx Ashanti, The Orb, Paula Temple, Professor Toon, Qrion, Quintron and Miss Pussycat, Rabit, RBTS Win, Reggie Watts, Rich Vreeland, Rick Smith, Rival Consoles, Robert Hood, Robert Rich, Ryan Germick, Ryan Hemsworth, Sam Conran, Scott McCloud, Shallou, Sharon Mashihi, Silver Apples, Simian Mobile Disco, Son Lux, Song Exploder with Hrishikesh, Sun Ra Arkestra, sunn O))), Susan Kare, Suzanne Ciani, Tim Hecker, Toby Heys, Tod Machover, Tory, Lanez, Trandle, Tyondai Braxton, UV boi, Van Partible, Veronica Vasicka, Via App, Well$, YACHT, Zombi
