It is safe to say that the art of curating a lineup for a music festival has lost its, well, art. Everything is run by numbers and the algorithm, essentially allowing the charts and social media to decide headliners every year. Let’s face it, music festivals are no longer for the music fan, while there are exceptions, most major festivals in the U.S. have focused their marketing on a different section of the population. The chronically online flock by the thousands to California and New York every year in hopes of finding the perfect 10 photos to fill their Instagram slideshow. And more power to them, the artists are still getting their money and in the end, everyone is happy but looking back at old Coachella line-ups will have the average music purist furrowing a brow at how the festival has developed.
This week, Coachella announced its lineup for the upcoming 2024 festival. While it is always great to see artists like Tyler, the Creator at top billing, you can’t help but notice the other names up there. All great artists in their own right, Lana Del Rey has some cool songs but just take a look back at the lineup in 1999. Rage Against The Machine, Modest Mouse, Spiritualized, it was a real whos-who of the rock world while still staying diverse with the likes of Moby, A-Track, and DJ Q-Bert entering the folds. While all things must grow, seeing the seeds that helped plant the massive oak Coachella has evolved into can cause a bit of nostalgic longing.
Let’s not even get into the pricing of these events. Thousands of dollars spent to sleep in a tent and stand two football fields away from the stage might not be the ideal environment to catch your favorite artists. Don’t fret, Glide has done the heavy lifting of selecting the best artists featured on the 2024 Coachella lineup and did some research for better options.
Here is Glide’s list of the best Coachella-featured artists not to see at Coachella, and where else they’ll be touring for the rest of 2024.
Faye Webster
Tour: https://www.fayewebster.com/
Atlanta’s folk star made her way up to nearly to top of the festival’s poster this year, but a talent like this needs to be observed up close. With her new album Undressed at the Symphony set to be released on March 1, she already has plans to take these new songs on the road. Her 2024 world tour begins on January 31 and will have Webster traversing the globe until early August.
Brittany Howard
Tour: https://www.brittanyhoward.com/tour/
Brittany Howard is a generational talent. From fronting the acclaimed Alabama Shakes to releasing a stellar solo project, Howard has it all. Her new album What Now will arrive on February 9 and an extensive tour is set to follow. Things kick off for Howard with a two-night stay in Chicago starting on February 6. She will then travel across North America before heading overseas for select shows in July.
Black Country, New Road
Tour: https://www.songkick.com/artists/9693119-black-country-new-road/calendar
If you simply want a taste of what art-house rock gods Black Country, New Road are like live, look no further than their 2023 live album Live At Bush Hall. If you want the full experience, outside of the massive festival, the band has a long list of dates for you to select from. They start their year of touring overseas before landing in the States on the weekend of Coachella. After the band emerges from the California desert, they immediately head North for a stop in Boston on April 23. The band will then hit select states before heading over to Europe.
Young Fathers
Tour: https://www.young-fathers.com/tour/
Young Fathers should be on everybody’s bucket list to see live and they are providing a few opportunities to do so in 2024. In support of last year’s Heavy Heavy LP, the band will hit cities like New York, Philadelphia, and Washington D.C. starting on April 3 with their first U.S. show of 2024 in Boston.
The Last Dinner Party
Tour: https://www.thelastdinnerparty.co.uk/#live
The anticipation behind The Last Dinner Party’s debut album is insurmountable, and rightfully so. The London-based band was booked at the U.S.’s biggest festival before their first album and more U.S. shows are sure to come. For now, all of Glide’s overseas friends can catch them performing around Europe with their first scheduled show taking place on January 30. The young band will then traverse the continent in support of their anticipated debut titled Prelude to Ecstasy, set to be released on February 2.
Militarie Gun
Tour: https://militariegun.com/tour
If you think the larger-than-life chord progressions and screeching vocals of Militarie Gun sound good from the comfort of your home, seeing these songs played out live is an out-of-body experience. The big festival put them in tiny font, the disrespect is unimaginable. Instead, go check them out at a local venue, as they will be hitting many in 2024. Things kick off on January 31 in Phoenix before the band hits the road with a plethora of shows across North America.
Khruangbin
Tour: https://www.khruangbin.com/tour
The ever-evolving sonic palette of Khruangbin is about to get a little bigger. The iconic band just announced their new album A LA SALA will be released on April 5 and if you’re already familiar with the world of Khruangbin, you know how important your environment can be when consuming their music. The band has dates across Europe and a few select festival appearances in the U.S. this year but with a new album right around the corner, it would be wise to keep an eye out for more North American dates.
The Beths
https://www.songkick.com/artists/8923484-beths/calendar
It seems like The Beths understand the Coachella plight better than anyone. After a string of shows Across Australia and their native New Zealand, the band will play shows across California leading up to the big festival. After their stint in Indio, The Beths will hit Tucson, AZ, and Las Vegas for some shows to close out their visit to the States.
Deftones
As of now, Deftones only has a select few festival dates on their schedule but if history repeats itself, we have high hopes. The past year or two was filled with festival dates for the iconic band and along with those the band would play theater shows in select cities, usually around the same date as the festival. With a blank touring schedule for 2024, we’re all hoping for more of those one-off shows as the band heads into their two-weekend visit to Indio.
Hermanos Gutiérrez
https://www.hermanosgutierrez.ch/tour
The sibling duo has some major touring plans for 2024. Keeping the ball rolling from their critically acclaimed El Bueno Y El Malo LP, the band will have stops in Knoxville, Lexington, and Raleigh, just to name a few. Their schedule starts on March 16 in Atlanta and will have Hermanos Gutiérrez traveling to cities like Paris and London.
Mdou Moctar
https://www.mdoumoctar.com/tour
Another band we hope to see do more shows around the area, Mdou Moctar is making their way to the States. With a completely blank touring schedule in 2024, hopes are high that the band will stay in North America a little longer for some shows. In 2023, Mdou Moctar toured extensively around America and Canada but almost no shows on the West Coast.
Jungle
https://us-jungle.myshopify.com/pages/upcoming-tour-dates
Coming off of releasing one of the best albums of their career, Jungle has a busy 2024 ahead of them. With dates starting in January and stretching into August, the band is jumping across the globe and back for the foreseeable future. Right now, their only scheduled dates in the U.S. are Coachella and a performance at Red Rocks in Colorado but with a new album to support, expect more dates soon.
Lil Yachty
http://www.lilyachtyofficial.com/#tour
Coming off a career-defining year, Lil Yachty is taking his psychedelic soul/rock album on the road. After an extensive tour of North America in 2023, Yachty will be heading overseas in Spring for the European leg of his Field Trip tour. He’ll return to the U.S. for Coachella and most likely some more West Coast dates considering how sporadic they were last year.
Sublime
https://www.sublimewithrome.com/home/#tourdates
Don’t let the domain name fool you, Rome has still parted ways with Sublime with Rome. With Brad Nowell’s son Jakob taking over guitar and vocal duties, it seems we’re entering in a new era for the iconic alt-ska band. The new lineup already has a few shows planned for the year, starting in Long Beach on February 17 before hitting Texas, Oklahoma, and New Jersey before the weekend of Coachella. With a new frontman set, we’re hoping to see more Sublime tour dates in 2024.
Taking Back Sunday
It is hard to believe Taking Back Sunday released their legendary debut over twenty years ago. Thankfully, the band is stronger than ever with the release of their album 152 last year and a long list of shows planned for 2024. Worried about missing their Coachella performance? Don’t be. Taking Back Sunday has a whole North American tour planned for the year with stops everywhere from Seattle to Austin to Philadelphia.
