In other years, snagging just one headlining artist like Spoon, Father John Misty, Warpaint, Hard Working Americans or The Roots would be a major coup for the Gasparilla Music Festival (GMF), happening March 10 and 11 in downtown Tampa. The party, which was born and bred in the Bay area seven years ago, has grown into its ambitions, however, and in 2018 all of those artists are on the bill. And assembling such a lineup was probably no easy task, considering the state of music festivals these days.
Global industry giant Live Nation owns more than 90 festivals, including U.S. fests like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Forecastle and Governor’s Ball. Critics have complained about the resulting homogenization of lineups, while independent festivals like GMF have had to compete with rising talent rates while trying to keep prices low for fans.
In October, Paul Jamieson, executive director of West Palm Beach’s SunFest (est. 1983), wrote a candid note explaining that the “cost for entertainment has increased 132-percent since 2010” while SunFest’s admission price “has only increased 32-percent.”
YES, WE WANT MORE
Gasparilla Music Festival 2018: The Roots, Father John Misty, Spoon, Break Science and more all headed to Tampa's Curtis Hixon Park
GMF officials — who founded the nonprofit party in 2012 just as the festival boom was kicking off — have kept mum on costs to put on their festival, opting to turn the focus to organizers’ commitment to continually improving the fan experience. The Gasparilla Music Foundation’s Recycled Tunes program — whose mission is to enrich the lives of underserved and impoverished children in Tampa Bay by ensuring access to musical instruments — is also mentioned a lot.
“We stand out as a festival that is easy to navigate, limits long lines, and creates some fun surprises and intimate listening experiences throughout the weekend,” David Cox, GMF’s executive director told CL in an email. “By attending GMF, you are helping to build a stronger community for years to come and deserve a pat on the back.”
GMF’s fans and the festival itself also deserve a pat on the back for sustaining such a vital element of Tampa Bay’s music scene. But for now let’s look ahead and try to steer you in the direction of the best music embedded within GMF’s 42-act offering.
SATURDAY MARCH 10
Must-sees: You could literally camp out at GMF’s mainstage and get your money’s worth for the entire weekend when The Record Company — a Los Angeles trio nominated for Best Contemporary Blues Album Grammy in 2017 — performs cuts from a 2016 debut and its forthcoming follow-up. Festivalgoers can watch the crowd age go down and grow increasingly more hip as another L.A. band — Warpaint — defies the “indie” tag with a hard-to-pin-down sound that floats between post-punk, shoegaze and pop.
Texas rock outfit Spoon — godfathers of the “indie” sound so many bands aspire to these days — plays in the coveted sundown set, and we’re excited to see how its still-exciting 2017 album, Hot Thoughts, has evolved since the band left a room full of fans sweaty and wanting more after a May concert in Ybor City. The Roots — who changed the state of hip-hop in 1995 with their major label debut, Do You Want More?!!!??! — close things out with a performance that we hope combines the socially conscious lyrics of Want More and 1999’s Things Fall Apart with the party sound that fuels so many of their festival sets.
Hidden gems: The Roots may be headliners, but seeing Jurassic 5’s Chali 2na backed by New Orleans funk unit Naughty Professor is going to be a mind-bending experience akin to the one attendees will have should they find themselves in front of Snarky Puppy keyboardist Cory Henry, who leads his own band The Funk Apostles through a Kiley Gardens set. Tampa producer Fr33dback and rapper Sam E Hues play sets in the secluded amphitheatre stage, and early comers must check out a set by bluegrass wizard Billy Strings.
SUNDAY MARCH 11
Must-sees: Grammy-winner Father John Misty (closing the festival) is probably the most provocative Sunday act GMF has ever booked, and while Mr. Misty makes often-misanthropic folk seem dreamy, his many moods will make for an unpredictable, possibly epic end to GMF 2018. Widespread Panic bassist Dave Schools drives Todd Snider-fronted jam band Hard Working Americans, and having HWA on the bill is a bigtime get for GMF, which seems to be working its way up to one day having Panic on the bill. Mondo Cozmo is a good radio-friendly booking for GMF (which saw Modest Mouse headline three years ago), but don’t sleep on the War and Treaty or Eric Tessmer, two acts making some of the most exciting American music today.
Hidden gems: Nikki Lane is a name you’ll be saying a lot in the next few years, and a lot of it has to do with how the 34-year-old Highway Queen has refreshed a twangy, Southern rock sound that is built on the foundations that Loretta Lynn, Merle Haggard and Willie Nelson built so many years ago. Anyone looking to boogie should find themselves in front of GMF alum Spam AllStars, and local music aficionados already know that Tampa bands like Pohgoh and Brother Cephus are good enough to hold their own on any festival bill in the U.S.
Full disclosure: From 2013-2016, this writer helped coordinate social media efforts for GMF — read about that here. See the latest schedule below and peep the most updated version here.
GMF 2018 SCHEDULE
*times and lineup subject to change
Saturday, March 10
Curtis Hixon Park
1 p.m. — The Ries Brothers
2:30 p.m. — Billy Strings
4 p.m. — The Record Company
5:30 p.m. — Warpaint
7:15 p.m. — Spoon
9 p.m. — The Roots
Kiley Garden
9 a.m. — Ride The Park (spin class)
3:15 p.m. — The Cave Singers
4:15 p.m. — The Underhill Family Orchestra
4:45 p.m. — Cory Henry & the Funk Apostles
6:15 p.m. — Chali 2na & Naughty Professor
8 p.m. — Break Science
Tibbett’s Corner
1:15 p.m. — Ella Jet & Future Soul
2:45 p.m. — The Little Kintner Boys
4:15 p.m. — Johnny Mile and the Kilometers
5:45 p.m. — C-rena
7:30 p.m. — King Complex
Kiley Amphitheater
12:45 p.m. — Oak Hay
2:45 p.m. — Acho Brother
4:15 p.m. — The Woodwork
5:45 p.m. — Fr33dback
7:30 p.m. — Sam E Hues
River Overlook
6 p.m. — Silent Disco
Sunday, March 11
Curtis Hixon Park
1 p.m. — Leisure Chief
2:15 p.m. — The War and Treaty
3:45 p.m. — Mondo Cozmo
5:15 p.m. — Hard Working Americans
7 p.m. — Father John Misty
Kiley Garden
12:15 p.m. — Holey Miss Moley
1:30 p.m. — Eric Tessmer
3 p.m. — KOLARS
4:30 p.m. — Nikki Lane
6 p.m. — Spam All-Stars
Tibbett’s Corner
1 p.m. — The Young Something
2:30 p.m. — Pohgoh
4 p.m. — Matt Woods & the Natural Disasters
5:30 p.m. — Brother Cephus
Kiley Amphitheater
2:30 p.m. — Kristopher James
4 p.m. — Beartoe
5:30 p.m. — Mountain Holler
Glazer Children’s Museum Stage
1 p.m. & 3 p.m. — Imagination Movers
This article appears in Mar 1-8, 2018.