Outside Lands day one rocks with performances by St. Vincent, Strand of Oaks, Natalie Prass & more

It’s early August and once again San Francisco’s gem, Golden Gate Park is transformed into a playground for music fans as Outside Lands hosted their annual three day extravaganza offering up a broad mix of styles from the uber famous to lesser known up and comers, and to even lesser know locals from around the bay area. As is true with all festivals, there’s simply no way one person can see it all and you have to sometimes make difficult choices between conflicting set times. However, no matter what your taste in styles, there was plenty there to bring you in.

For opening day, the crowds were there in large numbers and showed up surprisingly early for a Friday. For the sets I covered, the pace was a bit more laid back with sets that were more interesting than the over the top high energy performances.

The morning started with a tasty set from singer Natalie Prass which was followed with a bit of a wake up shot from Strand of Oaks whose straight up rock and roll style was a welcome kick…like a good espresso.

Staying put at the Sutro stage, new soul and gospel singer, Leon Bridges followed and took things back to a more chill state. A long walk up to the Twin Peaks stage to catch Lindsey Stirling brought a bit more energy to the day as she drew a sizable crowd who were totally into her music and dancing up the place. Her set was followed by one of the more powerful performances of the day from New Orleans’ The Revivalists at The Panhandle stage, one of seven to choose from.

Continuing to work my way down the meadow to the main Lands End stage, it was time to catch the eclectic and enchanting St. Vincent, who was absolutely mesmerizing in both her music, appearance and in her presentation. And would you expect anything else from her? Not likely. Things remained a bit on the eclectic side as she was followed by Wilco who’s set gave way to the headliner, Mumford and Sons. Fans filled the meadow and their love and energy for the band was expressed both physically and vocally. It was noticeably loud with explosive energy from the crowd as they delivered many of their hits along with selections from their latest release.

Photography & Words: Tom Dellinger

Mumford and Sons