Back for the ninth year Hopscotch Music Festival based in Raleigh, NC dropped their 2018 lineup this week and while indie music lovers will search and find plenty to be happy about, it didn’t quite have the same bang that past years had on release. But hey, who knows what that +many more to be announced will be.
The lineup announcement this year got pushed a bit out from past years, and actually ended up lining up with Liz Phair’s tour announcement. There’s plenty to be excited about, but with previous years packing a serious punch this announcement left me wanting more. It feels slightly dated, with even some of the cool young bands on the bill having made their way through already this year or having played similar festivals recently. The nostalgia thing is an ongoing theme of Hopscotch though and somewhere this lineup excels with MC50 and Liz Phair celebrating her return to Guyville.
As with all Hopscotch lineups, we won’t rush to judgement until we dig deep into the lineup beyond the initial playlist scan of the small font bands we haven’t heard of. Plus, that second wave of announcements might pack more heat than this one did….and hopefully a South Carolina band or two.
Check out past lineups below:
