Wicker Park Fest Reveals Full Musical Line Up, And Ups Its Game

By Tankboy in Arts & Entertainment on Jul 10, 2017 6:59PM

"Did you say CHARLY BLISS IS PERFORMING?!" Photo courtesy Wicker Park Fest.

The huge annual Wicker Park Fest—at this point a "street fest" in name only—has been coy about its music line up, only releasing a handful of acts performing this year when it takes place on July 29 and 30. The original announcement included some respectable artists, including Guided By Voices, Doomtree, JEFF The Brotherhood, SALES, Turquoise Jeep, and Brick + Mortar. But we admit that it seemed less than, how should we say it, earth shaking.

The organizers just announced a slew of other musical acts, and it goes a long way toward making us actually want to brave the hoards that descend on Milwaukee Avenue that weekend to catch the bands.

Most exciting is the addition of Charly Bliss to the bill. That band's debut Guppy has been firmly ensconced at the top of our list of favorite albums in 2017, and their fuzzy buzzy guitar pop should be a perfect fit to spill over the streets and fill the summer night when they play.

We're also pleased to see local act Air Credits, the team up between Hood Internet and ShowYouSuck, on the bill, a sure-to-be highlight guaranteed to kick up the party vibes several dozen notches when they perform. In fact, a number of solid Chicago acts are joining the fest's bill, including indie-surfers Bleach Party, rising stars Ratboys, and distorto-power-poppers Post Child.

Looking for something a little more old school? The hard to pin down Slim Cessna's Auto Club is also a new addition, as is the retro-skronk of St. Louis musician Pokey LaFarge. So it's not all indie guitars and dance rock.

And of course, the Oak Park chapter of the School Of Rock will be in attendance to help melt your faces off with their young but accomplished musical dexterity.

That's just a taste of the 30+ new acts announced Monday. The full line up for the weekend is below. Wicker Park Fest takes place July 29 and 30, on Milwaukee Avenue between North Avenue and Paulina, and requests a $10 donation for entry.

North Stage

SATURDAY
8:30 - 10:00 Guided By Voices
7:15 - 8:00 SALES
6:00 - 6:45 Ovlov
4:45 - 5:30 pronoun
3:30 - 4:15 Mother Nature
2:15 - 3:00 Ratboys
1:00 - 1:45 Campdogzz

SUNDAY
8:30 - 10:00 Piebald
7:15 - 8:00 JEFF The Brotherhood
6:00 - 6:45 The Coathangers
4:45 - 5:30 Brick + Mortar
3:30 - 4:15 Bonzie
2:15 - 3:00 Lifted Bells
1:00 - 1:45 No Men

South Stage

SATURDAY
9:00 - 10:00 Doomtree
7:45 - 8:30 The Mattson 2
6:30 - 7:15 Air Credits
5:15 - 6:00 Harts
4:00 - 4:45 Step Rockets
3:00 - 3:30 The Claudettes
1:00 - 2:30 School of Rock Oak Park

SUNDAY
9:00 - 10:00 Pokey LaFarge
7:45 - 8:30 Charly Bliss
6:30 - 7:15 Malcolm London
5:15 - 6:00 Chicago Funk Mafia
4:00 - 4:45 Bassel & The Supernaturals
3:00 - 3:30 Bleach Party
1:00 - 2:30 School of Rock Chicago

Center Stage

SATURDAY
8:45 - 10:00 Turquoise Jeep
7:30 - 8:15 GGOOLLDD
6:15 - 7:00 DJ no DJ
5:15 - 5:45 Nnamdi Ogbonnaya
4:15 - 4:45 Mazi Dancers

SUNDAY
8:45 - 10:00 Slim Cessna's Auto Club
7:30 - 8:15 The Blind Staggers
6:15 - 7:00 Post Child