| « A Little Bit of Rhythm and a Lot of Soul: The Arts of Life Band | Review: The Raveonettes, Tamaryn @ Lincoln Hall, 4/6 » |
News Thu Apr 07 2011
Dave Matthews Band Caravan Brings New Festival to Chicago
In case you were just waiting for another summer music festival to blow into town, Dave Matthews has your answer: The Dave Matthews Band Caravan will be arriving for three days of rock and jams July 8-10. They won't be piling into Grant Park, or even Union Park, however, they'll be hitting the South Side. In the first concert on the site, the Caravan will take place on the yet-to-be-redeveloped "Chicago's Lakeside" community which stands on the old U.S. Steel South Works location, approximately located at 83rd Street and the lakefront, south of Rainbow Beach. [Check out several pieces on the site redevelopment, including a promotional video narrated by Bill Kurtis.]
Tickets (on sale to public on 4/15/11) will only be sold as 3-day passes and start at $195 (plus fees) up to $825 (plus fees) for a VIP package. They're also offering payment plans.
Getting there is another challenge. The site is ten miles south of the Loop. Parking will cost $50 (plus $5 fee) for a 3-day parking pass. The festival's site says they will also be arranging a ride-share program and long-distance shuttles (my guess is that those will likely run from nearby cities like St. Louis, Milwaukee, maybe Detroit). Public transit is going to be interesting as well. The nearest CTA train stop is the Red Line's 87th street station, which is three miles from the site (the fest's site says that shuttles will be in place from the station). Metra stops much closer, but requires at least one transfer when coming from the Loop (perhaps too complicated and not as timely as the CTA trains).
Time will tell whether this new summer festival can sustain itself, especially in a city which already has three wildly successful summer music fests planted, as well as (what remains of) stellar free music offerings by the City of Chicago. Hopes are that this new festival location might infuse the South Side with some much-deserved commerce and national attention.
Announced lineup (which of course includes the Dave Matthews Band itself) follows the jump:
From Jam Productions:
In addition to Dave Matthews Band, the lineup for the Chicago Lakeside "Caravan" will include David Gray, Ray LaMontagne, O.A.R., Kid Cudi, The Flaming Lips performing Dark Side of the Moon, Edward Sharpe & the Magnetic Zeros, Amos Lee, Emmylou Harris, Ben Folds, G. Love & Special Sauce, Sharon Jones & The Dap-Kings, Gomez, Drive-By Truckers, Michael Franti & Spearhead, Daniel Lanois' Black Dub, The Jayhawks, Soja, Soulive, The Wailers, Blind Pilot, Dirty Dozen Brass Band, TR3, Vieux Farka Toure, Alberta Cross, Mariachi El Bronx, Bobby Long, Ivan Neville's Dumpstaphunk, Jeff Coffin's Mu'tet, Gary Clark Jr., and the SUMMER CAMP SATURDAY STAGE, featuring artists who will also be appearing at this year's Summer Camp Music Festival.
nitram242 / June 8, 2011 6:10 PM
http://www.flickr.com/photos/25165196@N08/5063400155/in/set-72157624985876881