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This summer’s big music festivals are headlined by big artists, in unexpected, eye-popping combinations like Paul McCartney and Wu-Tang at Bonnaroo or Kanye West and Guns N’ Roses at Governor’s Ball. But if you get too caught up in the hype on the main stages in prime time slots, you may miss out on one of the best things about the best music festivals: Discovering new artists and seeing which ones can back up the buzz with killer live shows. The following 10 acts are new to the festival circuit, and many will be playing on smaller stages in the early afternoon. But with their talent, don’t expect them to stay there for long. And for you, seeing these stars-to-be rock a key breakthrough festival gig before they get mega-famous means infinite bragging rights.
Sonnymoon
Sonnymoon, a Boston-based quartet of Berklee College of Music grads (read: total music nerds), are fronted by the beautiful, floating vocals of Anna Wise. Her name should be familiar to any Kendrick Lamar fans, for her ethereal, Badu-esque performance on “I’m Real.” But her music with Sonnymoon, as heard on their self-titled, self-released LP last year, takes a much more expansive approach, with truly other-worldly musical backdrops that borrow from electronica, hip-hop, jazz, Bjork, Flying Lotus and everything in between. Their opening set at the Roots Picnic in Philly will be by far their biggest live set to date, and should catapult them to even bigger stages very soon.
MS MR
MS MR are set to be one the festival season’s biggest breakouts, with a strong run of gigs including Lollapalooza, Outside Lands, Governor’s Ball, Boston Calling and Austin City Limits. After mysteriously leaking several tracks via their quirky Tumblr last year, the New York-based duo stepped out of the shadows earlier this month with their debut, Secondhand Rapture, released via Columbia Records. The combination of vocalist Lizzy Plapinger’s husky vocals and producer Max Hershenow’s stadium-size tribal drums recall a gloomy Florence and the Machine, and we could see similar success in their future—particularly with the strong live chops they showed off during a recent run of shows with Jessie Ware.
Deap Vally
Deap Vally’s scuzzy garage rock hits like a rabbit punch to the solar plexus. The L.A. duo, consisting of Lindsey Troy on guitar and vocals and Julie Edwards on drum, recall the deceptively sparse guitar-drum cold cuts of rock revivalists The Black Keys and The White Stripes sonically. But onstage, two boldly sexy women effortlessly oozing ’70s rock star and kicking ass this efficiently is a different sight to behold. After releasing excellent singles like “Lies” and “Gonna Make Money” last year, the band signed a joint deal with Island Records and Communion Records (partly owned by Ben Lovett of Mumford & Sons). Their debut LP is set to drop this summer, which will coincide perfectly with the band’s debut on the summer festival circuit, an impressive run that includes gigs at Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza and Outside Lands.
Chance the Rapper
Chance the Rapper shouldn’t be new to faithful Complex readers—we first wrote about the eccentric, expansive Chicago rapper last February, and we’ve been just one of many sites touting last month’s Acid Rap mixtape as one of the best in recent memory. Chicago rap fans know him well too: He’s already sold out two dates recently at the city’s Metro club. But he’s brand-new to the festival circuit, and his gig at Lollapalooza, performing in front of a mix of supportive hometowners and concertgoers from around the word, will change all that. In the meantime, he’s bringing his frenetic live show on the road with an opening slot on Mac Miller’s Space Migration Tour, starting in June.
Wild Belle
Chicago brother-sister duo Wild Belle remains relatively overlooked, despite their enjoyably sunny debut LP, Isles, which dropped on Columbia in March. They toured extensively last year, but this summer they make their first real festival run, with a strong string of gigs at Lollapalooza, Austin City Limits, Sasquatch and Outside Lands. Their optimistic mix of reggae, indie-rock and West African influences should provide the perfect soundtrack for a breezy summer day outside with thousands of your closest friends.
Disclosure
Disclosure made their U.S. debut just last October with an intimate show in Brooklyn, but when they make their first real stateside run with a series of festival dates this summer, their performances are sure to draw huge, hungry crowds. Since last year, leading up to their debut LP, Settle, set for a June release, the young brother duo have released a series of unfailingly excellent remixes and singles (see “White Noise” with AlunaGeorge and “Latch” with Sam Smith) that showcase their buoyant throwback blend of early ’90s deep house from Chicago and turn-of-the-century garage from their native London. But they’re far from “press-play” DJs onstage—they recreate their songs from scratch with keyboards, computers and drum kits. Fans at Sasquatch, Lollapalooza, Osheaga Festival in Montreal and HARD Summer in L.A. should prepare for mind-blowing, ass-shaking results.
ON AN ON
Minneapolis- and Chicago-based rock trio ON AN ON quietly released one of the most slept-on albums of 2013 back in January with their debut Give In on Roll Call Records. Overseen by former Broken Social Scene producer Dave Newfield, the album teeters between grungy bombast (see “The Hunter” and its riotous video) and airy beauty (“Ghosts”), but remains rooted in strong melodies and a relentless rhythmic pulse throughout. The group doesn’t yet have the critical acclaim or YouTube views to match its dope music, but gigs at Bonnaroo, Governor’s Ball and Chicago’s North Coast Music Festival this summer should bring the wider world up to speed.
Tree
Blue-collar Chicago rapper Tree and his self-proclaimed “soul trap” bangers have been criminally overlooked during the explosion of Chicago’s post-Chief Keef rap scene. His excellent mixtape, Sunday School II: When Church Lets Out—highlighted by Tree’s melodic, raspy drawl, dusty soul samples and guest spots from Danny Brown and Roc Marciano—is starting to turn the tide. We’re hoping a prime slot at the Pitchfork Music Festival in his hometown will finish the job.
Jake Bugg
Singer-songwriter Jake Bugg is already a star in the U.K., with a No. 1 album (his self-titled debut, which dropped over there last year) and a tabloid-fodder relationship with a supermodel (Cara Delevinge, who used to date Prince Harry of all people). His bluesy blend of Bob Dylan and the Beatles has yet to catch on in the States—his album debuted at No. 75 when it hit here in April—but his classic songwriting talents, young age and classic British working-class cool are hard to deny. Shows at Lollapalooza and Austin City Limits Music Festival will make his stardom on this side of the pond even more inevitable.
Ratking
You won’t find many unknown rappers performing at your favorite festival this summer. Hip-hop is still underrepresented on the touring circuit (step it up, bookers), and thanks to the Internet, any rapper big enough to land a festival gig has already been thoroughly parsed over. So again, like with Chance (and most likely Tree), you’re probably already up on Ratking, the young, backpack-rap throwbacks who picked up serious buzz with the last year’s Wiki93 EP and the fresh video for “Wiki.” But you probably haven’t seen them onstage, which is where blog rappers build real movements. As such, the crew is finally hitting the road in earnest for this year’s traveling Rock the Bells. It will be great to see how Ratking’s raucous, off-kilter raps translate live, and with their debut full-length set to drop on indie giant XL Recordings, momentum is definitely on their side.