The psychedelic music festival’s 2024 edition includes Jack White, The Mars Volta, Alex G & many more
Get ready to have your face melted by liquid light visuals! After a two-year hiatus, the beloved psychedelic-leaning music festival Desert Daze will return to Lake Perris, CA on Oct. 10-13 with a killer lineup that includes top line acts like Jack White, The Mars Volta, Alex G, and Cigarettes After Sex – in addition to an absolutely stacked undercard.
Jack White, the iconic blues rocker, former White Stripes frontman, and Third Man Records label head, is set to headline the event, though day-by-day breakdowns are not yet available. It’s a huge booking for the event, which has flexed its ability to attract bigger-name headliners in recent years, including Tame Impala, My Blood Valentine, and others. Meanwhile, Texas dream pop band Cigarettes After Sex looks to attract the Gen Z crowd with their ethereal coffee shop indie stylings. On top of that, the unwieldy DIY indie journeyman Alex G features on the second line, along with millennial prog rockers The Mars Volta – still buzzing following their reunion two years ago. After that, the neo-soul, cosmic jazz marauder Thundercat rounds out the poster’s top two lines.
Elsewhere, the undercard is loaded with top talent, including indie folk unit Fleet Foxes, hyperpop freaks 100 gecs, influential ’90s alt rocker Liz Phair, old school hip hop titans De La Soul, IDM DJ-producer Floating Points, experimental rapper Danny Brown, NYC shoegazers Beach Fossils and DIIV, and more.
Go further down the lineup, and you get some truly exciting niche names, such as Boston metalcore legends Converge, LOW frontman Alan Sparhawk, Japanese hardcore punks Otoboke Beaver, electronic duo Mount Kimbie, and more.
Of course, the festival has made sure to lock down those bread-and-butter psychedelic acts, including garage-psych magicians Frankie and the Witch Fingers, darkwave staples Sextile, Australian art punks Tropical Fuck Storm, Canadian garage revivalists Wine Lips, and many, many more.
Furthermore, Desert Daze 2024 will bring some exciting special appearances as well. Kathleen Hanna, the Bikini Kill frontwoman and riot grrrl icon, will read from her bestselling memoir Rebel Girl: My Life as a Feminist Punk and have a conversation with Cedric Bixler-Zavala (The Mars Volta, At The Drive-In). Additionally, indie sleaze noise-punks Death From Above 1979 will perform their debut album You’re A Woman, I’m A Machine to celebrate its 20th anniversary. Also, English band Temples will celebrate the 10th anniversary of their debut album, Sun Structures, with a special performance.
There’s also a Thursday Night Welcoming Committee that will feature sets from White Fence, Peel Dream Magazine, English Teacher, Cumgirl8, Psymon Spine, Spoon Benders, Color Green, Memo PST, and Kimsa. On top of that, Gold Diggers will curate a tent stage with sets from jazz artist Makaya McCraven, Tortoise’s Jeff Parker, musician and skateboarder Tommy Guerrero, and more.
Of course, the lineup is only part of the appeal of Desert Daze. The festival’s location – Moreno Beach at Lake Perris – feels like paradise, with its sprawling view, sandy beach, and refreshing lake to cool down in during the scorching afternoon heat. The festival’s camping situation is top-notch, allowing festival goers to come and go from the event with ease. And the event’s organization is typically excellent, with brilliantly curated stages, vendor booths, and visual art pieces utilizing the venue’s space perfectly. All weekend long, the music is great, the location is picturesque, and the vibes are immaculate. If you’re a fan of anything that’s tangential to psychedelic music – shoegaze, punk, dream pop, underground hip-hop, avant/outsider music, electronica, metal, prog, etc. – then Desert Daze is the ideal festival to check out.
We’ll be bringing you plenty of preview coverage between now and when the festival begins, but until then, you can browse ticket options HERE.
