Hangout Fest hits the Gulf Shores of Alabama
By Jeffrey V. Smith
www.hangoutmusicfest.com
May 20-22
The Beach
Gulf Shores, Ala.
The Hangout Music Festival, which debuted last year, sets itself apart from other festivals by featuring a blockbuster lineup of bands performing on stages located in an idyllic sun-soaked setting on a white sand beach.
This year, the festival is adding a fifth music stage under an air-conditioned tent and creating Hammock Beach, a salt-water lagoon where music fans will find shade, hammocks, and art installations. Another feature of Hammock Beach will be the Sky-bar tower, a structure built specifically for Hangout offering 360-degree views of the festival.
Musically, the event is a treat for a wide range of fans, but leans toward heavy- and Southern rock, jam bands and newer electro acts. Rock fans will enjoy sets by Widespread Panic, Primus, Ween, My Morning Jacket, Warren Haynes Band, Drive-By Truckers and The Black Keys. Jam fans will flock to Umphrey’s McGee, Karl Denson’s Tiny Universe, Railroad Earth, STS9, Galactic, and Keller Williams. The kids will be found at Beats Antique, Big Gigantic, Pretty Lights, Bassnectar and Girl Talk.
You’re going there to see: Widespread Panic, My Morning Jacket, Foo Fighters, Paul Simon, Flaming Lips, Ween, Primus, Cee-Lo Green, Big Gigantic and Pretty Lights.
You’re going to come home talking about: Portugal. The Man’s wildly eclectic, frenetic live act; and the four talented songwriters and singers in North Carolina’s Truth & Salvage Co.
TRAVEL TIME:
(As calculated by maps.google.com from Denver, Colo. to Gulf Shores, Ala.)
Total Est. Time: 23 hours, 59 minutes
Total Est. Distance: 1,454 miles
YOU NEED TO KNOW: Get ready to get serious about yoga. Practice your Downward Dog on white sandy beaches with one of New York City’s hottest yoga instructors, Kelly Morris. Morning yoga practices will be held ocean-side Saturday and Sunday with Morris, the founder and director of the Conquering Lion Program and lineage holder in the Gelupka tradition of His Holiness The Dalai Lama. She is one of only five Senior Jivamukti yoga teachers in the world and a number of celebrities, including Willem Defoe, Sting, Russell Simmons, Donna Karan and Madonna, are her students.
Camping: No official camping, but staying in beachside condos is encouraged. Camping is limited to nearby state park and private campgrounds.
