Sad Summer Festival Returns For Their 5-Year Anniversary
Many folks are familiar with the standard festival that stays in one location. However, many remember the fond days of Vans Warped Tour when the iconic emo-leaning festival would come to your city. Luckily, these traveling festivals are still around, with Sad Summer being one of them. Granted, it’s not the nostalgic Warped Tour vibe as Sad Summer is held in venues and not parking lots, but the tunes definitely hit the same and the pits are still circling. This year’s festival boasts some big names, including Mayday Parade, The Maine, The Wonder Years, and Knuckle Puck. This year is a special lineup as it is the first time that The Maine and Mayday Parade have toured together since the inaugural run of Sad Summer.
Sad Summer Festival was launched in 2019 and survived the pandemic to celebrate its fifth anniversary. The event was started by folks who were originally part of Vans Warped Tour as a way for the community to come together like the old days. The idea of having it in different venues across multiple cities was to provide a more intimate experience where fans don’t have to choose which band to miss on the lineup. Sad Summer founders Mike Marquis, Josh Terry, and Tim Kirch wanted to create an environment that is inclusive and independent, which is generally easier to achieve with smaller events as opposed to larger festivals. The festival also focuses on non-profit partnerships and involvement that the artists, founders, and community are passionate about, including HeadCount, Reverb, and their new partnership with Calling All Crows. Each of these organizations will have an on-site presence to provide education and resources about what they do.
Tickets are on sale for the Sad Summer Festival here. Each stop is at a venue with a mix of indoor and outdoor shows. Attendance has been growing year-on-year for this traveling festival, so grab your tickets sooner rather than later if you plan to attend. Additionally, make sure you have your lodging handled if you are traveling to one of the stops. Each stop is just a single day, but with it happening during the later summer months, hotels and Airbnbs will surely start to fill up with vacationers.
See you in the pit in Atlanta!