Founded in 1993 as an indie rock showcase, Noise Pop remains one of the Bay Area’s most unique music festivals as it widens its scope to include more genres, venues and corners of the local music scene. In recent years, the San Francisco-based fest grew to include shows in Oakland and Berkeley, and 2020 marks the first year it expands into Sacramento. Today, Noise Pop announced phase one of its 2020 lineup, and there’s plenty to look forward to when it takes over local clubs and concert halls Feb. 24- March 1, 2020.
Oakland music legend Raphael Saadiq tops the bill with a headlining show at his hometown’s Fox Theater on Feb. 28. Once a star of the West Coast R&B scene with his group Tony! Toni! Toné!, Saadiq went on to produce for top-tier artists like D’Angelo, Stevie Wonder and Solange—to name a few. His influence continues to shape R&B today with his work on the acclaimed soundtrack for HBO’s Insecure.
British-Japanese techno producer Maya Jane Coles‘ Feb. 28 show at 1015 Folsom in San Francisco is another lineup highlight, as well as violinist-singer-producer Sudan Archives‘ performance at Slim’s, also in San Francisco, on Feb. 24. Indie pop singer-songwriter Helado Negro performs at San Francisco’s Great American Music Hall on Feb. 26, and Sasami—the intimate, guitar-driven solo project of Cherry Glazerr’s keyboardist and guitarist of the same name—headlines Holy Diver in Sacramento on Feb. 27 and the Chapel in San Francisco on Feb. 28.
The best part of Noise Pop is that showgoers can curate their experience, hopping around to multiple shows in one night or just attending one or two throughout the week. See phase one of the lineup in full here, and we’ll update this post once more acts are announced.
