Six Damn Good Reasons to Rock Out at Shaky Knees (2020)!

Edit: This preview of Shaky Knees has been edited since its original publication to account for the postponement until the weekend of October 16th-18th due the COVID-19 pandemic.

You may have thought that Shaky Knees Music Festival previously set the bar for lineups with last year’s incredible lineup that featured Tame Impala, Beck, and Cage the Elephant as the main three acts. [You can actually go check out our preview from last year’s Shaky Knees (2019) over at Concerthopper.com by following this link to- “Setting the Bar High: Shaky Knees (2019)”.] Now let’s fast forward to the present day and let’s take a look at what Shaky Knees is bringing to the table for us in 2020! The headliners this year are The Black Keys (Friday), The Strokes (Saturday) and The Smashing Pumpkins (Sunday)! But wait… there is plenty more big names where that came from: Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Portugal. The Man, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts, Of Monsters & Men, Liam Gallagher, Angels & Airwaves, Brittany Howard, Drive-By Truckers, Ty Segall and Freedom Band, The Growlers, Guided By Voices, All Them Witches, and Royal Blood are just a FEW of the sixty plus (60+) unbelievable artists/bands that will be melting faces off this upcoming October 16th-18th, 2020 at Central Park in Atlanta, Georgia.

I would like to take the time to hopefully introduce you to some artists/bands that I am most excited for: Ty Segall and Freedom Band, All Them Witches, Brittany Howard, Murder By Death, Delta Spirit, and The Darkness. For this article, I tried to pull six (6) artists/bands that I have followed for some time, but that also embody the spirit of Shaky Knees by exploring the diversity of the genre we all love so much, Rock ‘N’ Roll. Full disclosure: in no way does this discredit nor take away from any of the other artists/bands that are performing at this year’s Shaky Knees- trust me this was hard enough trying to narrow it down to just six (6) artists/bands!   

1.       Ty Segall and Freedom Band tops my list for a few reasons: 1) my only time seeing Ty was at Bonnaroo (2014) and I have been dying for my next opportunity ever since. 2) Simply put, Ty Segall freaking wails on guitar and will be a MUST SEE at Shaky Knees! Ty (whose whole name is Ty Garrett Segall) is a multi-instrumentalist, producer, singer-songwriter whose sound is a captivating mix of garage, psychedelic, indie, punk, and heavy metal. Ty has released twelve (12) amazing LPs in his career including the most recent: First Taste. Some of my favorite tracks include: “Thank God For Sinners”, “My Lady’s on Fire”, “Every 1’s A Winner”, and the aptly titled “Break A Guitar”. So go ahead and make plans to see Ty Segall and Freedom Band this October at Shaky Knees!

2.       All Them Witches (ATW) has been on my frequent playlist ever since I first heard their dynamic debut LP, Our Mother Electricity in 2012. ATW has released five (5) LPs, two (2) (MUST LISTEN- I’ll get back to these later in the article) Live LPs, and four (4) EPs. The band consists of Robby Staebler (drummer), Charles Michael Parks, Jr. (vocals/multi-instrumentalist), and Ben McLeod (guitar) and hails from Nashville, Tennessee. As I previously mentioned, I would come back to their two live LPs: At The Garage (2015) & Live In Brussels (2016) which have quickly become my go to when I take a road trip to Atlanta. Both releases highlight the bands ability to veer off onto a jam session when performing their songs while also showing the band’s ability to enthrall the audience with their haunting lyrics. Check out these live videos for “When God Comes Back” and “The Death of Coyote Woman”. I last covered this band for another outfit (Imprint Entertainment) and you can check out my article and photos online today.

3.       Brittany Howard is an American singer-songwriter who is best known for her Grammy award winning work with the band, Alabama Shakes. Brittany, a native of Athens, Alabama, is now touring in support of her solo LP, Jaime (2019) and is undoubtedly going to slay her set at this year’s Shaky Knees. That is a fact! We all know what she is going to do at Shaky Knees- play her heart and soul out and make every single person in the audience remember this performance for many years to come. Can you say that you were at her Shaky Knees set in the future? You have to make a promise to take this spiritual journey to Central Park for her upcoming performance at Shaky Knees. Check out her videos for some of her solo work: “Stay High” and a live version of “Georgia”.

4.       I was first introduced to Murder By Death last year while they toured with the now defunct J. Roddy Walston & the Business (R.I.P.) at the Georgia Theatre (Athens). You can relive this memorable night by heading over to my review over at Concerthopper.com. Wow! I cannot believe I let this band fly under my radar for so long and never checked them out. Shame! Shame! Well this five piece indie rock/indie folk band is from Bloomington, Indiana and has been together since 2000. The band consists of Adam Turla (vocals/guitar/keyboards), Sarah Balliet (cello/keyboards), Dagan Thogerson (drums/percussion), David Fountain (piano/percussion/mandolin/banjo/lap steel/trumpet/accordion/backing vocals), and Tyler Morse (bass/backing vocals). By incorporating many instruments including the cello, accordion, and banjo into their music, the band has fashioned a unique and complex sound and nestled snuggly into the colossal, pantheon of rock ‘n’ roll. Check out this video of a live session sponsored by Audiotree and this full set from a performance from 2011 at SLO Brew.

5.       Delta Spirit is an American indie rock band that comes from San Diego, California and has released four (4) LPs and two (2) EPs since forming as a band in 2005. The band consists of Jonathan Jameson (bass), Brandon Young (drums), Matthew Vasquez (vocals/guitars), Kelly Winnich (multi-instrumentalist), and William McLaren (guitar). Check out their official video for “California” and this complete live session from Wolfgang’s Vault from 2010. While the band is currently preparing for their Not Dead Yet tour here in 2020 which will begin March 11th in San Francisco and so far ends the weekend of Shaky Knees in May. Head over to their Official Tour Page if you cannot make the fun at Shaky Knees in Atlanta.

6.       The Darkness is a British hard rock / glam metal / heavy metal band that formed back in 2000 in Lowestoft by Justin Hawkins (lead vocals/lead guitar), Dan Hawkins (rhythm guitar), Frankie Poullain (bass/backing vocals), and Ed Graham (drums) – but currently Rufus Tiger Taylor (drums/backing vocals) handles the drumming duties. This band is the holy trinity of rock by combining hard, heavy, and some glam for an extra kick with songs such as “I Believe in a Thing Called Love”, “Black Shuck”, “One Way Ticket”, and even a brilliant cover of Radiohead’s "Street Spirit (Fade Out)” from their six (6) LP discography. You will find me front and center watching The Darkness perform their set at Shaky Knees!

Now that you have read my TOP 6 artists/bands not to miss, it is time to start planning your trip to Atlanta this October 16th-18th. You can follow this link provided to the Shaky Knees Music Festival official ticket page and secure your General Admission OR V.I.P. ticket today! Still have some questions that need to be answered? No sweat. Follow this link to the Shaky Knees Music Festival official information page and see if that helps. Beat that mad rush by heading over to their Official merchandise page and get all your brand new Shaky Knees tees and accessories before October! If you are coming from out of town and need a place to stay while you are in Atlanta. Don’t worry, we have you covered there too! Head over to Booking.com or Airbnb.com for all your lodging needs in Atlanta while you are rocking out at Shaky Knees. Need a ride while in Atlanta? No worries! First time users can use the following codes for discounts on local ride shares: Lyft – XERXES28549 or Uber – hristost3ue.

As time draws closer to October, we will share some of our favorite artists/bands to both our Instagram and Facebook pages- so follow or like our pages today to stay in the loop!

Curious about Concerthopper? You can find more music related articles, interviews, various photo galleries, indie music reviews, our very own ‘Bars & Bites’ section, our exclusive “She Said, She Said” column, or become a Concerthopper at www.concerthopper.com. Sign up for our monthly newsletter by following this link: The Setlist! Please ‘Like’ our page on Facebook and follow us on Instagram in order to stay up to date in 2020 on all music related events/festivals such as: Burn My Eyes 25th Anniversary Tour: Machine Head Live at Center Stage, Diseased and Disguised Tour w/Beartooth & Motionless in White: Live at Rapids Theatre, Motionless in White: Live at The Masquerade, Brainquility Music Festival (2020), Okeechobee Music & Arts Festival, Cult of Luna / Emma Ruth Rundle / Intronaut: Live at The Masquerade, OM w/ Wovenhand: Live at Terminal West, Black Label Society: Live at Georgia Theatre, Devastation of the Nation Tour: Rotting Christ / Borknagar / Wolfheart / Abigail Williams / Imperial Triumphant, While She Sleeps / He is Legend: Live at The Masquerade, Bad Omens: Live at The Masquerade, Welcome to Rockville, Epicenter Music Festival, Sweetwater’s 420 Music Festival, Shaky Knees Music Festival, Trondossa Music & Arts Festival, Papa Joe’s Banjo-B-Que Music Festival, The Acacia Strain: Live at The Masquerade, Atonement Tour w/ Killswitch Engage & August Burns Red: Live at The Tabernacle, Inkcarceration Festival, In This Moment & Black Veil Brides: Live at The Tabernacle, Jinjer / Suicide Silence: Live at Buckhead Theatre, and Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival by following us on all social media formats: Concerthopper on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram. 

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