Two Festivals, One Weekend

Music fans, you’re in luck. This weekend offers two live music festivals to choose from.

The Whiteaker Block Party, an annual celebration of the people and music that help put the Whit on the map, runs all day Saturday, Aug. 3. It offers the best opportunity to catch all sorts of local bands you’ve been hearing about all year.

There’s also Pickathon up the road near Portland, an independent music fest that gains in popularity every year, featuring some of music’s most popular names.

If you’re staying in town for the Block Party, start your day with the rockabilly and punk of Real Gone Trio at noon on the G-Spot stage. Then head over to the Ninkasi Stage at 1:30 pm for the pure FM-radio pop of The Graduating Class. Catch Graduating Class now before they’re burning up your next Spotify playlist.

Or instead, see Dimly Lit at 1:10 pm on the G Spot Stage. For a pleasant comedown, check out some darkwave with Stariana at 3:55 pm on the Main Stage, while Daddy Rabbit plays ’50s and ’60s covers and originals with a punk-rock twist at 2:20 pm on the Cornerstone stage.

Also on the Cornerstone stage is Brittany Bailey at 3:30 pm, JD Miller and the Broken Heart Rodeo at 5 pm and Yeehawk at 7:30 pm, all representing Eugene’s emerging classic country scene.

Back over on the main stage, Ferns play indie rock at 5:05 pm, Red Cloud plays heavy rock at 5:20 pm on Uncle Brad’s Secret Stage, and at 5:50 pm Surfs Drugs play the G-Spot Stage. You never know what Surfs Drugs have in store, but it’s always weird.

The Whiteaker Block Party is free.

If you’re in the mood for a road trip, Pickathon features plenty of great music to choose from. (At least Pickathon goes for four days, so in theory it’s possible to catch both the Block Party and Pickathon.)

First, moody Portland rockers Soft Kill play the Galaxy Barn at 1:20 am on Thursday, Aug. 1, because at Pickathon, the party goes all night long.

Other Pickathon must-sees include Flasher at 6:40 pm, featuring members of Priests, New Zealand indie rockers The Beths at 10 pm, and Viagra Boys 1:20 am. All three play the Galaxy Barn, Friday, Aug. 2.

20190801music-3-2BlackBeltEagleScout_SarahCass_01

Also on Aug. 2, there’s Black Belt Eagle Scout at 4:20 pm at the Lucky Barn as well as Sneaks at 7:40 pm on the Woods Stage. Laura Veirs plays Aug. 2 at 2:40 pm at the Lucky Barn.

On Saturday, Aug. 3, don’t miss Nap Eyes at 5 pm as well as Eugene metalheads Yob at 10 pm, both at the Galaxy Barn. In addition, Lambchop plays Lucky Barn at 7:40 pm and Khruangbin plays the Woods Stage at 9:20 pm.

Rounding out the last day of the festival is Julia Jacklin at 10:15 pm on the Starlight Stage and Nathaniel Rateliff at 11 pm on the Woods Stage.

For complete music lineups of either the Whiteaker Block Party or Pickathon, go to whiteakerblockparty.com or pickathon.com. Pickathon is a ticketed event.

A Note From the Publisher

Dear Readers,

The last two years have been some of the hardest in Eugene Weekly’s 43 years. There were moments when keeping the paper alive felt uncertain. And yet, here we are — still publishing, still investigating, still showing up every week.

That’s because of you!

Not just because of financial support (though that matters enormously), but because of the emails, notes, conversations, encouragement and ideas you shared along the way. You reminded us why this paper exists and who it’s for.

Listening to readers has always been at the heart of Eugene Weekly. This year, that meant launching our popular weekly Activist Alert column, after many of you told us there was no single, reliable place to find information about rallies, meetings and ways to get involved. You asked. We responded.

We’ve also continued to deepen the coverage that sets Eugene Weekly apart, including our in-depth reporting on local real estate development through Bricks & Mortar — digging into what’s being built, who’s behind it and how those decisions shape our community.

And, of course, we’ve continued to bring you the stories and features many of you depend on: investigations and local government reporting, arts and culture coverage, sudoku and crossword puzzles, Savage Love, and our extensive community events calendar. We feature award-winning stories by University of Oregon student reporters getting real world journalism experience. All free. In print and online.

None of this happens by accident. It happens because readers step up and say: this matters.

As we head into a new year, please consider supporting Eugene Weekly if you’re able. Every dollar helps keep us digging, questioning, celebrating — and yes, occasionally annoying exactly the right people. We consider that a public service.

Thank you for standing with us!