Chicago’s summer music festival season is coming to a close and luckily for us in the city, one of the closing acts is North Coast Music Festival. The good folks behind the fest have granted us some press passes to cover all that’s going down this coming Labor Day weekend (Aug. 30-Sept. 1 2013) so we’ve come up with our personalized schedules to see the best of what “North Coast” is bringing to town.
Each one of us writers of Pursuit Of Dopeness have picked our top artists playing the festival and put together a “Top 10” list of artists to check out at North Coast 2013. See our list below and buy your tickets while they’re still available.
1. Wu-Tang Clan
(9:00-10:00 PM. Sunday, Sept. 1)
The Wu will be hitting the stage on Sunday at the Coast Stage performing their debut 1993 album, 36 Chambers. No one throws a straight-up hardcore Hip Hop show like the Wu and we’re positive that they won’t be disappointing anyone on Sunday. 36 Chambers, arguably one of the best Hip Hop albums of all time, has classics such as: “Protect Your Neck”, “C.R.E.A.M.”, and “Can it be so Simple.” You can rest assure that those will be performed under some sort of influence. For any Hip Hop fan attending, Wu-Tang Clan is mandatory to check. – cnygunz
Check out the Wu’s Coachella set this year:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=N8VdJeKc2UI
2. Mac Miller
(8:00-9:00 PM. Friday, Aug. 30)
Mac Miller’s highlight of 2013 has to be the release of his sophomore album, Watching Movies With The Sound Off. The album itself is pretty good, but the hype around it was even greater. Mac went head-to-head with Hip Hop heavyweights Kanye West and J. Cole and he definitely held his own by selling more than 100,000 albums in the first week. Mac’s live show has always been on point whether it be at Reggie’s during his mixtape days or at First Midwest Bank Amphitheater for a headlining set in front of 20,000 fans after the release of Blue Slide Park. He has since added a live band to his set, so Mac’s set is a can’t miss at North Coast this year and you may even get a special appearance from his recent tour mate, Chance The Rapper. – Alberto
3. Passion Pit
(9:00-10:00 PM. Friday, Aug. 30)
Passion Pit is an Indie Pop Rock sensation out of Massachusetts that’s slowly taking over the mainstream with their catchy hooks and danceable grooves. Lately, the Michael Angelakos-led group toured extensively and played Lolla 2012 and Coachella 2013, even making a stop this year (’13) at legendary Madison Square Garden. While 2013 has been rather tame for the band as far as new music goes, 2012’s Gossamer has enough catchy sounds in songs like “Take A Walk” and “Carried Away” to get the Coast Stage jamming. – Oscar
Passion Pit – Live at Coachella 2013
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=xG0IqowKOHs
4. Nas
(7:30-8:30 PM. Saturday, Aug. 31)
While there are a few Hip Hop legends on the North Coast bill this year, Nas is the only one without a headlining set. Not sure why Nas is not headlining on Saturday but we can guarantee it will still be a show you won’t want to miss. You can expect the majority of his set to consist of tracks off of his recent release, Life Is Good, but it would only be right for him to sprinkle in some classics in between. Nas has a very extensive catalog to work with so no matter what route he chooses to go, it will be one of the top performances of this year’s festival. – Alberto
5. Just Blaze
(9:00-10:00 PM. Friday, Aug. 30)
The legendary Hip Hop producer is mostly known for producing for Jay Z and other great artists, but Just Blaze is one of the best at actually doing a real, live DJ set. Don’t be expecting an all Hip Hop set from him though, Just Blaze has played Electric Daisy Carnival so he’s got a nice EDM folder that he’ll probably be showing off as well. We don’t really know if we’ll get to see more Hip Hop than EDM, but be ready to make them ugly faces as Just Blaze will never disappoint. – cnygunz
Here’s a clip of what Just Blaze can do at Electric Daisy:
6. Danny Brown
(4:00-5:00 PM. Sunday, Sept. 1)
Danny Brown’s live show and extracurricular activities on stage have garnered a lot of attention this year. His situation with his label, Fool’s Gold, did as well. Things seemed to be a bit shaky just weeks ago with Brown threatening to leak his forthcoming album, Old; Danny Brown demanding an official release date from the indie label. Just last night, Danny Brown announced that his new album will released on September 30th. We can expect to hear some new material during his North Coast set along with dope joints off of his 2011 release, XXX. – Alberto
7. A-Track
(5:30-6:30 PM. Sunday, Sept. 1)
A-Track has been making his rounds at festivals this year with appearances at Electric Daisy Carnival in Vegas and Bonnaroo Music Festival in Tennessee. The Fool’s Gold founder will surely get things turnt up and may even bring some friends along during his hour-long set at North Coast this year. You can definitely expect to hear some music from his Fool’s Gold artists. Check out below what an A-Track set is like live with plenty of examples why he made our top 10 list of acts to watch this year. – Alberto
8. Flatbush Zombies
(4:30-5:30 PM. Saturday, Aug. 31)
Imagine a mosh pit in the middle of a Hip Hop set! Are you into that? We suggest you check out the Flatbush Zombies. Their sets are heavily crowd participated and just straight up wild. The Zombies have recently enjoyed much success overseas and are soaring in popularity back home. If you’re really looking for a good performance, look no further than checking out these guys. – cnygunz
Check out how the Flatbush Zombies were welcomed back home :
9. Gary Clark Jr.
(7:00-8:00 PM. Sunday, Sept. 1)
Gary Clark Jr. is bringing his signature fuzzy guitar modern blues sound to the Coast Stage on the final day of the festival. The man is a no frills performer who lets his ability on the electric guitar be the focal point of his live shows over anything else, and when you sound that good, that’s really all you should need. Clark Jr. has shared the stage with legends like The Rolling Stones, Eric Clapton and Buddy Guy and if that’s not enough to convince you that this guy is good, I’m not sure what will. – Oscar
Gary Clark – “Bright Lights”
10. Aloe Blacc
(4:30-5:30 PM. Saturday, Aug. 31)
We saw Aloe Blacc last year (2012) at Lollapalooza and his set was reason enough to continue following the soulful singer. Blacc’s sound is a cool mix of Soul, R&B, Jazz and hints of Hip Hop, which makes for something great to witness live. Undeniably, his biggest hit has been his 2011 single “I Need A Dollar,” which is more than justifiable thanks to an excellent hook. – Oscar
*Honorable Mentions:
ProbCause
Coming off of the release of The Recipe Volume 2, ProbCause is the first honorable mention of this year’s festival and one of the few Chicago representatives at the festival. He has performed at North Coast the last two years and earned himself a slot at this year’s festival once again. Get familiar with ProbCause below. – Alberto
PHNM has been making his mark here in Chicago as one of the most sought-out DJs. He recently competed at this year’s RedBull Thre3Style where we were able to get some footage of his set, check it out – cnygunz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qQ9Rv0D7as
Zebo is defintely an act that shouldn’t be missed by any music lover. We’re curious to see his music library because he’ll switch from Red Hot Chili Peppers to a straight up trap joint! Check out some footage that we were able to get from his Lolla set here in 2012. – cnygunz
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_qQ9Rv0D7as
