The New Alternative Music Festival (NAMF) is September 16-18 in Asbury Park, NJ. Running by Don Giovanni Records, NAMF is a one-time event meant to be an alternative to the obstacles and backwards thinking presented the music industry. The result is a diverse lineup spread across three days, with no overlapping set times. It’s one of the most significant musical events of the past several of years.
Reasons to go include:
- One of the only chances to see PS Eliot in the past 5 years. They’ve only played a couple of times since 2011, but have reissued their catalog and reunited for some shows. All of their shows in Philadelphia and NYC are sold out, so NAMF may be your last chance to see the band that preceded Waxahatchee and Swearin’.
- Seeing bands like Radiator Hospital and Pinkwash playing to some different crowds (small festival crowds!), and outside of Philadelphia.
- The Friday run from Dusk to Screaming Females. It is over 8 hours straight of hits, like a dream.
- New bands. There are plenty of bands on the lineup that have just recently put out their first official release or full-lengths, including Sex Stains, Dyke Drama, and Outer Spaces, and that’s just on Saturday. See them before they make it big!
- The performers don’t all look the same. I went to a festival in Canada last fall, and saw one or two bands that weren’t led by white males. NAMF breaks up the homogeny often seen at corporately run events.
- The location. The shows are at the Convention Hall at the end of the boardwalk, so if you need a break, grab a caramel apple and jump in the ocean.
- The Asbury Park Yacht Club is hosting free shows on Friday and Saturday night, which include bands like Algebra II and Teenage Halloween. If you can’t afford the whole fest, check these out.
Full lineup and tickets are available here.