Golden Gate Park delivered exactly the weather you would expect for a weekend in San Francisco. Fog in the morning, a chill that never fully burned off, and a crowd dressed in more layers than you usually see at an outdoor festival in August. Outside Lands spreads across six main stages, Sutro, Lands End, Panhandle, SOMA, Duboce Triangle and Twin Peaks, with food vendors filling the space between them. The food deserves its own article, honestly. I was there all three days, from the first sets to the last, and the thing that stuck with me most was how strong the undercard was. Plenty of festivals stack their headliners and hope you forgive the afternoon. Outside Lands never needs that forgiveness.

I kicked off the weekend with Die Spitz at Sutro. They are a group of best friends with an enormous amount of talent, and it shows in how comfortably they play together. Each of the four members seems to operate on a slightly different wavelength, but like a well tuned dish, it all comes together. The screamo vocals on some songs sit against the pop-punk of others and somehow complement them rather than fighting. At one point the bassist attempted a headstand without stopping playing, which tells you most of what you need to know about their set. Of course it wouldn’t have been complete without a mosh pit, which they commanded like a director from stage.

After that I caught Sierra Ferrell, an artist I’ve been hoping to see for a while. Her voice sounds even better in person than on record, which is not something I get to say often. She is known for her set design and costumes, and she didn’t disappoint, performing in a clown fit with flowers arranged across the stage. Her country style was a welcome counterweight to a lineup that leaned heavily on indie rock, pop, and electronic mixes.

Geese to Clipse was a tight run, but I made it. Clipse pulled from decades of history and played a set full of their hits. I’ve wanted to see them live for a long time, and it was worth the sprint. Modest Mouse closed out my Friday, and they are incredibly tight. Isaac Brock is a true performer. At one point he held his guitar up to his face and basically played it with his teeth. A very cool moment from a very talented band.

Saturday began with RIO KOSTA, a psychedelic band from LA with mellow, groovy music. Following up with a complete energy shift was Wunderhorse, the UK band  absolutely slammed an early day slot. Their energy ignited the crowd, with people dancing and cheering across the whole field, and their drummer was locked in the entire time as they blew the top off Sutro. Automatic followed later on over Panhandle. Their mellow set offered a real strong performance from another LA band that’s been a favorite of mine for awhile.

Ethel Cain had the most striking staging of the day. She performed on a small riser decorated with grass, holding a microphone stand shaped like a scythe. Her music is chill, but definitely not relaxing as it emotionally hits with real weight, her stage setup made the set feel like something closer to a ritual than a festival.

Lucy Dacus brought out Julien Baker, her boygenius bandmate, which the crowd very much appreciated. Djo drew one of the most invested audiences I saw all weekend. The energy was enormous as they tried to match his explosions across the stage. His presence clearly resonated with fans as I noticed several people around me tearing up during his set.

Later, DJ Trixie Mattel ran into some electrical trouble getting her set going. Instead of losing the room, the crowd started clapping in time so her dancers could stay on beat. It was quickly resolved and she lit the place up, but that stretch of a few hundred people keeping time by hand was one of my favorite small moments of the festival.

Death Cab For Cutie at Outlands Music Festival 2026 photo by David Saxum

The XX closed the night at Twin Peaks, and their set was an absolute stunner. Gorgeous black and white lighting left them as silhouettes jamming on guitar while they worked through their best material, including “Intro” and “Crystalised.” After, I caught the tail end of The Strokes, right as Julian brought out Charli XCX for “Let You Down,” who had headlined the night before. Sunday belonged to Death Cab for Cutie, who both opened and closed Sutro. Their opening set was the entire Plans album, front to back. Never did I think I’d be crying with ten thousand other people before one in the afternoon, but there we were. It is a strange and wonderful thing to watch a field full of strangers go quiet together in daylight. Their closing set later that night bookended the day, and the festival, neatly.

In between, I caught Kingfishr, Momma, Marlon Funaki, and Day We Ran. All great undercard artists that will surely be moving up in the schedule for future lineups. Not for Radio, the solo project of María Zardoya of The Marías, had another set built around strong design. Her voice sounded great, and she moved through an outfit change from a white feathered dress that read as swan-like into a black feathered one. The lighting illuminated her in a way that felt witchy and ethereal.

Some of my favorite acts of the weekend were the ones I came in knowing the least about. SIENNA SPIRO has one of the best voices I have heard live, absolutely gorgeous, and mentioned how grateful for the turnout for her first US festival. Marlon Funaki mixes funk, rock, psychedelia, and jazz into textural hues that I’m still thinking about. Amble, an Irish folk band, brought their signature sound across the pond on Sunday. Momma is a fantastic shoegazey band I’ve been trying to catch live for a while, and they’re a joy to watch, clearly a tight group of friends enjoying themselves onstage. Day We Ran, an Australian indie band, played “Foaming,” which has all the hooks it needs to sink in and hold onto you. Strong drum line, an echoing guitar line that stretches into the horizon, and lyrics that bounce around in your head non-stop.

Rio Kosta and Sawyer Hill were both acts I had seen in LA over the past year, and both delivered just as strong as the first time I’d seen them. Rio blends 70s groove, surf rock, Caribbean rhythms, and psychedelic harmonies. Sawyer’s stage presence is unmatched, performing like someone who has been doing it for decades, and his deep, raspy vocals set him apart in a crowded indie field. Meanwhile artists like Djo, Dijon, Lucy Dacus, and Ethel Cain have reached the point where a great set is simply expected of them, and they consistently deliver it.

The lineup of artists, and  great selection of food)is ultimately what sets this festival apart. Outside Lands is a festival where the noon slot can level you just as thoroughly as the headliner, where a band you’ve never heard of at two in the afternoon becomes the one you’re streaming on the flight home. Three days of fog, food, and music, and I still didn’t see everything I wanted to.

Geese at Outlands Music Festival 2026 photo by David Saxum

Words by David Saxum

Find out more info on Outside Lands HERE