St.Jerome’s Laneway Festival may have begun in the small confines of Melbourne’s Caledonian lane in 2004, but it has grown exponentially since as evidenced by this American stopover that is the next step in the festival’s evolution.
Jerome Borazio and Danny Rogers first started to dream up the idea of this international event when they started booking bands for the now defunct St. Jerome’s bar.
The summer series the pair developed helped launch then up and coming acts like The Presets and Architecture In Helsinki while ‘Brains’, a monthly Saturday night featuring DJ sets by The Avalanches, was to be their next project.
‘Brains’ was a key factor in the events leading up to the inaugural Laneway Festival. Borazio and Rogers convinced The Avalanches that it was time to close the lane and bring out its full live music potential. That potential once realized included 1400 punters packed in and flourishing in the presence of local music.
To say Laneway’s growth has snowballed since then is somewhat of an understatement. Sydney was the next city to get the Laneway treatment in 2006 with the festival expanding to Brisbane, Adelaide and Perth over the next three years.
It was Auckland though that would be the first international city to have its own Laneway Festival in 2010 as the event cemented itself as one of the Australasia’s best festivals by adding Singapore to its family a year later.
Over the course of its history Laneway has garnered a reputation for being the event to catch acts just before they explode or to witness some of the biggest indie acts from around the world.
The likes of The Temper Trap, Mumford & Sons, The xx and Florence + The Machine all played the festival before gaining huge worldwide attention. While names already known for their musical prowess like Feist, Bat For Lashes, Laura Marling, and Gotye have all featured at the event before.
Where the festival looks to next is a question to ponder on, but undoubtedly the Detroit edition of the St. Jerome’s Laneway Festival is likely to succeed just as its counterparts have. You only need to look at the lineup below to see why.
Lineup
Touring around the globe in support of their sixth studio album, Trouble Will Find Me, Brooklyn’s broodiest bunch The National will headline alongside Iceland’s biggest band Sigur Ros who have also just released their 7th LP, Kveikur.
Both Ernest Greene and Trevor Powers will perform songs from their respective moniker’s latest records by Washed Out and Youth Lagoon. Soon to be joining that sophomore club Los Angeles indie rockers Warpaint will undoubtedly showcase some of their as-of-yet unheard new material.
Injecting some fresh indie pop sounds into Laneway will be British duo Alunageorge, Chvrches and the hipster Knowles sister Solange.
Australian collaborators Chet Faker and Flume will head up the home front just as they did for the Australian and New Zealand versions of the event earlier this year.
Watch the full lineup video above.
When Is It
Laneway’s American debut will take place on Saturday September the 14th.
Where Is It
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The American edition of Laneway will be held in Michigan’s largest city, Detroit. Meadow Brook Music Festival is Laneway’s newest venue. The area located on Oakland University’s campus is already known for hosting frequent live music events. The address of the festival site is 3554 Walton Blvd in Rochester Hills.
How To Get There
Return flights to Detroit from any major Australian city are valued at upwards of $2000. A stopover at Los Angeles should also be expected.
The quickest way to the festival site by car or taxi is to take the I-75 using the 79 exit. From there head east to Squirrel Rd and once on that road head north to Walton Blvd. From there turn right onto Walton and take the Walton East to the main entrance.
You may also wish to take the east entrance on Adams Rd., 1/4 mile south of Walton Blvd.
For public transport options use the Detroit Department of Transportation journey planner.
Where To Stay
Hostel wise we recommend Detroit Hostel as one of the few of its kind in the Motor City.
However Laneway recommends plenty of other accommodation options including the likes of Detroit Marriott Troy, Crowne Plaza, Hyatt Place, Quality Inn and Palace Inn Hotel amongst many others on their website.
How To Get Tickets
Tickets to Laneway Detroit, which are valued at $79.50 each, are on sale now and can be purchased online through The Palace Ticket Store by clicking here.
Insider Tips & Tricks/Things You Shouldn’t Miss
The Movement Stage presented by Ghostly International is a collaboration between Movement Electronic Music Festival and independent record label Ghostly International. The stage will feature the likes of Mathew Dear, Adult., Shigeto, Heathered Pearls, and Beacon.
For those driving to the festival the parking lot opens two hours prior to the gates opening. However if you’re being driven to the festival your driver can enter through either Walton or Adams but they must exit via Adams.
Map and playing times are yet to be revealed but they should be up via this link very soon
For more details head to Laneway’s Official Website.
