Portola Music Festival 2023: Our awards & highlights from Year 2

Portola Music Festival 2023Photos by Matthew Medina // Written by Molly Kish //

Portola Music Festival //
Pier 80 – San Francisco
September 30th-October 1st, 2023 //

After a weekend of pavement-pounding electronic music that saw the second edition of Portola come in hot and leave the city of SF buzzing, our feet are just finally recovering. Assembling a lineup of up-and-coming talent and several legendary electronic artists, Goldenvoice dialed in a well-rounded roster this year but also improved upon both production and staging issues from its 2022 debut.

Even in the weeks leading up to the festival, the production company provided ample opportunities to hear and interact directly with Portola’s founders via Reddit AMAs, delivering some of the best social media content and marketing strategies by any Bay Area festival to date. It felt like Goldenvoice had something to prove and in turn, wanted to reassure their fans they were being heard.

Portola Music Festival 2023

On site, there were a number of improvements to the footprint at Pier 80 that included better cellphone service and stage designs. The Warehouse, being the main point of contention a year ago, was set up inversely with several entry points and exits. This allowed for much better traffic flow and sound quality, creating an immensely more enjoyable experience. The Crane Stage, meanwhile, was moved outside and had a completely different aesthetic as its big sky backdrop opened up the sound quality and was able to accommodate a larger crowd. And how could we not mention the secret Bowie bar in between the Ship Tent and Warehouse as a highlight of the weekend? Plus, reference points for those trying to meet up with friends once inside were a lot more abundant.

The crowd in 2023 felt very communal, with as many there to catch specific performers as there were to experience certain artists for the first time. During almost every set you could overhear people talk about how they have “always wanted to see this act” or how they were “blown away” by the performances they were witnessing. The stoke was real and palpable throughout the entire weekend, as both days brought relentless beats and epic headliners who left everything they had on the dance floor. Solidifying itself as easily one of the most intense Sundays every year, Portola held nothing back once again. With hopes of continuing the festival in the Bay despite Goldenvoice’s contract expiring next year, we can’t wait to see what’s to come in 2024.

Portola Music Festival 2023 - Labrinth


Labrinth

PORTOLA MUSIC FESTIVAL 2023 AWARDS:

Headliner of the Weekend: Skrillex

Favorite Stage: Warehouse

Breakthrough Performance: Avalon Emerson

Best Dance Party: Todd Terje (DJ set)

Largest Crowd: Nelly Furtado

Best Legacy Act: Basement Jaxx (DJ set)

Hardest Set: Carl Cox

Best Performance: Labrinth

Most Cunty: COBRAH

Best Stage Production: Eric Prydz Presents HOLO

Favorite Festival Addition: Bowie bar

Best Activation: Brilliant Sticker Show & Rave Flyers exhibit

Favorite Merch: BYLT Coach Jacket

Best Afterparty: The Blaze with Barry Can’t Swim at Gray Area

Best Mascot: Portola rat

Portola Music Festival returns to SF’s Pier 80 for second edition while tapping Eric Prydz & Skrillex as headliners in 2023

Portola Music Festival - 2023 lineup

Portola Music Festival //
Pier 80 – San Francisco
September 30th-October 1st, 2023 //

Well, look who’s back …

Portola, that’s who! Just when you thought we were done announcing lineups for music festivals this year, one of Goldenvoice’s newest events has returned for another go-around.

This time the two-day fest will have Eric Prydz and Skrillex, both of whom performed at Coachella last month, lead the charge after Flume and The Chemical Brothers were assigned headlining duties for its inaugural edition. But unlike last year, Portola 2023 will also boast a special guest that sees Chris Lake and Armand Van Helden teaming up for a B2B set on Saturday before Prydz presents his world-famous HOLO show.

While the roster again leans primarily in the electronic direction, there are a few diversions — from funk and soul to hip-hop and R&B — sprinkled in that adds some variety to an excellent undercard. Here are just some of the acts you won’t want to miss at SF’s Pier 80 as September turns to October: Polo & Pan, Labrinth, FKJ, Thundercat, Nelly Furtado, Rina Sawayama, Jai Paul, Carl Cox (hybrid set), Underworld, Major Lazer B2B Major League DJz, Charlotte de Witte, Purple Disco Machine, The Blaze, Dom Dolla, Bonobo (DJ set), Hot Chip, Masego, Chromeo, Bassment Jaxx (DJ set), Tokischa, Little Dragon, Flying Lotus, Kenny Beats, Flying Lotus, Little Simz, SBTRKT, Todd Terje (DJ set), DJ Koze, Róisín Murphy, Jon Hopkins, 2manydjs (Live), Overmono, Kavinsky, Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs (Live), Pabllo Vittar, Young Fathers and Jockstrap.

You can buy tickets to Portola starting this Friday, May 19th at 10 a.m. PT with payment plans available, but make sure to register here for your presale code. Two-day GA passes start at $339.95 and increase to $379.95 (or $229.95-$249.95 for single-day tickets) while two-day VIP can be purchased for $559.95 before jumping to $629.95 (or $324.95 for one day) here if you’re age 21 and up.

Who’s ready to dance the day away down by the bay?!

Portola Music Festival 2023 - Saturday set times

Portola Music Festival 2023 - Sunday set times

UPDATE (August 15th): There’s still six weeks to go before Portola’s second installment, but you don’t have to wait for set times anymore! That’s right, folks … you can find the schedule for both days above, and make sure to download the festival’s mobile app here before getting your groove on at Pier 80.

Goldenvoice

Goldenvoice reveals 2017 Coachella sideshows

Goldenvoice Presents: April 2017

We’re already six weeks into 2017, and for many music fans residing in California, that means Coachella isn’t all that far away. But while much of the talk around this year’s lineup has been centered on Beyoncé’s debut and more recently her pregnant-with-twins news (the jury is still out on whether it will put a wrench in her plans to perform both weekends), Goldenvoice has turned a good portion of April into a long stretch of top-notch shows, similar to what Red Bull Sound Select has done in November with its month-long “30 Days in LA” series that last year included artists like Nick Murphy (formerly Chet Faker), YG, Jhené Aiko, AlunaGeorge, Pusha T and Isaiah Rashad (look back at our coverage here).

Much like in 2016, Goldenvoice has once again released a list of sideshows that will take place at venues in the greater Los Angeles area, with a select few extending into Orange County (at The Observatory and Constellation Room), Santa Barbara County (at the Santa Barbara Bowl) and the desert (at Pappy and Harriet’s).

Florida emcee Denzel Curry will kick off the festivities on Friday, April 7th at The Glass House before LA outfit Chicano Batman close things out at the same venue on Saturday, April 29th. In between those gigs, Sampha, Banks, Jack Garratt, Crystal Castles, Francis and the Lights, Bishop Briggs, SOHN, Oh Wonder, Future Islands, Little Dragon (with Sophie Tukker), The Head and the Heart, Joseph, Kaytranada, Banks & Steelz, King Gizzard & the Lizard Wizard, Nicolas Jaar, Car Seat Headrest (with Preoccupations), Bonobo, Mura Masa (with Kamaiyah), DJ Shadow, Breakbot, Blossoms, New Order (with Poliça), Hinds (with Twin Peaks), Bonobo, Galantis, Local Natives (with Tennis), S U R V I V E, The Avalanches, Glass Animals (with Little Dragon and/or Jagwar Ma), Empire of the Sun (with Broods), Tacocat, Bastille, Roisin Murphy, Whitney, Lil Uzi Vert, Mitski, Röyksopp, Future Islands, Pond (with Ezra Furman), Moderat, Swet Shop Boyz, Floating Points (Live), HONNE (with Arkells), Daphini, Jai Wolf, Guided by Voices and Phantogram will all perform — some even more than once — inside and/or outside of LA’s city limits.

Furthermore, British independent record label Young Turks will host a special showcase for its roster of artists with performances by Ben UFO, Four Tet, Francis and the Lights, Jamie xx, Kamaiyah, Sampha and special guest PNL in Palm Springs on Thursday, April 13th. Check out the full list of sideshows in the poster above.

It’s hard to believe that Goldenvoice has found a way to top their efforts from a year ago, but the renowned concert promoter has managed to do just that. This year’s Coachella sideshows are jam-packed with alternative-electronic and indie-rock acts, with Nicolas Jaar’s headlining performance at Pappy and Harriet’s alongside Floating Points (Live) and Pond as well as Future Islands’ date at The Glass House featuring support from Car Seat Headrest as two of the bigger highlights — and no doubt there are plenty on this bill. Yet, one of the most enticing pairings has to be the Glass Animals-Little Dragon-Jagwar Ma one that’s slated to take over the Santa Barbara Bowl, arguably our favorite venue in Southern California, on Saturday, April 23rd.

Tickets for most of the sideshows go on sale here this Friday, February 17th at Noon PT with the rest of them available Friday, February 24th at Noon PT or Friday, March 3rd at Noon PT.

Goldenvoice