This Sunday marks the start of Boston’s most exciting annual week-long celebration of music, art and technology, yet many of you may just be hearing of it for the first time this year. Together, in its fourth year, has grown from humble beginnings as a loosely organized collection of more esoteric electronic shows spread throughout Cambridge and Boston to a full-fledged festival featuring top-tier talent, interesting discussion panels with industry taste makers, DJ competitions, music workshops, art installations, film screenings and much, much more. While the concept may be considered more traditional compared with today’s highly promoted mega fests, Together brings the unique and multi-faceted approach of festivals like SXSW and Burning Man to our small corner of the states, not typically known for one of the more vibrant music scenes. The organizers for Together seek to not only bring great music to the area but to cross-pollinate its fans with an appreciation for the artists who work hard to produce it and the art and technology that parallels it.
Being that we are a music blog, our focus is of course on the music, and this year brings exceptional talent to several stages over the one week runtime of the festival. Together has quite an elaborate history under its belt, having brought in the past such household names like Wolfgang Gartner, AC Slater, Above & Beyond, Dillon Francis, Kill the Noise and RJD2 alongside the likes of more enigmatic DJ’s (and favorites of ours) like Justin Martin, Maya Jane Coles, Break Science, Treasure Fingers and SBTRKT. Yet this year, more than ever, Together seems to have finally become completely comfortable in its cultural shoes, presenting a diverse and curated lineup tailored towards the crowd such a festival attracts.
There’s no doubting that the deeper side of electronic music has spread widely in the past year or so and the lineup for this year’s festival certainly reflects that. Some of the standouts for us in that realm are Art Department, Duke Dumont, Fred Falke, Four Tet and Tiga, all of whom have been featured on this blog before and hopefully all get you as excited as we have been. Maintaining the diversity Together has become known for, however, the lineup features hip-hop in the form of A$AP Ferg, Juicy J and Biz Markie (You, you got what I neeeeeddddd), bands such as Crystal Castles and even some trap music from LOVDPICK and ƱZ. The lineup pays serious respect to its roots as well, rounding out the schedule with a hearty collection of local Boston-bred talent.
It’s hard to sum up all of what makes Together such an inspiring festival, especially when compared with the megafests that many of us have become used to. With so much to do and see, any true fan of electronic music would be foolish to miss out on this experience. Together’s website (togetherboston.com) is host to the most complete information on the artists, lineup, schedule, events and more and is your gateway to becoming involved, however that might be. Events will be happening throughout Boston and Cambridge at venues like The Middle East Downstairs (“Central Stage”), House of Blues, The Sinclair, Naga, Middlesex Lounge, RISE and many more. Don’t miss your opportunity to catch one of your favorites or check out something completely new, all in the spirit of getting Together. Check out their brand new compilation album below available for free download!
*Our Boston Shows Page includes many of the shows happening next week!*
Together Festival Boston Website | Together Festival Boston Facebook | Together Festival Boston SoundCloud