The 2023 Hopscotch Music Festival brought three incredible days of music to the heart of Raleigh’s vibrant downtown. Since its launch in 2010, the festival has carved out its niche as one of the Southeast’s most eclectic music events. Its roots in indie rock have sprawled to explore realms of metal, hip-hop, noise, and a plethora of experimental genres.

 

This year’s lineup was no exception, the event proved once again why it’s a cornerstone of the live music scene, bringing together a lineup of over 120 headlining groups that resonated across generations. As a first-time attendee, I entered the festival with high expectations, and found that they were all exceeded. 

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The energy was radiating before each show I attended, the crowd would begin to form around the stage an hour or more before artists took the stage. 

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“This is my second year attending Hopscotch, and it only seems to be getting bigger and bigger,” says Lo Aleen who travelled to the festival from Nashville, Tennessee. 

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Many people in the crowd shared that they travelled long distances from other states like Michigan, Tennessee, and Pennsylvania to attend Hopscotch due to the unmatched lineup that Hopscotch director, Nathan Price, and his team booked this year. Among the artists headlining, reconvened 1990s rock band, Pavement, drew a tremendous amount of attention since they have not played a show in North Carolina since 1999. The buzz around Pavement alone brought the festival to a high for ticket sales for the first time since before COVID-19.

 

Before Pavement’s set at the City Plaza stage, I spoke to a fan Todd Brantley, a WXYC alum and a graduate of UNC-Chapel Hill back in the 90s. 

 

“We didn’t have festivals when I was growing up, but now you don’t have to leave the state to see great music. I mean, I remember when Pavement's Crooked Rain, Crooked Rain (1994) and Slanted & Enchanted (1992) came out, so it’s just great that multiple generations are getting to appreciate bands like this nowadays.” 

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Along with Pavement I went to see acid-jazz, hip-hop group Digable Planets, NY Times best-selling author and acclaimed artist Japanese Breakfast, Canadian indie-pop band Alvvays, midwest emo band American Football, female lead Sophia Regina Allison and her band Soccer Mommy, North Carolina rapper Mavi, alternative-indie band Cut Worms, Seattle’s very own Sunny Day Real Estate, and the American sensation Denzel Curry. 

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Although there were still artists I would have loved to see, all the shows that I went to were absolutely phenomenal. In review, the first show I attended was Alvvays. Their dream-power-pop sound is branded with glidey guitar, modulating keys, and darling vocals. The show brought fans of their newest album Blue Rev and fans—like myself—who reveled over their self-titled release, Alvvays, in 2014. 

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After the band left the stage, some of the crowd dispersed and many quickly moved to fill in the newly vacant space in preparation for Pavement’s show that begin at 9:30 p.m. 

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You could feel the energy build as Pavement’s set approached and when the band finally took the stage the crowd erupted with cheers from fans who had been listening to them for decades. Stephen Malkmus passively dominated the stage and Bob Nastanovich counteracted Stephen’s nonchalant stage presence. Nastanovich romped around the stage while expertly bringing percussion, tambourine, slide whistles and classic Pavement noise-sound vocals. 

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The band carried each track with expert precision and character, while fans whipped their heads to the timeless tracks. Pavement brought 25 tracks including “Stereo,” “Cut Your Hair,” “Harness Your Hopes,” and “Range Life.” City Plaza shook when the band began to exit the stage and Malkmus—a University of Virginia grad—left with a wistful comment of “thanks,” as he walked off stage saying, “It’s always nice to come back to this area.” Pavement closed out Hopscotch’s first night on Thursday, September 7. 

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Denzel Curry’s set on Friday, Sept. 8 at City Plaza was unlike any show I had been to. This was my first time seeing him perform and he brought an unbelievable energy to the venue. Speaking directly to the crowd, Curry would have us compete to see who the loudest side of the stage was, left or right. He had the audience in the palm of his hand.

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Once we started to mosh, the rest of the concert flew by, the energy was at an all-time high until Curry left the stage. People’s Crocs, phones, house keys, hats, and jewelry falling to the ground as everyone navigated the mosh pit jumping and shouting along with Curry’s punchy lyrics. Curry’s eclectic and masterful writing skills were the true gem of the set, as fans remarked about how captivating he is as a performer but also how personal he is in his music. Mainstream hip-hop has embraced Curry with widespread arms as has nailed down a brand of luxury music and unforgettable stage presence. 

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The final night of Hopscotch held American Football, Dinosaur Jr., Soccer Mommy, and Japanese Breakfast. The gods of Hopscotch were unforgiving to fans of all or multiple of these bands. These headliners had overlapping set times, so fans were pulled between two venues. I started my day at American Football’s set, where strangers and friends of the beloved ‘midwest emo’ genre gathered. Humming instrumentals and solid vocals, the band sounded as if they were still playing at a house show at the University of Illinois in the 90’s. With barefoot Nate Kinsella playing guitar and Steve Lamos rejoining the band for a mesmerizing performance on the drums. American Football dazzled the stage and eager fans stated they were “thankful to be there.”

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The set came to a close and I jetted to the main stage at City Plaza to secure my spot for Soccer Mommy. 

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The. Rain. Came. Down. 

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Fans stood in the pouring rain as Hopscotch attendants announced an hour delay to Soccer Mommy’s set. As time passed, I spoke with fans waiting for the set to start. Many expressed excitement for the diversity of performers. Max, a concert-goer from Michigan, told me that she really appreciates, "how chill Hopscotch is, you're not getting a security wand shoved up your ass. You just come in, and enjoy the music." 

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Many people expressed the same feelings towards the structure of Hopscotch. Offering free day parties, after parties with artists into the late hours of the night, art markets, free vendors, and the list continues. It is clear to fans that this festival was designed with the festival attendees in mind, and it did not go unnoticed.

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The rain clouds broke and Soccer Mommy took the stage a few moments after 7 o'clock. Nashville singer-songwriter, Sophie Allison leads the band through steady riffs and truth-telling lyrics. Soccer Mommy brought tracks from three fan-favorite albums Clean (2018), Color Theory (2020), and her most recent release Sometimes, Forever (2022). In the release Color Theory, Allison navigates her convoluted emotions surrounding her mother's decade-long battle with cancer. The emotion in her tracks is palpable, captivating the audience and drawing them in to her performance. 

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The clock struck 10:00 and Japanese Breakfast's lead vocalist, Michelle Chongmi Zauner, appeared in a sequined co-ord and platform boots. She began the set solo, playing the haunting track "Posing for Cars" off of the 2021 release Jubilee. At this point my had taken my journalism hat off and completely surrendered to the fact that this was a concert I had waited years to attend. The hours of waiting had paid off, I was front row at Japanese Breakfast and I was taking it in. 

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Guitar solos, storytelling screen displays, and a flowered gong.

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Japanese Breakfast played 15 tracks including "Paprika," "Be Sweet," "Boyish," and "Slide Tackle." The introspective track "Heft," featured on the artist's 2016 release Psychopomp explores themes of loss and longing for connection. Psychopomp was released in the wake of the passing of Zauner's mother. The softness and shoe-gazey delivery of her tracks echo the emotion that was displayed on the stage's screen displays. The artist projected home video footage, pressed florals, and memorabilia that felt like you were reliving Zauner's fondest memories with her mother. 

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The set heightened every emotion, navigating disco, girl-boppy tunes like "The Woman That Loves You" and heartbreakers like "In Heaven." The energy was intoxicating and it was the perfect way to close off the final night of Hopscotch 2023.

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Thank you for reading!