Boston Calling Recap 2024

Memorial Day weekend, 2024 - Boston Calling Music Festival featured amazing performances from star headliners and talented rising stars, as well as some of the best weather on record. Food vendors were high level, giveaways were plentiful, and good vibes were flowing.

Near perfect weather brought the crowds and a terrific energy on Friday & Saturday.  Sound and video from the green & stages was well done so you could elect to be up in the shoulder to shoulder area or to stay back and sit on the grass to see & hear the show. 

Friday & Saturday crowds were much more manageable, Saturday being the most laid back and relaxed, with only about 16,000 on hand.

Sunday's crowd was another story. The only day that was sold out, Sunday hosted an estimated 40,000 people - which was a number that definitely tested the logistics of the festival.  But we'll get into that later.  Here's a recap of the three days:

photo credit: Boston Calling / Alive Coverage

Friday and Saturday proved to be fantastic crowd and logistics wise.  Bathrooms were plentiful and located in a number of key areas. Food vendors were abundant and specialty vendors handing out free stuff made things fun.  Seemed like the event facilities were well thought out and functioning well.

Vendors & Features

A few highly appreciated features included a dedicated hydration station area for refilling water bottles near the entrance gate. There were also multiple free sunscreen dispensers provided by the Race Cancer foundation. 

The Boston Calling app sent out regular reminders to festival-goers to stay hydrated and to re-apply sunscreen.   While this was a wonderful resource, it might be a good idea to have water stations located throughout the festival instead of only at the front gate.

Liquid Death was the primary water sponsor of the Festival, which serves up water in cans instead of plastic water bottles.  They gave out free cans if you signed up, or "sold your soul".  Beyond that, you could purchase cans of water for $5 each which was a bit much.

Sam Adams was on hand for tastings and giveaways, as well as a deck for chilling, chatting, and Jenga playing.  They also had a special beer brewed specifically for the festival called 'Stage Hopper'. 

Jersey Mike's was another a popular vendor as they distributed free subs every hour if you had the app on your phone.  They also gave out free reusable straws and cooling cloths, hosted a small concert performance from the Castaways.

Lite Beer was tucked away back near the red stage where they were busy giving out cool cowboy hats, bucket hats and beer samples, plus cornhole. 

Subaru handed out clear fanny packs which were great for carrying around your gear hands free, also sunscreen sticks and pollinator seeds.

Dunkin Donuts - The House of Dunkin' was a popular spot for free coffee and munchkin samples downstairs and free 'dunkin' airbrush tattoos at the studio upstairs.  They also gave out cool pink bucket hats. 

photo credit: Boston Calling / Alive Coverage

Truly enjoyed long lines to taste new flavors, and to enjoy rooftop views from their double decker platform.   This was an especially good place to be during the the sold-out Sunday performances.  I headed over to the Truly deck (not sure how I was lucky enough to get up there) but it was a great way to avoid being stuck in the fray. 

Photo credit: BostonCentral 

Photo Credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

**Performances**

Let's talk about the performances!  From top to bottom - this year's festival featured some amazing performers.  There were almost too many to see - which is a good problem. 

FRIDAY HIGHLIGHTS & SCENES

photo credit: Boston Calling / Alive Coverage

Blue Stage - Maris
3:20pm

photo credit: Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

Maris is going to be a star.  Her lyrics are amazing and her natural stage presence is fun.  And she's got a voice that drew people in from the far corners of the festival.  Her first festival gig! I hadn’t heard of her before, but she blew me away. Songs we loved included Voicemail, Hot Guitar Guy, and (soon to be released) Chameleon. 

We got to catch up with Maris after her set - you can read our interview with Maris here. 

Red Stage: Beach Weather
3:00pm

photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

Green Stage: Luke Hemmings
3:55pm

Photo credit: Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

Green Stage: Renee Rapp
5:55pm

Photo credit: Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

Green Stage: Ed Sheeran
8:40pm

Having never seen Ed Sheeran live before, I was impressed to see that he was the only one on stage.  He did not have a backup band.  His show consisted of himself with a guitar and a looping pedal that he operated by foot to create sounds and beats to build on.  It was all done in real time which added to the unique excitement of his set.  Plus I loved the cover songs thrown in there, as well as the numerous nods to Boston, Irish and the Celtics. 

Photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

The Ferris Wheel provided a festive backdrop that changed throughout the day and into night.  Brilliant blue skies by day and stunning sunset backdrops as evening fell.  Rides were $10 per person with proceeds benefitting Music Drives Us, which works to keep music in schools

Photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

SATURDAY HIGHLIGHTS & SCENES

Red Bull's rendition of the Harvard Square newsstand was a really cool setup and included a bunch of standup tables with umbrellas to enjoy a beverage and beat the heat. 

photo credit: BostonCentral

Green Stage: Khruangbin 
3:55pm

Saturday kicked off to a great early afternoon start with Khruangbin.  I had never heard them before and they totally wowed me.   They had a unique style and an excellent groove!  They sounded like nothing like I've heard before, but somehow I felt right at home.

Red Stage: Frank Turner
4:55pm

Frank Turner engaged with a lively crowd and ended up crowd surfing much to the delight of festival fans.  Frank actually performed at the very first Boston Calling in 2014 and was back this year with a great set on Saturday at the Red Stage.

photo credit: Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

Green Stage: D4VD
3:20pm

An electric set from indi-alternative rock artist d4vd, (pronounced 'David', not DforVD) who did impromptu backflips, while crooning out a wide range of songs.  19 year old David Burke, poet, turned singer, scored his breakout hit in summer 2022 with the melancholic song “Romantic Homicide,” whose brutally honest lyrics about heartbreak and resentment really connected with fans.  The song is based on the relationship between Carl and his wife in the movie UP.

Photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

Blue Stage:  Jessie Murph
7:35pm

Other highlights included country/folk singer Jessie Murph who surprised fans with two unreleased songs. The first was the rock-heavy “Gotta Hold” and the second was a rap track called “Best Behavior.” The 19-year-old musician has yet to reveal release dates for either track.

Red Stage: Trey Anastasio
7:15pm

From start to finish Trey and his band were having a great time. He has a terrific stage presence, loves what he does, he's clearly happy to be up there. He's smiling throughout and just brings out joy.  Lots of dancing and swaying and enjoying - the crowd for this set definitely shared his joy.  This was another performer that I wasn't that familiar with but I left a new fan, very glad to have seen his fantastic set.

photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

photo credit: Boston Calling | Alive Coverage

Green Stage: Tyler Childers
9:00pm

Tyler Childers delivered a standout performance at Boston Calling Music Festival 2024. Taking the stage on Saturday, May 25, he became the first country artist to headline the festival, which was a notable milestone for both the event and the genre's representation there

photo credit: Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

The performance was well-received, with Childers' soulful voice and poignant lyrics resonating strongly with the audience. His music, which often addresses themes of social justice & personal Struggle, brought an authenticity that captivated festival-goers.

SUNDAY HIGHLIGHTS & SCENES

Crowds filled in early and often on sold-out Sunday.  Having been there Friday & Saturday, and knowing that Sunday was 'sold out' I guess I should have been prepared - but I was not.  Generally the day starts out with a steady flow of people and builds.  Sunday was pretty much crowded from the get go.  

I’ve been to several Boston Calling Festivals over the years, and I’ve never seen the festival more crowded than it was on Sunday, which was sold out. An estimated 40,000 people were there on Sunday (compared to about 16,000 on Saturday), but it honestly felt like even more than that - and they were all there all day.  

Green Stage: Chappell Roan
4:00pm

For a 4:00pm show slot, the crowd for Chappell Roan's set was extremely impressive!  They got there early and the energy never stopped.   But the crowd was overwhelming, and not in a good way.  In the future, walking paths should be present.  As it was it was a sea of people and quite difficult to move around if you were trying to exit the crowd.  

The organizers clearly didn't plan well in this regard.  They had four of the day's top billings back to back to back in the same area - and that's where things got difficult.  To accommodate the sheer volume of fans,  It might have been better to split the crowd between the Blue Stage and the main areas on Sunday.  

Sunday’s schedule and Green & Red stage assignments left the Blue stage somewhat sparse.  The Green and Red Stages were packed shoulder to shoulder from 3:00pm to close, so basically it made it difficult to move anywhere.  Concession lines also clogged any open walking paths.  

There was a brief surge for concessions after Roan finished her set, but by the time Megan Thee Stallion walked onto the Green Stage at 6:25, many people were essentially stuck in place.   As see in the photo above, there were zero dedicated walking paths.  No bueno.

Green Stage: Megan Thee Stallion
6:25pm

According to many, MTS's show was a favorite of the weekend.  While I wasn't as familiar with her work, she is a true performer and, she had the crowd totally into it, great choreography (and a whole lot of ass :). It really drove home the difference between a musician and a musician who's also a performer.  She's definitely both.  

photo credit Boston Calling | Taylor Hill

Red Stage: Hozier

Hozier was a major draw at the Red Stage.  We got funneled over toward the Green Stage for the Killers, so it was unfortunately hard to hear Hozier.  I'm told that the sound was less than for his set and that his generally beautiful songs were overshadowed by the crushing crowd surge. 

He did speak a bit about current events, hitting many major issues, including women’s rights, LGBTQ, voting, protest, peaceful protest, Gaza/Palestinians, Islamophobia, anti-semitism.  He balanced that nicely and got many many cheers. 

Again, the enormous crowd was really tough for this set. Hozier played the Red Stage right before the Killers played the adjacent green stage.  On a sold out day, these two sets might have been better if separated - perhaps Hozier at Blue Stage and Killers at Green Stage.  While he was incredible. the crowd crush was, by many accounts, rather terrifying.

Not sure why the Blue Stage (which had way more capacity) couldn't have been used to split the crowd a bit throughout the day.  

The shame of it is, that there were great bands like Alvvays and Blondshell playing at the Blue Stage, but there were never more than several hundred people there.  Green and Red stages were so packed, you couldn't even move to get over there. 

Green Stage: The Killers

Somehow we were able to get front and center for the Killers set about 16 rows back.  This was largely luck and just following the flow of the crowd.  The energy was amazing and they put on an excellent show. 

Crowd favorites included Caution, When You Were Young, Somebody Told Me, with an encore of Human and Mr. Brightside. 

Hats off to Brandon Flowers for stopping mid-song to address a medical situation over by the Fenway wall.  Once things cleared he took it from the bridge and finished the song. 

The performances throughout Sunday were some of the best of the weekend, but the crowds were dense with no real walking lanes or to get anywhere.  but as comments on both Boston Calling social media showed - the unprecedented crowds were definitely a problem.   Boston Calling issued the following statement today. 

Logistics that worked seamlessly on Friday and Saturday were suddenly overrun very early on Sunday.  It was extremely difficult to move around.  You pretty much had had to squeeze your way through at every turn.

Staff & roadies began handing out $5 waters freely to the crowds, but the number of overheated concertgoers who needed medical assistance were well above the norm. 

Future sold-out shows should include more walkways and exit/entryways.  Fans should not be penned in without the ability to reach an exit path within a few minutes.  Water stations while available, were only located at the front of the venue. 

Top drawing performers should be staggered between the Blue stage and the Green Stage areas with ample walkways to accommodate people moving between sets. 

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