By the time February rolls around each year, we're usually daydreaming of the warm days of July when Pitchfork Music Festival takes over Union Park for a weekend of cutting-edge indie rock, hip-hop and electronica. This February, the online publication is introducing a new indoor event in Chicago that should make the wait for the Pitchfork lineup announcement a bit more tolerable.
This morning, the Art Institute of Chicago and Pitchfork revealed more details about a collaborative event called Midwinter, a three-day celebration of music and art that will take over the galleries and performance venues of the world famous museum. Hosted February 15–17, the event will feature performances by more than 30 acts, musician-designed sound installations and premieres of original tunes that draw inspiration from the museum's collection.
The Midwinter lineup should look familiar if you've attended previous iterations of Pitchfork Music Festival, with a bill featuring acts like saxophonist Kamasi Washington, English shoegazers Slowdive, glitchy electronic producer Oneohtrix Point Never and experimental rockers Deerhunter. The weekend will also highlight some special performances, including local post-rock group Tortoise celebrating the 21st anniversary of TNT and avant-garde composer William Basinski playing The Disintegration Loops with the help of the Chicago Philharmonic. Madison McFerrin, Mary Lattimore, Daniel Bachman, Haley Fohr of Circuit des Yeux and Marisa Anderson will perform during each day of the event, and soundscapes designed by artists like Nico Muhly, Julia Holter, Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith and Helado Negro will be on display throughout the weekend.
Tickets for Midwinter go on sale Friday, November 16 at 10am via Pitchfork's website, with general admission starting at $50 per day for access to the Art Institute's collection, select performances and live recordings of the Pitchfork Radio broadcast that will be taking place in the museum. Many of the acts on the lineup will be performing at special shows taking place in venues such as the Art Institute’s Griffin Court, the Rubloff Auditorium, the Stock Exchange room and Fullerton Hall—add-on tickets from those concerts will range from $15–$30.
While the ticketing process for the Midwinter seems a bit convoluted (what with the abundance of optional add-on concerts), a multi-day music festival that takes place inside an art museum is a novel concept. Take a look at the complete lineup of acts below and keep your eye out for additional details when tickets go sale Friday, November 16.
Performing Nightly
Madison McFerrin
Mary Lattimore
Daniel Bachman
Haley Fohr of Circuit des Yeux
Marisa Anderson
Friday, February 15
Slowdive
DJ Koze + Baba Stiltz
William Basinski (The Disintegration Loops with the Chicago Philharmonic)
Mount Eerie
Mykki Blanco
Yves Tumor
Sudan Archives
Saturday, February 16
Kamasi Washington
Panda Bear
Tortoise (TNT 21st anniversary performance)
Deerhunter
Grouper
Jlin
serpentwithfeet
William Basinski (On Time Out Of Time)
Sunday, February 17
Oneohtrix Point Never
Laurie Anderson
Perfume Genius
Zola Jesus + Smerz
Hiss Golden Messenger
Weyes Blood