The 15 biggest L.A. concerts to look forward to in 2020

It’s an experience-driven, genre-spanning music fest in a grassy field in the desert—but nope, it’s not Coachella. The inaugural 4xFAR is bringing the likes of Anderson .Paak & the Free Nationals, Mark Ronson and Q-Tip, Sofi Tukker, Young The Giant, Kurt Vile and the Violators, Maya Janes Coles and others to the Empire Grand Oasis, a palm-tree–lined field and country club-esque freshwater lake oasis in Thermal.

There’s something so joyful about King Princess (otherwise known as Mikaela Straus), even when she’s writing sad songs. You can feel creative excitement shining through everything she does, whether that’s the incredibly romantic but tongue-in-cheek “Pussy is God” or the elegant heartbreak of “Talia.”

Your favorite ’90s ska-metal carnival-disco funk band is back: Mr. Bungle, the chaotically genre-hopping outfit is returning for its first live shows in almost two decades. The Mike Patton-fronted project will reuinite him with founding members Trevor Dunn and Trey Spruance, plus Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian and frequent Patton collaborator Dave Lombardo on drums. For the show at the Fonda, the band will play through their 1986 demo tape, The Raging Wrath of the Easter Bunny.

It’s been a mainstay of protest signs, songs and chants, but this spring the “power to the people” refrain will fill the Walt Disney Concert Hall. Gustavo Dudamel and Herbie Hancock are bringing together musicians, artists and activists for a series of shows between March 5 and April 11 that celebrate solidarity and humanitarian spirit. Programs include sets from Dudamel and the LA Phil, Hancock and Patti Smith, a talk from Dr. Angela Davis about social change, the movie music of Spike Lee and his go-to composer Terence Blanchard and more.

For nearly a decade now, Tame Impala has parlayed fuzz-soaked tidal waves of melodic psych-rock into massive anthems that channel John Lennon at times. See them in support of their latest, The Slow Rush, during this show at the Forum; lo-fi singer-songwriter Clairo opens.

More than two decades in, Wilco sounds just as magnetic and Jeff Tweedy’s lyrics just as sweet and sharp as they’ve ever been. The Chicago group has shuffled its lineup and sound over the years, mostly ditching its alt country roots for detours into noise rock and jam band territory—or, on its latest record Ode to Joy, more quiet meditations. Live, you can expect to see the incredibly tight band alternate between krautrock grooves and Lynyrd Skynyrd-like guitar attacks.

Rally ’round the family: Rage Against the Machine is reuniting and performing at Coachella. At least, we’re pretty sure they are after the band suddenly dropped the news that they’ll be playing a pair of shows in Indio this April. Expect the rest of the lineup (and official confirmation of RATM) to drop early on in the year.

These California legends of classic rock may not live life in the fast lane any more, but the surviving members are still traveling the world to bring their slick, plastic country-rock and perfect harmonies to their whopping international fanbase. For its latest tour, the band is tackling Hotel California in full, backed by a 46-piece orchestra and a 22-person choir.

Silver Lake’s harmonizing five-piece Local Natives teams up with the Oxford funk-punk outfit Foals for this co-headlining tour. Westsiders Cherry Glazerr open the show at the Greek Theatre with their belovedly bratty pop-punk.

Virgin Fest is coming to L.A. on June 6 and 7, 2020 and it’ll feature multiple stages spread across the Banc of California Stadium and most of Exposition Park. It’s being billed as a huge party to kick off summer each year—yes, there are already plans to make it an annual event. We won’t know the lineup until early next year, when tickets go on sale, but it’ll lean Top 40—find out more in our story about the fest’s announcement.

I’m broke but I’m happy because Alanis Morissette is playing the Hollywood Bowl (and, let’s face it, we’ll be even more broke once we shell out for tickets). The singer-songwriter who we’ve all attempted to emulate during drunken karaoke is celebrating the 25th anniversary of Jagged Little Pill, and she’ll be playing all the hits. Upping the nostalgia overload: Garbage and Liz Phair will open the show.

Harkening back to the days when gigantic acts like Van Halen, Metallica and Scorpions banded together on the Monsters of Rock Tour, contemporary radio-friendly alt-rock titans Green Day, Weezer and Fall Out Boy are joining forces for a co-headlining summer jaunt at Dodger Stadium.

The old Taylor is dead and the new Taylor is… filling mega venues with undeniably catchy pop songs, just like the old Taylor. But Swift has started to rebound from the murky reception to Reputation with 2019’s more well-liked Lover, which she’ll be supporting with shows around the world. Here in L.A., Swift will spend her only West Coast concert dates in 2020 at SoFi Stadium, the NFL’s newest swanky space. Look out for the announcement of some major opening acts for Lover Fest West, as it’s being billed.

We can never really tell when the Black Crowes are together, on hiatus, getting back together, about to go on hiatus or what. The Robinson brothers will hit the Forum for a two-night stand that celebrates the 30th anniversary of their debut album, Shake Your Money Maker, which they’ll play in full.

We have no clue who’ll be playing the L.A. debut of Primavera Sound, but if last year’s lineup at its lauded Barcelona originator is any indication (Solange, Janelle Monáe, Robyn, Tame Impala, Future and James Blake, among others), this could quickly become L.A.’s go-to music fest.