Voodoo Experience 2014

[TomServo]

I'm returning for yet another Voodoo Experience having bought the discounted $99 "Christmas" tickets a few months ago. The lineup usually drops in the spring (mid-April last year), and it's usually headliner-heavy and undercard light. It's a fun but not spectacular city festival in a great vacation destination, and this Halloween festival means lots of cool costumes and drunkards. The only headliner sort of expected this year so far is Outkast, who are expected just about everywhere. Headliners play generally unopposed (side stages do exist, but they don't have super-high dollar acts during headline sets).

Anyhow, I'm dropping this here now because I was able to bag rooms at the official hotel of the festival for considerably cheaper than using the official website with Hotwire tonight... $152 a night at the Hyatt Regency (by the Superdome). Got an additional $25 off with the code APP25 using the mobile app. Total price was $526, almost $200 less than the $719 it would have cost on the festival's website. The Hyatt Regency is a very, very nice hotel right in front of the Superdome. Parking is expensive, but there's a lot across the street for less than $10 a day.

If you want to search for this hotel on Hotwire, look for these amenities and 4 stars in the Downtown - Superdome area:
Fitness Center
Pool(s)
Restaurant(s)
Business Center
Internet Access

One of the best features of the festival is the $99 early bird tickets. I would have paid about a hundred bucks to see Pearl Jam alone last year, and the other headliners (Nine Inch Nails and the Cure) made it a freaking steal. They do have camping in City Park now, but camping in a swamp seems mildly insane.

Anyhow, hope to see some other boarders there in 2014.

[Shaxspear]

I had a blast last year. If the lineup tickles my fancy again this year, I'll probably go again.

[theStank]

GREAT FUCKIN PLACE!!!! 2013 LINE UP was INSANE!!! VENUE is amazing................ the City itself is just unreal! Last year was beautiful! I'd love to go again! Thanks NOLA

[TooOldForThis]

I will be back for my fourth.

And, I think it merits discussion that a likely headliner is the Motley Crue/Alice Cooper tour. On their farewell trip, no NOLA date, and in Biloxi/Southhaven immediately after Voodoo dates. My group considers this a lock.

[TomServo]

Yikes. Here's to hoping they aren't expensive gets, that will go over like a lead balloon with most festival fans. I mean, if you can get lawn tickets to see those geezers for $25, why would you headline them at your festival?

Don't get me wrong, I would watch some of both... but I would not be happy if they took a headline spot from an artist I would go out of my way to see. The drop from Pearl Jam/NIN/The Cure to Motley Crue/Alice Cooper is pretty big. If they did Motley before Alice on Halloween, that would be perfectly fine, with maybe an EDM headliner at the same time, then bust out Outkast and Arcade Fire on Sat and Sun or something... the old fogies get a show, the hip hop fans get a show, and the indie kids get a show. I'd be cool with that.

I keep wondering if they're gonna bring Green Day back after their cancellation a couple years back due to Billie Joe's rehab stint. Voodoo loves commercial pop rock bands, and Green Day gives good festival show.

[RODGERRAMJET]

Voodoo Experience is a fantastic festival in a fantastic location in a fantastic city. Less crowded than Coachella = easier to get around, but still with top-name acts. Don't get me started on the delicious food not only at the festival but also within New Orleans, in general. Nice, friendly people, too. Just an overall great time...probably runs neck-and-neck with Coachella as far as my favorite music festival goes, and it's certainly a lot cheaper (when you figure in the tickets, cost of local hotels, price of food, etc.) than Coachella. Highly recommended.

[TooOldForThis]

then bust out Outkast and Arcade Fire on Sat and Sun or something... the old fogies get a show, the hip hop fans get a show, and the indie kids get a show. I'd be cool with that.

Not gonna get Arcade Fire because they're playing Jazz Fest. I don't think there's ever been any top line crossover.
Outkast...sure. That's quite likely.
Motley Crue does fit the "at least one old fogie band every year" theme of the past years. I think they do sell tickets as a festival band, but I wouldn't be crushed to be wrong on this one.

[TomServo]

No new news here, but I wanted to chime in and remind anybody considering this fest to buy tickets NOW, because after the lineup drops (as early as next week? It dropped mid-April in 2013) they'll probably raise the ticket price.

Right now they're at $125 a head ($150 after fees) for a 3-day pass. They'll go up to probably $175 + fees when the lineup is announced. If the lineup sucks, you probably won't have any trouble reselling the passes for what you paid if you buy early... so if you have an interest in this festival, don't procrastinate! They also have an EZ-Pay plan than splits your purchase into 5 payments for an extra ten bucks.

[Justin170]

I need to try something new this year, so I will be attending this year. What times does the fest go until?

[TomServo]

I think the festival winds up at 11-11:30 on Friday and Saturday and 9:30 or so on Sunday. Typically gets going about 11am. The general idea is the bottom tier are local bands and more southern fried/cajun/bayou friendly acts, the middle tier generally has a couple of gems but not enough to create real conflicts (you'll almost never have to be 3-4 places at once like Coachella), and each night has one dominant headliner that most of the masses attend.

Last year we paid $99 a head and saw headliners Pearl Jam, NIN, and The Cure. Even if we saw nobody else all weekend, that's a freaking steal.

[iamthehorn]

You all are expecting this anyway but Outkast should be a lock. There was a dude passing out insider info on the Bonnaroo board who's going with it and he's never been wrong about any of the multiple festivals he's had info on.

[Justin170]

Cool! Halloween in New Orleans is also a plus!

[Squeaks]

Being a New Orleans native I can tell you it's awesome for Halloween! :-)

[canexplain]

We had fun last year. Camping was right on ..... cr****

[Justin170]

Any idea what the holdup on the line-up is? Maybe there is a Roo headliner?

Seems fishy...

[TomServo]

Any idea what the holdup on the line-up is? Maybe there is a Roo headliner?

Seems fishy...

The year Soundgarden headlined they didn't drop the lineup till June either - maybe there was crossover with Bonnaroo that year. Or maybe they just needed to be fiscally responsible - i.e. not blow everything on headliners they couldn't afford?

I have just about zero doubt Outkast will be there, since they don't have a New Orleans tour date. Beck seems likely too. Hoping for QotSA who didn't play there for awhile. Outside of that people are talking about Tool, Foo Fighters, Arctic Monkeys, Flaming Lips as potential headline/second line bands. Only AM from that list are at Roo, but maybe some of the Broken Bells/Skrillex types? Maybe Kanye West?

I guess we'll probably know fairly shortly. I hope so, anyway.

[Justin170]

https://mobile.twitter.com/VoodooNol...802944/photo/1

[silver06]

Meh.

http://www.stereogum.com/1687836/voo...eup-2014/news/

[guedita]

[getbetter]

"Best line up ever"

[guedita]

It reminds me though, that Bo Ningen is doing another tour in the fall and planning on coming to SF. And Sturgill Simpson is trying to do a club tour as well.

[JorgeC]

Seems like a pretty straight forward fest, not trying to be mindblowing, lots of mainstream acts (Foos, 30 Seconds to Mars and Rise Against...not your typical festival bands that are on every lineup), the best thing about this fest seems to be that you are in New Orleans and the price is cheap enough that you can get your money's worth without having to be there all day, like Tom's comment above about PJ, NIN and The Cure.

[TomServo]

I don't know how anybody could complain about this lineup given the ticket cost and geography. Foos are fairly exclusive at US festivals this year and a great festival rock act (you know, hits and all that), Outkast is all over the place EXCEPT N'awlins, so this stop is important for that reason, and AM and Skrillex are headliner-worthy (based on everybody else). I'm excited to see Gogol Bordello again, and DFA 1979 are a must. Since I bought early ($99) and I love N'awlins, this is going to be a great weekend for me.

Well - I could see criticism leveled at the lack of weirdness, I guess, and the "safe" nature of the top couple lines. So that's something. And the Voodoo lineup is never deep with non-local bands... but for a hundred bucks, what should you expect?

[getbetter]

Damn $99 .Is this always the wkend before funfunfun?

[nathanfairchild]

Yes.

[Justin170]

Im going fuck it!

[kvnty]

fucking Melvins! very solid lineup + NOLA = good times

[Bumblebee]

So the "rare gets" are Foo Fighters and DFA 79? Both acts might have a full tours announced by the time Halloween rolls around.

One thing to watch for is the final Outkast show - at least final 2014 show.

[getbetter]

Yeah there may be a full tour about to announced but these may be the first time in the states you can hear the new DFA songs and new songs from Foo Fighters

[TomServo]

They're rare gets for festival fans, yes. That's close to the end of festival season, and I think DFA has only put FFF on their festival schedule. Foos were at one or two fests, I think.

And if you like them, let's see.. I could pay $60 to see Foos alone (or maybe with one of the other Voodoo bands) or pay $99 and see them with a weekend of other bands. Which option makes more sense? For the record the tickets are $130 now, so it's not that great of a deal as it was when the first presale hit, but Arctic Monkeys? Gogol Bordello? There are plenty of other rock acts on the ticket to make it worthwhile for someone who lives close enough to drive.

There is a fundamental difference between a $400 festival ticket in the desert and a $100 festival ticket a couple miles from Bourbon Street. With all due respect to Coachella, there are reasons to prefer the latter.