Bruce Springsteen, Pearl Jam and The Killers have played the beach in Asbury Park at Sea.Hear.Now. It's hard to beat the Boss. However, the curators of the annual September music, arts and surf festival have put together a weekend, slated for September 18 and 19, with arguably the greatest collection of overall talent since Sea.Hear.Now.Hear.Now debuted in 2018.
The Strokes, who have been rock royalty since the release of 2001's "Is This It," which is one of the greatest debut albums of all-time, will headline September 19. Mumford and Sons, which has been remarkably consistent since the release of its acclaimed debut, 2009's "Sigh No More" will close the show September 18.
Sea.Hear.Now has had its share of top tier closers. However, the entire lineup is jaw-dropping this time around.
Those looking for alt-rock icons will love the iconic Pixies and the legendary Kim Gordon. Reggae fans will enjoy Ziggy Marley and Shaggy. Old school R&B soul is covered by the incompable Chaka Khan. The throwback to the '80s features The Bangles' Susannah Hoffs and Men at Work. The Australian band features one original member, Colin Hay, who is backed by a group of Cuban musicians.
The latest version of Men at Work is tremendous and stole the show from Toto at the Hard Rock in Atlantic City last summer. The Offspring will bring the punk rock. '90s pop rock is represented by the Goo Goo Dolls, Moby and the All-American Rejects. Contemporaty pop arrives in the form of the playful Fitz and the Tantrums. Jarod Clemons is the local hero hitting the stage. Flipturn is among the wave of emerging bands set to perform at Sea.Hear.Now.
"Every year we try to be very diverse but to stay in a certain pocket," Sea.Hear.Now co-producer Danny Clinch said. "We're excited about what we have played for this year. Mumford and Sons have been on our radar since we saw them in Seaside Park on the "Gentlemen of the Road" tour.
Clinch is referring to the English folk-rock band's jaunt in 2015. "That show was on the beach," Clinch said. It was a great curation."
That experience helped inspire Clinch and co-producer Tim Donnelly to create Sea.Hear.Now. "We've made our own thing," Clinch said. "When we do this we try to add some punk rock, some reggae and more. If you want to catch some legacy acts, parents can come out and see Chaka Khan and Men at Work. The kids can show their parents Flipturn. We try to have something for everyone."
The Strokes, who are touring behind their latest album, "Reality Awaits," have always favored festivals. The band, which grabbed the baton as the great New York City based band from the likes of the Velvet Underground and Sonic Youth, impressed during a recent 90-minute show in Maryland.
Clinch, a renowned rock photographer, has a long history with the Strokes. "I had gotten an assignment from Spin Magazine to photograph the Strokes when they played a little club in Baltimore (in 2001)," Clinch said. "They were playing this little bar with the Kings of Leon opening. My partner with Sea.Hear.Now, Tim Donnelly, came with me and we became friendly with Kings of Leon. It's been great watching the Strokes over the years and now they're coming to Asbury Park."
Clinch is compelled to give credit when it comes to Sea.Hear.Now since it's a massive undertaking. "It's important to mention that it's a group effort with Tim Donnelly and Tim Sweetwood from C3, who runs the show and HM Wollman," Clinch said. "We're all music fans collaborating and trying to bring something different to the table."
The aforementioned Fitz and the Tantrums are looking forward to Sea.Hear.Now.
The playful band is one of those rock stories of an act that took years to break even though they were dubbed an overnight sensation when the band hit the pop stratosphere with the infectious smash "HandClap" a decade ago.
" "Having a hit song is amazing," vocalist-keyboardist Michael "Fitz" Fitzpatrick said while calling from Los Angeles. "You know I spent a good 12 years before this band broke. I wasn't able to get arrested for music. Nobody cared. Nobody listened to anything I ever did so the moment when your song goes that wide and that many people know you, well, it's an incredible moment. But with it also comes a lot of pressure because then that's the bar that everybody wants you to hit."
Fitzpatrick laughed when the discussion turned to recording artists, who refuse to play their hits live. When Beck made his debut in a Philadelphia club in 1994, most fans only knew his initial single, "Loser," which the emerging star refused to play. After Beck left the stage the Philly crowd booed him.
"To the people that get resentful and don't wanna play their hit songs for people, I think they're idiots and selfish because those fans made you," Fitzpatrick said. "Don't be so pious as to not play the one song you know everybody came to hear. It's so ridiculous. I'll never forget going to Coachella and seeing Gotye play and when his big hit was about to be played, he was so annoyed. 'Here's the one song ("Somebody That I Used to Know") you all came to see and hear,' (Gotye said). In my mind, I was like, 'Screw this guy. That's ridiculous!' You should be grateful for this opportunity and maybe that's because I had to grind so hard and I didn't even start to have success in the music business until I was 38-years old so I will never do that."
Expect a fun set from Fitz and the Tantrums and a good time outside of music at Sea.Hear.Now. Such world renowned surfers as Sam Hammer, Cam Richards and Audrey Iglay will navigate the Asbury Park waves.
And Clinch is all about giving back. The Transparent Clinch Gallery will represent at Sea.Hear.Now with a pop-up gallery. The art tent is a staple at the festival and will feature art created by recording artists that will benefit local organizations.
Dave Grohl created and auctioned off hand-drawn art that raised over $14,000 for charity. Public Enemy's Chuck D. and Flavor Flav donated PE surfboards. Bruce Springsteen, Eddie Vedder and Lenny Kravitz have donated pieces.
"We showcase the art in the pop up gallery and sell it and donate to local charities," Clinch said. "It's all about giving back to the community, which has been so supportive."
For more information, https://www.seahearnowfestival.com
The curators of the annual September music, arts and surf festival have put together a weekend, with arguably the greatest collection of overall talent since Sea.Hear.Now.Hear.Now debuted in 2018.
Every year we try to be very diverse but to stay in a certain pocket. We're excited about what we have played for this year.