October 26 through 29, the homegrown festival welcomes a heavyweight slate of headliners including influential contemporary rock effort Unknown Mortal Orchestra, acclaimed Los Angeles producer Flying Lotus, experimental electronic act Oneohtrix Point Never, and Nineties post-hardcore trio Unwound. Other leading acts, announced today, include Beach Fossils, BADBADNOTGOOD, Amyl & the Sniffers, Ty Segall & Freedom Band, and Blonde Redhead.
After rebranding from Austin Psych Fest to Levitation in 2015, the festival transferred to a multi-venue format in Downtown Austin in 2018. Returning Levitation venues to be drenched in liquid light include Stubb’s, Mohawk, Empire, Hotel Vegas, Elysium, Parish, Antone’s, and the 13th Floor. Find tickets on sale here, and the full lineup at levitation.fm. Four-day passes run $440, while GA tickets to individual shows, which are all on sale now, run from $18 to $55.
For the first time, the club-based festival will incorporate East Austin electronic hub the Concourse Project and South Austin outdoor venue the Far Out Lounge. Concourse hosts a 15-year anniversary celebration of Flying Lotus’ Brainfeeder label with Flying Lotus, Eshu Tune (Hannibal Buress), Salami Rose Joe Louis, and more. The Far Out will feature a psych-rock evening of fest founders the Black Angels, the Brian Jonestown Massacre, and the Dandy Warhols, as well as a separate night of Unknown Mortal Orchestra, Panda Bear and Sonic Boom, Allah-Las, and Tanukichan.
Other highlights of the retro-and-experimentally-minded festival include poetic Brooklyn pop makers Water From Your Eyes, Philly indie rock standards Speedy Ortiz, and Cali alt-hardcore quintet Militarie Gun. Desert Daze, Substance, and metal collective Heavy Psych Sounds all present showcases – with the latter curating Dead Meadow, Ecstatic Vision, and 1000mods.
Austin acts on the 2023 lineup are Annabelle Chairlegs, Font, Money Chicha, Blushing, the Well, Holy Wave, Die Spitz, El Combo Oscuro, Rickshaw Billie’s Burger Patrol, Nolan Potter’s Nightmare Band, and, of course, the Black Angels.
This article appears in June 23 • 2023.