It’s a beautiful day, and Barnard’s annual music festival WBAR-B-Q (Edition XX) is today! Check out the lineup below and event page here, but not for too long because it’ll be much better to hear these people in person. The festival/concert/extravaganza starts at 12 p.m. on the Lehman Lawn and runs until 8, so hustle over right now!

GREAT MASON
Great Mason’ll kick off the barbeque- They’re a psych group formed in NYC that plays slouchy, sprawling rock ‘n’ roll music. Their first tape, Cypriot Sarcophagus, is as unpredictable as it is subdued. They sound confused, but they might not be. Their songs surprise you like a satisfying leg cramp. WBAR alumni in the band. Check out Cypriot Sarcophagus here.

KLEENEX GIRL WONDER
Born out of the Chicago D.I.Y. scene, Kleenex Girl Wonder just may be the wittiest band you’ve never heard of. Over the last seventeen years, frontman and chief lyricist Graham Smith has built a cult following with his catchy guitar hooks and tongue-in-cheek lyrics. The band released its twelfth full-length, Let It Buffer, just a few weeks ago, and it’s a doozy; here, ponderings about creepy 20th century mysticism, there, diatribes on Brooklyn poseurs. If you dig Weezer or They Might be Giants, you definitely won’t want to miss out on these wacky rockers.

OLD WOUNDS
Old Wounds is an awesome three-piece sludgy post-hardcore band from Jersey; they’re heavy, playful, and frantic. You’ll like ‘em if you you like energetic, loud, or grimy tunes, or if you often find yourself angry. Listen to the track “New Fortunes” from their new LP From Where We Came is Where We’ll Rest here:

Even more performers after the jump.

But which local establishment will the free food be from?

WBAR will cap off its 20th year of broadcasting this year with a spectacular WBAR-B-Q on Saturday, April 27th, from noon to 8pm on Barnard College’s Lehman Lawn. The all-day, outdoor festival is FREE, ALL AGES, and OPEN TO THE PUBLIC and will feature free food from a local establishment TBA.

The lineup is looks impressive, but because Bwog has no taste in music, we’d like YOU to tell us who we should be most excited about in the comments.

Great Mason (DC strange garage)

Kleenex Girl Wonder (NYC/Chicago rock auteur)

Old Wounds (NJ metalcore)

Chris Forsyth (Philly electric primitive)

Scott and Charlene’s Wedding (Aussie pop)

Swearin’ (Philly pop-punk)

Speedy Ortiz (W. Mass riffs)

Waxahatchee (Philadelphia truth)

Roomrunner (Baltimore bunge rock)

TWIN SISTER (BK dream disco)

the lineup

Update: Peace Food is catering some “FANCY FANCY” vegan food, and more will be arriving at 4:30. A peek at the happy concertgoers is below.

WBAR’s annual day-long free concert is happening now! This year, acts include DâM-FunK, Widowspeak, and Bush Tetras, among many others. There will be joy and music and free BBQ from 2 to 7 pm on Lehman Lawn at Barnard, and then the festivities will continue in the Diana Center Event Oval from 7 to 10. Translation: it’s time to stop pretending you’re actually going to write your term paper today and go out and play before the semester’s over.

Soaking up the sounds

This fine Saturday, WBAR, Barnard’s College Radio will host their 19th annual music festival and BBQ. The shows will run from 2 pm to 7 pm on Lehman Lawn, then party on inside to the Diana Oval until bedtime (at 10 pm). Judging from the lineup, genres will range from carefree folk to 80s throwback to eerie ambient noises. But don’t let us judge for you! Listen for yourselves…

Midtown Dickens is a quartet from North Carolina who marry intricately crafted folk songs with an offbeat sense of humor.

Night Birds plays punk music the way it’s supposed to sound: fast, loud, and to-the-point. Their style is definitely rooted in the classic sounds of 80′s hardcore, but with surf-rock flourish throughout.

Don’t worry, it gets rowdier…

It's gonna be just like this

Barnard College Radio WBAR has just announced the lineup for WBAR-B-Q XIX, the 19th incarnation of its annual concert and outdoor barbecue. The festival boasts “an all-day, all-free concert featuring 2 stages, 9 acts, 8 hours of music, BBQ & food.” From 2 to 10 pm on Saturday April 28th, you can expect lots of free food, games, and giveaways all over the Barnard campus.

There will be two rounds of alternative gigs, one outside on the Lehman Lawn in the afternoon and one that night in the Diana Event Oval. Past players at the event have included Vampire Weekend, so this is your chance to be the ultimate trend-spotter! Headliners this year include DâM-FunK and what is apparently a VERY SPECIAL secret guest. Read Pitchfork’s coverage of last year’s event here, with the full lineup after the jump.

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Skewering Musicians With A Gigantic 3-Pronged Weapon And A Thesaurus

Pitchfork—the website whose album reviews have a Flesch-Kincaid Reading Ease score on par with your student loan agreement—stopped by for WBAR-B-Q last Friday. They posted some snazzy pictures here and here. Unfortunately, you won’t be able to like these pictures before they were cool. 19 people already like the album on facebook.

Read a recap of the festivities from Bwog’s All Things Alfresco correspondent Zoe Camp after the jump!

Lehman Lawn-ish

Make the most of the fact that it’s not raining and that you couldn’t go to Coachella by attending our very own music festival! All fans of free food, sick up-and-coming indie bands, and sitting on the (Barnard) lawns should check out the 18th Annural WBAR-B-Q, student-run radio station WBAR’s outdoor barbecue and new music festival. All the action begins at 3 on Barnard’s Lehman Lawn and continues until 7pm, when it switches to an indoor concert/rave in the Diana Event Oval from 7pm to 11pm. There better be glow sticks. Headliners include Real Estate, whose debut album Pitchfork deemed worthy of their “Best New Music” list, and The Crystal Ark, a new project from Gavin Russom, the guy who played synths for LCD Soundsystem’s live shows. Here’s the full line-up.

Lehman Lawn:

• Driphouse
• Beige
• Big Troubles
• Grooms
• Julianna Barwick
• Real Estate

Diana Event Oval:

• Laurel Halo
• ARP
• Blondes
• The Crystal Ark

If you’ve never heard of any of those bands and have no idea what they sound like, check out this handy mixtape, which features a track from each band. Even if you don’t care for the music, you should check it out for the free food. Really. Bwog has learned that Kosher Uzbek kebabs are being shipped into WBAR-B-Q from Cheburechnaya, the kebab-holic paradise in Queens.

And if you really love free food, double up today at the Muslim Student Association’s Spring Picnic, which starts at 2pm in Riverside Park and features even more free barbecue and giveaways.

Maybe not quite Lehman Lawn via Wikimedia

WBBQ

Our friends at WBAR threw together this awesome mix featuring tracks by each of the ten bands scheduled to play at this upcoming Friday’s annual WBBQ.

Some Highlights: Real Estate earned Pitchfork’s prestigious best new music with their self-titled album. The Crystal Ark, lead by Gavin Russom, counts two of the former members of LCD Soundsystem among their ranks and will be performing their 2nd US show. Blondes promise to fulfill your Balearic disco dreams.

Tracklist after the jump. Download the full mix here.
WBARBQ2011 by djdjnate

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Let's hope it doesn't rain!

Barnard College Radio WBAR has just announced the lineup for WBAR-B-Q, the 18th edition of its annual concert and outdoor barbecue! The staff are pretty hyped about it, calling it “the most spectacular WBAR-B-Q ever.” From 3 to 11 pm on Friday, April 15, you can expect lots of free food, games, and giveaways on Lehman Lawn and in the Diana Event Oval. There are gonna be two shows (i.e. double sickness): one outside on the lawn in the afternoon and one that night in the Diana Event Oval. Remember, attending the WBAR-B-Q is your chance to hear lots of up-and-coming performers. People may not have known about Animal Collective or Vampire Weekend when WBAR booked them to perform in 2003 and 2007, respectively, but now they’re both totally legit! That said, check out this year’s lineup with an open mind:

3 pm: “lo-fi surf rock”

• Driphouse and Carl Calm
• Beige
• Big Troubles
• Grooms
• Julianna Barwick
• REAL ESTATE

7 pm: “psychedelic acid house”

• Laurel Halo
• BLONDES
• ARP
• THE CRYSTAL ARK – the second performance ever by latest project from Gavin Russom, of LCD Soundsystem.

The show must go on! The gloomy weather may have forced the event from its original location at Lehman Lawn, but today’s WBAR-B-Q was not to be canceled. Here are some photos from the über-mellow, free food-filled hipstery musical experience in Barnard’s LeFrak Gymnasium.

Photos by Abigail Feinberg