Written by: Rosemary A.W. Roberts and Clayton Roberts

The 5^th installation of the Hangout Music Festival was once again over the top.  The band lineup, the grounds, and the people made for overwhelming success.  Organizers allow us to visit the beautiful Gulf Shores beach to witness what is becoming one of the finest festivals in the nation.  Commercial support from MTV, VH-1, and Palladia help let the world see what we are doing down here with mass coverage and live streams of the festival artists.

With Headliners such as The Black Keys, The Killers, Jack Johnson, and Outkast the nights were filled with the highest tier of entertainers.  Filling in the rest of the spots shined regional and national acts including the likes of Dawes, Queens of the Stone Age, Los Lobos, Gary Clark Jr., Black Lips, Fitz and the Tantrums, The Tontons, and many more.  There is music for all at the Hangout Festival.  Even the Thursday kickoff party continues to grow and become a vital part of the festival as Girl Talk, Dumpstaphunk, and others graced the beach with early arrivals to the festival. With 40,000 strong, the sold out Hangout Festival allowed attendees to see their favorite acts, enjoy great food, art installments to accompany the festival theme, and this year even Beach access to just cool off in the Gulf of Mexico while listening to their favorite Band.

On the main beachside Hangout Stage on Saturday, NeedToBreathe brought some Southern rockin’ sounds into a gorgeous sunny day, and their guitars really let loose on “Oh, Carolina”. Across the street on the Palladia Stage, California jam-rockers ALO (Animal Liberation Orchestra) led by Jack Johnson’s keyboardist Zach Gill set forth on a smooth sounding voyage with tunes that enticed graceful dancing and a joyful spirit. “Speed of Dreams” and “Falling Dominoes” were particularly enjoyable, and the audience was won over easily. Modern day folk-rocker Amos Lee drew a huge crowd at the Hangout Stage, with fans of all ages enthralled by his commanding stage presence and appealing song selections. One of the biggest dance parties of Hangout occurred at the other end of the beach on the Chevrolet Stage when indie-alt duo

Matt and Kim came out to play. Their smash hit “Cameras” brought huge cheers and a sing-a-long, and “Good Ol’ Fashion Nightmare” featured an

interlude of The Sugarhill Gang’s “Apache”. The duo distributed a few bags of beach balls for the lively crowd to toss around, encouraged a massive display of crowd surfing, and Kim made the guys drool by wanting to ‘talk that slop!’ The good-feeling “Let’s Go” and dance-tastic “Block After Block” kept the celebration rolling. Everyone, including the band, seemed to have a great time; perhaps these fabulous performers will want to return another year!

Back down the beach, indie rockers Modest Mouse filled the Hangout Stage with talented musicians and put forth a wonderfully edgy set that opened with “Dramamine”; and the other-worldly haze persisted throughout their show. “Ocean Breathes Salty” couldn’t have been more appropriate, with the saline Gulf breeze wrapping around us, and “Dashboard” was a thrill. A cynical dark side was brought to the forefront with “Satin In A Coffin” and “Bukowski”, a reminder that sometimes dark and down can feel really good. “The World At Large” with its whimsical beauty was a set highlight, and “Float On” was sure to satisfy all attendees. Shortly thereafter, the Chevrolet Stage was packed out for a performance by Hangout Festival veterans The Flaming Lips. Unlike 2013 when the band performed Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon, their 2014 set was comprised of fan-beloved originals like “Do You Realize??”, “In the Morning of the Magicians”, “Yoshimi Battles The Pink Robots, Part I”, and “Race For the Prize”. The sonic and visual artistry of the band made for a great concert experience.

On Sunday, British rockers Bastille put on a lively show for a large crowd at the Chevrolet Stage, receiving a warm welcome from their American fans. The Hangout Stage was packed throughout the day, with indie pop from Capital Cities bringing a dance vibe, and huge fan faves The Avett Brothers bringing Americana classicality from the 21^st century, encapsulating both past and present musical sentiments beautifully. At the Chevrolet Stage, Portugal. The Man drew a huge and captive audience. A major highlight of the Sunday lineup was Jack Johnson, with the crowd prefacing his appearance with a “Happy Birthday” chant and cheering with joy for this Hawaiian star’s first performance at the Hangout Festival. With his easygoing surfer vibes, Jack Johnson is a natural fit for this Gulf Coast beach festival, and his set was immensely enjoyable. His song repertoire is filled with popular hits, and he played a plethora of them during his show, including “Sitting, Waiting, Wishing”, “Bubble Toes”, “Breakdown”, and “Flake”. Other fan faves like “Taylor”, “Wasting Time”, “Banana Pancakes”, and “Staple It Together” were so much fun, and the audience happily danced the night away. It was not only Jack’s birthday, but his keyboardist Zach Gill was another birthday boy; and a true treat was hearing the band play a specially-written ‘Birthday Let It Hangout’ song to mark this special occasion at this phenomenal festival. With any luck, the Gulf Coast beaches will be graced with Jack Johnson and his band again in the future. The evening and festival came to an end in high fashion with Outkast bringing their A-game for all the festival fans partying to their last notes.

It appears that Shaul Zislin and Sean O’Connell have something to be very proud of in the Hangout Festival, and the city of Gulf Shores and Orange Beach see annual positive results from the sellout crowd.  Make sure if you want to attend next year you buy tickets early as this festival continues to sell out, and we hope for many good years to come. Great work and a BIG ‘Thank You’ to all that make this incredible event happen!