Pittsburgh’s thriving culture of innovation and some of the most cutting-edge tech and art from around the country will be showcased across 100,000-square-feet of free exhibits, demos, and interactive experiences during the fourth annual Thrival Innovation + Music Festival, from September 20-24, 2016.
In just three short weeks, the Thrival Innovation + Music Festival will welcome its most ambitious lineup to date for its two-day live outdoor music experience — headlined by Billboard #1 artist The Chainsmokers, as well as CHVRCHES, Thievery Corporation, Ty Dolla $ign, Metric, Lettuce, and more. Set times below.
The Chainsmokers and CHVRCHES will co-headline Friday night, with the Scottish electro-pop group hitting the stage at 9:00 PM and the meteoric rising DJ duo will close out the night, beginning at 10:30 PM. Festival mainstay funk outfit Lettuce, summertime scion Sir the Baptist, and Pittsburgh-native (and Chainsmokers collaborator) Daya will also perform, with notable local acts Meeting of Important People and the Bastard Bearded Irishmen opening the festival.
Thievery Corporation closes out Thrival 2016 on Saturday night with a full 20-piece ensemble to mark their first visit to the Steel City in their 20-year history. The band of “Thieves” will begin their headline set at 9:30 PM. Recent MTV Video Music Award-winner Ty Dolla $ign performs at 8:15 PM, immediately prior to alt-indie darlings, Metric, who kick-off their set at 9:15 PM. Rubblebucket and Wild Child bridge the afternoon with a marquee early evening set by DJ/producer Hudson Mohawke that starts at 7:00 PM. Wu-Tang Clan member Cappadonna and syndicate group Killarmy will perform with the WuLords and Ezekiel XI on a unique national/local collaboration. For an early afternoon dose of EDM, rising stars The Cheat Codes will get the crowd going at 2:15 PM. Brooke Annibale, Chalk Dinosaur, Beauty Slap, and Balloon Ride Fantasy round out a strong local showing for Pittsburgh.
The two-day show is hosted at the historic Carrie Furnaces, a national historic site just minutes outside of Pittsburgh. A 125-foot-tall blast furnace will serve as a dramatic backdrop between two stages, with performance times staggered so festival-goers do not miss an act.
“So often, festival-goers pay top dollar to attend these events, and they’re forced to choose between multiple acts they very much want to see but can’t due to time overlaps. As such, the experience has a built-in sacrifice for attendees, even though they are paying promoters for the full experience. It’s our approach to ensure that each performer has the stage to themselves, and the audience can celebrate the entire lineup, from beginning to end,” says Thrival Executive Producer, Dan Law.
According to Martin Potozcny, Thrival’s Creative Director and CEO of LUXE Creative, the music is only part of the experience.
“The moment you pass through the gates of a music festival you’re struck with the sensation that you’re on the cusp of a remarkable experience. Our goal is to tap into the deep emotional current that music evokes, and we have a unique opportunity to transport each and every individual to a world where all of their senses are engaged. Whether this is a concert goers’ first festival or tenth, at the forefront of our mind is creating an experience that inspires, surprises and engages — it will be a transformative experience that can only be described as the magic of being part of a growing international festival,” says Potoczny.
On the innovation side of things —- for the first time this year, the festival will transform over one hundred thousand square feet at Nova Place and Alloy 26 — a former indoor/outdoor mall and Woolworth’s five-and-dime — as its home base for its Thrival Innovation programming. A 14,000 square foot “Innovation Hall” will feature highlights from experiential electronic music collaborations through smart devices (CEEMI) to live demos by noted Pittsburgh chefs of a new hands-free cooking assistant app (Yes, Chef). This will be paired with an outdoor “Innovation Playground” that includes aesthetically graffitied demolition derby cars (PGH Art Car), adaptive sports games for people of all abilities (Find Some Flow), and a mobile office bus equipped with 3-D printing, laser engraving, and robotics (Tech Tank).
“The debut of Innovation Hall and the Innovation Playground this year will take Thrival to an exciting new level — offering festival-goers and city residents alike a chance to experience some of the most dynamic art and tech from Pittsburgh and from around the country,” says Law.
“We started with a blank slate of huge spaces on the North Side of Pittsburgh. We took on the challenge of transforming it into an alternate universe — and definitely an experience people won’t forget,” says Kenny Chen, Thrival’s Director of Innovation.
Highlights include:
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Tinker with and explore how “old” synth technology is inspiring new generations of music creators with music industry stalwarts Roland, Pittsburgh Modular, and Novation while engaging with Shutterstock Music, SpaceoutVR, and OpenArc in Thrival’s interactive tech tent.
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A biergarten featuring East End Brewing Company, Voodoo Brewery, Pittsburgh Winery, SweetWater Brewing Company, SKYY Vodka, and Barefoot.
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Pick up official merch through Pittsburgh-based street wear pioneers 412 partner with Thrival for the first time this year, introducing a brand new line of festival gear aimed at a new generation of culture creators, athletes, musicians, and original thinkers.
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Participate in an eclectic mix of DIY projects led by Kelly Malone, founder of award-winning makerspace Workshop SF, who is returning from California’s Bay Area to reboot in Pittsburgh with Workshop PGH (tagline “Drink Beer. Make Stuff.”).
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Experience awe-inspiring industrial production through live iron pours on the concert site with Rivers of Steel Arts.
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Multimedia troupe Squonk unveil a first-time artistic collaboration of the group’s “Pneumatica” structure paired with the both quirky and surreal “Cycle Sonic” performance.
To register for these features and more, and for information on the Thrival Innovation schedule, visit thrivalfestival.com/innovation-schedule.
To purchase concert tickets or pickup keynote talk passes, visit thrivalfestival.com/tickets.
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