Northern Nights, the weekendlong music festival set among the redwoods on the south fork of far Northern California’s Eel River, celebrates its 10th anniversary this summer. Considerably more bucolic than Portola and infinitely more manageable than Coachella, this EDM-heavy party a few hours north of the Bay Area returns Friday through Sunday, July 14-16.
Headlined by the hip-hop- and jazz-inflected electronic duo Big Gigantic and trap/dubstep star G Jones along with acts like Grammy-winning producer Mura Masa and DJ and pianist TOKiMONSTA, Northern Nights is a self-contained wonderland far from any noise ordinances or curfews. In the shade of 300-foot tall trees, its stages seem to merge right into the forest itself, like an Ewok village with five full stages and a thousand pool floaties.
It’s no mistake this boutique festival is held within the Emerald Triangle, as it combines electronic music with the best cannabis California has to offer and—perhaps unsurprisingly—a significant emphasis on wellness. Attendees can expect 6,000 to 8,000 fellow festivalgoers, if the past is prologue.
As the organizers did in 2022, there will be several dispensaries on-site, but this year Northern Nights has even cultivated its own strain of cannabis, a collaboration with Humboldt Seed Company.
Because it’s the 10th anniversary, 2023’s lineup has a lot to offer, including twin sisters Coco & Breezy (currently on tour in Europe with Channel Tres), ultra-smooth Australian duo Night Tales and Georgia’s electro-soul producer Daily Bread. Other acts of note include singer-songwriter Bipolar Sunshine, electronic duo EAZYBAKED and Dirtybird Campout 2022 breakout star Mary Droppinz.
Northern Nights
🗓️ July 14-16
📍 Cook’s Valley Campground, Piercy, California
🎟️ $299-$499
🔗 northernnights.org