After the past three years of solid Fourth of July music entertainment, Independence Day weekend on the Island would be incomplete without the return of the YMCA of M.V.’s Stars + Stripes Festival to the Flatbread Company at the Airport. Fans of pop, rock, electronic, or just an all around good time should clear their calendars for Saturday, July 5, at 7:30 pm because this year’s festival is sure to please with a lineup of high-profile bands fresh out of national fests like Bonnaroo, Lollapalooza, and Coachella, and fresh off the Hot 100 charts.
Sponsored by Neon Gold Records, Flatbread Company, and the Beach Plum Inn, Stars + Stripes 2014 will begin with Ithaca’s alternative band X Ambassadors. 2014 World Cup spectators may recognize their music from the Beats by Dr. Dre commercial, “The Game Before the Game.”
Following will be Charli XCX, the dark pop singer whose appearance in Iggy Azalea’s “Fancy” music video has landed her credit in the number one spot on the US Billboard Hot 100. If the explosive success of her 2013 debut studio album “True Romance” is anything to go by, her act is not one to be missed.
Lizzy Plapinger will be next to take the stage with her indie pop/alternative band MS MR. Ms. Plapinger and Neon Gold Records co-founder Derek Davies grew up with Island summers and a love for music, and the two have been helping to bring great music to the Island for Stars + Stripes since its onset.
For the first time since 2011, The Knocks will close the evening with the electronic mixings of Ben “B-Roc” Ruttner and James “JPatt” Patterson.
Stars + Stripes has raised more than $150,000 to benefit the YMCA of M.V. since its 2011 launch and seems to grow each year. Last year’s performers, including Walk the Moon and St. Lucia, played to an audience of nearly 700 people. In keeping with the tradition of opening acts performed by teens who belong to Alex’s Place teen center, Martha’s Vineyard Regional High School students Kasey Stevenson, Liam Weiland, and Tessa Whitaker will open this year’s festival.
Tickets to the show are $30 in advance or $35 at the door and are available online at ticketsmv.org or at the YMCA. Doors open at 7pm and admission is 21+. More information can be found at ymcamv.org.
