Photos graciously provided by Kilby Block Party
A couple weekends ago, we left behind the surf and sand of Los Angeles and took a trip to Salt Lake City to check out a new contender to the Western United States music festival scene: Kilby Block Party. Kilby Block Party debuted as a one-day festival in 2019, but has very quickly evolved into a massive four-day fest rivaling the biggest names in the West Coast. Drawing in New Order, Beach House, Weezer, and Justice as this year’s headliners, the festival has caught some well-deserved acclaim with its 2025 lineup — only the sixth iteration of the event. With its expanded footprint and the addition of a fourth day of programming, Kilby’s growth is nothing short of exponential. Compare this to Coachella’s twenty-six years, and Kilby’s rapid yet meteoric rise becomes all the more impressive.
The first day, New Order topped the bill and delivered a set that sadly left a bit more to be desired from the rock legends. Whether the band was finding their footing after a two month long break from live performances or the festival was still figuring out how to properly mix their acts on the Kilby Stage, the resulting set left leading man Bernard Sumner’s vocals lost in the mix — delivering a more lukewarm set than anticipated. However, the band notably played some Joy Division covers, which was a nice callback to the band’s history, and they even brought out The Killers’ frontman Brandon Flowers to perform perhaps the most energetic track of their set, “Bizarre Love Triangle.”
Beach House headlined on Friday night, showcasing their otherworldly dream-like style to the crowd of 20,000+ festival goers. Victoria Legrand’s voice sounded nothing short of perfect on hits like “Master of None” and “Gila.” Crowd favorites like “Silver Soul” and “Myth” were interspersed by some deeper cuts like “Somewhere Tonight.” Beach House did what they did best at Kilby, taking listeners on a voyage from Salt Lake City to somewhere else: somewhere nebulous, warm, yet chilling. It’s always a treat to hear them perform. While their 2025 schedule is keeping them in Europe, every Kilby Block Party attendee is undoubtedly awaiting their return impatiently.
Weezer, the Saturday spotlight, took us on an invigorating, nostalgia-packed “Voyage to the Blue Planet.” Playing a stacked set that left everyone realizing they knew a lot more Weezer than they thought, the crowd, alongside lead singer Rivers Cuomo, sang their hearts out. Weezer performed their equivalent of Taylor Swift’s Eras Tour, inviting fans on a journey through space and exceeding all expectations. Classics like “Island in the Sun” and “Buddy Holly” left us hoarse and high-spirited by the end of Day Three.
The final headliner of the festival, Justice, made sure to close out the long weekend with an absolute bang. The French house duo retrofitted the Kilby Stage with elaborate mechanical lights that synced up with their insane DJ performance as they wordlessly delivered by far the most electric set of the festival. The energy of the crowd was at an all time high as we said goodbye to the amazing weekend of music just as we said hello: singing and dancing.
Aside from the four big names, honorary mentions are in order for numerous other performances. Devo, though formed over 50 years ago, brought the most energy of any Day One set. We moshed, we screamed, and we laughed. Black Country, New Road, playing mostly from their newest album, “Forever Howlong,” serenaded the crowd with a stunning, multi-instrumented arrangement and some of the best vocals of the weekend. Car Seat Headrest, for a lack of a better word, absolutely shredded. Lead singer Will Toledo, while also highlighting their newest record, graced the crowd with a near perfect rendition of old-time favorite “Drunk Drivers/Killer Whales” that demanded a mandatory headbang.
The festival’s 60+ acts performed across four stages: the main Kilby Stage, the slightly smaller Lake Stage at the opposite side of the venue, the small Desert Stage no more than 100 feet to the right of the Kilby Stage, and the stadium-enclosed Mountain Stage. Though the Kilby and Desert stages were located very close to one another, there were never two acts performing on them at the same time, so noise bleeding through from one set to another was never a concern. The same applies to the adjacent Lake and Mountain stages.
All four of the headlining acts performed on the Kilby Stage without any overlap in their set times, meaning everyone at the festival would be able to see each headliner perform without sacrifice. This aspect of Kilby Block Party made all of the headlining sets that close out each day feel just that much more electric.
Kilby Block Party, while touted for its indie rock persuasion, had a unique and diverse sound. From pop-princesses like Saint Vincent to old-heads like Devo, there was something for everyone.
With incredible programming from start to finish, if you’re looking for your new West Coast festival, look no further than Salt Lake City’s Kilby Block Party.
