This weekend, Brooklyn venue The Meadows will be home to the second annual Bazooka! Fest, an independent music festival curated by New York band Sunshine Convention. The event has finally revealed this year’s hotly anticipated surprise headliners: solo performances from The Magnetic Fields’ Stephin Merritt and Destroyer’s Dan Bejar will close out the two-day festival. But there are plenty of can’t-miss acts to see before Merritt and Bejar take the stage on night two. Below is a far-from-comprehensive list of just a few highlights to look out for on the lineup.
Colleen Green
Few artists from the West Coast’s 2010s garage rock boom have proved as enduring as one Colleen Green. It’s been almost five years since her most recent album, Cool, and we’re thrilled that her current tour is making a stop at Bazooka! Fest. No doubt that cuts from Cool, as well as old favorites like “TV” and “Wild One,” will kill with the crowds at The Meadows. She’s got the tunes that you just can’t help but sing along to.
Kiwi Jr.
The new album from this Canadian band might be the peppiest slacker rock you’ve heard all year. Equal parts catchy, irreverent, and full of heart, Blowin’ Up is another entry in Kiwi Jr.’s catalog that demonstrates all the trappings of a “your favorite band’s favorite band.” They’re playing pretty late in the day, so it looks like the title of their new LP is shaping up to be quite prophetic and they won’t be a hidden gem for much longer.
Sad13
Sadie Dupuis is best known for her work with the guitar band Speedy Ortiz, but she’s recently revived its solo side project, Sad13. Dupuis is an indie rock renaissance woman, and between fronting Speedy Ortiz, publishing poetry collections, and organizing with United Musicians and Allied Workers, Sad13 is an umbrella pseudonym for her “everything else” musical pursuits. Her latest album under the Sad13 moniker, 1331, is an exercise in bite-sized experimental pop, and we can’t wait for her to bring these tunes to life on the Bazooka stage.
The Alaskas
The Alaskas are making some of the most charming power pop this side of the Hudson River. The New York DIY band’s music is tender, location-specific, and packed with homespun charm. Regulars on the New York DIY circuit, their set is sure to captivate audiences at Bazooka! Fest this weekend. With them, every summer is a Haunted Summer in the best possible way.
TV Buddha
This Chicago band is teasing its sophomore album Hallelujah, Anyway. They recently dropped the surf-rock single “Oh Master, Let Me Walk With Thee,” whose “ooooh”s, handclaps, and tambourines are pure flower-power perfection. The noisier single that preceded it, “You’ve Been Changed,” came drenched in fuzzy, ratty distortion. Both of these psychedelic throwbacks are destined to be crowd pleasers.
Lex Walton
Musician, actress, and multimedia artist Lex Walton has been on a tear for years, and the rest of the world is finally getting hip to what she’s been proving with a wealth of self-released tunes on Bandcamp. In between support slots for Ezra Furman, John Maus, and Wolf Parade, she’s been releasing some of the best music of her career. Lex’s live shows are always full of surprises, so if you’re hitting up Bazooka! Fest, you won’t wanna miss this one.
Asher White
Best of What’s Next alum Asher White is gearing up to release Love Aggregates, her second album of 2026. Her anarchic blend of jazz, punk, pop, ambient, and whatever else she feels like tossing into her patchworked tracks always makes for an exciting live show, as does White’s electric stage presence. Here’s hoping that we’ll hear some of the new stuff this weekend.
