Article Contributed by Big Hassle Media
Published on 2026-07-04
FREAK NEST is thrilled to announce that producer, DJ, composer, and multi-instrumentalist Mr. Carmack has joined the lineup, along with a Dirtybird Records takeover featuring Moody Jones and Dirtybird guest DJs.
The event will also feature performances from SunSquabi, Sugar Candy Mountain, Shaheri, The Helltones, The Orange Peels, Dead Meadow, A-1, Falcons, Afterthought and the Top Chefs, Samson, and Baghead, as well as reunion performances from Coo Coo Birds, Down Dirty Shake, and The Orange Peels, plus a Good Duck Records stage takeover.
For the last ten years, FREAK NEST has been but a breath in Bay Area warehouse folklore. A decade after its inception, the independently funded festival returns to San Francisco on August 22 and 23 at Public Works.
“At the core of FREAK NEST is a focus on musical diversity, community, and a full spectrum of artistic expression. Taking place over two days and across three stages, the event will feature over forty acts from various schools, forms, and styles of music and art. Live painting. Art installations. Projections. Food. Dance. Performances ranging from Balkan brass to deep house, hip hop to bluegrass, psych rock to New Orleans second line and everything in between.”
Says Moody Jones, “FREAK NEST immediately felt like the kind of event I want to be part of. Independent, community-driven, and built around real artistic freedom. Public Works has always been a special room for San Francisco, and the idea of bringing together so many different sounds, scenes, visual artists, performers, and weird, beautiful energy under one roof feels very Bay Area in the best way. I’m pumped to headline because it’s not just another party; it feels like a celebration of music and art without boundaries.”
The lineup of FREAK NEST 2026 includes:
Mr. Carmack
Dirtybird Records takeover featuring Moody Jones and Dirtybird guest DJs
Dead Meadow
A-1
Falcons
Stoop Sessions with Afterthought
Sucka Free Collective with Baghead
A Good Duck Records takeover
The Orange Peels
Down Dirty Shake
Coo Coo Birds
Inspector Gadje
MJs Brass Bopper
Milli Shaw Return
Samson
SunSquabi
Sugar Candy Mountain
Shaheri
The Helltones
The Blank Tapes
Gaucho
Justin Waves
Belle and Chain
dustcollector
Mother Goat
Michael Musika
Indianna Hale
Chasing Hues
Soundhoose
The Shimmering Leave
The Housewives
PuZL
The Jimmy Touzel Bluegrass Explosion
The first FREAK NEST was held in 2016 in the Dogpatch/Bayview Industrial Grey Area at co-founder Taylor Lissandrello’s warehouse, The Cave. Thrown together on a shoestring budget, the festival ran from noon to midnight and featured a nonstop performance model, with “marching” style bands performing in the middle of the crowd during set breaks. The small event showcased over a dozen Bay Area musical acts, as well as visual artists and various performers. The event was a success and became the proof of concept to be brought to a larger scale.
Co-founder Matthias Wesner thought it imperative that FREAK NEST reawaken on its 10-year anniversary.
“I got tired of watching the corporate takeover in the music and arts community and wanted to do something about it,” he says. “So we called all of our favorite bands from the Bay Area and beyond to put together something different.”
“We have been putting our heads together to bring back this festival rooted in musical and artistic inclusiveness and diversity,” Lissandrello continues, “and we are grateful for the way it has come together.”
