Author: Jake Walcyzk

Float Fest is a music festival held 30 minutes outside of Austin, TX on July 21st and 22nd. The festival is only in its 5th year, and was originally created to bring Texas an iconic festival that could not be replicated anywhere else in the country.

As the name suggests, the fest offers the unique experience to festival goers of being able to float down the San Marcos river while enjoying the music. With highs of 107 degrees over the weekend, floating the river has become less of a novelty and more of a necessity. Camping is also included with each pass, which is right next door at Cool River Ranch.

Though capacity was expanded this year to hold up to 20,000 people, the fest is relatively small for the strong lineup it brings. Boasting names such as Tame Impala, Bassnectar, Snoop Dogg, Lil Wayne, Cold War Kids, Modest Mouse, Run the Jewels, and more, the fest has brought in some seriously large acts to a relatively intimate setting. The fest only have 2 stages, but their alternating schedule has one artist playing at a time every second of the day.

The fest has run into problems in previous years from noise to river pollution, but has been making conscious efforts to prevent these issues from arising, and has made progress each year. Unfortunately, this year the fest lost one of their top headliners, Glass Animals, after they cancelled their tour following a serious accident involving their drummer. Luckily, they were quickly replaced by another crowd favorite in Cold War Kids.

This year’s lineup is arguably the best it’s ever been, and with more experience with the issues they’ve dealt with in the past, this fest is sure not to disappoint this year, and will offer a festival experience you can only find in Texas.