The 2015 Governors Ball Music Festival is nearly upon us, and along with planning a route to Randall’s Island in New York City, one must scan the schedule of set times and make some deeply difficult choices. Some of the decisions are no-brainers, but when two of your favorite artists are performing at the exact same time, how do you select which set to experience? Fortunately, we’re here to help.
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Below is our round-up of the 10 toughest scheduling showdowns at this year’s Governors Ball festival — ranked on how frustrating the conflict is — in which we explain each conflict and offer a “right choice” to make. None of these artists should feel insulted if they end up on the wrong side of the coin, since none of these decisions are easy!
10. Clean Bandit vs. White Lung
Saturday, June 6
1:30 – 2:15 PM
The Conflict: Does one opt for the no-hold-barred post-punk of White Lung or the joyful, strings-laden house of Clean Bandit to help get the ball rolling on Saturday afternoon? Expect some of Saturday’s most passionate crowds to be there early for these two groups.
The Right Choice: Split the difference. Catch 20 minutes of White Lung’s sneering fury, then bop over to Clean Bandit and wiggle to “Real Love” and “Rather Be.”
9. Atmosphere vs. Future Islands
Saturday, June 6
5:45 – 6:45 PM
The Conflict: The hip-hop troupe Atmosphere can turn a festival crowd of casual fans into diehard believers within an hour’s time, while Samuel T. Herring and Future Islands will make sure to pummel the curious with tight synth-rock and animalistic dance moves. Either way, you’re getting hypnotized.
The Right Choice: Future Islands. Last year’s Singles album was a triumph, and if you’ve seen Herring’s wild David Letterman performance from last year, rest assured that he’s that unhinged when the group plays live. Don’t miss out on one of the festival’s potential high points.
8. Florence + The Machine vs. The Decemberists
Friday, June 5
6:45 – 8:00 PM
The Conflict: Florence and her Machine have all the critical and commercial heat right now (new album How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful will likely hit No. 1 next week), but the Decmemberists have existed for twice as long and always put on a stellar live show.
The Right Choice: Florence + The Machine. Florence Welch and co. delivered the best performance of Coachella, and the group is performing at a level that the ever-reliable Decemberists simply cannot reach right now.
Takeaways From Gov Ball’s 2015 Lineup
7. Rae Sremmurd vs. DIIV
Friday, June 5
1:30 – 2:15 PM
The Conflict: Do you start off your Governors Ball weekend with gorgeous guitar melodies or an attempt to flex in a no-flex zone? Both Rae Sremmurd and DIIV are top-notch live performers, but only one can help kick off a festival weekend on early Friday afternoon.
The Right Choice: Rae Sremmurd. DIIV has us hungry for a follow-up to 2012’s Oshin, but how can one reasonably pass up an opportunity to unlock the swag as festival goers pour in to Randall’s Island? Stick with Slim Jimmy and Swae Lee on this one.
6. Hot Chip vs. Flying Lotus
Sunday, June 7
8:00 – 9:15 PM
The Conflict: Both Hot Chip and Flying Lotus have new albums to promote, both will get their audiences moving on Sunday night, and both have established themselves as dynamic festival artists over the years. Hot Chip provides the geeky dance-rock, while FlyLo makes the minds of electronic geeks expand.
The Right Choice: Flying Lotus. Hot Chip would be the choice had they played earlier in the weekend, but Flying Lotus’ trippy beats will make for the perfect comedown on Sunday night.
5. The War on Drugs vs. “Weird Al” Yankovic
Sunday, June 7
5:45 – 6:45 PM
The Conflict: It’s not every day you can break up your alternative festival experience with “Amish Paradise,” “Another One Rides The Bus” and “Dare To Be Stupid.” Then again, the War on Drugs released one of 2014’s most undeniable albums, and provided Coachella with a gorgeous sunset performance.
The Right Choice: “Weird Al” Yankovic. The master of the parody song also happens to be a first-rate live artist, with wacky videos and costumes abetting his faithfully hilarious music. Who needs the War on Drugs when laughter is the best medicine?
4. Flume vs. SBTRKT
Saturday, June 6
8:00 – 9:30 PM
The Conflict: Before deadmau5 takes the main stage on Saturday night, two non-headliners will square off for dance supremacy. The large majority of SBTRKT’s set overlaps with Flume’s, causing a maddening conflict for EDM-first festival goers.
The Right Choice: Flume. SBTRKT is a great standalone performer, but Flume’s intensity more clearly complements what is sure to be an electric deadmau5 set. Flume then deadmau5 on a Saturday night? Consider us sold.
3. Future vs. Charli XCX
Friday, June 5
3:00 – 3:45 PM
The Conflict: A painful showdown between two boundary-pushers, one in hip-hop and one in pop. We want to hear an afternoon “Boom Clap” sing-along, but watching “Fuck Up Some Commas” blasting out from the main stage will be pretty euphoric, too.
The Right Choice: Split the difference. Seriously, neither of these artists is worth completely missing: watch Charli unfurl her long list of terrific bubblegum tracks for 20 minutes, then dart over to Future and pray he hasn’t played “Move That Dope” yet.
2. Drake vs. My Morning Jacket
Friday June 5
9:15 – 11:00 PM
The Conflict: Mainstream music fans might think this is a romp for Drizzy, but lest we forget, Drake’s Coachella sets were deeply uneven. Meanwhile, My Morning Jacket just dropped their most consistent album in years and remain a force of nature at festivals. Drake vs. MMJ is a frustratingly fair fight.
The Right Choice: Drake. Even if he didn’t his A-game to Coachella, the potential for more A-listers to follow up Madonna’s forever-burned-into-our-memories appearance on Friday night makes Drake’s set too enticing to pass up. Make the right choice by being on your “Worst Behaviour.”
1. The Black Keys vs. Lana Del Rey
Sunday, June 7
9:15 – 11:00 PM
The Conflict: Remember this picture? This studio shot of Lana Del Rey and the Black Keys’ Dan Auerbach comprises two-thirds of the Sunday night headliners. Del Rey could roll out a new song or two during her first Governors Ball appearance, while the Black Keys will make one of their only festival appearances of 2015 to end the weekend.
The Right Choice: Lana Del Rey. This is a painful showdown, but the former SNL laughingstock has morphed into a festival powerhouse. The good news? Lana’s set ends half an hour before the Keys close out the main stage, so rush over at 10:30 and catch the Akron duo power through some of their biggest and best tracks.