Plant back for Hardly Strictly
Led Zeppelin frontman Robert Plant is scheduled to return to Hardly Strictly Bluegrass this year, joining indie rockers Kurt Vile & the Violators and perennial festival closer Emmylou Harris in the latest batch of artists announced to perform at the free threeday concert in San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park.
The latest additions, which were confirmed by promoters Thursday, Aug. 8, were part of a third mystery medley posted to the Hardly Strictly website and mobile app, giving fans clues about performers heading for the music festival, which is scheduled to take place Oct. 46, before the full lineup is revealed.
Also included in the latest additions to the bill are singersongwriter Mary Gauthier, folk
duo Mandolin Orange, mariachi outfit Flor de Toloache, funk act Pimps of Joytime, Los Angeles rock band the Wild Reeds and country soul singer Yola.
They bolster the roster of Hardly Strictly artists that already includes Tanya Tucker, Bettye LaVette, the Meat Puppets, Hayes Carll, Buddy Miller, Steve Earle & the Dukes, the Waterboys, Calexico and Iron & Wine, and more.
Plant performed at Hardly Strictly in 2008 with Alison Krauss, and again in 2011 with his Band of Joy. He is now on tour with his latest outfit, the Sensational Space Shifters.
Vile played in 2017 with Courtney Barnett, and Harris, a member of the Country Music Hall of Fame, has closed out the Hardly Strictly Bluegrass festival — a gift to the city by the late financier and philanthropist Warren Hellman — every year since it began in 2001.
More than 80 acts are expected to perform at the festival this year. The full lineup will be revealed over the next few weeks.