Desert Daze 2018: Music Stars Truly Shine With Overnight Set Times

By DONNA BALANCIA

Expect the music stars of 2018 Desert Daze to come out at night and shine bright until morning with overnight set times during three festival days.

Read about Tame Impala’s Short Set, Saturday and Sunday Music at Desert Daze

Set times go ’round the clock from noon on, and in some cases as late (or as early in the morning as) 4 a.m. Desert Daze fest takes place at Moreno Beach, Lake Perris, on Friday, Saturday and Sunday into early Monday morning, Oct. 12-15.  It’s the first year in Lake Perris for the outer-worldly event, which appropriately called Joshua Tree home.

Overnight set times and relocation are actually a strategic and daring plan in these times of the competitive festival business. Desert Daze, the pre-eminent indie music fest, is growing with the times. The festival moved from Joshua Tree to Lake Perris and put its wagers down that a location revamp would mix things up and keep the fest vibrant and compelling.

A Place to Bury Strangers gets a 1:30 a.m. set time early Sunday morning (late Saturday) -Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia
A Place to Bury Strangers gets a 1:30 a.m. set time early Sunday morning (late Saturday) -Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia

Set Times on the Overnight

On Friday, headliner Tame Impala goes on at 10 p.m. and Connan Mockasin and Wand go at 11:30 p.m. and 11:50 p.m. respectively, while Sons of Kemet is on at 12:50 a.m. But that’s nothing compared to the rest of the weekend.

Late Saturday through early Sunday, King Gizzard and the Lizard Wizard goes on at 11:45 p.m. followed by Shannon and The Clams, A Place to Bury Strangers, Deap Valley and the really late night act, Prettiest Eyes at 3:50 a.m.

Sunday night into Monday, following My Bloody Valentine, which wraps at 11 p.m., it’s Vinyl Williams, King Khan and The Shrines at midnight, and White Fence, who play from 1:20 to 2:30 a.m.

APTBS - Photo by Donna Balancia
A Place To Bury Strangers – Photo © Donna Balancia

King Khan and The Shrines

But if anyone can keep the crowd going late into the night on Sunday it’s King Khan and The Shrines followed by White Fence, who basically wraps the annual fest.

King Khan and The Shrines blast rockin’ blues late Sunday night into Monday morning. The avant-garde soul and sax big band rip it up with raspy voiced Khan wanting to start a music revolution. He’s no superhero although he appears to be a cape-swathed warrior who wants to save your soul with rock and roll. See a KEXP clip of Khan actually wearing clothes.

King Khan brings the Soul to Desert Daze: 

Check out our photo gallery:

Jay Watson of Gum - Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia
Jay Watson of Gum – Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia
Marcos losing it - Photo © 2017 Donna Balancia
Marcos of Prettiest Eyes losing it – Photo © 2017 Donna Balancia
Deap Valley - Photo © Donna Balancia
Deap Valley – Photo © Donna Balancia

 

White Fence - Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia
White Fence – Photo © 2018 Donna Balancia

 

Desert Daze lineup