Last weekend was Labour Day weekend, and with summer winding down, I decided to make my annual trip to Seattle for another music festival.
I’ve been travelling to Seattle for a music festival almost every year since 2017, with the exception of the pandemic years when I didn’t make the trip. I used to attend Capitol Hill Block Party, but I decided to switch things up and attend Bumbershoot. This was my second year at the festival, and once again, I had so much fun.
There’s something about Seattle that I love.
Maybe it’s the city’s incredible music, arts and culture scene.
Bumbershoot is an annual international music and arts festival that takes place at Seattle Center, with the iconic Space Needle providing a great backdrop.
This year, the festival featured three stages: the Fisher Stage (Main Stage), Mural Stage (Second Stage) and Upper Courtyard.
One of the biggest differences this year was the stage setup.
The Fisher Stage was much higher, which made it a little more difficult to photograph compared to the Mural Stage.
Here’s my recap of Day 1 of Bumbershoot 2026.
Mural Stage:
On the first day, I went back and forth between the Fisher and Mural stages to catch as many performances as possible.
Los Angeles’ XCOMM was the first band to perform on the Mural Stage, bringing their loud punk and hardcore rock sound to kick off the festival.
Los Angeles-based musician Cain Culto followed with an impressive performance blending Latin art pop and hip-hop.
Mexican singer-songwriter Silvana Estrada delivered one of the more beautiful sets of the day with her contemporary Latin indie-folk, jazz and traditional Latin American folk influences.
Peaches was a first-time artist for me, and her 5 p.m. performance was quite the theatrical experience, to say the least.
Between the costumes and provocative dancers, she certainly brought her signature energy to the stage.
Bikini Kill was another one of my favourite sets of the day.
Seeing the legendary punk and riot grrrl band live was a highlight, and they definitely did not disappoint.
Minsk’s Molchat Doma was another first-time experience for me.
Their intense blend of new wave, post-punk and electro-synthpop created a completely different atmosphere at the Mural Stage.
Chase & Status closed out the night on the Mural Stage with an energetic set of electronic, dubstep and dance music that kept the crowd moving.
Fisher Stage:
Seattle’s own Hard Maybe opened the Fisher Stage with their blend of neo-soul, funk and pop.
Seattle rapper Travis Thompson followed with his energetic rap and hip-hop set.
Chicago’s Pixel Grip kept the audience entertained with their electropop and industrial darkwave sound, performing music from their two albums, ARENA and Percepticide: The Death of Reality.
Austin, Texas’ DIE SPITZ brought plenty of energy to the stage with their loud punk rock and grunge-influenced sound, including songs from their 2025 album Something To Consume.
State College’s Joey Valence & Brae was another highlight for me.
I’ve now seen the duo three times, and they never disappoint.
Their electro-punk-rap sound had the crowd going once again.
Lucy Dacus was a last-minute fill-in after Japanese Breakfast cancelled their festival slot.
She delivered a great indie-rock performance and even performed a cover of Japanese Breakfast’s “Paprika,” which was a nice touch.
Blood Orange was one of the biggest highlights of the first night for me.
This was my first time seeing the New York City-based musician live, and the performance was everything I hoped for.
The dreamy, moody electro-R&B sound worked beautifully in a festival setting, with songs from the current album Essex Honey alongside material from past albums such as Cupid Deluxe, Negro Swan and more.
Turnstile headlined the Fisher Stage and brought the night to another level.
For photographers, we were stuck on one side of the photo pit just to be safe from the crowdsurfers and there were plenty of them.
Before Turnstile came onto the stage, Kenny Rogers and Dolly Parton’s “Islands in the Stream” played over the speakers.
With the recent passing of Dolly Parton, it served as a beautiful tribute, and honestly, it hit me pretty hard.
Then Turnstile took the stage and kicked things off with “BIRDS” from their latest album NEVER ENOUGH.
The band immediately unleashed their loud, energetic hardcore sound, making for a fitting end to an already packed first day.
Final Thoughts
Overall, I had a great time on the first day of Bumbershoot 2026. There was so much great music across the two main stages, and I enjoyed being able to discover new artists while catching some of my favourites.
My only wish would be for the timeslots to be spaced out a little more evenly.
With so many artists playing close together, it meant constantly running back and forth between the Fisher and Mural stages to catch different sets.
But that’s part of the festival experience, I suppose.
Day 1 down, one more to go.
Check out the photos from Day 1 of Bumbershoot 2026.
