Bonnaroo 2023 Artist Spotlight: Peach Pit

Like we’ve been doing for many years now, we’re making it our mission to help you get acquainted with many of our favorite acts from Bonnaroo‘s 2023 lineup. After roaring back to life last summer, after two years off due to Covid and weather, this year marks Bonnaroo’s 20th installment (and 22nd anniversary), boasting not only another great and varied lineup, but also more changes and improvements then we’ve seen in years, with more flexibility in ticketing and camping, a reimagined “Outeroo” campground area, new activations, and further new ways to Roo. Back once again in its usual June 15-18 timeframe, we’re counting down the days until another great weekend on the farm.

As we dig through the entire schedule, we’ll highlight a spread of performers spanning across genres and stages, big and small, new and old, to bring you some of the most interesting, lesser-known, and most highly-recommended among this year’s crop of artists. And as our time at ‘Roo approaches, we’ll also be bringing you some special features and full list-style daily lineup guides, to help you plan your weekend ahead of the fest. While these previews won’t span every artist, and might omit some more obvious must-see acts, we hope they’ll serve as a way to help you navigate Bonnaroo’s gargantuan lineup, and to make the most of your busy weekend at the fest!

Grab your tickets right here if you haven’t already, and read on for our Bonnaroo Artist Spotlight!

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While it feels like they sprung out of nowhere in early 2017, Vancouver’s Peach Pit can actually trace their origins back to high school, formed by longtime pals, frontman Neil Smith and guitarist Chris Vanderkooy, and rounded out by bassist Peter Wilton and drummer Mikey Pascuzzi (with multi-instrumentalist Dougal McLean joining more recently). Adopting a sound they self-describe as “chewed bubblegum pop,” the group’s laid back, poppy, surfy, indie slacker rock is actually the product of a lot of practice and forethought (they practiced for a year before ever playing a live show), initially earning the band a respectable local following and regional buzz for their debut EP, Sweet F.A. (an abbreviation for Sweet Fuck All- an ode to Smith’s love for the laid back life). After their self-titled track (and source of their name), “Peach Pit,” unexpectedly went viral on YouTube, earning the group millions of plays, they swiftly amassed a global fanbase in 2017, seizing on their buzz by releasing their first full-length, Being So Normal, in the fall of that year, and embarking on an impressive tour slate across not only North America, but Europe and Asia as well. Funneling themes of raw and earnest youthful angst through a quirky, catchy, and laid back aesthetic, finding a sound that lands somewhere between Mac Demarco and Homeshake (and, like Demarco, fully embracing the long-lost art of the guitar solo), enhanced by their own affable, friendly, and oddball appeal, Peach Pit forged a devoted following, making them one of the most buzzed about new bands in indie rock, and a growing staple of festival lineups, by 2020 sophomore effort and major label debut, You and Your Friends. Switching from Columbia Records to RCA, the group dropped third LP From 2 to 3 last year, further honing their signature chilled-out, melancholy pop stylings. They first played Bonnaroo in 2019, which, due to Covid, was just two ‘Roos ago, and wowed us back then, making this return one of our most-anticipated sets of the weekend!

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