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Could be last weekend of September, as was the case with the edition in 2015 that had Avett Bros, Chvrches, Alt-J, and Ben Howard.
I do think it will come back if there's a chance, but if it cannot occur in 2021 it's toast.
Would love that, but as the old man pointed out before, Harvard facilities will probably be using the fields for sports by then. Heres hoping they can make some kind of exception though.
I feel like unless they make this a camping fest, it will have to be on the T in some capacity. So i'm not too sure about Mansfield. Foxboro would make sense though.
I feel like unless they make this a camping fest, it will have to be on the T in some capacity. So i'm not too sure about Mansfield. Foxboro would make sense though.
Commuter rail does go through Mansfield center, but would require shuttle buses to and from Great Woods.
I feel like unless they make this a camping fest, it will have to be on the T in some capacity. So i'm not too sure about Mansfield. Foxboro would make sense though.
Commuter rail does go through Mansfield center, but would require shuttle buses to and from Great Woods.
That worked for Ozzfest and Lilith Fair-sized touring festivals, but Boston Calling would have to scale down considerably if they went to Mansfield.
I'm hoping for August-September at Harvard, but that depends upon finding a weekend that works. If you can find a weekend when both the football team and soccer team are on the road, that opens up possibilities, since really only the soccer team plays on a portion of the grounds used by Boston Calling (A road weekend for the football team would be helpful, so there aren't 20K additional people on top of the Boston Calling crowd).
They may not be able to use the arena, though, if the hockey team is practicing by then. Really, though, given the all-local lineup of comedians and DJs scheduled for 2020, how much would we really be losing, if the arena was off-limits for one edition?
The saving grace here is that Boston Calling has only been using around half of the available space, so there's plenty of room for other teams to practice/hold events that week.
I'm sure that Harvard can go to the schedule makers for Ivy League schools and ask to put their teams on the road that weekend. The sports, entertainment, and facilities management industries are very accustomed to juggling multiple teams, concerts, and other entertainment & sports events. If large market arenas can keep the NBA, NHL, WWE, Disney on Ice, LiveNation, and AEG simultaneously happy, getting a single smaller athletic conference to put one school's teams on the road during one particular week is a piece of cake.
Honestly, though, I think that large-scale festivals may not return until 2022, simply due to a lot of people easing back into post-pandemic normalcy. Give people a chance to get their vaccine and go to a few smaller outdoor shows next summer, and they'll feel a lot more comfortable going to Boston Calling the next year. 2021 may be a year when people take a wait and see attitude about things -- how quickly can the vaccines be widely rolled-out, and what happens to infection rates over the course of the following months.
At this point, I'll be grateful if live music ever comes back and I get to see my dozen or so favorite artists at least one more time. I haven't seen a proper show since mid-November, although a did see a couple of local musical acts with whom I shared a bill at a fundraiser in early January, but that feels like a million years ago. If I ever get to go to a concert again, or perform stand-up or read poetry at an open mic again, it's going to feel like a huge blessing.
Out of curiosity, I just checked bostoncalling.com. The words "2021 News Coming Soon!" appear over the top photo. Scrolling further down, May 28-30 dates are mentioned.
We're coming up on that time of year when early bird tickets go on sale, so if they're going to push the event back to later in 2021, they'll likely tell us soon or tell us something, because the lack of an early bird sale before the end of the year will raise questions.
There's bad news for Boston Calling and live music and entertainment in eastern Massachusetts, in general.
Due to decreased ridership on the MTBA due to the pandemic, they've announced cutbacks for 2021 service which are going to hurt a number of industries, especially live music.
Most notable is that commuter rail service is suspended on the weekends, which will make it difficult for a lot of people to get to Boston Calling (and weekend Red Sox, Pats, etc. games, for that matter).
Plus, all commuter rail weekday service will now shut down at 9 pm, which makes it impossible for anyone to come into town for an evening show via the commuter rail.
The commuter rail schedule change is slated to take place in January.
Starting later in 2021, perhaps as late as June, the last bus and subway runs will be at midnight, instead of 1 am. This will make things difficult for car-free people closer to town to get home from shows before transportation shuts down. Even shows that end by 10:30 or 11 may be problematic for people who need to make a bus connection after a subway ride or two.
The MBTA has mentioned that as ridership increases, post-pandemic, they'll restore service, but it will take time for them to hire and train more people and reactivate mothballed subway cars, buses, etc., so it could take a year or two after 2021 for service to return to pre-pandemic levels.
There's no way that any of this is good for the live music industry here.
Last Edit: Nov 11, 2020 8:49:18 GMT -5 by tw12 - Back to Top
Damn... Haven't been on here in months until yesterday. Looks like not much has changed, for better or worse. Hope everyone is doing well.
The two main points, as I see them right now: 1. Boston Calling will not be able to take place in May. 2. Harvard likely can't be the site if they move to the fall. Even if there are away games lined up for fall sports, teams still need that area to practice and BC setup/cleanup takes well over a week.
And then the only real question is: Do they try to move or just cancel? It's kind of the same problem we discussed in March/April this year. If enough spring festivals move to fall, there are too many scheduling conflicts and not everyone can make it work. BC chose to cancel rather than go through the logistics of rescheduling and finding a new site and new lineup. Or maybe they were forced to cancel because of all the logistics and only having a month or two to throw something together? I'm holding out hope that they've seen this coming (regardless of the May dates online) and given the extended timeline, are able to plan something for the fall. Do I think it's likely? Not really. Stacking up all the issues of uncertainty with fall 2021 festivals even happening, needing to find a new site, lineup commitments, etc., I just don't see it happening.
Damn... Haven't been on here in months until yesterday. Looks like not much has changed, for better or worse. Hope everyone is doing well.
The two main points, as I see them right now: 1. Boston Calling will not be able to take place in May. 2. Harvard likely can't be the site if they move to the fall. Even if there are away games lined up for fall sports, teams still need that area to practice and BC setup/cleanup takes well over a week.
And then the only real question is: Do they try to move or just cancel? It's kind of the same problem we discussed in March/April this year. If enough spring festivals move to fall, there are too many scheduling conflicts and not everyone can make it work. BC chose to cancel rather than go through the logistics of rescheduling and finding a new site and new lineup. Or maybe they were forced to cancel because of all the logistics and only having a month or two to throw something together? I'm holding out hope that they've seen this coming (regardless of the May dates online) and given the extended timeline, are able to plan something for the fall. Do I think it's likely? Not really. Stacking up all the issues of uncertainty with fall 2021 festivals even happening, needing to find a new site, lineup commitments, etc., I just don't see it happening.
I don't think the problem is inability to use Harvard for fall dates. You make a good point regarding teams needing to practice, but Boston Calling has never used the entire grounds and while they're setting up on Mon-Thurs, in-season teams can use those portions of the grounds that Boston Calling has never used.
The bigger issue is vaccine rollout timeline. Realistically, this can't happen until everyone who wants a vaccine has been able to get that initial vaccine, waited 21-28 days and gotten the booster shot, and then waited a week or two for antibodies production. A lot depends upon how many vaccines are approved for use in the U.S. It's looking very good for Pfizer and Moderna approval. If two or three others join them within a couple of months and production ramps up quickly, everyone may be able to be vaccinated by May or June. If not, it may take until sometime in late summer or early fall for everyone to be vaccinated. In that case, no festivals will be happening next year.
(I'm shocked that LiveNation just announced rescheduled dates in July and Aug for the 2020 Fenway Park shows. It's going to take a best-case scenario for vaccine rollout for those shows to actually take place.)
What's a lot more likely than the return of festivals in 2021, are shows and tours being booked a month or two in advance, once the vaccine situation is sorted out and there's a good idea of when widespread vaccination will have occurred. It's the easiest thing in the world for a one or two act tour to book dates a month out. Remember how Prince, in his final years, booked Hit and Run Tour dates two weeks ahead of time?
Festivals require a lot of lead time and club -> arena level shows do not.
There's bad news for Boston Calling and live music and entertainment in eastern Massachusetts, in general.
Due to decreased ridership on the MTBA due to the pandemic, they've announced cutbacks for 2021 service which are going to hurt a number of industries, especially live music.
Most notable is that commuter rail service is suspended on the weekends, which will make it difficult for a lot of people to get to Boston Calling (and weekend Red Sox, Pats, etc. games, for that matter).
Plus, all commuter rail weekday service will now shut down at 9 pm, which makes it impossible for anyone to come into town for an evening show via the commuter rail.
The commuter rail schedule change is slated to take place in January.
Starting later in 2021, perhaps as late as June, the last bus and subway runs will be at midnight, instead of 1 am. This will make things difficult for car-free people closer to town to get home from shows before transportation shuts down. Even shows that end by 10:30 or 11 may be problematic for people who need to make a bus connection after a subway ride or two.
The MBTA has mentioned that as ridership increases, post-pandemic, they'll restore service, but it will take time for them to hire and train more people and reactivate mothballed subway cars, buses, etc., so it could take a year or two after 2021 for service to return to pre-pandemic levels.
There's no way that any of this is good for the live music industry here.
So, after getting feedback from the public, they've tweaked the planned changes. Long story short, the changes go into effect sooner, but aren't as severe.
Most notably, the last subway and bus runs are not being moved up to midnight. They'll remain at/around 1 am.
Some commuter rail lines will continue running on the weekends, including the North Shore line which runs through Lynn, Salem, Beverly, Gloucester, etc., the Worcester/Framingham line, and the Providence line. Unfortunately, all commuter rail routes still end at 9 pm on weekdays and it's unclear whether the five rail lines which will still run on the weekends will continue past 9 pm or not.
So, long story short, the scaling back of proposed changes doesn't do much for people relying upon the commuter rail to attend shows in town, but it helps people inside Rt. 128 get home after shows more easily than they could have if the buses and subways had shut down an hour earlier.
OK, it seems like a very safe assumption that May is out of the question, given the pace of the vaccine rollout.
It also seems clear that they haven't yet finalized anything, whether fall dates or a return in May 2022, since they haven't said anything yet, despite being a month past the usual full lineup drop.
My best guess is that they've seen the way that other festivals keep announcing new dates and then pushing them back, and they may not want to shut the door entirely upon running something this fall, in case everyone who wants to be vaccinated can be vaccinated by mid-summer. Anything longer than that, though, and they'll probably wait until next year.
The big problem with selling tickets to anything in the second half of 2021 right now is that it would be beyond unfair (and probably permanently tarnish your brand) to sell tickets and then have people have to sell off or give away their tickets because either (1) they haven't been able to get vaccinated yet and they don't feel comfortable in a densely packed crowd until they've been vaccinated, or (2) people are required to have been fully vaccinated before being let through the gates, and Massachusetts is unable to get vaccines into the arms of everyone who wants them in time to attend fall dates.
I honestly think this fest is dead in general. they were already in pretty bad financial shape for the 2019 fest considering they couldnt afford to pay Janelle Monae or Black Star. a second cancellation is a death sentence. I'm just pissed I was optimistic for May 2021 and rolled over. Heres hoping i'm wrong or another promoter takes over, but i'm just tryna be realistic.
Glad they finally made the announcement, but it certainly wasn't a surprise. I guess it's good to know that they seem committed to making it happen next year rather than just dying off forever. The real question is: Do i keep rolling over the 12(!) 3-day GA passes i bought for 2020? or finally cave in and get a refund? tough call.
Glad they finally made the announcement, but it certainly wasn't a surprise. I guess it's good to know that they seem committed to making it happen next year rather than just dying off forever. The real question is: Do i keep rolling over the 12(!) 3-day GA passes i bought for 2020? or finally cave in and get a refund? tough call.
the perks aren't enough for me to keep rolling it over. they seemed to have gotten rid of whatever bonus stuff they originally announced too.
The festivals with the best chance of surviving have always been the ones tied to larger organizations. If Crash Line had never sold a majority share to MSG Co., Boston Calling probably would have gone under, but this doesn't surprise me.
Thank NBA television contracts for keeping this thing afloat. ESPN/ABC and TNT television revenue is a wonderful thing.
(I do wonder if the two-year delay makes it even more likely that there will be more lineup changes from the 2020 lineup by next year. On one hand, everybody's going to be touring next year and making as much money as they can to make up for the previous two years, so if FF, RATM, & RHCP can tour, they will tour. On the other hand, if Boston Calling has the opportunity to book a top pop or rap artist to create broader appeal, or get in on another now unexpected reunion, will they go in that direction and swap out a headliner? If they had the opportunity to book, say, Billie Eilish, how do you not take advantage of that opportunity?)
Last Edit: Feb 22, 2021 12:31:13 GMT -5 by tw12 - Back to Top
Glad they finally made the announcement, but it certainly wasn't a surprise. I guess it's good to know that they seem committed to making it happen next year rather than just dying off forever. The real question is: Do i keep rolling over the 12(!) 3-day GA passes i bought for 2020? or finally cave in and get a refund? tough call.
unless you got these for some insanely low price I see no reason to hold onto them. 22 could even be an issue still.
Front Gate Tickets sent out a more detailed e-mail regarding rollovers, refunds, and perks:
After exploring all possible options for hosting Boston Calling this year, we have made the difficult decision in conjunction with local and state authorities to cancel the 2021 festival. The health and safety of our entire community is always our top priority, and there was no appropriate scenario under which we could provide the Boston Calling experience you love and deserve.
While we are sad to go another year without the festival, we have set our sights on 2022 – mark your calendar for Memorial Day weekend. We look forward to sharing more information around headliners, lineup and vendors as we get closer to the 2022 festival.
As you are a valued customer, we want to give you options whereby you can either hold on to the originally promised benefits and keep your tickets for the 2022 Festival, scheduled for Memorial Day Weekend, or obtain a refund according to the terms below. You must follow the directions below by no later than MARCH 8, 2021 by 5:00PM EST if you wish to receive a refund.
OPTION 1: IF YOU WANT TO BE PART OF THE 2022 EXPERIENCE
We are proud and grateful to have you with us – just hang on to your tickets – you don’t need to do anything else. Your tickets will be rolled over seamlessly to the 2022 Festival.
As a THANK YOU, you’ll automatically receive credit on your RFID wristband for next year which can be used at the 2022 Festival for food, soft drinks, merchandise, Ferris wheel rides, and other fun stuff around the Festival site. The amount of credit you’ll receive will depend on your ticket type.
RFID CREDIT AMOUNTS BY TICKET TYPE 3 DAY GA: $25.00 3 DAY VIP: $50.00 3 DAY PLATINUM: $75.00 SINGLE DAY GA: $15.00 SINGLE DAY VIP: $25.00 SINGLE DAY PLATINUM: $50.00
Also, if the price you paid for your 2020 ticket is higher than the 2022 early bird ticket price (it’ll be announced later), we will automatically add the difference as additional credit to your wristband which can be used for food, merch and other items to make your 2022 Festival experience even better.
In addition, when you roll your ticket over to the 2022 Festival, you’ll also receive the ability to take advantage of early bird pricing for tickets to the Festival in 2023 and 2024 AFTER the lineup for each Festival is announced!
OPTION 2: REQUEST A REFUND
If you cannot commit to 2022 at this time, we understand, and you can follow the instructions below on how to claim your refund.
The refund request process will end at 5:00PM EST on MARCH 8, 2021 and refunds will be processed in as little as 30 days from that date. If you do not timely request a refund, your tickets will automatically be transferred to the 2022 festival.
Click here and log into your Front Gate Tickets account. Select order history under the “Your Account” tab on the top navigation bar. Select “View Order Detail” on the order number you wish to have refunded. Click the “Request Refund” button on the top of your order details.
**If you change your mind and wish to still attend the festival, log back into your account and hit the now available “cancel request” button. Once the request period closes, you will no longer be able to change the status of your refund request.
If the original credit card used for purchase has expired or been updated, the refund should still be processed through the account used to purchase. No additional action is needed by the original purchaser. If the credit card used for purchase has been canceled or is now expired, the bank or credit card company will normally reroute the credit amount issued to the current account or card for use.
Only ticket holders who purchased direct from our website will receive a refund. If you purchased from a third party, you should contact that party for a refund.
If you have any additional questions, reach out to us at info@bostoncalling.com or you can reach out to Front Gate through support.frontgatetickets.com.
Please stay safe, look out for one another and keep an eye out for some exciting news from us about 2022 soon.
