Sound Summit Returns to Mount Tam

As California reopens for live music and concerts, Sound Summit is beyond thrilled to welcome back fans to the slopes of Mt. Tam on Saturday, September 11 for a day of great music and stellar viewsJoin charismatic Bay Area radio personalities Murph & Mac (aka Brian Murphy and Paul McCaffrey) as the day’s dynamic Masters of Ceremonies along with KPFA’s “Dead to the World” radio host Tim Lynch. DJ Andy Cabic of Vetiver fame will, once again, spin tunes between sets.

Sound Summit Line-up

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Lukas Nelson and the Promise of the Real

Acclaimed Americana rock band that has toured relentlessly for more than a decade, playing countless sold-out shows and festivals around the world and occasionally serving as Neil Young’s road band. Nelson served as a music consultant to the award-winning film A Star is Born, helping train Bradley Cooper for musical authenticity, and wrote many of the songs on the soundtrack album.

Riding out the beginning of the pandemic with his parents (father Willie Nelson) and his brother, Grammy Award-winning Nelson was forced to hit pause in 2020 for the first time in his life. His brand new album A Few Stars Apart is a testament to finding a human connection: between close family and friends, as well as one’s own heart. The songs reveal what it means to come home again, to be still, and to find community—and yourself.

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Father John Misty

The brainchild of singer-songwriter Josh Tillman. He has released four widely acclaimed albums and earned accolades from the likes of Entertainment Weekly, The Guardian, Rolling Stone, and Pitchfork. He’s appeared on Saturday Night Live, Austin City Limits, The Late Show with Stephen ColbertTonight Show, Jimmy Kimmel Live and Late Night with Seth Meyers. Father John Misty and his incredible live band have headlined The Hollywood Bowl and Red Rocks and have appeared at Coachella and Lollapalooza festivals.

Father John Misty recently released Off-Key In Hamburg, his first live album in March of 2020, and Anthem +3, a collection of covers of songs by Leonard Cohen, Yusuf/Cat Stevens, and Link Wray released in July of 2020. Combined, Off-Key In Hamburg and Anthem +3 raised over $150,000 for multiple causes including The Recording Academy’s MusiCares COVID-19 Relief Fund, CARE Action and Ground Game LA.

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Allah-Las

Southern California-based Allah-Las mix melodic psychedelia, retro garage, and sun-filled surf into a hypnotic blend that draws you in from the first note. One critic referred them as “steeped in pop sensibilities … laced with Northern Soul and lo-fi funk.” Their latest album LAHS showcases their skillful melding of melodies and moods, and ventures into new, exciting territories. Indeed, their growth not just as songwriters, but as performers, arrangers, and producers — is clearly audible.

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Cha Wa

Eclectic New Orleans brass-band-meets-Mardi-Gras-Indian outfit, Cha Wa radiates the energy of the city’s street culture. “Mardi Gras Indian songs are inherently songs about freedom,” the band’s drummer Joe Gelini says. “And that struggle is as relevant today as it’s ever been.” PopMatters describes the band as "a grand gumbo of singing, intoxicating rhythms, and deep funk grooves that are impossible to resist.”

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Teal Collins

Teal Collins grew up in Mill Valley, CA bombing down Mt. Tam on a Schwinn cruiser, and finding a lot to love about The Beatles, Led Zeppelin and the Grateful Dead. Her early introduction to music was through her dad, famous Jazz disc jockey Al, "Jazzbeaux" Collins who taught her how to play the ukulele at the tender age of 5. Her own musical projects include The Mother Truckers, who spent a decade in Austin TX, winning multiple awards at SXSW Music Festival, (Best New Band & Best Roots Rock Band among them), releasing four albums, and extensively touring the U.S. and Europe, as well as penning songs for film and TV. The Teal Collins band blends the feel-good sounds of Rock, Soul & the California sun, all done with powerhouse vocal delivery.

Produced as an annual celebration of and fundraiser for Mount Tamalpais State Park by Roots & Branches Conservancy, Sound Summit is a musical gathering like no other in the Bay Area. The festival is staged at the historic Mountain Theater, a 4,000-seat natural stone amphitheater with stunning views of San Francisco Bay and beyond. Add a sun-filled day, a resonant cause, and a healthy dose of joy, spice generously with stellar music, and you have a recipe for a magical mountain brew. Fueled by past musical acts Wilco, Bob Weir & Phil Lesh, Herbie Hancock, Tedeschi Trucks Band, Jim James, Grace Potter, Los Lobos, Dr. John & The Night Trippers, Bill Frisell, Preservation Hall Jazz Band, The Mother Hips, The Stone Foxes, Con Brio, and many more, Sound Summit has donated $200,000 to Mount Tam to date.