Boston Calling 2025: May 23-25

Photography by Tabitha Curry

Review by Maya Santow

This past Memorial Day weekend, I joined thousands of New England music lovers to brave the late spring chill for Boston Calling. Throughout the long weekend, walking through the gates of Harvard Athletic Complex each day looked drastically different—so much so that the three-day festival felt more like four separate music festivals entirely.

When the event kicked off on Friday, based on my surroundings, I could’ve sworn that I’d stumbled into a country music festival. Though the energy was slow to start in the dreary weather, I found myself weaving through crowds of cowboy hats, largely due to headliners Luke Combs and Megan Moroney later that day.

The main Green Stage was curated for this audience, featuring the powerful country-rock ensemble Holy Roller, young up-and-coming country star Max McNown, and local country group Dalton & the Sheriffs. The latter two paid homage to the New England setting, with McNown covering Noah Kahan’s “Stick Season” and Dalton & the Sheriffs giving a Lansdowne Street shoutout in “Cheap Guitars.” Despite not being a country fan myself, I appreciated the nods to New England.

However, I was more attracted to the Blue Stage, the second largest of the four, which was decidedly an entirely different vibe from the country theme of the day. One highlight was Kyle Dion, whose groovy falsetto, punchy ad-libs, and flared pants were reminiscent of Bruno Mars in Silk Sonic. From his brand-new album, SOULAR, Dion’s performance of “SUGA ON THE RIM” was complete with smooth dance moves that made the overcast afternoon feel more like a warm night out. 

In between sets, I wandered into the Arena Stage, which had been converted into an indoor performance space to spotlight young Berklee jazz artists. There, I was captivated by Tiril Jackson’s performance of “Weird Fishes” with her rich voice and synergistic band. 

Other Blue Stage highlights on Friday afternoon included the indie sibling group Infinity Song, whose TikTok-viral “Hater’s Anthem” you may know. Their soft, harmonic vocals were beautiful on their own during moments of stillness in their performance, and driven forward even more by the indie rock instrumentals that grounded their unique sound. 

My favorite set of the day was Thee Sacred Souls, whose jazzy, slow, shimmering sound evoked a feeling of simultaneous intimacy and reflection. They had a magnetic pull, drawing a growing crowd towards the Blue Stage despite the onset of early evening rain—though, in my opinion, they deserved an even bigger audience. 

My biggest qualm with Friday’s lineup was this lack of attendance at the Blue Stage. Don’t get me wrong—I loved hearing Sheryl Crow sing “Real Gone” from the “Cars” soundtrack on the Green Stage later that evening—but there was a distinct genre divide within Friday’s attendees that leaned in country music’s favor, meaning that the R&B and indie artists on the Blue Stage weren’t met with as much of an audience as they should have been. 

On Saturday, it was almost laughable how much the look and feel of the festival shifted solely because of the attendees; cowboy hats and boots were replaced by fishnet tights and Doc Martens in the spirit of headliners Fall Out Boy and Avril Lavigne.

I wandered first to the Orange Stage to see Sidebody, an art punk rock band from Somerville. All weekend, the small soundstage was booked exclusively with local New England artists. Sidebody embraced their Boston roots in a particularly fun way, opening their set with lead singer Hava Horowitz answering a prop phone—“Sidebody Hotline….Oh, this is Boston calling?”

Sidebody’s performance—complete with telephone costumes, no less—was a playful, jubilant celebration of the Boston music scene that they’ve been involved in since they formed the band at age 14. They continued to incorporate theatrics, with quippy spoken verses reminiscent of the 2010s Marina and the Diamonds era. 

Another 2010s-esque highlight of the day was Cage the Elephant, who took to the Green Stage around sunset. Ironically, for their hit “Cigarette Daydreams,” a song which mentions “standing in the pouring rain,” the sun came out for the first time all weekend. But no complaints here—with Cage the Elephant’s breezy, yet wistful sound, the golden glow only added to the coming-of-age film feeling evoked by their music.

In an even farther throwback to the early 2000s, Avril Lavigne leaned into nostalgia with her headlining performance. I learned that I share a birth year with her debut single, “Complicated,” which made her performance of “Here’s to Never Growing Up” all the more meaningful. Though she mainly stuck to her many successful hits from throughout the past 23 years, Lavigne’s new music also reflected on her experiences as a young musician in a raw and honest way, with her old music videos playing in the background throughout the entire set. 

Morale was high for the final day of the festival on Sunday, which yet again looked entirely different—the tie-dyed garb of Sublime fans and classic denim of indie concertwear dominated the crowd. 

I stopped by the Blue Stage to catch Sam Austins, whose song “Seasons” felt like a Boiler Room-esque summer kickoff despite the chilly day. After, I stayed for iDKHOW, an indie pop artist who I would recommend to Declan McKenna listeners, or to fans mourning the loss of COIN; their 80s-inspired glittering synths were a great high-energy addition to the afternoon.

A new favorite I heard on the Green Stage was Goth Babe, an indie pop project by Griff Washburn. Goth Babe was hands-down the best crowd work of the day: not only did Washburn select two audience members to crowdsurf atop inflatable pool toys (shaped like a Cheez-It and a Pop Tart, might I add), but he also led the two sides of the crowd in a dance battle (proud to say I was on the winning side). Goth Babe’s set felt the most like a quintessential music festival experience with its enthusiastic crowd, infectious energy, and summery, euphoric music.

My own most anticipated act of the weekend was Remi Wolf, who took to the Green Stage on Sunday afternoon. Despite facing several technical issues during her set, Wolf’s effortless charm still shone through. Though she claimed not to be a comedian, Wolf delivered a stream-of-consciousness tight ten of sorts while waiting for a mic repair that had the crowd laughing at all the right moments. When things got moving, she belted flawlessly and pranced across the stage, rallying an audience that couldn’t help but join in on her fun.

Vampire Weekend was, fittingly, how I chose to end my weekend at Boston Calling. Like Cage the Elephant, their indie pop sound was well-suited for the sunset, with beach balls being passed around the pit during the familiar sunny riff of “A-Punk.” For their finale, they opted for a Massachusetts reference with “Walcott,” a song that mentions Cape Cod.

As a whole, I was pleasantly surprised by what Boston Calling had to offer this year. Going into it, I was not very familiar with or compelled by the lineup, aside from a couple of artists. In comparison to last year, which boasted big names for Gen-Z listeners like Chappell Roan, Megan Thee Stallion, and Hozier, it didn’t appear as impressive to me initially. 

However, though they didn’t nail the same big names, one thing that Boston Calling brought to the table this year was variety. It truly felt like I attended a country fest, jazz fest, post-punk fest, and indie fest all in one weekend. And yes, it was quite amusing to watch the wardrobes of attendees change over the course of the three days, but it was also refreshing to experience live music that I wouldn’t have necessarily sought out on my own. Though Boston Calling’s 2025 lineup may not have reflected the current moment as much as last year’s, I enjoyed how it channeled both nostalgia and a glimpse into the near future of music.