Sea.Hear.Now 2024 is right around the corner.
While the festival is sporting its best lineup ever — headlined by Bruce Springsteen and the E-Street Band — there’s a ton of non-music (and some musical) events happening in and around the festival grounds.
First, let’s talk about a changes in the lineup. Nashville-based singer/songwriter Bo Staloch has been added to Saturday’s opening sets on the Sand Stage. On Sunday, Larkin Poe will no longer be performing and they will be replaced by Wilderado. Wilderado is releases their second full-length studio album Talker on September 20th.
The Official Pre and Post Show Concerts: Sea.Hear.Now 2024 weekend kicks off with two shows at The Stone Pony and Wonder Bar.
On Friday September 13, the legendary Stone Pony plays host to the immensely talented bluesy rock ‘n’ roll juggernaut known as Grace Potter. Doors open at 7:30 p.m. Meanwhile, down the block at The Wonder Bar, the annual “There Goes the Neighborhood” show which features local, originals bands features Tide Bends, Surfing for Daisy and Not Your Baby. This is a 21+ event with doors at 7:30 p.m.
After Noah Kahan strums his guitar for the final time on Saturday September 14, there’s two huge post-shows. The Wonder Bar hosts Bertha: Grateful Drag, a full-on drag Grateful Dead tribute straight out of Nashville. This is a 21+ event and doors open at 10:30. If you can’t make this show, Bertha will be performing on Sunday afternoon at Sea.Hear.Now.
The legendary “Ocean Ave Stomp” takes place at The Stone Pony starting at 10:30 p.m. Why is this show legendary? Simple. Every year performers from SHN come onstage to jam with The Tangiers Blues Band (featuring fest organizer Danny Clinch) to create unforgettable, one of a kind moments.
All of these shows are sponsored by Netflix.
Pre-Game with Some Merch: On Friday September 13 there will be a pop-up shop running from 12 p.m. to 7 p.m. next to the box office located on 3rd and Ocean Avenue. There will be exclusive Bruce Springsteen merch. Gaslight Anthem will also be selling merch in this area as well.
The Transparent Art Gallery: One of the coolest (and most underrated aspects) of the entire festival is the Transparent Art Gallery which is located in the Bradley Park area of the festival. This tent is awesome for two very distinct reasons. First, you’re seeing the original artwork from the artists performing at the festival. Second, you get to see live, intimate and usually surprise performances throughout the weekend. Last year, The Beach Boys’ Mike Love walked into the tent and presented an award. We’ve seen members of Pearl Jam, Blind Melon and Nathaniel Rateliff himself person sets in there along with some great local acts from the Asbury scene.
Check out this year’s installments:
The Art of “Stokehenge”: Speaking of art there’s always great surf-related art happening throughout the festival grounds. First, go check out our friends at the Wooden Walls Project they have art all over the walls on the boardwalk. They also work with the Carousel at the south end of the boardwalk to do some really amazing art installations and displays. Second, there’s always surf board shapers working throughout the shows creating killer boards. There’s also that wild center festival piece featuring boards and artwork that you can take some great photos of when you first arrive (and they look awesome at night too).
Surfing: One of the biggest parts of Sea.Hear.Now every year is the surfing that takes place on the North Beach. Some years the ocean has been a bit glassy and calm, but other years it has produced some really sweet waves for some of the best male and female surfers to compete against each other.
Food and Drink: Word to the wise. We’ve covered this festival since 2018 and have seen way too many people not follow this simple rule — eat food, stay hydrated. Yes, it’s a party. Yes, it’s a good time. Drink responsibly as Aperol Spritz, Budweiser, Corona, Hendricks Gin, Mamitas Tequila, Sierra Nevada, Teremana Tequila, Tito’s and Twisted Tea are all sponsors and will have booths and presences at the festival. But, don’t forget to drink water. Don’t forget to EAT. Keep yourself nourished and hydrated throughout the festival. These are long days, the summer is going to be out in full force, and time flies — so make sure you take conscious efforts to keep yourself right. Below are just some of the excellent food vendors you can sample from. Support local vendors like Bergs Smoked Meat & Poutine, Betty’s Ice Box, Hoagitos, MOGO, Local Smoke BBQ, Surf Taco and more.
