Written by: Kai Eldridge, Music Discovery Editor, OnesToWatch | Last updated: August 10, 2026
Key Details for Kilby Block Party 2026
- Kilby Block Party 2026 runs May 15–17 at Utah State Fairpark with headliners Turnstile, The xx, and Lorde across three stages.
- The festival features over 70 artists spanning indie rock, hyperpop, post-punk, and experimental pop.
- 2026 marks a shift from nostalgia-driven bookings toward contemporary indie acts and emerging talent.
- Local Utah artists like Ritt Momney, The Moss, and The Kilans highlight the festival’s community roots.
- Stay ahead of the next wave of indie talent by exploring OnesToWatch for curated artist spotlights and festival previews.
Kilby Block Party 2026 Headliners
Each day is anchored by a headliner representing a distinct corner of the indie and alternative world.
Friday, May 15 – Turnstile: The Baltimore hardcore outfit delivers one of the most physically intense live shows in contemporary rock. Their crossover appeal bridges hardcore, punk, and indie audiences, which makes them a fitting opener for the weekend.
Saturday, May 16 – The xx: The reunited London trio headlines Saturday with their signature minimalist indie pop. Their return to the live circuit ranks among the most anticipated reunion performances of 2026.
Sunday, May 17 – Lorde: The New Zealand singer-songwriter closes the festival on Sunday. At 29, Lorde is positioned as a contemporary rather than nostalgia-driven headliner, reflecting a curatorial shift explored in detail below.
Discover more emerging headliners and breakthrough acts on OnesToWatch’s 2026 artist spotlight.
Full Kilby Block Party 2026 Lineup by Day
The artist roster for Kilby Block Party 2026 appears below by day, based on official lineup announcements and supporting sources.
Friday, May 15:
- Turnstile
- Modest Mouse
- Father John Misty
- Japanese Breakfast
- Beach Bunny
- Snail Mail
- Pattie Gonia
- Ritt Momney
- Kevin Morby
- Drugdealer
- Show Me The Body
- Dry Cleaning
- Newdad
- Chanel Beads
- Die Spitz
- Provoker
- Hotline TNT
- Wombo
- Gelli Haha
- Dad Bod
- Hayley Williams
- Blood Orange
- Magdalena Bay
- Flipturn
- American Football
- Grandaddy
- Wild Nothing
- Melody’s Echo Chamber
- Ethan Regan
- Smerz
- KennyHoopla
- Hannah Cohen
- Freak Slug
- TOPS
- This Is Lorelei
- Folk Bitch Trio
- Mustard Service
- Old Mervs
- Glom
- Rachael Jenkins
- Bad Luck Brigade
Saturday, May 16:
- The xx
- Alex G
- Lucy Dacus
- The Last Dinner Party
- Briston Maroney
- Between Friends
- The Moss
- Clap Your Hands Say Yeah
- Ben Kweller
- Dehd
- Lyn Lapid
- Jane Remover
- Quadeca
- Automatic
- Feeble Little Horse
- Caroline
- The Kilans
- Cardinals
- YHWH Nailgun
- Fightmaster
- Wilbere
- Jill Whit
- Chalk (SLC)
Sunday, May 17:
- Lorde
Lorde performs at Kilby Block Party on Sunday, May 17, 2026. The complete Friday and Saturday lineups are detailed in the sections above.
See which of these Kilby Block Party artists made OnesToWatch’s 2026 breakthrough list.
Kilby Block Party 2026 Daily Schedule and Stages
The daily schedule highlights how Kilby Block Party balances discovery sets with marquee moments across multiple stages. Early afternoon slots often feature rising artists, while evenings concentrate the biggest crowds around the main stages. The tables below show confirmed artists, approximate set windows, and current stage notes.
Friday, May 15 – Gates Open 11:30 a.m.
| Artist | Approximate Set Window | Stage Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Gelli Haha | 12:15 p.m. | Kilby Stage |
| Die Spitz | Afternoon | Desert Stage |
| Newdad | Afternoon | Kilby Stage |
| Ritt Momney | 3:00 p.m. | Kilby Stage |
| Blood Orange | Afternoon | TBC |
| Flipturn | Afternoon | TBC |
| This Is Lorelei | Afternoon | TBC |
| Folk Bitch Trio | Afternoon | TBC |
| Turnstile | Headliner / Late Evening | Kilby Stage |
Saturday, May 16 – Gates Open 11:30 a.m.
| Artist | Approximate Set Window | Stage Notes |
|---|---|---|
| The Kilans | Afternoon | Desert Stage |
| Automatic | TBC | TBC |
| Briston Maroney | 4:50 p.m. | Kilby Stage |
| The Last Dinner Party | 5:45 p.m. | Lake Stage |
| The xx | Headliner / Late Evening | Main Stage |
Sunday, May 17 – Gates Open 11:30 a.m.
| Artist | Approximate Set Window | Stage Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lorde | Headliner / Late Evening | Kilby Stage |
The schedule above helps you spot potential conflicts and plan your day around both must-see sets and new discoveries.
Use OnesToWatch’s 2026 list to fill any open gaps in your Kilby Block Party schedule.
Who to Watch at Kilby Block Party 2026
The schedule shows when each act performs, but it does not tell you which sets deserve extra effort. Beyond the headliners, the 2026 undercard features some of the most compelling emerging acts in indie music right now. OnesToWatch has tracked many of these artists through their early career stages. Here are seven acts worth building your day around.
- Gelli Haha – The Los Angeles-based experimental pop project of Boise-born Angel Abaya delivered a synth-fueled dream-pop set with bold choreography and a bright red visual theme. Her 2025 album Switcheroo on Innovative Leisure showcases an art-pop approach that feels singular and playful.
- Die Spitz – The Austin all-female hardcore foursome sparked a massive circle pit and steady crowd surfing from their opening notes. Signed to Jack White’s Third Man Records after touring with Amyl and the Sniffers, they blend 1990s grunge textures with 2020s hardcore urgency. They are slated to support Olivia Rodrigo on European dates in Spring 2027.
- Newdad – Ireland’s Newdad delivered a tight, confident indie-rock set, with vocalist and guitarist Julie Dawson’s presence anchoring the band’s fuzzy shoegaze sound. Their 2025 album Altar captures the same atmospheric pull that resonated live.
- Jane Remover – Documented among the rising indie acts at the 2026 festival by Flood Magazine, Jane Remover brings a hyperpop and experimental sensibility that sits at the cutting edge of the genre’s evolution.
- The Kilans – The Salt Lake City four-piece formed in 2023 after members met skating in college, channeling early 2000s garage rock and indie with high live energy. Playing on home turf adds extra charge and crowd support to their Saturday set.
- Folk Bitch Trio – The group opened the main stage on Sunday with hauntingly beautiful harmonies. Their intimate, vocal-forward songs created a striking contrast with the heavier acts elsewhere on the bill.
- This Is Lorelei – The New York-based solo project of Nate Amos played to a packed crowd at the Mountain Stage and has earned a reputation as a musician’s musician. Preview coverage recommended early arrival, and the response from fans justified the hype.
Find more discovery-ready artists for your Kilby weekend in OnesToWatch’s 2026 guide.
Music Style and Festival Vibe at Kilby 2026
Kilby Block Party’s booking leans hard into indie rock without being dogmatic about the term, with no rappers or dance DJs on the bill. What “indie rock” means in 2026 feels expansive. The festival layers in hyperpop through acts like Jane Remover and Gelli Haha, heavier hardcore energy from Turnstile and Die Spitz, and a touch of nostalgia from veteran bands such as Modest Mouse, American Football, and Grandaddy. The common thread is not a single sound but a shared left-of-center aesthetic.
The overall atmosphere skews toward a younger indie audience. Crowd observations from the 2026 event noted a prevalence of Nirvana shirts and hacky sack circles, reflecting fans who romanticize 1990s indie culture while embracing its 2020s descendants. The multi-stage format bakes genre-hopping into the experience, with post-punk, dream-pop, baroque indie, and experimental pop all running concurrently across the Kilby, Desert, Lake, and Mountain stages. This programming approach represents a significant evolution from the festival’s earlier years.
Explore the full spectrum of 2026’s indie breakout artists at OnesToWatch.
Past Years Comparison: 2021–2025 vs. 2026
Since moving to the Utah State Fairgrounds in 2023, Kilby Block Party’s headliners leaned heavily on nostalgia, booking 1990s acts such as Pavement and Weezer and 2000s acts such as The Strokes, Yeah Yeah Yeahs, LCD Soundsystem, and Justice. The festival went even further back in 2025 with New Order and Devo. That approach rewarded longtime indie fans but created a lineup identity anchored in retrospection.
The 2026 edition marks a deliberate pivot from that nostalgia-heavy model. Tom Breihan, writing for Stereogum, described the shift: “This year felt like a much more transitional youth-movement situation. There were veteran acts on the bill — Modest Mouse, American Football, Grandaddy — but they weren’t the main focus.” Headliners Turnstile, The xx, and Lorde represent contemporary indie and alternative rather than catalog-driven nostalgia. The undercard features artists such as Die Spitz, Newdad, Gelli Haha, and The Kilans, who are actively building their careers instead of revisiting past peaks. The festival’s identity as a “truly hand curated and communal event” feels more visible in 2026 than in any prior edition.
Dive deeper into the artists shaping this new phase of Kilby Block Party on OnesToWatch.
Frequently Asked Questions
What is Kilby Block Party?
Kilby Block Party is an annual indie music festival held in Salt Lake City, Utah. It began in 2019 as a one-day event marking the 20th anniversary of Kilby Court, a beloved local venue, and has grown into a multi-day destination festival drawing over 25,000 attendees per day. The 2026 edition is the seventh annual event and takes place May 15–17 at the Utah State Fairpark.
Who are the headliners for Kilby Block Party 2026?
The three headliners for Kilby Block Party 2026 are Turnstile on Friday, May 15, The xx on Saturday, May 16, and Lorde on Sunday, May 17. Each headliner represents a distinct strand of contemporary indie and alternative music, reflecting the festival’s 2026 shift away from nostalgia-driven bookings.
How does Kilby Block Party select its artists?
The organizers at S&S Presents use a data-informed curation process that studies attendee listening behavior, survey results, and social media comments to identify high-demand artists. Bookers then select similar acts to support those anchors while intentionally including local Utah artists to maintain community ties. The festival also adjusts scheduling based on attendee feedback, including implementing re-entry after fan requests.
Are there local Utah artists performing at Kilby Block Party 2026?
Yes. Several Utah-based artists are on the 2026 bill, including Ritt Momney, The Moss, Wilbere, and Chalk. The Kilans, a Salt Lake City four-piece formed in 2023, also perform on Saturday. Ritt Momney, who performed at the very first Kilby Block Party alongside Death Cab for Cutie, returns in 2026 for a 3:00 p.m. Friday set closing out his third-album tour.
What makes Kilby Block Party different from other indie festivals?
Kilby Block Party’s curation is driven by genuine community input rather than purely commercial booking logic. The festival pairs major headliners with deeply emerging acts, giving artists like Gelli Haha, This Is Lorelei, and Die Spitz the same stage ecosystem as Lorde and The xx. Its roots in Kilby Court, a venue historically known for giving first-tour indie bands and local acts a stage, remain visible in how the undercard is assembled each year.
Stay tuned to OnesToWatch for more Kilby Block Party previews and 2026 artist discoveries.