The HFStival will return to the District for the first time in 13 years on Saturday with a full day of alt-rock at Nationals Park.
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Popular music festival HFStival returns to DC
One of the D.C. area’s most popular music festivals — the HFStival — will return to the District for the first time in 13 years on Saturday with a full day of alt-rock at Nationals Park.
Back in the day, WHFS was the station that introduced D.C.-area music fans to artists, including Bruce Springsteen, Little Feat, Bonnie Raitt, NRBQ, Emmylou Harris, Tom Waits, Bob Marley, and many more.
Making use of the station’s call letters, the HFStival (pronounced H-F-S-tival) was launched by the alternative rock station in 1990. It ran every summer through 2006, moving from Lake Fairfax Park in Virginia, to the Equestrian Center in Upper Marlboro, Maryland, to RFK stadium until 2004, when it was moved to M&T Bank Stadium in Baltimore.
A smaller version of the festival was held at Merriweather Post Pavilion in 2010 and 2011.
“People used to look forward to it every year like it was Christmas or something,” said Seth Hurwitz, owner of I.M.P. Productions, who is promoting his first show at Nats Park. “We’re hoping to make it like that again.”
Headliners include The Postal Service and Death Cab For Cutie. Many of the bands in this year’s lineup played at earlier HFStivals at RFK Stadium, including Violent Femmes, Bush, Garbage, and Incubus.
Hurwitz said this year’s show will have some contrasts with shows at RFK.
“The zoo that used to be the HFStival, it used to be an Ironman triathlete thing to be there all day,” at the now-empty stadium in Southeast D.C., he said.
While “some people might remember that fondly, I don’t think, 20 years later, that that’s what you want to go do,” said Hurwitz, who believes fans will appreciate the creature comforts of this year’s festival. “The food is great at Nats Park — it’s a comfortable place to see a show.”
Longtime fans will probably experience the music differently in 2024. “When you’re young and you like to mosh, it’s not quite like that now — it’s going to be a more comfortable version of that,” Hurwitz predicted.
Over the years, Hurwitz has seen — and booked — many of the bands at his other venues, including 9:30 Club, The Anthem, and The Atlantis.
“Sometimes you’re afraid to go see a band you saw a long time again, and you think ‘Maybe they should quit.’ But we’ve picked the best of these bands that are still around,” Hurwitz said.
“Some of these bands, younger people may have never seen,” said Hurwitz, who is 66. “People our age — pardon me, Neal — would like to see them again.” (For the record, this reporter is a mere 65)
Saturday’s show will be the final performance for The Postal Service, which has spent the past two years co-headlining with Death Cab for Cutie, which both feature singer/songwriter Ben Gibbard.
“Those two acts played Merriweather Post (which I. M. P. operates), and sold out in a minute. Then they played two shows at The Anthem, so that was 27,000 tickets that blew out,” said Hurwitz.
It’s too soon to say whether the HFStival will become a yearly event, said Hurwitz.
“I’m gonna wait and see how this turns out, Saturday. I think it’s going to be great — we’re gonna give it a shot,” he said.
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