originally published: 01/13/2020
(TEMPE, AZ) -- Arizona’s top rock station, 98KUPD, have announced rock artists Volbeat, Clutch and Philip H. Anselmo & The Illegals (performing a Pantera set) will headline UFEST 2020, the radio station’s long-running annual music festival, on April 4th, 2020 at Big Surf Waterpark.
UFEST 2020, which will also feature performances from the bands Fire From The Gods, The Picturebooks and more to be announced. The radio station’s music festival will this year be filled with waterslides, beer, liquor, food vendors, an artist autograph booth, meet & greets with the artists and classic video games. The rock music festival is expected to draw more than 10,000 fans this year.
The 98KUPD/RideNOW Powersports broadcast stage will host live interviews and contests all day.
“Growing up in Arizona in the ‘80s, I can remember all the big rock bands coming through town and playing at Big Surf,” says 98KUPD Brand and Content Director Larry McFeelie. “Rockers like Tesla, Red Hot Chili Peppers, and even Pink Floyd have performed at the waterpark. So, why not bring UFEST and some current day rock acts to Big Surf!?! The weather will be perfect, the drinks will be flowing and the music will be loud! Sounds like a good UFEST to me.”
Tickets for UFEST 2020 start at just $39 plus fees. $1 from the sale of each ticket goes to benefit the United Phoenix Firefighters Charities. Two levels of VIP packages are also available, starting at $175.
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“As firefighters we unfortunately often meet people at times of tragedy, these circumstances give us a unique perspective on the needs of the community” says Director of Charities Ben Lindquist. “United Phoenix Firefighters Charities gives our firefighters the resources to give back in the communities we serve. We can’t say thank you enough to KUPD for making us the beneficiary of this year’s UFest and helping us to further our efforts in our community! We are excited to see everyone at UFest this year!”
General Admission tickets will also be available at valley Zia Records locations. For tickets and more information, click here. Big Surf Waterpark is located at 1500 North McClintock Drive in Tempe, Arizona. Parking is available on-site.
UFEST 2020 is presented by Bud Light, Sprint PCS, Ride NOW Powersports, Zia Records and the New Times. It is an all-ages events, with bar access for those with a valid ID. Doors open at 1:00pm, with music beginning at 3:00pm.
98KUPD (97.9FM) is a commercial active rock radio station. Licensed to Tempe, Arizona, the station serves the Phoenix metropolitan area. The station is owned by Hubbard Radio, a division of Hubbard Broadcasting, Inc. of St. Paul, Minnesota. The radio station’s morning show, “Holmberg’s Morning Sickness,” has dominated the airwaves for the 19+ years and can be heard each weekday morning from 5:30 a.m.-10 a.m. on the FM dial at 97.9FM or via 98KUPD’s Mobile App.
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"Well, I certainly hope so, it seems like it is," laughed Blues Traveler bassist Ben Wilson as he discussed what the band has been up to and their preparations before they hit the road once again for a Summer tour. "The band has been quite active over the years through touring and we managed to continue to record some records. We've done two kinds of covers records, the first one was a blues record which actually got nominated for a Grammy which was pretty cool and the next one, we did some soul covers. That one wasn't quite as well received but it was sure fun to make. So, it's been really cool; you have this massive success for a decade or so and then you kind of dip below that cultural Gestalt line where you're just kind of bubbling below the surface and you can do just fine there even though you're not on the cover of "The Rolling Stone" and that's kind of what we've been doing. We've had a good run, it has been fantastic and these summer tours where we get together with these other kind of bands of similar eras with similar kinds of hits; we're very fortunate as kind of a neo-hippie jam band from that era that kind of bucked some of the trends that were going on at the time but we were lucky enough to have a couple of hits and that has allowed us to have kind of a different career than just the straight jam bands do; not that that wouldn't be awesome as well because obviously many of them are doing just fine but it's just a slightly different road but it has been wonderful. We didn't rehearse a whole lot because we've been playing together for 38 years but things are good and we're stoked for this upcoming tour."
