Good music is hard to find. 

Once you have an artist that you find you enjoy, it’s easy to get caught up in your favorite tunes. Yet, the search to find that mesmerizing track that tickles your brain just right can be long and difficult. 

That process — of discovering and connecting with new artists — will be expanded tenfold at the Joshua Tree Music Festival. With six stages and areas and over 25 musical acts, the four-day festival will offer attendees more than enough music to enjoy and explore. So where do you start? 

If you don’t know any artists at the festival and are looking to dip your toes into new musical pools, I’ve compiled this short list of three acts to look out for. 

Evie Joy

Some of my favorite music artists are masters of the slow and beautiful form of storytelling.

I can’t say that Evie Joy doesn’t have fast tracks, but her mesmerizing slower pieces drew my interest. As a great example, I first offer you her 2024 single “This Is a Love Song.,” a track that only needs her vocals and simple acoustic instrumentation to draw one in. Another track, 2023’s “Love Letter,” made me feel like it would have been fine with even less instrumentation than it already had. My reasoning? Joy’s vocals are that good.

If you’re looking for an example of her faster work, look to the 2022 single “Happy Ever Also.” The speed of the song here is quicker than the aforementioned, but, again, Joy’s vocals and simple instrumentation are what really make the song work. No matter the speed, the same facets of her songs always peak my interest.  

At the 2024 Joshua Tree Music Festival, Joy will be performing on Friday, Oct. 11 at 4 p.m. at the Boogaloo Lounge. Students can learn more about her on her website, Instagram and Spotify pages.

The Local Honeys 

Country-folk duo The Local Honeys feels like an expert choice for the Joshua Tree Music Festival. 

Maybe it’s the feeling that the Kentucky music-defining duo’s country sound on a track like “Cigarette Trees” feels perfectly in tandem with a desert setting, but for fans of country, this group is right up your alley. The duo’s music incorporates other genre’s sounds, too: some of the tracks from their self-titled 2022 album sound slightly less older-country and more modern, like “The L&N Don’t Stop Here Anymore” and “Better Than I Deserve.” 

I was won over by Montana Hobbs and Linda Jean Stokley with their “Dead Horses,” another popular track from the same 2022 album, and their 2021 single “Dying to Make a Living.” Both songs’ complementing of instrumentation and vocals drew me in, and they’re perfect examples of the sound The Local Honeys offer. 

For listeners interested in exploring a country-folk sound with expert instrumentation and vocals, they’re sure to be one to check out.

This weekend, they can be found performing on Saturday, Oct. 12 at the Cafe Stage from 10:30 a.m. to 12 p.m. Students can learn more about them on their website and on their Spotify and Instagram pages. 

Sgt. Splendor

For attendees looking for a more rock-heavy sound, blues/rock band Sgt. Splendor is an act you won’t want to miss.

To provide an example of their rock bravado, I offer their song “All Dead To Me,” a popular track from their 2022 album “Occasions for Self-Congratulations;” the song heavily reminded me of the sound of ZZ Top. Another stand-out track from the album, “Freakification,” furthers this rock sound, while “Lips Are Movin’,” off of their 2023 album “Death of the Hoochie Koo,” offers more electric-sounding instrumentation. 

What I’m trying to say is that Sgt. Splendor (which is actually composed of Kate Vargas and Eric McFadden) packs more than enough varied musical bravado into their discography. Consistently, the group delivers engaging tracks no matter the sound. 

At this year’s Joshua Tree Music Festival, students can see Sgt. Splendor at the Indian Cove stage on Saturday, Oct. 12 from 6:10 p.m. to 7:40 p.m. Students can learn more about them on their website, Spotify and Instagram pages. 

Still uncertain of who to watch? No worries — the festival will keep you covered. 
Students interested in attending the Joshua Tree Music Festival can buy tickets on the festival’s website.