Hinterland Music Festival: Day Three

My goal on day three was to capture the barricade sprint and while it wasn’t as cut throat as the Lorde barricade spring, it did not disappoint. The lineup for Hinterland Music Festival day three was looking drastically different from the day prior. Starting off with Irish folk band, Amble and Waylon Wyatt, Saturday was off to a folk heavy start with banjos and fiddles present. I will say, out of all four days, Day three takes the cake for the most “Hinterland” day of the festival. Folk heavy and chill vibes are perfect words to describe the overall energy for this day. Saturday also had the perfect wedding (in my opinion) — partly sunny with a slight breeze. The perfect midwest day.

Following Amble was 19 year old Waylon Wyatt who first started gaining traction on TikTok when his song “Everything Under The Sun” went viral and his debut album Dustpiles was released in 2026. Waylon Wyatt’s set was a little more country-folk leaning compared to Amble but regardless, I think the two bands complimented each and definitely set the vibe for the day.

Julia Wolf was third to appear on the Hinterland stage for day three and drastically switched up the vibe — not a banjo in sight! Coming to Iowa from New York, She switched gears to her known alt-pop sound. Julia Wolf’s career started in 2019 with her independently releasing singles and gaining traction on TikTok. Her strong and ethereal vocals were definitely a stand out for the day and landed her in my two three performances of the day. I think what I love most about Julia Wolf is not her popular song “In My Room” but her love for Twilight and how her musical and visual style are heavily influenced by the film. Not to mention her iconic Twilight hand tattoo.

Now the next three artists were very much contrasting from one another and lowkey gave me music whiplash. CMAT took the stage and were loud and colorful and full of personality, similar to Ashnikko’s set the day prior. Adorned with tooth gems, iconic hair, and semi coordinated outfits, CMAT was so much fun to witness and engage with the crowd. I quickly began to understand why CMAT was a highly anticipated band for Day 3 and may have gained a new favorite band. Following CMAT was Santigold who was a little late to stage due to audio tech issues but she made the most of her time on stage. Her set was so chill and so weird in a cool way. Santigold’s set was influenced heavily by old school R&B and new wave hip hop. Her crowd interaction was also amazing as she invited people on stage numerous times throughout her set to dance — including the person dressed as a corn. Finally, to finish up for three contrasting artists was The Format. The Format is an indie rock band based in Arizona and I’m going to be real, based on the first song on their set, I was confused by the drastic decrease in energy. However, they quickly proved me wrong and the energy was quickly amped up.

The sun was starting to set and anticipation built as attendees waited patiently for Jessie Murph to appear on stage. One of two headliners for the night and you could feel the energy increasing as time ticked closer to her set. Jessie Murph’s set was so interesting to me because her appearance was so soft and feminine as were some of her sounds, but overall her music is heavily influenced by country, pop, and trap all wrapped into a hip hop sound. The way she moved on stage and transitioned through her set was seamless and ethereal and truly so beautiful to watch. The lighting and visuals were the perfect mix of dramatic and elegant and her vocals were actually insane. She jumped into her set with a rendition of “House of the Rising Sun” by The Animals which showcased the range of her vocals so perfectly. On top of the beauty that was happening on stage, her set was paired with the most perfect sunset. Cherry on top!

The sun was well set by this point and the crowd from Jessie Murph had for the most part retreated back to the hill and the Mumford and Sons crowd moved in. I, like most indie folk listeners, have been a fan of Mumford and Sons for a while, they’ve felt like a consistent band for me as my music taste continues to expand and transition. While I’ve loved them for so long, I’ve never gotten the chance to see them live so this was such a perfect way to end a day at the main stage. I also think it’s fair to note how shocked I was that they were British. I’m honestly surprised I've made it this long without hearing them in a video or interview. Their setlist mixed with the warm string lights illuminating above stage filled me with so much joy and nostalgia that I stayed for a majority of their set even though I wasn’t photographing this one. Within their first three songs they played “Little Lion Man” and “White Blank Page” which are easily some of my favorites so I have zero complaints. They also showcased a new song as well as some of their most recent music like “Rubber Band Man” that was released just this year

Now, I wasn’t planning on attending the campfire stage this night, but Buffalo Traffic Jam was performing and last time I saw them was in a sold out 7th Street Entry in Minneapolis so it’s fair to say I was wanting a chance to see them in a more accessible space. The trek from the main stage to the campfire stage was long but kind of peaceful as we marched through the dark woods and fields that make up festival grounds. I was disappointed that we didn’t see any fireflies compared to previous years where I feel like they were everywhere. But, it was calming to hear the frogs and crickets and provided the perfect regulation moment before jumping into more live music.

Mumford and Son’s set was also running a little bit behind so it pushed the start of the campfire stage. The Brook & The Bluff didn’t end up appearing on stage till around 12:00am instead of their original 11:30pm start time. However the wait was worth it and their performance definitely fit the cozy camp vibe of the campfire stage. It was actually kind of wholesome to see festival go-ers emerging from the woods and hiking trails with blankets and glowsticks and find a place to vibe out on the hill facing campfire stage. In all the years I've attended Hinterland Music Festival, I’ve never attended the campfire stage sets and now that I’ve gone, I’m thinking I really missed out on past years.

Buffalo Traffic Jam finally took the stage around 1:00am, however the late hour didn’t deter the crowd gathered for their set and more people had accumulated on the hill than I originally expected. Getting the chance to see Buffalo Traffic Jam in this environment was arguably much better than a sold out 7th Street Entry. As much as I love an entry show, I think campfire stages definitely fit the vibe better for their music and overall generated such an awesome environment to watch live music in.