Kilby Block Party 2026 proved why the festival has earned such a loyal following over the last seven years. The Salt Lake City festival has built a reputation for amazing lineups, manageable grounds, and an atmosphere that feels centered around music. The festival was well organized from the start. Wristband pickup the day before made entry easy, and the four-stage layout kept the grounds feeling accessible. Even during crowded sets it never felt impossible to move around. Across all three days, the lineup was stacked and I found myself having to make tough decisions on what set to catch or leave a set early if there was an artist I couldn’t miss.
Friday opened strong with Gelli Haha, who immediately became one of my favorite performances of the weekend. Playing circus-inspired synth pop in a lane similar to Chappell Roan, her set felt theatrical from the start complete with hula hoops, magic tricks, trampolines and parachutes. Despite an early set time, she quickly pulled a growing audience with a performance that felt energetic, strange, and fully committed.
Beach Bunny followed with one of the most fun sets of the day, Their set leaned into the kind of early-2000s, pop-punk nostalgia that would feel perfectly at home in a Disney Channel original movie, that kept the energy high. Lead singer Lili Trifilio was especially dynamic with the crowd, constantly interacting with fans and encouraging people to open up the pit multiple times throughout the set
Japanese Breakfast played Friday with one of the weekend’s best performances. Led by front woman Michelle Zauner, the band continues to prove they are one of the strongest live acts in indie music. Every player felt seasoned, locked in, and completely in sync throughout the evening. During the performance, Zauner told the crowd that Kilby had one of her favorite lineups of any festival Japanese Breakfast would be playing this year, a sentiment echoed by multiple artists throughout the weekend.
Kilby Block Party is your favorite artist’s favorite festival.