There are two parts to the news here. The first is most of the lineup for Rocky Mountain Riff Fest 2026 proper. With one headliner still to be announced, this year’s edition of the all-dayer festival is set for April 18 in Kalispell, Montana, and features Lung, Ealdor Bealu (new LP this summer), Pegzilla (new LP sooner than that), Merlock and more, and a pre-show the night before. Of those announced, Free Drugs, Surfbat, Mother Root, Superplex and Swamp Ritual (the latter three of whom comprise the pre-show) featured in 2025, while Schticky were there in 2022 and Merlock in 2023 and 2024.

What does this tell you? That a community has developed around the festival with these bands (and others: thinking Wizzerd and The Gray Goo specifically), and that leads to the second part of the news. Beginning April 15, Rocky Mountain Riff Fest will be hosting Road to Riff Fest showcases in five cities — Portland, OR; Shoreline, WA; Boise, ID; Moscow, ID; Bozeman, MT — put together in collaboration with bands and artists from the towns in question, highlighting a deeper look into the regional underground and its denizens and leading up to the festival itself.

As ideas go, it’s a rad one. More info is below, as per the PR wire:

Rocky Mountain Riff Fest 2026

We are beyond stoked to share this year’s lineup! Ten bands from the PNW and beyond, and from right here at home, gathered in the Flathead Valley in the great name of Riff. Praise Iommi.

Presale tickets will be available at Wheaton’s and Photo Video Plus in Kalispell, and entry available at the door as per usual – be sure not to miss out on the year’s most epic party of riffs hosted at the Eagles in downtown Kalispell.

Artwork by the phenomenal @impillustration

Lineup:

Lung
Ealdor Bealu
Pegzilla
Merlock
LáGoon
Continuum
Surfbat
Schticky
Free Drugs
Onion Milk

Pre-Party April 17:
Mother Root
Swamp Ritual
Superplex

SEE YOU IN APRIL

Road to Riff Fest PNW Showcases

Road to Riff Fest: Portland, hosted by Anthony Gaglia of LáGoon. Featuring Lung, LáGoon, Sorcia, and Lesser Demons at High Water Mark.

Road to Riff Fest: Boise, hosted by Carson Russell of Ealdor Bealu. Featuring Pegzilla, Ealdor Bealu, and Dirt Russell at Neurolux.

Road to Riff Fest: Shoreline, hosted by Jessica Brasch of Sorcia. Featuring Lung, Sorcia, Merlock, and Mother Root at Darrell’s Tavern.

Road to Riff Fest: Bozeman, hosted by Tim Bowers of Scavenger. Featuring Pegzilla, Ealdor Bealu, Continuum, and Scavenger at the Labor Temple.

Road to Riff Fest: Moscow, hosted by Taylor D Waring of Merlock. Featuring Lung, LáGoon, Sorcia, and Merlock at the Moose Lodge.

https://www.instagram.com/rockymtnrifffest/
https://www.facebook.com/blackmagickbooking

LáGoon, “You Tried (You Failed)”

Here comes the full lineup for Rocky Mountain Riff Fest 2025, fresh off the social media hellscape and set to take place April 19 in Kalispell, Montana, as per tradition. This is the sixth edition of the all-dayer fest (plus a pre-party the night before), which brings Kadabra and Sorcia to town as headliners with support from local spearheads Wizzerd, as well as Mother Root, Doomboyz, Cruel Velvet, Scavenger, Swamp Ritual, Surfbat, Loin Hammer and Superplex. No word on if Superplex sound anything like Suplecs, only, you know, more. I’ll keep you posted on that.

Of the confirmations, at least Sorcia, Loin Hammer, Swamp Ritual, Wizzerd and Surfbat have featured on past Rocky Mountain Riff Fest editions, which tells you there’s a family developing. The only band on this bill I’ve ever seen is Kadabra, and I’ll gladly confirm that they’re something you want to check out when the opportunity presents itself, and certainly other names ring familiar, whether it’s Mother Root or Wizzerd (who had two records out last year) or Sorcia, who also have their own affiliated festival in Washington. Must be nice.

I don’t for one second imagine I’ll be there to see it, but Rocky Mountain Riff Fest has grown over the last few years into its own thing. It’s never struck me as wanting to be huge or some mega-event. It’s an all-dayer with good bands, likely good friends and good times. I like fests with 100,000 people as much as the next guy — so long as the next guy’s also crippled by anxiety in that kind of crowd — but this is more of a hometown showcase for locals and others coming in. Maybe one of these years I’ll get there too. If this is your year, right on.

Here’s info:

FULL LINEUP IS HERE

SEE YOU IN APRIL!

Art by @impillustration

•
@kadabra_band
Sorcia
Wizzerd
Mother Root
Doomboyz
Cruel Velvet
Scavenger MT
Swamp Ritual
@surfbatband
Loin Hammer
@superplexrulez
–
Children of Atom
The Lucitones
@freedrugsusa

https://www.facebook.com/blackmagickbooking
https://www.instagram.com/rockymtnrifffest/

Kadabra, Umbra (2023)

Sorcia, Lost Season (2023)

A two-stage all-dayer with a killer pre-party the night before, Rocky Mountain Riff Fest 2022 looks like a gem. I know nothing about the Flathead Valley in Montana, or historic downtown Kalispell, where the event will take place, but they’ve put together a cool lineup with the likes of Mountain Tamer and Kadabra on board, and while I might not know all that much about Ncroflchr (from parts unknown) or Schticky, homegrown Montana acts like Swamp Ritual, Spliffripper and Wizzerd, along with Witch Bitch, ThroneStower and The Gray Goo, who’ll also play, speak to a burgeoning scene, and with LáGoon coming east from Oregon and Merlock doing the same from Washington, cutting across Idaho while Throne of Iron head north from Indiana, the fest is using its geography smartly to pull from the different regions surrounding. There’s a lot to dig here, and I bet the show(s) will be a good time.

I bet you go to this, you leave with new friends. If you’re traveling for it, I mean. This seems like the kind of thing where there’s going to be a bunch of people who already know each other, but I bet if you were to show up and be like, “Hi, I think your bands are cool,” you’d probably end up feeling like family by the end of the day. Sounds pretty nice, if you ask me. Also heavy. It’s a 37-hour drive for me, so I don’t think I’ll get there, but they make the prospect enticing.

Here’s the lineup, as per social media:

Rocky Mountain Riff Fest 2022

Rocky Mountain Riff Fest Returns!!

Our 2022 lineup! Stoked to have so many friends joining us this year. The party goes down April 22 and 23 – see everybody there!

LINEUP:
Main day 4/23:
Mountain Tamer (CA)
Throne of Iron (IN)
LáGoon (OR)
Merlock (WA)
Wizzerd (MT)
Witch Bitch (MT)
ThroneStower (MT)
The Gray Goo (MT)
Schticky (MT)
Ncroflchr (???)

Eagles 234 and Old School Records – $20 for all day

Preparty 4/22:
Kadabra (WA)
Swamp Ritual (MT)
Spliffripper (MT)

Glacier Park VFW Post 2252 – 10pm – 21+ –

Heavy Riffs and good times in the mountains of the Flathead Valley, Montana.

https://www.facebook.com/events/517002376483902/
https://www.facebook.com/blackmagickbooking

Mountain Tamer, “Living in Vain Pt. II” from ‘Live in the Mojave Desert’

Working out of a home-base in Missoula, Montana, Erosion Festival 2016 has announced a formidable lineup bringing together bands from the West Coast and the Midwest and beyond, including headliners Saint Vitus, Acid King and The Skull, for a two-night stint at Stage 112. Familiar names from the Pacific Northwest include Mos Generator, Witch Mountain, Mammoth Salmon, Teepee Creeper, Mother Crone and Disenchanter, and they’re joined by Thorr Axe, Chron Goblin, Stone Elk, Wizzerd, American Falcon, and others for a heavy weekend surrounded by mountains and Montana’s open sprawl. I wonder if it snows in Missoula in October.

There’s more info to come from the fest in terms of who’s playing when, how much tickets are, how to buy them, when to buy them, and so on, but the lineup is the news here and the lineup is more than solid. If you’re wondering, Missoula does have an international airport. Not that I’ve looked or anything, but flights seem to be pretty cheap.

From the festival:

We are very excited to finally announce our entire 2016 Erosion Festival line-up! It’s an honor to have these awesome bands on board for 2016, please welcome SAINT VITUS, THE SKULL, ACID KING, and WITCH MOUNTAIN!

Erosion will be held in Missoula, MT on Friday October 14th and Saturday October 15th @ Stage 112. 18 bands total for 2 nights of heavy music and great times we hope to see you there!

We will have ticket information soon, our facebook event page, and the official Erosion Fest 2016 poster, with all the information you’ll need.

Thank You all for supporting us and we’ll see you in October!

Erosion Festival lineup:
Saint Vitus
The Skull
Acid King
Witch Mountain
Mos Generator
Thorr Axe
Mammoth Salmon
Mother Crone
Disenchanter
Chron Goblin
Teepee Creeper
Swamp Ritual
Stone Elk
American Falcon
Shramana
Wizzerd
The Old Ones
Piranha Dog

https://www.facebook.com/erosionfestival/
http://www.stage112.com/

Acid King, “Teen Dusthead”