Merge Records turns 25 this year, and the mega-indie label has a few celebrations planned. There’s the bimonthly, subscription-based single series Or Thousands of Prizes, featuring exclusive tracks from company cofounders Superchunk, Mikal Cronin, the Mountain Goats, Lambchop, and more. And there’s also the monthly reissue series that will see classic albums from the Merge back catalogue repackaged and re-released — Lambchop’s Nixon and Superchunk’s Indoor Living are the first two LPs confirmed for that campaign. Now, the North Carolina tastemakers have announced that they’ll be hosting their very own festival this summer.
The Merge Festival will take place in Carrboro, North Carolina from July 23 through 26. More details are not yet available, but fans can expect a lineup that will pull from the label’s impeccable roster. In the announcement video above, Superchunk frontman/Merge cohead Mac McCaughan jokes that the four-day showcase will include a “Lambchop Petting Zoo,” a “Wye Oak Wet ‘N’ Wild Water Slide,” and a “Mountain Goats/Mount Moriah Misty Mountain Magic Misting Tent.”
Stay tuned for additional info on the Merge Festival, and be sure to read SPIN’s in-depth examination of all things Superchunk and Merge Records, Merge Country: How Superchunk’s Label Turned Durham Into a Thriving Indie-Rock Company Town.
Head over to Merge’s online store to subscribe to the Or Thousands of Prizes box set, which begins shipping early this year. Proceeds from the set will be donated to Oxfam America, a global organization “working to right the wrongs of poverty, hunger, and injustice,” according to their website. Anyone who signs up for Or Thousands of Prizes will also have first access to tickets for Merge’s special 25th anniversary events.
