Phillyist Playlist: XPoNential Music Festival at Wiggins Park

A couple months back, we told you about tickets going on sale for this year's XPoNential Music Festival. So did you get tickets? No? Well why the heck not? XPoNential kicks off tomorrow evening, and there is a ton of music worth catching, so it's time get moving and get your tickets—which are an absolute steal at $25 per day or $60 for a pass to all three days (with a discount for WXPN members). The event will feature 25 acts, plus a crafts village with vendors selling their handmade wares, and a Village Green where festival-goers can learn about sustainable and eco-friendly products that are the forefront of the Delaware Valley's green scene.

With 25 acts performing, we obviously can't preview the entire lineup, so here are the ones that jump out at us—but there's plenty of great music to catch besides what's listed below:

Friday

• Matt Duke (MySpace), 5 p.m., River Stage: We've gushed about this 24-year-old local singer-songwriter since we first heard him about two years ago. And we're not going to stop gushing. Ever.
• Good Old War (MySpace), 6:40 p.m., Marina Stage: This local folk-pop outfit caught our attention with their debut album Only Way to Be Alone, one of this Phillyist's favorite albums of last year.
• Los Straitjackets (MySpace), 7:10 p.m., River Stage: Surf rock and luchador masks. Need we say more?

Saturday

• Illinois (MySpace), 3:30 p.m., Marina Stage: This Bucks County band's The Adventures of Kid Catastrophe kind of defies explanation. "Chapters" of the story—EPs and YouTube videos—were released in serial over the course of a few months. You can find the complete video here. We're certainly intrigued.
• John Gorka, 5:50 p.m., Marina Stage: This Phillyist's affinity for John Gorka is a product of my time attending the Philadelphia Folk Festival and similar events when I was younger. He's a still-relevant throwback to the pre-MySpace, pre-Twitter age—when artists built a small but loyal following by playing their songs in coffee shops, house parties, and at festivals and being so good, so funny, and so engaging that people would pick up their land-line phones and call their friends to spread the word.
• Pete Yorn (MySpace), 6:20 p.m., River Stage: Pete Yorn offers 1.0 music (kind of like John Gorka) with 2.0 style. We kind of love him for both of those qualities.
• They Might Be Giants (MySpace), 7:40 p.m., River Stage: Aside from Talking Heads and Elvis Costello, is there any artist or group more responsible for geek rock than TMBG? We don't think so.

Sunday

• Gillian Grassie, 12:30 p.m., Marina Stage: We saw Gillian perform at a house party hosted by friend-of-Phillyist (and photographic phenom) JJ Tiziou a few months ago. We went to the party simply expecting to have a few drinks and catch up with friends; we left blown away by "fearless freelance harpist" Grassie. That title isn't just hyperbole, it's what she really does.
• Perkasie, 2:20 p.m., Marina Stage: This local indie-vaudville group incorporates influences from different decades—in different centuries, even—and the piano work of Alex Wash and sultry vocal stylings of Wash and Kate Foust tie them all together beautifully.
• Steve Forbert (MySpace), 4:00 p.m., River Stage: We have to admit, when we looked at the XPoNential lineup, we said, "Wait, Steve Forbert is still around?" Well, he is. Score!

• Peter Bjorn and John (MySpace), 7:35 p.m., River Stage: Duh.
• Guster (MySpace), 8:50 p.m., River Stage: Ditto duh. With PB&J and Guster back to back on the same stage, we wonder why you'd really want to be anywhere else on Sunday night.

2009 XPoNential Music Festival, presented by Subaru
Fri., 7/24/09 – Sun., 7/26/09
Doors open 4:00 p.m. on 7/24; noon on 7/25 & 7/26
Wiggins Park, Mickle Blvd. at the waterfront, Camden
Tickets: $25 for daily tickets/$60 for the 3-day pass, with discounts for XPN members