NICE a fest 2023: 5 Things You Need to Know

NICE a fest 2023 kicks off tonight and runs throughout the weekend in Somerville. This will help you get the most out of the festival.

 

Ah, sorry. There’s a comma in there: NICE, a fest. Here’s the background, straight from the NICE website: “NICE, a fest is an extremely NICE local music and art festival in Somerville, MA, presented by Get To the Gig Boston.” Sounds, well, nice! And there are only three rules to know about. One: Be NICE. Two: If you see something, say something. Three: HAVE A NICE TIME.

 

This year’s model takes place Thursday, July 20 through Sunday, July 23. Performances will take place in Somerville’s Davis Square as well as Crystal Ballroom and The Rockwell. In addition to literally dozens and dozens of live, local acts, there will also be “a very NICE vendor market and a lot of NICE surprises along the way!” And there are still select tickets available. Grab yours here.

 

You’ll find me there on opening night Thursday at the Crystal Ballroom. The opening night headliner is my all-time favorite Boston indie rock band, Karate. They were active in the ’90s into the early ’00s and recently reunited to celebrate the reissue of their long-out-of-print back catalog on The Numero Group. I saw their tour kickoff shows in Cambridge last summer. I wrote about them, too.

 

NICE a fest 2023: 5 Things You Need to Know

But Karate is just the tip of the iceberg. There’s a killer lineup of local acts, some of whom I’ll share below. And there’s tons more festival-type stuff that promises to make your weekend…well, nice. Of course, the NICE, a fest website has more in-depth detail. But feel free use my tips and info below as a jumping-off point. The weekend is shaping up to be a nice one, so make yours a NICE one.

• One Fest, Two Venues

  The live music action this weekend takes place in two places. There’s The Crystal Ballroom, which is located at the Somerville Theatre in Davis Square. And there’s The Rockwell, a nearby theatre also located in Davis Square. Convenient, right?

  For all the planners in the bunch, here are the set times for all the performances for this year's @niceafest happening at the Crystal Ballroom and @RockwellThtr Thursday through Sunday. See you there! It'll be nice. 🙂 pic.twitter.com/V8lLFhTCGp

  — Crystal Ballroom (@CrystalSville) July 19, 2023

• Get There On Time

  Two venues over four days means lots of staggered set times and staggered start times. Thankfully, the nice folks at NICE have laid it all out in the handy schedule below.

  

• Go To The Market

  It is a festival, after all! And that “very NICE vendor market” is located at Statue Park in Davis Square. And the best part? It’s open to both ticket buyers and the public. So even if you’re not keen on seeing some live music this weekend, you can still visit the market and support local vendors.

  For those of you not on our email list! pic.twitter.com/YkOCKcLSxU

  — NICE, a fest ☻ (@niceafest) July 18, 2023

• Travel Wisely

  All the action is in Davis Square in Somerville. Davis Square has it’s own stop on the Red Line. You see where I’m going with this, right? Take the T! It’s much easier than trying to find parking.

  https://t.co/jPUpiqvWkP pic.twitter.com/z2SQUj51uF

  — NICE, a fest ☻ (@niceafest) July 20, 2023

• See These Bands

  I’m focusing on the Saturday and Sunday acts here, because Friday single-tickets are sold out. Lowell-based artist Senseless Optimism is hella talented and plays the Crystal Ballroom on Saturday. DreamPunk/GaragePop band Radio Compass rocks the Crystal on Sunday. And there’s Karate on Thursday, of course.