Way Out West Festival at Gothenburg, Sweden

Since 2007 the small town of Goteborg, nestled in the beautiful Swedish countryside, holds the nationally and internationally acclaimed Way Out West Festival. Each year, in August, people from all over the globe bring their dancing shoes for a three-day musical and cultural immersion. The festival is known to host a vast array of artists. Last year’s lineup included superstars like Alicia Keys, Kendrick Lamar, Disclosure, Junip, Haim, Public Enemy, and Alabama Shakes just to name a few. What makes Way Out West incredibly cool and unique (other than it’s killer lineups), is its purposeful intention to take advantage of the cultural and economic resources at its disposal.

The festival is a source of pride to many of the locals. The music at the main stages ends at about midnight each night. Promptly afterwards both artists and fans gather at the local clubs where the party keeps going till the early morning. The festival itself does not offer camping, so the fans stay in the town itself and thus benefit the local economy and experience the native vibe. In essence, this symbiotic relationship creates a sort of magic that allows a little known Swedish town to transform itself for three days into a global community. See you there!