Pearl Jam fans in Asbury Park for Sea Hear Now take over the waterfront, have a blast
Chris JordanThe Asbury Park waterfront was jammed full of Pearl Jam fans on Friday, Sept. 17.
They were in town to see their favorite band perform Saturday, Sept. 18, in the Sea Hear Now music, art and surf festival.
Matt Lambert and Lisa Accettullo from Boston ran into Pearl Jam guitarist Mike McCready on the boardwalk near the Mogo Korean Fusion Taco stand.
“We saw a couple with masks walking on the boardwalk and somebody else stopped and we said, wait a minute, that is Mike McCready,” said Lambert, who is staying in a Cream Ridge homestay. “It was pretty outstanding to meet him. I have never met any members of the band.”
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Pearl Jam set up a merchandise tent near the festival's entrance on the corner of Fourth and Ocean avenues on Friday. Maria Mederos and Clarissa Felix came by to take a look. They had just driven in from Columbus, Ohio, and were lodging in a Toms River homestay.
“It's nine hours on the road. We made it — we're safe. We're here,” Mederos said.
“It's my first time seeing Pearl Jam, it's my first time in Asbury Park,” Felix said. “It's a blast so far. We love it.”
Pearl Jam is scheduled to play around 8 p.m. on one of the festival's two beach stages. There's also a stage in Bradley Park. It's the band's first show in three years, and on Friday they sound checked Bruce Springsteen's “My City of Ruins.”
The performance will be their Asbury Park debut.
The rest of the festival lineup includes Avett Brothers, Patti Smith and her Band, Lord Huron, Goose, Dr. Dog, Matt & Kim, Reignwolf, Briston Maroney, White Denim, Cory Henry, Hirie, Jackson Pines, and the Black Flamingos on Saturday. The Smashing Pumpkins play Sunday, along with Billy Idol, Dirty Heads, Grouplove, Orville Peck, Ani DiFranco, Tank and the Bangas, Moon Taxi, Happy Fits, Liz Cooper, Strand of Oaks, Black Joe Lewis & the Honeybears, Remember Jones, Ron Artis II and the Truth, and American Trappist.
The 2020 fest was canceled due to the coronavirus outbreak. Attendees this weekend have to produce proof of vaccination or a recent negative COVID test.
About 35,000 are expected this year.
The fest is produced by C3 Presents, the team behind Lollapalooza, and locals Danny Clinch and Tim Donnelly. Clinch is a Toms River native who has photographed the greats of music, from Bruce Springsteen to Tupac Shakur.
Visit www.seahearnowfestival.com for more information.
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Chris Jordan, a Jersey Shore native, covers entertainment and features for the USA Today Network New Jersey. Contact him at @chrisfhjordan; cjordan@app.com.