Justin Vernon reveals 2026 Eaux Claires Festival lineup at Wisconsin bar
by Reed Fischer
February 12, 2026
The Eaux Claires Festival makes its return on July 24-25 at Carson Park, a baseball stadium in Eau Claire, Wisconsin. Before the lineup was officially announced to the public, Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon invited the local community to find out who’s playing the fest, one by one, with tokens resembling instant-win lottery tickets, commonly known in the Midwest as pull tabs.
On the evening of Wednesday, Feb. 11, at The 410 Bar in Eau Claire, party attendees received handfuls of custom “Lucky 22’s” with the promise that 15 of them would contain names of artists set to perform at Eaux Claires 2026.
With officiants Vernon and Asher Weisberg instructing the crowd, everyone ripped open their tabs. Gradually, winners came forward and announced the names on their pull tabs. In between triggering soundbites from A League of Their Own and other baseball cinema classics, Vernon added commentary about each artist, except one notable name: Bon Dylan. Not a typo.
“Bon Dylan is playing the festival,” Vernon said. “I have no idea what this band is. It's just called Bon Dylan. That's all we got. I think they're headlining Friday night, but that's that's all I know.”
Joining the 2026 event will be several musicians who have collaborated with Vernon over the years, favorites from nearby communities, and some curveballs. Singer-songwriter Aimee Mann will perform her 2000 album, Bachelor No. 2 or, the Last Remains of the Dodo, which overlaps a bit with the soundtrack to the 1999 Paul Thomas Anderson film, Magnolia.
The rest of the list includes (with commentary from Vernon):
Dijon - “This guy needs no introduction!”
Daniel Caesar - “Put your hands up if you know and love Daniel Caesar. If you don't know Daniel, go check him out tonight. He's gonna bring the heat.”
Lil Yachty - “He needs no introduction. You know who Lil Yachty is.”
Kevin Morby - The Kansas City-based rocker saw his song “Beautiful Strangers,” as covered by Mavis Staples, win a Grammy earlier this year. His new album, Little Wide Open, arrives later this year.
Julianna Barwick & Mary Lattimore - “Mary Lattimore and Juliana Barwick are two of the finest musicians in modern ambient music. Bon Iver's played shows with Julianna before and Mary Lattimore is one of the premier harpists in the world, and they're going to absolutely dazzle us at the baseball stadium this summer.”
Monica Martin - “Monica Martin is one of the finest musicians and singers to ever come out of Wisconsin.”
Hotline TNT - “Hotline TNT is a band from New York City whose founding member is from Chippewa Falls, Wisconsin. Hotline TNT is going to bring the noise this summer. We're very excited about it.”
Larry Goldings Trio - “Larry Goldings is an incredible piano player, including David Piltch on bass and Beth Goodfellow on drums. They're going to play at the baseball stage this summer, and it's the most wonderful music. I’ve had multiple friends who've had their first dance at their wedding to Larry Goldings Trio. If you want to look at an album to find out what they sound like, Music From the Front Room by Larry Goldings is absolutely incredible.”
Jon Cleary & The Absolute Monster Gentlemen - “From Lousiana”
Gully Boys - “We're ready to rock!”
Bizhiki - “They're going to be blessing our festival at the beginning of Friday morning, next summer.”
The Union feat. Phil Cook - “Our own Chippewa Valley's Phil Cook. My friend, my teacher. A record he produced with two legendary gospel singers from Buffalo, New York. They call themselves the Union. They're going to bring the gospel heat to summer at Eaux Claires.”
Gash - “Eau Claire’s own!”
Urban Classic Presents Revelation: A Retrospective Of The Minneapolis Sound - “This is a collection of musicians from Minneapolis [including former New Power Generation drummer Michael Bland and many former bandmates]. Many of them have played with Prince. … This is one of the finest sets of musicians in Minneapolis history, keeping the Minneapolis sound alive.”
Nathan & The Zydeco Cha Chas - “They are from New Orleans, Louisiana. We got some of the best zydeco in the world coming to Eaux Claires this summer.”
Black Sabbath Cover Band Rehearsal - “This is an amazing band from New York City, including some members of Yeah Yeah Yeahs and Liturgy that might even be tighter than Black Sabbath themselves.”
Vernon said there would be some special guests named later: “This is a very interesting one. In the world of putting a little music festival together, there's some bumps on the road, and not everyone can confirm in time. So we're going to have some announcements coming in the next month or two, some additional acts, and they may be very, very, very special.”
Also, from a press release: “An inaugural class of Writers In Residence, presenting readings, discussions and collaborations from some of the most intriguing names in the literary world: Michael Perry, Sheila Heti, Hala Alyan, Sean Thor Conroe, Kyle Seibel, Amanda Petrusich, Jon Mueller, Nicholas Gulig, Harold Rogers, Mike Nagel, Benjamin Percy, Nishant Jain, Mustafa, Safia Elhillo, Patrycja Humienik, Brent Schoonover, Gabrielle Calvocoressi, Brenda Cárdenas, Katie Ka Vang, Adam Voith, Avery Gregurich and Donika Kelly.”
A full program of events will be announced at a later date, including Eaux Claires Days, featuring additional concerts and gatherings around Eau Claire.
Tickets for Eaux Claires Fest 2026 go on sale in Eau Claire at 9 a.m. Central at local businesses listed on the Eaux Claires website. A fan presale follows at 9 a.m. Central on Friday, February 13, with any remaining tickets on sale at 11 a.m. Central. For more details, visit eauxclaires.com
