TOP HIGHLIGHTS FROM TREEFORT MUSIC FEST 2026

by daniela shella

Happy Treefort! Treefort Music Fest is an incredible five day festival round up of global talent from around the world’s best acts. Based in Boise, Idaho, it completely takes over the city’s downtown center as well as a main stage festival grounds at Julia Davis Park. This was TMF’s 12th year, and biggest year yet. Unclear Magazine had the opportunity to spend the weekend bopping around from venue to venue enjoying music from across all different genres. Here are the highlights and some of my favorite shows we caught.

The Beaches

The Beaches swung Treefort and left everyone buzzing with excitement. Coined as “your rock ‘n’ roll sisters” (per their instagram bio) these gals took the stage and sang their hits, and the crowd screamed every word back. My favorite, “Last Girls At The Party,” kicked off their set and had everyone swaying. I was able to capture some portraits beforehand and say hello!

The Beaches have a super bright future ahead of them. They just won two Juno awards, one for Group of The Year, and will be performing at Billboard’s Women in Music event in Hollywood later this month. Also, you can catch them on their No Hard Feelings worldwide tour this upcoming fall!

 

Geese

All weekend, it was evident that Treefort fans were extremely excited to see the breakout sensation, Geese. When Saturday finally rolled around and the sun set, fans piled into Julia Davis Park to hear “Taxes”and “Getting Killed.” If you were me, you were having a religious experience to it and just basking in being surrounded by Cam Winter’s beautiful vocals and thousands of other strangers swaying to the beautiful music. Geese have the chops, and are on a totally special journey to the top of the indie music scene. What I feel like makes them special is the fact that they don’t feel overly polished or manufactured. There’s a scrappy, slightly chaotic energy to them that makes everything feel more real, like anything could happen in the next song. I enjoyed most of the Geese set from the crowd (their photo pit was insane and super locked down) but it was still an all around highlight of the festival!

 

Gelli Haha

Gelli Haha once again brought the incredible Gelliverse to Boise, Idaho for their second year at Treefort. It’s been such an honor watching them rise to fame and seeing their fan base grow. Bringing their entire collection of trampolines, inflatable dolphins, confetti, boxing gloves, and everything red you can think of, their 2026 show did not disappoint. All weekend, everyone was talking about making it to a Gelli Haha show.

I first saw Gelli Haha perform at the Neurolux in 2025, and it was delightful to watch them be upgraded to the largest venue downtown and absolutely pack the Treefort Music Hall to capacity with thousands of folks clamoring to witness their album Switcheroo in action. Gelli Haha just released a new song, “Klouds Will Carry Me To Sleep” which generated 100K Spotify plays in just one week, and 55K streams on YouTube after just a few days (I actually shot the album cover!!). And songs like “Bounce House” (my personal favorite) and “Normalize” have nearly 1M streams and counting. It was awesome to see the crowd already know the words to a brand new song, and a new addition to the project.

When you enter a Gelli Haha show, you can feel the crowd tapping into their childlike wonder. They aren't standing still and filming like you’d see all too often at music festivals. They are dancing, singing, jumping up and down like school kids. I think something that’s special about Gelli Haha is their ability to look so polished yet so playful. The entire set is perfectly choreographed and no one misses a beat. From the dancers hitting every beat of the song, to lead vocalist Angel's perfectly whimsical and beautiful vocals, to the drummers expert rhythms banging on, to the synth and keys orchestrating it all together. It’s one big, incredible and exciting performance art project that welcomes you with open arms. If you get a chance to witness the Gelliverse, do it.

 

Duckwrth

I caught up with Duckwrth before his set to discuss his new project and roll out, “I Wanna Be Your Dog Again.” It is Duckwrth’s latest single, and it’s a pretty bold departure from some of his earlier, more playful work he typically releases. It mixes aggression with vulnerability and the lyrics mention desire with lots of emotional tension, making it feel both chaotic and intimate at the same time. Duckwrth described building something he's passionate about, and has leaned into the performance art of it all.

It’s a continuation of the All American F*ckBoy era’s experimentation! Its immersive, layered vibe  gives the feeling you’re inside the track rather than just listening. The songs are clearly  meant to make you move, feel slightly unhinged, and get pulled into his immersive world.

 

Haute & Freddy

While they were on stage in Boise, Lady Gaga herself shouted this medieval pop duo out in a TikTok caption saying she’s been loving their new album and it has been the soundtrack to her birthday. It’s evident that Haute & Freddy are in their own lane of creativity and experimentation and have received lots of love on their new album, Big Disgrace. They took the stage late on Saturday and everyone was eager to sing along to their anthems about outcasts and FREAKS (Like their song, “Freaks”).

Their set was high energy and high paced. It was hard to believe it was just two people creating such fun music and vibes on stage! They have this runaway circus narrative that is so amazing, and awesome to see a musician not just create and perform a song, but also a cinematic universe they are existing in. By the time their top hit, “Dance The Pain Away” came on, every single person in the room took to the dance floor and came as one. I put my camera down, enjoyed the lyrics and sentiment of the song. It was a communally cathartic, beautiful experience and a true Treefort highlight.

 

Kishi Bashi

We met up with Kishi Bashi earlier before his set to discuss kicking off his tour. In a way, he is revisiting old feelings, old creative and artistic musings. Treefort was the first stop of his new tour, which features songs from his previous album, Sonderlust released in 2016. He told me he was excited to play the album in its entirety, front to back. Kishi Bashi’s sound blends string instruments front and center, beautiful and loving, whimsical lyrics and created a tight, high energy connection between the audience and the band.

His set was joyous and tender, a perfect example of how Treefort can make you feel.

 

Impossible to pick just a few favorite highlights, but other honorable mention highlights were Magdalena Bay’s headlining performance, INJI’s high energy set, running into Hemlocke Springs post incredible show, Minneapolis’ VIAL shutting down the Shrine basement, Drug Church seeing the most crowd surfing I’ve ever witnessed at a concert, and so many more. With 400 bands, and 13 different Forts, there was never a dull moment during Treefort.

 

Overall, the magic of Treefort is truly impossible to explain. People often try to explain it as a SXSW style festival, or a communal vibe similar to Bonnaroo, but this festival has a genre of its own. Its people are kind, welcoming and genuinely so excited to listen to music. Oftentimes festivals can be influencer-ridden, full of activations and big-box ideas. Treefort has been able to preserve its roots while still being progressive and growing in a welcoming, modern way.

Now my second time attending it, it felt like returning to a summer camp in a city where I once had no ties or connections to, I now have close friends and favorite music venues. I have friends that volunteer their time and energy to the festival because they so deeply believe in the mission of it, and it’s truly an honor to get to take part in this celebration. It’s evident that Treefort continues to level up and grow in such amazing ways each year. Not only are they able to pull in top acts, but they don’t just call it in when it comes to lineups. This year’s lineup featured so many up and coming artists of all genres, and Boise welcomed them with open arms. My only hope is that more people will start putting Treefort Music Fest on their yearly festival rotation and realize how incredible it is. Until next year, Treefort!