by Sean Reiter
Music fans, content creators and culinary disciples converged in Napa for BottleRock 2026 and a festival that continues to smartly combine a wide variety of music, food and wine into a delicious and memorable weekend. Musical artists ranged from country to boy bands to metal. The food offerings stretched from traditional fair food all the way to gourmet rice bowls by Morimoto and everything between. And as for the wine…well, it’s Napa so it’s a given.
Observations and discoveries from BottleRock 2026:
It Doesn’t Get Nicer Than This. This year’s BottleRock weekend saw ideal temperatures in the mid-70’s from Friday to Sunday at a festival where shade can be difficult to find. Their energy not sucked up by too much heat or having to battle the cold, both the artists and fans seemed to carry an increased level of energy and enthusiasm this year that made the festival seems extra special.
Dave Grohl for Mayor of BottleRock. As he was when the Foo Fighters last headlined in 2021, Dave Grohl embraced the festival’s spirit and was a presence spreading his funny, positive energy beyond just his set.
Saturday, before Foo Fighters’ set, Grohl joined Chef (and humanitarian) Jose Andres on the culinary stage for a comic cooking “demo” that combined cooking, comedy and a bit of pot and pan drumming. Grohl, who himself is an avid bbqer and prepares large quantiles of food for Southern Californians in need under the radar, was matched up for the second time with Andres. The two could certainly take their fun and wild collaboration on the road together. Unlike two years ago, Grohl held back a bit on the pre-show on-stage drinking at the Culinary demo and really served as support for Andres to promote his new book and engage the crowd with cooking antics that included a huge splashy attempt at gazpacho for the masses. Andres was both zany and poignant as he talked about friendship and the importance of food and giving to others.
Friday, Grohl created one of the most memorable moments of this year’s BottleRock. Chevy Metal – featuring drummer Shane Hawkins – the son of the late Foo Fighters drummer Taylor Hawkins – is known for terrific rock covers and featuring surprise guests. The set had already featured famed photographer Danny Clinch on harmonica for Black Sabbath’s “The Wizard” and The Alive’s Bastian Evans sitting in on guitar when bassist, singer (and former Foo drum tech) Wiley Hodgden announced “Well, we have one more song, so come on out Dave” and Grohl sprinted on stage to join in a raucous cover of AC/DC’s “Let There Be Rock.”
Seeing Grohl’s stage interaction with the 19-year old Hawkins back in Napa seemed to be both a moment of nostalgia and perhaps a glimpse into the future. A full Foo membership at 19 would seem to be big too big an ask, but Hawkins presence and drum crushing manner joining the band at some point would seem to be destiny.
Foo Fighters headlining appearance Saturday was the longest set of the festival – focused primarily on a tour through their 30-year catalog only spotlighting their new album with the title track “Your Favorite Toy.” Their set featured the Foo’s patented hit songs that start on the slower, quieter side before exploding into huge choruses – an approach that has always resulted in impressive live performances. Out of the gate, they had the crowd roaring and singing along with “All My Life”, “Times Like These” and “Rope”
Grohl dedicated a tender “These Days” to Jose Andres and a slower version of 1995’s “Big Me” to his wife Jordyn Blum – who was celebrating her birthday weekend. They wrapped their set with a full-band version of “Everlong” that sent the crowd home happy and stopped just short of the 10 pm curfew that famously resulted in the plug being pulled on them in 2017.
Sisters Bookend The Main Stage on Day 1. Lorde headlined Friday with a set that demonstrated her ability and comfort to do the heavy lifting on a giant stage. She leaned into mega-hit “Royals” with her second song to lock in the crowd’s attention.
Earlier in the day, Lorde’s younger sister, Indy, led off the main stage with her first big festival appearance. Despite multiple technical difficulties early on, Indy seemed right at home with a big performance and delivered a set featuring her songs from her impressive “Fame is a Bedroom” EP. Hours later at the media tent, she was still exhilarated and in great spirits on the day’s success.
Borns Packs Them In. Appearing on a side stage with a crowd and charisma that could have easily deserved a main stage slot, Borns wowed an incredibly enthusiastic crowd. “For those of you who have never seen me, I am Borns. And for those of you who have, I am still Borns” he announced as a preview of a good-natured fun performance ahead.
Old Is New Again. The festival environment gives opportunities for fans to experience both new artists on the rise and more long-standing acts that they may have never seen. Beyond BottleRock’s Sunday headliner of Backstreet Boys. The festival was also witness to sets from legacy bands that included Bush, Papa Roach, Joan Jett & The Blackhearts and Men at Work.
Gavin Rossdale doesn’t look much older than he did when Bush broke onto the scene withe 1995 classic album “Sixteen Stone” and he certainly hasn’t lost any energy. Rossdale waded into the crowd and even took to the VIP boxes as he was continually in motiion during their set.
Vacaville’s own Papa Roach produced a memorable set that was accented by near constant pyro and vapor cannons and highlighted by lead singer Jacoby Shaddix going into the crowd on “…To Be Loved”. “We all have kids and tell them to be so careful with fire and then we come here and light up the whole stage,” Shaddix joked. Teddy Swims joined the band for their mega-hit “Scars.”
Joan Jett proved age doesn’t matter as she brought all of her punk attitude and guitar-playing and hit the crowd full-force with “Bad Reputation”, “Cherry Bomb” and “Do You Wanna Touch Me (Oh Yeah).” The multi-generational crowd ate every bit of her performance up and while she may be older and kinder, Jett’s rock and roll was in no way gentler. She looked and sounded terrific.
Lead singer Colin Hay took to the US Festival stage back in 1983 and while he is the only original member in the version of Men at Work we saw at BottleRock, the audience embraced the ability to see songs like “Who Can It Be Now” and “Down Under” with the original frontman.
The Return of Jackie and Judy paid loving tribute to The Ramones. Drummer/comedian Fred Armisen and guitarist/vocalist/comedian Carrie Brownstein were joined by Brownstein’s partners in Sleator-Kinney – Corin Tucker and Toko Yasuda – and took the daytime in full leather jackets just as the Ramones would have done and did the band proud with full-spirited covers and even a nod against ICE.
Bands To Keep An Ear and Eye Out For. In addition to the earlier mentioned Indy, several artist/bands really shined with their Bottle Rock appearances:
The Chin Chins – featuring vocalist Sara Rose Wright (One Less Zero) and her husband, Green Day drummer Tre Cool wowed with a sound that was a combination of swing and pop punk (think Big Bad Voodoo Daddy meets No Doubt).
The Warning, a metal band out of Mexico consisting of the three Villareal sisters, has been going for over a decade, but they continue to sound fresh and new and provide captivating performances. Drummer Paulina, provides a mesmerizing stage presence and energy.
It comes easy to cast Girl Tones – a guitar and drums sister duo as an all-female version of White Stripes. For those that were lucky enough to see Jack and Meg White perform in the day, the sound and stage manner of the Crowe sisters Kenzie (guitars and vocals) and Leila (drums) have unmistakable roots. But, this is a band whose power and positive energy was oozing off the stage.
The Heavy Heavy brought their classic Laurel Canyon sound by way of England. The 5-piece have made frequent Bay Area appearances over the last few years with founders Georgie Fuller and William Tuller even taking residence for a time in Sonoma County to write songs for their latest album. Their multi-layered sound and incredible harmonies make them a unique and refreshing band out there.
The Paradox was a whirling dervish of a pop punk band whose performance justified the fact that they were the first all-black punk band to hit number 1. Just formed out of Atlanta in 2024, their leaping and soaring set provided the weekend’s highest energy.
For those who missed Buffalo Traffic Jam on the smaller stage Sunday, that was likely the last chance to get an intimate glimpse of this band. Formed just over a year ago and with only an EP and some singles under their belt, they were slotted into a midday appearance that saw a crowd bursting at the seams for good reason. The songs of lead singer Frankie Cassidy and the band combine the richness of Noah Kahan with the raspiness of Ray LaMontagne and as their performance level continues to rise, this is a band that seems destined for MUCH bigger stages soon.
The weekend was filled many more not even called out here. See below for more images of the mentioned, plus images of Teddy Swims, Paris Jackson, Larkin Poe, AJR and the one of a kind DJ/Saxophonist Saxsquatch.
