Free music festival: CEDARFEST

West Bank, Mpls.

MUCH SMALLER AND more interestingly freaked out than its competitors, Cedarfest manages, year after year, to present a daylong fest of alternative music with an emphasis on the best local talent, but usually spiced up with some cool national talent, too. There's a wonderful selection of food (BBQ!) and liquor--the lively West Bank bars are part of the whole shebang--and there's no ticket-buying bullshit to confuse matters; you pay as you go. But the music and the vibes are free, of course, and if it all gets to be too much, you can stroll over to the Washington Street Bridge and watch the lazy Mississippi work its way south. So until the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Fest comes north, this should remain the best game in town.

Quoted from City Pages Online.