Turn Your Living Room Into a Festival [How to Couch Tour]
Photo courtesy @ryanromano @alexquadriniphoto_
Welp. 2020 hasn’t turned out to the way we hoped it would.
Concerts and music festivals are on hold for the moment, but that doesn’t mean you can’t have fun at home.
It’s time to learn how to couch tour.
Long before social distancing was a thing, music fans have been jamming out to live sets in their living room. Bands like Phish offer the ability to live stream nearly all their tour dates. So instead of following them around the country, their fans can “couch tour” and never miss a song.
These days, many festivals stream their performances too. If you’ve never had a CouchChella before, you’re in for a fun and comfy time!
You don’t have any plans this weekend. So why not set up a mini-music festival in your living room? Stay home, stay healthy, and have a raging dance party with these tips.
First up — like any festival — you’ve got to book your headliners...
1. Pick a Show: Couch-Chella or Archive-apalooza
Photo courtesy @mizzmaxine
In this new normal, there are still tons of ways to experience live music. And the best part of festival-ing at home is: you can actually see what’s happening on stage.
Everyone and their mother is live streaming right now. You can catch some incredible unplugged sets by your favorite bands. Or groove with a legendary DJ spinning in his basement.
Are documentaries more your speed? On Friday, April 10th, Coachella is releasing its much-hyped doc Coachella: 20 Years in the Desert. Bring some polo ground vibes into your quarantine.
Or go classic and hit up YouTube. You’ll find millions of sets from your favorite artists and festivals.
Festival Realness: Stream one set in your living room and another in your bedroom. Complain about scheduling conflicts.
2. Turn Up The Volume, Turn Down The Lights
Photo courtesy @dennissg1 @gloriadgartonphotography
Lights and sound are crucial to setting the vibe. If you want to feel the bass, hook up your best set of speakers to your TV or computer. Upping the quality of your sound will make your CouchChella extra special.
It’s time to dust off all your favorite glowy, blinky rave lights. Get your string lights out of storage and set the mood in your living room. At the very least, turn off your regular lamps and light some candles.
Festival Realness: If the sound goes out in the middle of a set, you’ve got no one to blame except your wifi router.
3. Put On Your Festival Best
Photo courtesy @camacho_orlando and @oleg.photos @wiggleworm
Don’t let your favorite festival wear get covered in cobwebs! Put on your sparkliest outfit and get ready to dance.
The best part about festival-ing in your living room is you can change your look whenever you want. If you have a hard time deciding which of your SpiritHoods to take to the festival — you won’t have to worry about that during CouchChella. You can easily shapeshift from bear to wolf to tiger — whatever animal the music calls for.
Festival Realness: Dress for the weather — blast the heat during the day and turn on all your fans after sunset.
4. Couch Tour With Your Crew
Photo courtesy @hollywolfirl
Set up a FaceTime or Zoom call with your rave fam. You’re all feeling the no-festival blues, so make it a point to check in with each other and relive some of your silliest memories.
Festival Realness: One of your friends goes AWOL after the first 5 minutes and then shows up at the end of the call with an unbelievable story.
5. Enjoy Your Favorite Festival Eats
Photo courtesy @sandraemmeline @thekingsrose @quyenicorn
What’s your go-to festival fuel? Treat yourself to some delivery this weekend and enjoy a burrito or pizza. The best part is you don’t have to worry about beer garden rules or missing a must-see set because you were in line for a popsicle.
Festival Realness: Ditch your glassware and strap on your hydration pack.
6. Morning Activities
Photo courtesy @flo.yoga and @gypsyon__
Start your day with some yoga or a sound bath — you can find plenty of them on YouTube. Take a walk outside and stretch your legs before your next living room dance party.
Festival Realness: Forget to set your alarm and completely miss your morning activities.
7. Appreciate The Amenities
Photo courtesy @cuethedanger @lleahraquell @karissa_yates @mspineapple101
Yeah, it sucks not having festivals right now, but that also means you don’t have to use a porta-potty. Or take a shower with a water bottle and baby wipes!
Festival Realness: Run out of TP? That’s ok. You’re a festival pro, you know how to handle this.
We hope you’re staying safe and healthy. If you decide to CouchChella take a photo and tag #SpiritHoods on Instagram. We’ll feature some of our couch tour favorites.
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