FOR RENT

Bike stands are the new merch tables at this music festival.

Some music festivals have gourmet food. Others have campsites. But the big draw at this year’s Pop Montreal is of the two-wheel variety.

The Canadian festival, which runs from September 30 through October 4, is introducing bicycles to its lineup. They’re offering up five-day bike rentals for $100 ($50 of which will be returned at the end of the weekend), as well as special pass packages. For $165 you get a pass plus a set of wheels, while $250 gets you priority access to shows, invites to parties, and entrance into special events without having to worry about getting around via the subway system.

In fact, though the line-up is stellar (Yo La Tengo, Micachu and The Shapes, Sufjan Stevens, and Os Mutantes are among the names toping our list), what has us plotting a trip to our northern neighbor is the fact that alternative transportation is as important as the merch table; as anyone who has ever attended CMJ, SXSW, or any major festival can attest to, scrambling to get from one show to the next makes it hard to enjoy the music. While we wait to see if this is one trend that catches on, we can definitively say that helmet hair is the new bed head.
REBECCA WILLA DAVIS

Visit popmontreal.com for more info.



This story was published on August 18, 2009.