I’m going to a full-blown music festival in my friend’s backyard next weekend. While the 4th annual Steinyfest, located in Larchmont New York, is indeed happening this year, I know many of you Pulltab readers aren’t nearby. I mean, we’d love for some of you to fly out and join us, but if you can’t make it, that’s just fine because the real purpose of this article is to tell a badass story of a family with a self-starter mentality. We’ll show you how what they built is special and better than the name-brand festivals that flood your Instagram feed. If this tale tells anything, it is that anything is possible with a “f*ck it I’ll do it myself” mindset. Who knows — at the end of this, you may be starting to plan your own backyard music festival — because why not? The Steinbergs did… Let’s bring this to Minny. Pulltab will collab.

Whilst I was watching One Tree Hill on repeat and going through far too many bottles of red wine in the midst of the pandemic, Greg Steinberg of Larchmont New York, and his family, organized and put on a LEGIT music festival in their backyard. Like most of America, they were bored and lonely, and - like many music lovers - they were missing the magic of seeing a show. So, to share some joy, they said “screw it, let’s put on a festival ourselves.”

Fastforward to now, Steinyfest is an annual event (this year will be the 4th) that people travel near and far for. Needless to say, as a festival that started socially distanced with spray painted sitting areas and masks, this festival has picked up steam each year and brings together more and more people.

My first Steinyfest experience was last year. My coworker - Mia, a Steinberg herself - invited me to her house for her family’s “music festival,” but I didn’t know what I was walking into. I was picturing more of a campfire kumbaya or deck jam-sesh than Madison Square Garden. Okay, Madison Square Garden is a stretch, but Steinyfest is a real, full-fledged, rockstar-worthy music festival that was built in the suburbs of New York.

While it’s a bold statement, I think Steinyfest is better than Lollapalooza and all the other sexy festivals out there. In this article, I am going to tell you why…

It hits that size sweetspot.

There’s something to be said about watching the host of the festival use a screwdriver to build the stage. And to sit on a patio while people pull up cars (or Ubers if things are going to be blurrier at the end of the night, as they often are), park, and walk into a backyard with blankets and booze. Whether you know everyone or not, nobody is a stranger at Steinyfest. Something has led you to a backyard in Larchmont New York, and that’s enough to automatically make you friends. The sense of community at Steinyfest is incredible and one that would be impossible to create with an audience of thousands of people. Steinyfest has that sweet spot: enough people to be a force of festival, but not enough people to feel lost in the crowd.

They’ll repost you on their Instagram page. Lollapalooza can’t do that for everyone. Give them a follow at @steinyfest. Oh, and the merch is cheaper and more exclusive and limited-edition too. You’ll be the talk of the town.

You can wear flannels instead of pasties.

Steinyfest cares about energy not appearance. It’s not about the Instagram stories and acid, but rather booze, bites, and beats. You don’t need to out-dress your friends or shop for neon leotards or tassled pasties for this festival. While you can still dress to the nines or wear your Miley buns and glitter if you want, Steiny is a community not a contest. Wear your favorite flannel or your cutest concert tees, show off your best fall fashion, put on your best rockstar leather jacket, sip (spiked) apple cider, and enjoy the ride… I absolutely love that Steiny isn’t so tryhard because it is a DIY music festival. This alone simplifies things and boils it down to what matters: the music and the people. These raw ingredients make you realize the rest of the toppings don’t add much. They distract from the main course. Steinyfest is one damn good homemade main course.

It’s an event for all ages. Bring your babies, bring your grandparents, nobody is getting trampled here. It’s PG with a splash of PG13 – truly an event that everyone in the family will enjoy.

You’ll find your new favorite artist.

Steinyfest may not be as big as Lollapalooza, but it has a lot more character, and more intriguing talent. They’re not learning-to-play-guitar newbees or your neighborhood bar’s coverband (as fun as they are). They’re real, impressive, up-and-coming talent that is plucked from all across the United States. Artists from Nashville, Manhattan, Boston, Minnesota, LA, and beyond shack-up at local Larchmont hotels and Airbnbs to jam for the many Steiny-guests (ha!). Greg Steinberg makes sure that nobody is disappointed and that the talent keeps on building year over year. You can listen to the official Steinyfest playlist here as well as read more about the festival’s incredible alumni directly following this article, but this year’s artists include:

Quinn Sullivan - Touring behind a new album that represents a new chapter in his life “Sullivan has come into his own, not only as a fiery guitar player but also as a singer-songwriter” - Relix
Molly Grace - Pop-funk star Molly Grace is quickly making her own lane in the music industry. Passionate about her music and women's empowerment, she is determined to make great music and change lives while doing so.
Juice - Juice is a six-piece boy band based in Brooklyn NY that started with a group of friends playing music at Boston College. Their high-energy music and harmonies blend rock, pop, r&b, and hip-hop, culminating in a unique signature sound that they honed while touring nationally for the last 5 years.
StilLi - Steinydesk (Steinyfest’s talent search program) discovered StilLi, a singer-songwriter out of Harrison, NY. Catchy melodies with a pop rock and folk flair, check out her new EP called Foolish Optimist.

The moral of the story is you can do anything if you set your mind to it, even host a music festival in your backyard.

Just kidding. The REAL moral of the story is that Lollapoloza sucks and that you and all your friends should go to the 4th annual Steinyfest on Saturday October 21st at 4pm at NY Craft Coalition Brewery in Mamaroneck NY, which is under an hour train ride away from Manhattan.

OKAY, NOW GO BUY YOUR TICKETS HERE… See you there, Steiny-guests!

Get your tickets now!!!

STEINYFEST ALUMNI INCLUDES:

Milton - A Steiny favorite, A songwriter’s songwriter, known for his lyric craft, distinctive voice and soulful songs steeped in classic rhythm & blues, pop, jazz, folk and country.
BoyBand - New York's Boy Band is the collaborative project of Ana Dratz, Jen Fischer, and HaleyJane Rose. The trio blends their unique songwriting styles to create catchy choruses with stirring harmonies and swells.
Vilray – Famously as part of the duo, Rachael & Vilray, with Rachael Price, Vilray Jazz Composition at the New England Conservatory of Music in Boston. He is a versatile composer and lyricist who has written for film and theatre in addition to all that he writes for his own projects.
Rebecca Haviland and Whiskey Heart - Rebecca started out as Mia Steiny’s piano teacher 15 years ago, and is now thriving and performing all over New York City with her band.
Park National - Park National is the emo/indie rock project of 21-year-old Chicago-born songwriter and multi-instrumentalist Liam Fagan, who is now based in Boston, MA.
Cordovas - Internationally touring band, just released a new album titled The Rose of Aces. Cordovas was formed by Joe Firstman in Nashville Tennessee, blending their sounds of country and rock.