While I have never been to Austin during SXSW, I already know it would make me an anxious mess. This past week my Twitter feed has inundated me with jokes about “making connections,” fans' undying love for Anderson .Paak and Frankie Cosmos, and the utter dread of being amid the swarm of humans that overflows the mid-sized Texas city every year to watch over 2,200 bands play. Seeing a friend return to Portland a sleepless zombie is enough to make me glad there's another option for those of us who long to see some of the best up-and-coming band— but are hoping to avoid an anxiety-induced meltdown. While Boise’s Treefort Music Festival is unlikely to yield any surprise sets from Drake, it does feature a slew of bands from the Pacific Northwest and beyond.

I am excited to see Seattle five-piece Great Grandpa deliver their densely emotional-grunge in three sets across the festival’s five days (March 23 and 24, and Breakfast Fort on March 26). Seeing Great Grandpa last summer outside their drummer Cam LaFlam’s family barn in Bothell, Washington (at the appropriately named mini-fest LaFlamaplooza) was one of my favorite shows of the year. Lead vocalist Alex Menne and guitarist Pat Goodwin played in the middle of the wet grass pit, facing the rest of the band on the stage. They played the entirety of their stellar 2015 EP Can Opener, including the sing-along anthem “Mostly Here,” and it had DIY-pop fans joined arm-in-arm rocking back and forth, unabashedly chanting the chorus with the enthusiasm of camp counselors. Great Grandpa’s upcoming LP will be released on Pittsburgh tape label Broken World Media, and it's a record I await with zesty anticipation.