Moon Crush 'music vacation' event returns to Miramar Beach with Brandi Carlile, Ben Harper

MIRAMAR BEACH  — The Moon Crush "music vacation" experience will return to South Walton County in April, again offering outdoor performances on a wide swath of lawn at the Seascape resort community just across Scenic Gulf Drive from the Gulf of Mexico.

This year's Moon Crush is set for April 21-24 at Seascape, immediately adjacent to U.S. Highway 98 in the western edge of the county.

This year's lineup features a dozen acts, with Lake Street Dive, Phil & Tim Hanseroth and Natalie Hemby taking the stage April 21; Brandi Carlile, Ben Harper and Zach Bryan performing April 22; Tedeschi Trucks, JJ Grey & Mofro and Molly Tuttle & Golden Highway entertaining April 23, and My Morning Jacket, Caamp and Brett Dennen closing out the four-day event April 24.

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Both four-day and single-day passes are available through the Moon Crush website at https://www.mooncrush.live/, with four-day passes starting at $300 and single-day passes available for $65.

An interesting seating option offered for Moon Crush is the "cove." An acronym for Contained Outdoor Viewing Environment, a cove provides reserved seating for anywhere from two to six people and offers the convenience of not having to go through the concert crowds for a trip to the restroom or to get drinks.

The cove provides access to air-conditioned restrooms, a chair for everyone in the group and the option to have food and drinks delivered during performances. With a four-day pass, cove prices range from $700 for two people to $2,000 for four to six people, depending on the location on the concert grounds.

People who want to turn their Moon Crush experience into part of a vacation at Seascape can make arrangements through the event's website. For those who want the vacation experience but not necessarily at Seascape, Moon Crush will help them find other lodging for their stay.

Moon Crush is the brainchild of Andy Levine of Topeka — not the Kansas city, but  an operation that works to create shared music experiences. The idea came to him during the early days of the coronavirus pandemic. He had plans to visit Miramar Beach in 2020 with his kids, but the ban on renting short-term vacation accommodations at the time prompted him instead to buy a home.

He watched the people visiting the area, saw the golf course at Seascape, talked with local vacation rental companies and staged the first Moon Crush in 2020. The socially distanced event, featuring a diversity of acts from Sheryl Crow to Jason Isbell and the 400 Unit to The Revivalists, attracted 2,000 people.

An event like Moon Crush is well-suited for South Walton, which already has a reputation for live music and signature events like the annual 30A Songwriters Festival, according to Matt Algarin, director of communications for Visit South Walton.

"I feel like live music is woven into the fabric of our community," Algarin said.

Algarin called the "music vacation" approach taken by Topeka with Moon Crush "a cool concept." He was particularly enthused by the cove arrangement, saying it represents "a unique take on a traditional music festival."

In turn, Algarin added that an event like Moon Crush allows the area a chance to show off its other attractions, from the beach to state parks, state forests and the New Urbanist communities along County Road 30A.

People coming to the area for Moon Crush "are going to attend the shows, but they're also going to get out and about, which benefits the restaurants and the retail shops," he said.

"Any time you can have an event like that, that we know is going to draw in some good numbers, it's going to benefit the community as a whole," Algarin added.