A raucous start to Outside Lands 2024, as the Killers fired off their laser cannons, Daniel Caesar played so long they had to cut him off, and singer Tyla disappointed fans by taking the stage nearly 30 minutes late.

Outside Lands kicked off Friday with a typical foggy Fogust day and very chilly night, but the festival’s performing artists, food trucks, and cocktail scene still heated things up.

Well, most of the performing artists, that is, as South African vocalist Tyla showed up for her 6:05 pm Sutro stage set nearly a whole half-hour late.

But headliners The Killers blew fans’ minds with a giant armada of laser cannons to accompany their 20-year-old hits, and soulful crooner Daniel Caesar just kept playing his magnificent set past his 9:55 pm cut-off time, and the festival cut his power to keep him from playing past 10.

Also notably, pop sensation Mel 4Ever went full-on topless to close out their Dolores’ stage set, bidding farewell with the words, “I'm Mel 4ever, and these are my tits. Bye faggots!"

So that would make Mel 4Ever one of the big winners of the early afternoon sets, as was The Last Dinner Party with their dreamy goth/baroque performance.

And this young man Knock2 unleashed delirium with his DJ set that skillfully mixed beautiful melodies with face-melting dubstep and trap. His flame-shooters and smoke machines only added to the degree of feverish raving.

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A wheelchair-friendly mosh pit broke out amidst Knock2’s mayhem.

The neo-Bee Gees sounds of Jungle warmed the crowd as the 7pm Golden Gate Park chill set in, kicking off with “Busy Earnin'.” And they did a neat trick with their duet and collaboration numbers, playing pre-recorded video of the other collaborating artist on the giant jumbotron screen, like when they beamed Erick the Architect onscreen while playing “Candie Flame.”

They of course performed their TikTok-famous “Back on 74,” plus other tracks that combined the vibes of psy-trance and Donna Summer.

The Killers roared on stage with their big hit “Somebody Told Me,” and damn did I feel old upon realizing that song is now 20 years old.  But the band was still spread exuberance like it was 2004 to a jubilant crowd, and frontman Brandon Flowers tore it up like a man half his age in his bright purple velvet jacket. (They blasted purple lasers that matched his jacket for a crowd-pleasing version of “Mr. Brightside.”)

The band was not shy about blasting their fleet of laser cannons across the park’s sky throughout the set, which featured a surprise cover of Erasure’s “A Little Respect.” But The Killers did not play their full allotted 90 minutes, ending their set early not with a song, but with a five-minute drum solo from Ronnie Vannucci Jr.

That gave the crowd the time to go catch the end of Daniel Caesar at the nearby Sutro stage. Caesar still had three more tracks in him at that point, and he might have played even more, but the festival cut his sound off as he played past his curfew time.

“I’m fucking freezing up here,” Caesar said to open the show, but it sure didn’t show in his memorable performance. While The Killers went for stadium-rock glitz and glam, Caesar’s beautiful R&B sounds and mostly all-white minimalist lighting made the audience of easily 15,000 watching him feel like were at an intimate club.

Even this bizarre “mosquito net” lighting trick worked well, and the stagecraft usually just showed Caesar as a silhouette on the diamond vision screen. He did several solo guitar numbers for “Do You Like Me” and “Always.” And Caesar strummed his way into “Streetcar” after his 9:55 cut-off time, and they let him go at it for a couple of minutes, but Caesar's sound was cut off promptly at 10pm.

As we’ve noted Outside Lands has an outdoor wedding chapel called “City Hall” this year, should you want to get married at a musical festival with a “Hookt Mini Donuts” booth right next to the altar.

We like to shit on these corporate “brand activations”, but we have to hand it to La Croix for their Fizz Fest booth, which had these awesome bejeweled La Croix cans (they’re not for sale). But you can apparently swing by for a sample of their new Strawberry peach sparkling water from noon-4 pm each day of the festival.

Wine Lands is back, and this year Pax Wineries is making the first Wine Lands appearance. This is also the first year that us common folk can get Limerick Lane Cellars and Turley Wine Cellars outside the VIP area.

And these cheese and charcuterie plates are a nice wine enthusiast touch, with fare provided by Marin French Cheese Co. and Sonoma’s Laura Chenel.

As usual, the harder stuff is available at Cocktail Magic. Their craft cocktails cost the same $18 as the cocktails elsewhere at the festival, so it’s certainly with a trip over there for the custom delights.

Check out this smoke bubble they can put on your drink at the Cocktail Magic bar En Vogue. (And yes, they do also garnish drinks with Iced Animal cookies, which do not get soggy no matter how long they soak).

But the big hit of Cocktail Magic will probably be this Golden Girls-themed bar called  SilverGirls2000, a celebration of all things Blanche, Dorothy, Rose, and Sophia.

That bar serves drinks like a St. Olaf Spice and a Sophia Sour.

If you can’t make it to Outside Lands, or are just running late, the free Outside Lands livestream lineup for Saturday starts at 1 pm and includes Amyl & the Sniffers (4:30 pm), Sabrina Carpenter (8:40 pm) and the Postal Service (10 pm).

Check put more memories from Outside Lands 2024 Day One below.

Related: Getting the Most of Outside Lands: A Food & Drink Game Plan [SFist]

Image via Alive Coverage