Darker Waves is coming back to the sand. The new wave, post-punk, and goth festival returns to Huntington City Beach on Saturday, November 14, 2026, with Morrissey and The Smashing Pumpkins headlining a single-day bill of 39 acts across three stages. It is the festival’s first edition since its 2023 debut on the same beach, when New Order and Tears for Fears topped the lineup.
Live Nation produces the festival. Set times, gate times, and the site map have not been released yet. Everything else you need to plan the day is below, pulled from the festival’s help center and ticketing pages as of September 28, 2026.
The quick version
| When | Saturday, November 14, 2026. Hours not yet announced. |
| Where | Huntington City Beach, 21301 Pacific Coast Highway, Huntington Beach, CA 92648 |
| Headliners | Morrissey, The Smashing Pumpkins |
| Stages | Three |
| Ages | All ages |
| Tickets | GA from $259.99 at announcement, through Front Gate Tickets |
| Re-entry | No, except Ultimate VIP |
| Payment | 100% cashless |
| Camping | None |
| Official site | darkerwavesfest.com |
Who’s playing
The bill leans on 1980s new wave and post-punk, then widens out to California punk, ’90s alternative, and a younger darkwave scene. Stage assignments have not been published, so here is the lineup sorted by lane instead.
The headliners
Morrissey and The Smashing Pumpkins. Two artists whose catalogs lean melancholy, closing out a beach day in November. The festival name fits.
New wave and synth-pop
Simple Minds, Adam Ant, The Psychedelic Furs, Soft Cell, Gary Numan, Modern English, The Motels, Missing Persons.
Punk
Bad Religion, The Damned, Buzzcocks, Circle Jerks, Marky Ramone. Bad Religion and Circle Jerks both came out of the Los Angeles punk scene around 1980, so this part of the bill has hometown roots. Mariachi El Bronx, the mariachi project from members of the L.A. punk band The Bronx, is also on the lineup.
’90s alternative and Britpop
Manic Street Preachers, Silversun Pickups, EMF, Spacehog, Gene, The Sounds.
Goth, deathrock, and darkwave
Christian Death, one of the founding bands of Los Angeles deathrock, plus Cold Cave, TR/ST, Prayers, and Choir Boy.
The rest of the bill
DECEITS, Past Self, Benches, The Mainliners, Riki, Warfield, Purest Form, Casket Cassette, Migs Whiskey, All The Damn Vampires, Kim Theory, I Forget. Get there early for these. Festival openers are where you find your next favorite band.
Know the song, find the stage
If the names don’t ring a bell, the songs probably will. A cheat sheet:
| If you know… | Go see |
|---|---|
| “1979” or “Tonight, Tonight” | The Smashing Pumpkins |
| “Everyday Is Like Sunday” | Morrissey |
| “Don’t You (Forget About Me)” | Simple Minds |
| “Tainted Love” | Soft Cell |
| “Pretty in Pink” | The Psychedelic Furs |
| “Cars” | Gary Numan |
| “Goody Two Shoes” | Adam Ant |
| “I Melt with You” | Modern English |
| “Only the Lonely” | The Motels |
| “Words” | Missing Persons |
| “Unbelievable” | EMF |
| “In the Meantime” | Spacehog |
| “Lazy Eye” | Silversun Pickups |
| “A Design for Life” | Manic Street Preachers |
| “21st Century (Digital Boy)” | Bad Religion |
| “New Rose” | The Damned |
| “Ever Fallen in Love (With Someone You Shouldn’t’ve)” | Buzzcocks |
Tickets
The only official seller is Front Gate Tickets. There are four tiers: General Admission, GA+, VIP, and Ultimate VIP. When the lineup was announced in March, Consequence reported starting prices of $259.99 for GA, $359.99 for GA+, $599.99 for VIP, and $1,750.70 for Ultimate VIP. Prices can change as tiers sell through, so check the ticket page for current numbers.
- Payment plans: Live Nation announced layaway starting at $19.99 down.
- Hotel packages: Ticket and hotel bundles are sold through Jampack, the festival’s hotel partner. Beachfront hotel packages include limited re-entry.
- Resale: The official resale market is Ticketmaster Verified Exchange, reached through your Front Gate account. Hotel packages, GA 4-packs and 6-packs, and group experiences cannot be resold.
- Kids: The ticketing page lists the festival as all ages.
Getting there
The festival sits on the sand along PCH, near The Waterfront Beach Resort and the Hyatt Regency Huntington Beach. By car, the festival’s directions are the 405 South to Beach Boulevard, then south to PCH. Long Beach Airport and John Wayne Airport are each about 30 minutes away; LAX is about an hour.
- Free shuttles: Pickup is on PCH at Magnolia Street and at Brookhurst Street. Drop-off is at Beach Boulevard and PCH.
- Rideshare: Pickup and drop-off are on the beach side (south side) of PCH between Twin Dolphin Drive and Beach Boulevard.
- Bus: OCTA routes 1, 25, and 29 serve the area.
- Parking: There is no reserved festival parking. Self-park is first come, first served at City Beach parking, the Huntington State Beach lots, the Main Promenade structure in downtown Huntington Beach, the City Beach lot on 6th Street, and Pierside Pavilion. The festival recommends walking, biking, rideshare, or transit.
- No overnight stays: Tent, RV, and car camping are not allowed on the grounds or in the parking areas.
What to bring
Every bag is searched at the gate, and screening is airport style, which can include pat-downs and metal detectors. Pack to the rules and you will get in faster.
- Bags: A small clutch or fanny pack up to 6 x 9 inches with one pocket does not need to be clear. Anything bigger must be clear and no larger than 12 x 6 x 12 inches. Hydration packs are fine if they are empty on entry and have no more than two main compartments plus one small one.
- Water: Bring an empty reusable plastic bottle. Free hydration stations are on site. Metal and aluminum bottles are not allowed.
- Sun and cold: Non-aerosol sunscreen up to 3.4 ounces is allowed. The sun sets around 4:50 p.m. on November 14, so plan for a cool beach night after it goes down.
- Something to sit on: Small blankets and beach towels are allowed. Chairs of any kind, umbrellas, and shade structures are not.
- Phone power: Portable battery packs are allowed, and charging lockers can be reserved through Tixr. Each locker comes with a charging pack.
- Ears: The festival recommends hearing protection.
- Cameras: Basic point-and-shoot cameras without detachable lenses are allowed. Professional cameras, detachable zoom lenses, tripods, monopods, and selfie sticks are not.
- Medications: Prescriptions in pharmacy-labeled containers, a day’s supply of over-the-counter meds, factory-sealed Narcan, and sealed single-serve electrolyte packets are allowed.
What to leave at home
The full list is on the festival’s allowed and prohibited items page. The ones most likely to catch people:
- Vapes and cigarettes. The festival bans cigarettes, e-cigarettes, and vapes, citing the city’s no-smoking policy on public beaches.
- Aerosols, including spray sunscreen and hairspray. Plan your goth hair accordingly.
- Spiked jewelry and large chains. This one matters at a goth and punk festival. Leave the studded collar in the car.
- Outside food and drinks, coolers, and glass.
- Mesh bags, totems, flags, and umbrellas.
- Skateboards, scooters, bikes, and wagons.
- Pets. Service animals are allowed.
- Markers and paint pens, drones, laser pointers, pepper spray, and weapons.
Inside the gates
- No re-entry. Once your GA, GA+, or VIP wristband is scanned, you are in for the day. Ultimate VIP can come and go.
- Cashless. Credit, debit, and mobile pay are accepted everywhere. Cash is not.
- Register your wristband with an emergency contact before you go.
- Pick a meeting spot. The main Guest Services tent is the festival’s official meet-up point if your group gets split up. Lost and found is there too.
- Bringing a baby? Strollers up to 31 by 52 inches are allowed, and there is a family tent for changing and nursing at Guest Services.
Accessibility
The grounds are wheelchair accessible, but the festival warns of long distances, sand, streets, and possible mud. Accessible entry lanes are at the entrances. The Access Center issues access wristbands for the accessible viewing platforms and Deaf sections, good for you and one companion (your companion still needs a ticket). Powered chairs and scooters are allowed, with charging at the Access Center.
ASL interpretation is available by request, and the deadline is October 15, 2026. Assisted listening devices, accessible restrooms, and medical dietary accommodations are also available. ADA parking details for 2026 have not been posted yet. Questions go to access@darkerwavesfest.com.
Still to come
Gate times, set times, the festival map, and the mobile app are all listed as “not yet available” on the festival’s help center. The 824 Journal will update this guide when they are released.
Sources
- Darker Waves, official site
- Darker Waves Help Center (dates and hours, bag policy, allowed and prohibited items, getting there, parking, rideshare, camping, re-entry, lockers, cashless payments, family services, accessibility, health and safety, tickets, and resale)
- Darker Waves on Front Gate Tickets
- Live Nation: Morrissey and The Smashing Pumpkins to Headline Darker Waves 2026
- Consequence: Darker Waves Announces 2026 Lineup (March 31, 2026)
- JamBase: Darker Waves 2026 lineup
- Consequence: New Order and Tears for Fears Lead Darker Waves 2023 Lineup
- uDiscover Music: Tears for Fears, New Order, Soft Cell, and More Set for Darker Waves (2023)
Featured photo: DHN via Wikimedia Commons, CC BY-SA 3.0
