After an incredible New York debut in May 2018 of its long-running Festival of Disruption, the David Lynch Foundation is proud to announce an exciting new series of events. In partnership with The Bowery Presents, DLF will stage two concerts at Brooklyn Steel on May 17 and 18, with net proceeds benefiting the Foundation’s work bringing Transcendental Meditation to people suffering from post-traumatic stress.

Curated by auteur filmmaker/artist David Lynch, the concerts will feature Wye Oak, Mercury Rev and the Messthetics on May 17, and Garbage, Phoebe Bridgers and a DJ set from Nancy Whang of LCD Soundsystem on May 18. Additional artists will be announced. Tickets go on sale this Friday (March 22) at 10 a.m. ET.

These shows will further the David Lynch Foundation’s goal to produce more frequent standalone events rather than programming exclusively under the umbrella of Festival of Disruption, which launched in Los Angeles in October 2016. To that end, DLF will also host a separate slate of programming the afternoon of May 18 at Music Hall of Williamsburg, featuring an intimate screening of David Lynch’s acclaimed 1998 film Mulholland Drive in tandem with a conversation between Lynch (via Skype) and actor Justin Theroux.

Says Lynch, “Come to the Festival of Disruption, where we are dedicated to disrupting the old bad and bringing in the new good, which is peace, happiness, and good will to all. Let’s Rock!”

The musical lineup is led by beloved rock outfit Garbage, whose members still fondly recall impromptu visits from Lynch to the band’s Madison, Wisconsin, studio when he vacationed in the area in the 1990s. Fresh off a sold-out tour with Conor Oberst under the name Better Oblivion Community Center, Phoebe Bridgers will perform a set with her solo band.

On the heels of a 2018 run celebrating the 20th anniversary of its classic album Deserter’s Songs, Mercury Rev will play just its second show in New York in the past decade, while North Carolina trio Wye Oak will grace the Brooklyn Steel stage with songs from their six acclaimed albums for Merge Records. The shows will also feature the Messthetics, featuring bassist Joe Lally and drummer Brendan Canty of the legendary band Fugazi, as well as a DJ set from LCD Soundsystem’s Nancy Whang, who also performed at the 2018 New York edition of Festival of Disruption.

Festival of Disruption took its name from one of Lynch’s favorite quotes, attributed to the founder of Transcendental Meditation, Maharishi Mahesh Yogi: “Life is a festival of disruption.” Indeed, only from the mind of Lynch could such a collection of artists have joined forces for these once-in-a-lifetime events. For the upcoming Brooklyn Steel concerts, all of the participants were chosen because they champion creativity, experimentation, integrity, beauty, depth and kindness — they embody the spirit of Festival of Disruption.

Previous Festival of Disruptions have brought together Robert Plant, Mel Brooks, St. Vincent, Grace Jones, RZA, Bon Iver, Francis Ford Coppola, members of Sigur Ros, The Kills, TV On The Radio, Sharon Van Etten, Laura Marling, My Morning Jacket’s Jim James, Mike Patton, Animal Collective, Angel Olsen, Au Revoir Simone, Reggie Watts, Questlove, Moby, Shepard Fairey, Flying Lotus, Jon Hopkins, Dean Hurley, John Malkovich, Laura Dern, Kyle MacLachlan, Naomi Watts, Bill Hader, Pete Holmes, Isabella Rossellini, Brian Koppelman, Gregory Crewdson, Frank Gehry, Ed Ruscha, “Twin Peaks” cast and crew members including Sheryl Lee, and many more for wildly successful weekends. Attendees were captivated by the immersive Lynchian world created at The Theatre at Ace Hotel and Brooklyn Steel with custom décor, bespoke food & beverage, and photo and virtual reality exhibits that reflected the filmmaker’s incomparable vision.