Billy Strings is bringing a very specific kind of left turn to this year’s Ionia Freak Fair: a personally curated metal and pinball tent stage. The event takes place August 28 and 29 in Ionia, Michigan, with Strings headlining the wider festival.
The broader bill also includes Greensky Bluegrass, Sierra Hull, Leftover Salmon, and more, but the heavy corner of the fair is where things get pleasantly strange. BANE, CRYPTOPSY, FOR THE FALLEN DREAMS, FLESH AND BLOOD ROBOT, HEARTSICK, and SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY are all set for the metal stage.
It is not as random as it may look on paper. Strings has been open about his love of heavy music, has previously performed with Tool and Primus, and even appeared on CRYPTOPSY’s 30th-anniversary edition of Blasphemy Made Flesh. Still, bluegrass festival plus CRYPTOPSY plus pinball tent is the sort of sentence that makes the calendar feel briefly possessed.
Tickets are available now.
Ionia Freak Fair 2026
Aug. 28-29 — Ionia, MI
Metal And Pinball Tent Stage:
BANE
CRYPTOPSY
FOR THE FALLEN DREAMS
FLESH AND BLOOD ROBOT
HEARTSICK
SEE YOU NEXT TUESDAY