Who else out there is surprised by the fact that we already hit the first day of fall this week? To me, that means several things, like the prime opportunity to pop open one of the best fall beers (more on that in a second), to go along with the chance to layer up with one of the best men’s flannel shirts for the season, like the rugged and ready-for-anything Filson Field Flannel Shirt shown above. It’s not quite cold enough just yet in NYC for that shirt, but it’s never too early to start preparing for what lies ahead (I.E. Day hikes, beer garden brews and much more).

As to my own plans this weekend, there’s a little bit of everything going on, including some shopping for fall style essentials. And beyond that, well, like I said, there’s a bit of everything. It’s hard to believe, but it’s the long-awaited and incredibly exciting return of New York City’s best music festival, the much-hyped and much-loved Governors Ball! It’s being held this year for the first time at Citi Field, with a unique in-the-round stage set-up designed to utilize space and provide maximum sound quality. But it’s notable to me for another reason: It’ll be my first time attending and covering the festival with a press pass in hand! If you keep up with me on my music & menswear Twitter, you know that I contribute to sites like Merry-Go-Round Magazine and The Line of Best Fit, and I’ve also started contributing to excellent indie music site Atwood Magazine! It’s for Atwood that I’m attending the festival, and I couldn’t be more thrilled to safely attend this standout festival to cover bands like Future Islands, a personal favorite. In the meantime, I’ll be wrapping up some writing and planning for the season ahead. To plan out your fall shopping (and possibly provide some inspiration to visit your favorite beer garden??), here’s the rest of today’s Friday Read below. Cheers!

• Anyone else feeling thirsty? The time has never been better to stock your beer fridge with some of the best fall beers, which run the gamut from classic Oktoberfest styles to rich double IPAs and many more. To get you started, check out my guide to the best beers for fall at Maxim. Again, cheers!
• I mentioned legendary heritage outfitter Filson at the start of today’s post, and if you ask me, there’s never a bad time to double-down and focus once more on an iconic brand for fall and beyond. Just yesterday in fact, I wrote all about one of the best fall jackets for men here on the blog. Check out that post, and then let me know in the comments below what you think of the tough-as-nails Filson 3-Layer Field Jacket. Happy shopping!

• If the headline had you wondering when a certain band from Las Vegas might come up in today’s post, well, here we are. I had the really incredible and exceedingly rare opportunity to catch two shows in two nights by one of my all-time favorite bands, The Killers. I wrote in my twice-weekly newsletter about trekking down to Pennsylvania (first to Bethlehem, and then over to Philadelphia) to see this lifetime band play two shows prior to a headlining appearance at Firefly Festival in Delaware, and I’m so glad I took advantage of the chance to make my own schedule, hit the road and see them. Again, head to my music + menswear newsletter to get the full scoop.

Those three quick hits above should carry you into the weekend quite nicely, right? That’s my hope at least, from the music of The Killers to the chance to stock your beer fridge with some excellent seasonal brews. Be sure to follow along with me on Instagram to catch all of the action at Governors Ball, but before you do that, I’ll leave you with one last shopping and style pick. A retro cardigan, like this Bonobos cardigan that I wrote about on the blog earlier this week, is truly unstoppable for autumn layering. One final time, enjoy the weekend and let’s keep it rolling!