While this year’s edition of LouFest lacks the big-name star power of years past, there are still plenty of acts that will make your weekend worthwhile. Cadenza recommends the following artists:

Saturday

Jessica Hernandez & The Deltas

4 p.m., Shade Stage

LouFest specializes in the modern pop equivalent of easy listening. With few exceptions, its acts raise little more than an agreeable hum, leaving the festival lacking in dissonance and distortion.

While they may not bring the abrasion LouFest sorely needs, this year’s highlights supply a little swagger, whether in personality (Ludacris) or technique (MisterWives). Jessica Hernandez & The Deltas fall between the two extremes, executing a 1950s girl-group throwback with a brashness their predecessors weren’t afforded.

This brashness comes from two sources, the first being Hernandez, the group’s lead singer. Her brassy contralto has enough bite to cut through the band’s busy arrangements, which take inspiration from influential producer Phil Spector, who used large and diverse studio bands to create his signature “Wall of Sound.” While Jessica Hernandez & the Deltas don’t operate at Spector’s scale, they recognize the timbral and textural possibilities of dense, evenly mixed arrangements.

The way these arrangements are produced heightens the band’s swagger. Though many have criticized the persistent loudness of modern pop production, Hernandez and co. use amplification as a catalyst rather than a hindrance. The band’s full sound and energy should make for one of Saturday’s highlights. -Mark Matousek

Nate Ruess

5 p.m., Bud Light Stage

Although Nate Ruess’s name may not be as easily recognizable as other acts in the LouFest lineup, you’d likely recognize his voice. Before embarking as a solo artist, Ruess led indie-rock group The Format in the early 2000s and later the Grammy award-winning group fun. His 2015 record “Grand Romantic” is stylistically more similar to fun.’s “Some Nights” than it is to anything by the Format, but fans of any of Ruess’s past projects will be pleased to hear him continue to flaunt his admirable tenor pipes while belting lyrics that connect to and build upon those from his previous works. That being said, fans of fun. and/or the Format will be delighted to know that there is a great likelihood that Ruess will perform songs from both groups’ discographies and that the smash hit “We Are Young” is almost guaranteed.

If you’re not well acquainted with Ruess’s work, be prepared for lots of bouncy, danceable drum beats, the occasional piano and hooks galore. Nate Ruess’s music is bright, vocally endowed pop with an intelligent, indie edge. When we saw fun. in 2011, my father said that Nate Ruess’s stage presence reminded him of Freddie Mercury combined with Richard Simmons. How could you want to miss that? -Jessie Colston

Nico & Vinz

6 p.m., Phillips 66

I promise you that *I’m not wrong* for thinking that this pop duo could be something for real. With hit single “Am I Wrong” reaching the number one spot on the American Top 40 Chart last year, Nicolay Sereba and Vincent Dery, better known as Nico & Vinz, burst onto the pop scene, exposing U.S. audiences to their own mosaic of cultural backgrounds—both are from Norway, while Nico’s father is from the Ivory Coast and Vinz’s parents are from Ghana.

I had the opportunity to see the duo perform this past summer at the Fillmore, a small venue in Charlotte, N.C., during their first American tour. I was blown away. I went into the performance only knowing the one popular song, but found the rest of their set to be packed with equally unique, funky and danceable tunes. It’s all high energy and good vibes, so I can only imagine what they’ll bring to the big stage at a large outdoor music festival like LouFest. -Erica Sloan

Brandon Flowers

7 p.m., Bud Light Stage

Brandon Flowers has come a long way as an artist since The Killers’ debut album, “Hot Fuss,” was released back in 2004. If you were to skim through his band’s four albums, you’d only catch brief glimpses into the electro-pop sensibilities that are center stage in Flowers’ most recent record, 2015’s “The Desired Effect.” Producer Ariel Rechtshaid (whose credits include Vampire Weekend, Haim and Beyonce) brings a synth-packed punch to Flowers’ more serious signature rock sound. His trademark lyrics, however, remain as they’ve always been: full of fictitious anecdotes, religious references, witty wordplay and contemplative metaphors.

While the performance of a few of the Killers’ most notable hits (e.g. “Mr. Brightside”) will certainly get the crowd singing along in a surge of sweet nostalgia, there is a characteristic of Flowers’ that will carry the stage and the crowd as the sun sets: his Las Vegas flair. The combination of Rechtshaid’s infectiously pulsating pop composition with Flowers’ sweeping, rich vocals and eccentric taste in metallic blazers is sure to leave you wondering: Are we human, or are we dancer? -Jessie Colston

COIN

7 p.m., BMI

An unassuming four-piece indie pop-rock band, COIN might just fly under your radar, but it’s worth it to check them out (even though they’re admittedly playing at the same time as Brandon Flowers, who the band members themselves have cited as a huge musical inspiration).

In addition to Flowers and the Killers, COIN might be compared to other new-wave rock bands like the Cars and Talking Heads. Even so, they manage a cool, vibe-y rock sound that’s surprisingly contemporary, yet with strong guitar and synth components. If you think the name sounds familiar, you may have seen them open at WUStock two years ago. Since then, COIN has graduated to the Lollapolooza stage. It’s already an amazing success story considering the members are only a couple of years older than us—and I wouldn’t be surprised if this was just the beginning. -Erica Sloan

Ludacris

8 p.m., Phillips 66

LouFest tends to marginalize hip-hop, and this year is no different. Of the festival’s 34 artists, Ludacris is the sole representative from the genre, and one of a few that doesn’t specialize in mild-mannered indie pop. But as with last year, when Outkast headlined the final night, LouFest chose its hip-hop ambassador wisely.

For the first half of the previous decade, Ludacris was one of the genre’s most reliable hitmakers, pairing his impeccable taste in producers (the list includes The Neptunes, Timbaland, Kanye West and Bangladesh) with a supersized personality and gift for vocal emphasis. While he’s become a legacy act in recent years, his discography is deeper than you may remember.

Hozier is Saturday’s nominal headliner, but make no mistake, Ludacris is the night’s (and festival’s) main attraction. -Mark Matousek

Sunday

MisterWives

3:30 p.m., Phillips 66

Though MisterWives don’t have the critic-approved reference points and dense sonics of Haim or Chvrches, respectively, the band shares an early onset confidence with the two. The band’s first album, “Our Own House,” arrived in February, preceded only by a 2014 EP (“Reflections”).

From the titular opening track, the band’s facility with the shape of pop songwriting becomes clear. Lead singer and songwriter Mandy Lee wastes no time or motion on her opening (full-length) statement, pushing just one song beyond the four-minute mark. Her tendency toward concision, when paired with peppy horn arrangements and tightly wound guitar riffs, position MisterWives above the forgettable acts they cut their teeth opening for (twenty one pilots, Bleachers and American Authors among them).

Be sure to catch them on Saturday before they make the leap to main stages. -Mark Matousek

Strand of Oaks

5:30 p.m., Shade Stage

Emboldened by a near-death experience, Timothy Showalter, who uses the stage name Strand of Oaks, experienced a breakthrough with his 2014 album, “HEAL.” Messy and urgent, the album’s ragged mix directly resulted from Showalter’s brush with mortality, raising the stakes on songs that were originally meant to land with a soft touch.

Production aside, Showalter’s aesthetic, which blends new wave synth pop and Southern rock, places him in a lane occupied by few of his peers. By early Sunday evening, his earnest, stylistic dissonance should provide a welcome jolt for tired festgoers. -Mark Matousek