Float Fest 2017 Preview

On Saturday & Sunday, July 22nd & 23rd, head to Cool River Ranch in Texas to float on the river in the daytime, and catch music in the evening:

SATURDAY, JULY 22nd

Zedd, Water Stage, 11:30 PM – 1:00 AM German electro-house producer Zedd (real name: Anton Zaslavski) has been branching out into complextro & dubstep, as he’s become a festival regular (QRO photos at a festival), including headlining, like at Float ’17.
Passion Pit, Sun Stage, 10:10 PM – 11:25 PM Blowing up very fast was Cambridge, Mass’ own Passion Pit (QRO photos). Single “Sleepyhead” (QRO video) found its way to MTV nominations, while debut Manners (QRO review) found its way onto the charts – and high expectations were filled with 2012’s follow-up, Gossamer (QRO review), and single “Take a Walk” (QRO review). Catch the big-name indietronica stars (QRO photos outdoors) as they return to the road (QRO photos at a festival), ‘cause they’ve moved up to the big-time (QRO photos) like Madison Square Garden (QRO live review) and headlining festivals (QRO photos headlining a festival), and aren’t playing small places – or even medium-sized (QRO photos) anymore (QRO live review). Oh, and don’t worry about the electronic playing outdoors (QRO photos outdoors at a festival), as they more than know how to do it outside (QRO live review outdoors). They come to Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival) behind 2015’s release of the highly awaited Kindred (QRO review).
Girl Talk, Water Stage, 9:05 PM – 10:05 PM Greg Gillis (Girl Talk – QRO photos at a festival) moved from biomedical tissue engineering to DJ mash-up engineering (QRO photos at a festival), taking samples from across the spectrum and making something very new (QRO photos at a festival). While he started out playing clubs, he’s graduated to ballroom & even the great outdoors (QRO photos outdoors) – but that just means he’s got bigger stages (QRO photos outdoors at a festival) and festivals (QRO photos at a festival) to fill with dancing concertgoers (QRO photos at a festival).
Mac Miller, Sun Stage, 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM Mac Miller (QRO photos at a festival), one of many aliases for Malcolm James McCormick, had the first independently distributed debut to hit number one on the Billboard charts in over a decade with 2011’s Blue Slide Park. He and his REMember Music have since signed with Warner Brothers, for last year’s GO:AD AM.
Neon Indian, Water Stage, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM Alan Palomo worked solo as VEGA (QRO photos at a festival) and recruited a live band as Neon Indian (QRO photos at the same festival), where he’s far stronger (QRO photos with his band), especially outdoors (QRO photos outdoors with band) & at a festival (QRO photos at a festival with band). He comes to Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival) after 2015’s release of VEGA INTL. Night School, his latest since 2011’s Era Extraña, and after touring colleges (QRO live review), museums (QRO photos), Down Under (QRO live review), and more (QRO photos).
Snakehips, Sun Stage, 6:15 PM – 7:00 PM Oliver Lee and James Carter made their Snakehips name doing Hype Machine remixes of everyone from Banks to The Weeknd, but found their own hit single in 2015’s “All My Friends”.
Also: Mike Jones, Water Stage, 5:30 PM – 6:15 PM Lil Flip, Water Stage, 4:45 PM – 5:30 PM Blunt Force, Water Stage, 4:00 PM – 4:45 PM Heartbyrne, Sun Stage, 3:15 PM – 4:00 PM Resonant Frequency, Water Stage, 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM King of Nothing, Sun Stage, 2:00 PM – 2:30 PM

SUNDAY, JULY 23rd

Weezer, Water Stage, 9:45 PM – 11:00 PM For a long time, the new output from Weezer (QRO photos at a festival) like 2010’s Hurley (QRO review) and Death To False Metal (QRO review) or the previous year’s Raditude (QRO review) wasn’t up to their nineties classics (and 2008’s red album-covered self-titled – QRO review – couldn’t hold a candle to the blue- and green-covered earlier Weezers – QRO blue Weezer live review – or Pinkerton – QRO deluxe edition review), but they still played those nineties classics like “My Name Is Jonas” (QRO video), “Say It Ain’t So” (QRO video), “Buddy Holly” (QRO video), “No One Else” (QRO video), “Surf Wax America” (QRO video), “Falling For You” (QRO video), and “Dope Nose” (QRO video), which can even lift later pieces like “Islands In the Sun” (QRO video) and “Beverly Hills” (QRO video). And their live show (QRO live review) – especially outdoors (QRO live review outdoors) headlining a festival (QRO photos headlining a festival) – has stayed great (QRO photos headlining a festival). 2014 came Everything Will Be Alright In the End (QRO review), their best record in years & years (QRO Everything live review), then last year another Weezer, the white one (QRO review), another good one (QRO White Album live review) – plus dude, Hurley (QRO photo).
Cage the Elephant, Sun Stage, 8:30 PM – 9:45 PM With hardly a full-length album to their name, Kentucky’s own Cage the Elephant (QRO photos) was snatched up by EMI Records at a low-key SXSW showcase. Following some impressive U.K. airplay, the band packed up and moved to London, where they released their first studio album in 2008. The following two years were a haze of international touring, late night TV shows, festival appearances (QRO photos at a festival) – and preparation for 2011’s Thank You, Happy Birthday, following that up with 2013’s more indie-influenced Melophobia and 2015’s Dan Auerbach-produced Tell Me I’m Pretty (which won the Grammy for Best Rock Album). As their blues-y rock infused live show will prove (QRO photos), elephants were never meant to be caged (QRO photos).
MGMT, Water Stage, 7:15 PM – 8:30 PM All of a sudden, Wesleyan University gave birth to a bunch of indie acts, but none blew up like MGMT (QRO live review). Songs like “Electric Feel” (QRO video) and “Time To Pretend” (QRO video) launched 2007’s Oracular Spectacular in the stratosphere. The follow-up was bound to bring them more back down to earth, and Congratulations (QRO review) is a classic over-ambitious sophomore release, with third, self-titled record full-on weird. There was a big break after MGMT, but this year (QRO photos at a ’17 festival) they’re coming back with Little Dark Age. The two-man psych-rock band of Ben Goldwasser & Andrew Van Wyngarden (QRO photos outdoors) is more than prepared to blow minds outdoors when they come to play Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival).
MOON TAXI, Sun Stage, 6:15 PM – 7:15 PM MOON TAXI (QRO photos at a festival) cross the dashed lines between indie, jam, progressive, and rock.
Wild Child, Water Stage, 5:30 PM – 6:15 PM Austin’s own Wild Child (QRO photos) range from ukulele to cello.
Also: Sweet Spirit, Sun Stage, 4:45 PM – 5:30 PM Walker Lukens, Water Stage, 4:00 PM – 4:45 PM Ume, Sun Stage, 3:15 PM – 4:00 PM – QRO photos at a festival A Town Get Down, Water Stage, 2:30 PM – 3:15 PM Los Coast, Sun Stage, 2:00 PM – 2:30 PM

For festival website, go here: http://floatfest.net/