FYF Fest 2012 Preview

For its ninth year, Los Angeles’ FYF Fest (formerly ‘Fuck Yeah Fest’ & ‘F Yeah Fest’) has doubled in size, now stretching both Saturday and Sunday at LA State Historic Park on Labor Day Weekend. But it’s still got a great, diverse line-up, from hardcore punks to ambient electronics and everything in between (including comedy) – fuck yeah!:

SATURDAY, SEPTEMBER 1ST

Main Street Stage Refused, 10:55 PM – 11:55 PM Before Sweden was known for indie-pop and haunting harmonies, it and the rest of Scandinavia trafficked in the harder fare (QRO photos at a festival in Europe), from black metal to the hardcore punk of Refused (QRO photos at a festival in Europe), who headline Day One of FYF Fest.

M83, 9:25 PM – 10:25 PM How is it that France does such great atmospherics? M83 (QRO live review) actually exceeded countrymen Air (QRO album review) with 2008’s Saturdays = Youth (QRO review), their most accessible electronica album to-date, and come to FYF Fest behind Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming (QRO review), which has led the band to bigger shows (QRO live review) and bigger stages (QRO photos) at bigger festivals (QRO photos at a festival) & more (QRO photos at a festival).

Sleigh Bells, 8:10 PM – 8:55 PM Somewhere between noise and pop lies Brooklyn’s Sleigh Bells (QRO photos at a festival). The duo of Derek E. Miller & Alexis Krauss (QRO photos) all of a sudden became the hottest thing out there with debut Treats, including touring with M.I.A. (QRO photos) & playing Primavera 2010 – and they’ve kept up the heat (QRO live review) this year with Reign of Terror (QRO review) and their bigger-and-bigger headline dates (QRO live review).

Warpaint, 6:55 PM – 7:40 PM The experimental, even psychedelic rock of the four ladies that make up Warpaint (QRO photos) has taken a while to take hold, but is really starting to by now, and they come to FYF Fest (QRO photos).

The Pains of Being Pure at Heart, 5:45 PM – 6:30 PM One of the many Brooklyn neo-garage acts to break out, The Pains of Being Pure at Heart (QRO live review) hewed more towards the brighter, twee side of things on their self-titled debut LP (QRO review), but veered into neo-John Hughes territory with last year’s great Belong (QRO review). A band (QRO photos) that deserved to break out of the Brooklyn garage (QRO photos outside of NYC), live & outdoors (QRO photos outdoors at a festival), they really kick it up a notch (QRO live review outdoors).

Chairlift, 4:35 PM – 5:20 PM Though born in Boulder, Chairlift (QRO photos outdoors) came of age in – where else? – Brooklyn (QRO photos in Brooklyn). They (QRO photos at a festival) broke through with the sweet “Bruises”, though since the departure of singer/guitarist Aaron Pfenning for his own Rewards (QRO photos), the now-duo (QRO photos at a festival) has gone for a spookier sound on Something (QRO review) earlier this year.

Two Gallants, 3:30 PM – 4:10 PM San Francisco folk-rock duo Two Gallants (QRO photos) comes to FYF Fest behind their new The Bloom and the Blight, out right after FYF.

Moonface, 2:30 PM – 3:10 PMSpencer Krug became known as one-half of the great Wolf Parade (QRO live review), but also headed up his own, more disjointed outfit Sunset Rubdown (QRO live review). However, after Wolf Parade went on hiatus last year (QRO live review of one of the last shows), Krug shed the Sunset for his new Moonface.

The Soft Pack, 1:30 PM – 2:05 PM When they first came out, the only thing that differentiated this San Diego garage-rock band from the million-and-one other young garage-rock bands out there was their didn’t-mean-to-mean-anything name, The Muslims. A change of name to The Soft Pack (QRO photos at a festival) for not only the band but also their debut full-length (QRO review) helped them stand out for their sound. Their follow-up, Strapped, is out at the end of September. Also: White Arrows, 12:30 PM – 1:05 PM – QRO photos at a festival


Spring Street Stage Simian Mobile Disco (live), 10:30 PM – 11:50 PM The Disco gets very Mobile when ‘The James’ – Ford & Shaw – bring the light & sound show that is Simian Mobile Disco (QRO live review) to FYF Fest (QRO photos), headlining the Spring Street Stage at night, where their lights can really shine (QRO photos).

JDH & Dave P, 10:10 PM – 10:30 PM Otherwise known as ‘FIXED’, JDH & Dave P are two of the most active DJs and event impresarios in the NYC dance scene. They also DJing at the Broadway Street Tent between sets on Sunday.

Quicksand, 9:30 PM – 10:00 PM New York post-hardcore outfit Quicksand looked poised for major label success in the nineties with albums Slip and Manic Compression, but didn’t break out, so instead broke up, with singer/guitarist Walter Schreifels going the solo route (QRO tour review). But Quicksand got back together for a one-night-only performance earlier this year that has led to an appearance on Late Night with Jimmy Fallon – and at FYF Fest.

James Blake, 7:50 PM – 8:40 PM If you didn’t live in London, you might never have heard of dubstep, so you probably would have been surprised when people started talking about ‘post-dubstep’, in the form of highly-hyped Brit James Blake (QRO live review). But the former singer of (actual) dubstep outfit Mount Kimbie (QRO photos at a festival) has been making massive waves with his self-titled debut (QRO album review), so see for yourself what all the fuss is about.

Chromatics, 6:35 PM – 7:20 PM Johnny Jewel of the electronic Glass Candy (see below) plays FYF Fest on Day One in solo side-project, the noisier & more chaotic Chromatics (QRO photos at a festival).

Fucked Up, 5:25 PM – 6:10 PM While Holy Fuck (QRO live review) lost the Polaris Music Prize in 2008, that kind of a name didn’t stop Fucked Up from winning it the following year with Chemistry of Common Life (though it almost derailed The Pool Parties at Williamsburg Waterfront in Brooklyn – QRO photos), and the band followed that up with singles collection Couple Tracks (QRO review) and last year’s concept rock opus, David Comes to Life. Whether their hardcore music lives up to praise rarely given to hardcore is still up for debate, but what isn’t is how nuts the crowd goes (QRO photos at a festival) for this act out of Toronto (QRO photos outdoors), with singer/frontman Damian Abraham bringing it, shirtless and crazy (QRO photos at a festival).

Cloud Nothings, 4:15 PM – 5:00 PM Young Dylan Baldi (QRO photos) throws back to music older than he as Cloud Nothings (QRO live review) with this year’s Attack On Memory (QRO review), and brings his bringing back of power-pop to FYF Fest (QRO photos at a festival).

Redd Kross, 3:10 PM – 3:50 PM The hard punk of Redd Kross made them a mainstay of the eighties punk scene alongside Circle Jerks (QRO live review) and Black Flag (both of whom shared members with Kross), made it to a major label in the nineties, but went on indefinite hiatus after the death of guitarist Eddie Kurdzeil in 1999. But, after almost a decade off the stage, Redd Kross is back, touring their new Researching the Blues, the first new Redd Kross record in fifteen years.

King Tuff, 2:05 PM – 2:45 PM King Tuff (QRO photos at a festival) is a 1976 Camaro bathed in brown liquor and rattling with the sounds of dirtbag punk. He’s got a charisma that precedes him and new self-titled album (QRO review) to throw at you. It’s not exactly lo-fi, but he recorded it himself and sounds like something that crawled out of a garage, which is high praise indeed.

Also: FIDLAR, 1:15 PM – 1:45 PM – QRO photos at a festival The Orwells, 12:25 PM – 12:55 PM


Hill Street Stage The Growlers, 10:50 PM – 11:30 PM From just over in Dana Point, The Growlers mix major effects with sixties psychedelic rock to make ‘Beach Goth’.

Black Mountain, 9:35 PM – 10:25 PM Vancouver’s Black Mountain (QRO photos) are a hard, heavy rock band, who, despite hard, heavy records like In the Future (QRO review) and Wilderness Heart, move in the indie-sphere for some reason.

Purity Ring, 8:25 PM – 9:10 PM From the other side of North America, Montreal’s Purity Ring (QRO photos) bring some of the new indie-electronic (QRO photos).

Hot Snakes, 7:15 PM – 8:00 PM San Diego’s Hot Snakes mixed DIY and hardcore up until their 2005 break-up, which saw members join/form groups such as The Night Marchers (QRO photos) and Obits (QRO album review), but 2011 brought a reunion that has kept on going.

Future Islands, 6:05 PM – 6:50 PM Baltimore’s Future Islands (QRO photos) play a darker form of synth-pop.

The Vaselines, 4:55 PM – 5:40 PM Edinburgh’s The Vaselines (QRO photos in U.K.) were not known outside of their native Scotland until they found a high-profile fan in Nirvana’s Kurt Cobain, who covered such songs of theirs as “Son of a Gun” (QRO video) on Incesticide and MTV Unplugged In New York (QRO DVD review), though it only led to a compilation of all their work in The Way of The Vaselines. But more recently the band (QRO photos) reformed & finally came to America (QRO photos in America), put out another compilation in Enter The Vaselines (QRO review) – and then the brand-spanking new Sex With an X (QRO review) & single “I Hate the 80s” (QRO video). And be sure to check out the cheeky Scots’ very dirty humor live (QRO live review), whether you’rs a “Teenage Superstar” (QRO video) or “You Think You’re a Man” (QRO video).

A.A. Bondy, 3:45 PM – 4:30 PM A.A. Bondy (QRO photos) has been building steady with his own folk rock (QRO photos at a festival), first in collaboration with The Felice Brothers (QRO photos with The Felice Brothers), and now on his own (QRO photos opening for The Felice Brothers) with When the Devil’s Loose (QRO review) and last year’s Believers (QRO review).

The Men, 2:45 PM – 3:25 PM Harder-hitting pop-rock outfit The Men (QRO photos at a festival) cross boundaries from pop to metal to experimental (QRO photos at a festival).

Sandro Perri, 1:45 PM – 2:25 PM Hosting an amalgam of genres ranging from electronic, experimental, and even folk, Sandro Perri is notably one of Canada’s most talented producers. He has yet to release any new music since his 2011 album, Impossible Spaces, which ranked 38 on Pitchfork’s list of ‘Top 50 Albums of 2011’. Also: Devin, 12:50 PM – 1:20 PM – QRO photos at a festival


Broadway Street Tent DâM-Funk, 11:00 PM – 11:50 PM Pasadena funk singer/DJ DâM-Funk (QRO photos outdoors) threw down five full-lengths worth of new material in 2010, edited and compiled into double-disc Toeachizown, and comes to headline the Broadway Street Tent (QRO photos at a festival) behind word of a new record.

Suicide of Western Culture, 10:00 PM – 10:35 PM Awarded ‘Best Spanish Electronic Act’ in 2010, Suicide of Western Culture comes to Los Angeles.

Tycho, 8:45 PM – 9:35 PM Ambient electronics come to FYF Fest in the form of Scott Hansen (QRO photos at a festival), a.k.a. Tycho (QRO photos).

Tanlines, 7:35 PM – 8:20 PM Percussionist Jesse Cohen & singer/guitarist Eric Emm form Brooklyn electronic duo Tanlines (QRO live review), who traffic in a mix of atmospherics and world (QRO photos at a festival).

DJ Harvey, 6:15 PM – 7:10 PM Cambridge, England’s DJ Harvey has brought America’s disco/garage/house sound to the U.K. and beyond.

Nite Jewel, 5:15 PM – 5:55 PM Los Angeles’ own Ramona Gonzalez, a.k.a. Nite Jewel (QRO photos at a festival), mixes lo-fi with alt-dance & electronica.

Comedy, 3:35 PM – 4:50 PM In addition to the Eric Andre Show & Leo Allen, the Comedy Tent has ‘the world’s ‘worst’ stand-up comedian’, Neil Hamburger, plus Jim Hamilton & Greg Barris.

John Maus, 2:40 PM – 3:15 PM While also a keyboard player for Panda Bear (QRO album review) and Ariel Pink (QRO live review), John Maus is becoming best known for his uninhibited solo shows (QRO photos outdoors).

Comedy, 1:15 PM – 2:15 PM Go to the Comedy Tent for Cheap Seats‘ Sklar Brothers, plus Pete Holmes, Matt Braunger, Jonah Ray, Baron Vaughn, and a special guest to be announced the day of. Also: Doldrums, 12:30 PM – 1:00 PM

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 2ND

Main Street Stage Beirut, 10:30 PM – 11:55 PM While Zach Condon began his instrumental outfit Beirut (QRO photos at a festival) as a solo project (QRO photos at a festival), he’s since developed it into a full band (QRO photos at a festival), featuring just about every instrument you’ve ever heard of (QRO photos at a festival), most recently on last year’s The Rip Tide (QRO review).

Yeasayer, 9:10 PM – 10:00 PM The experimental Yeasayer (QRO live review outdoors) combine electronica, rock, and even tribal sounds, making them sound like the music of the cyberpunk future, multi-cultural in ways you’d never foresee (QRO live review). They’ve been steadily building since 2007’s All Our Cymbals (QRO review) and the futuristic “2080” (QRO video) & “Wait For the Summer” (QRO video), and managed to beat the sophomore curse with 2010’s impressive Odd Blood (QRO review) and songs “Ambling Alp” (QRO video) & “O.N.E.” (QRO video). They’ve also got a fascinating stage presence (QRO photos outdoors), especially at festivals (QRO photos at a festival) – even overseas (QRO live review in the U.K.) & in foreign-speaking lands (QRO photos at a German festival). The group (QRO photos) comes to FYF Fest behind the new Fragrant World (QRO review) – though guitarist Anand Wilder (QRO interview) has stopped wearing his camo jumpsuits…

Desaparecidos, 7:55 PM – 8:40 PM Before he was Bright Eyes (QRO live review), Conor Oberst was the frontman for Desaparecidos (‘disappeared ones’ – the term for leftists made to disappear under South American military governments during the Cold War), an agit-emo-punk outfit whose popularity was cut short when Oberst had to focus on his solo work. But 2012 has seen their reappearance – and hell, has to be better than Oberst’s country side (QRO live review)…

Dinosaur Jr., 6:40 PM – 7:30 PM Back & better than ever! In the late eighties and early nineties, one of the biggest & best bands in the punk-grunge revolution was Dinosaur Jr. (QRO live review), combining a hippie-punk ethos (and artwork) with feedback-driven guitar from the legendary J Mascis (QRO solo album review). The trio (QRO live review) was also characterized by Mascis’ controlling tendencies, leading to the departure first of bassist Lou Barlow (QRO solo album review) for his Sebadoh (QRO live review) and eventually even beloved drummer Murph, with Mascis retiring the ‘Dinosaur Jr.’ moniker in 1997. But then the band reunited (QRO live review outdoors) – with original line-up! – to tour their re-release of old, Barlow-era records (QRO photos at a festival in St. LOUis). And they kept going (QRO photos at a festival), putting out two new records that are some of their best yet, Beyond (QRO review) and Farm (QRO review), with I Bet On Sky coming out this fall. So revel in the glory (QRO photos at a festival) that is Dinosaur Jr. (QRO photos) – but bring your earplugs, because J’s ‘circle of amps’ is a force to be reckoned with (QRO photos at a festival)…

Against Me!, 5:25 PM – 6:40 PM Northern Florida’s given the world a lot of punk, some of it good, some of it not so much, but on the more positive side is Against Me! (QRO photos). Fronted by Tom Gabel (QRO interview), and including Tom Weinberg on drums (son of E Street Band/Conan O’Brien drummer Max), Against Me! (QRO photos) successfully made the jump to major label without losing their edge on 2010’s White Crosses (QRO review). They did make major news earlier this year when Gabel announced that he was transgender, and undergoing the process of transition to becoming a woman. Yet the group (QRO spotlight on – which also left the majors and are starting their own label for this year’s Transgender Dysphoria Blues) has continued to rock (QRO photos).

King Khan & The Shrines, 4:15 PM – 5:00 PM When old-timers complain that rock has lost the crazy performance antics of yore, tell them to check out King Khan & The Shrines (QRO photos). While the band’s sound borrows from fifties garage rock, this Montreal-meets-Berlin act has one of the wildest stage shows out there – especially outside (QRO live review outdoors). Led by King Khan himself (of duo King Khan & BBQ Show – QRO photos), wearing a Speedo & garbage bag poncho/cape, the group is known for its go-go dancer, battling on stage, diving into the crowd, leading fans in sing-along renditions of “I Wish I Was a Girl” and “Stone Soup” (QRO video), and starting a projectile war with the audience by hurling bananas at them…

Givers, 3:05 PM – 3:50 PM From down on the bayou in Lafayette, Louisiana, Givers (QRO photos) have turned their state’s native Cajun & zydeco music into sweet indie-pop.

Also: Nick Catchdubs, 2:00 PM – 2:40 PM Allah-Las, 1:00 PM – 1:35 PM


Spring Street Stage The Faint, 10:55 PM – 11:45 PM The last thing you’d expect out of Omaha, Nebraska, techno/dance act The Faint left long-time local label Saddlecreek for their own blank.wav to release 2008’s Fasciination (QRO review). Like other electronic acts playing at FYF Fest, The Faint does more than just DJ-ing with electronic beats, being inventive in their accessibility (QRO live review). But thankfully they play at night, where their light & smoke show can come out in full (QRO photos).

Twin Shadow, 9:35 PM – 10:25 PM With one of the best debut album of 2010, Forget, produced by Chris Taylor of Grizzly Bear (QRO live review), George Lewis Jr. (a.k.a. Twin Shadow – QRO photos) shot up on the hype meter. Turns out, the ‘80s new wave-influenced pop of the Dominican Republic born musician (QRO photos at a festival) actually lived up to its reputation. Sophisticated melodies and catchy hooks abound, the tracks of Forget easily transitioned from haunting poetics to infectious dance numbers (QRO photos at a festival), and he’s lived up to that level with this year’s follow-up, Confess, which he tours into FYF Fest (QRO live review).

HEALTH, 8:20 PM – 9:05 PM Los Angeles’ own HEALTH (QRO photos) not only bring the noise-rock to FYF Fest, but are also known for their mash-ups, most notably with electronic dance duo Crystal Castles (QRO live review), though outdoors (QRO photos outdoors), they’re more ‘noise’ than ‘rock’…

Paul Banks, 7:05 PM – 7:55 PM Paul Julian Banks is best known as the frontman for successful post-punk outfit Interpol (QRO live review), but in 2009, when Interpol was on hiatus, he went the solo side-project route as ‘Julian Plenti’ (QRO live review of first Julian Plenti show) with …Is Skyscraper (QRO review). Interpol reunited with Interpol (QRO review) last year, but now Banks is back on a solo jaunt – this time as just Paul Banks, with his Banks out next month.

Lightning Bolt, 5:50 PM – 6:35 PM Before there was the plethora of wild guitar-and-drums duos that there are today, there was Lightning Bolt (QRO photos) – a bass-and-drums duo known for guerilla-style shows who put out their fifth noise-rock LP, Earthly Delights, in 2009.

Cursive, 4:40 PM – 5:25 PM The expansive sound of Omaha’s Cursive (QRO live review) comes to FYF Fest (QRO photos at a festival) behind this year’s sub-par concept record I Am Gemini (QRO review). However their live show (QRO live review) features earlier material (QRO live review) like the strong prior Mama, I’m Swollen (QRO review), even at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).

Also: Ceremony, 3:35 PM – 4:05 PM Joyce Manor, 2:35 PM – 3:10 PM – QRO photos Papa, 1:40 PM – 2:40 PM Lovely Bad Things, 12:45 PM – 1:15 PM


Hill Street Stage Turbonegro, 10:50 PM – 11:35 PM While Sweden & Denmark engage in indie-pop & atmospherics, and Iceland spins off into strangeness & volcanoes, Norway is still the home of the harder fare in Scandinavia, seemingly running all the way from death metal to black metal. Turbonegro (QRO live review) do keep up the hard side, but also bring in punk and even glam (QRO photos at a festival).

American Nightmare, 9:40 PM – 10:25 PM Boston hardcore punks Give Up the Ghost, or American Nightmare (or just A.N.) broke up just as they were getting success, but did a pair of reunion shows in Boston & L.A., and now one – under their original name (screw that other band & their cease-and-desist letter!) at FYF Fest, so catch ‘em under whatever name while you can!

Converge, 8:30 PM – 9:15 PM Salem’s Converge have brought together punk & metal into the metalcore witch’s brew since the early nineties, finding themselves on major punk label Epitaph, and the new All We Love We Leave Behind out the month after they return to FYF Fest.

Liars, 7:20 PM – 8:05 PM Though 2001’s They Threw Us All In a Trench and Stuck a Monument On Top got Liars (QRO photos outdoors) labeled ‘dance-punk’, they’ve since shifted radically, losing old fans, but gaining new ones (QRO photos at a festival), especially with 2010’s Sisterworld (QRO review) & this year’s WIXIW (QRO review), and at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).

Atlas Sound, 6:10 PM – 6:55 PM Bradford Cox of Deerhunter (QRO live review) was one of the busiest people in indie-rock in 2008, putting out not only two Deerhunter records, Microcastle (QRO review) & Weird Era Cont. (QRO review), but also his first solo record as Atlas Sound (QRO live review), Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel (QRO review), with tracks like “River Card” (QRO video) & “Winter Vacation” (QRO video). While Deerhunter eased up a bit the following year, Atlas Sound kept going with Logos (QRO review) and last year with Parallax (QRO review), as well as touring (QRO photos from 2009), including festivals (QRO photos at a festival), where the expansive ambient rock of “Logos” (QRO video) can “take it to the fields” (QRO live review).

Aesop Rock, 5:00 PM – 5:45 PM Ian Matthias Bavitz, or Aesop Rock (QRO photos outdoors), has been at the forefront of the underground & alternative hip-hop scenes for years now (QRO photos).

Father John Misty, 3:50 PM – 4:35 PM While a member of overrated folk outfit Fleet Foxes (QRO album review), guitarist Joshua Tillman found time to do his own solo stuff (QRO album review), but this year he moved to solo full-time as Father John Misty (QRO photos) with Fear Fun.

Wild Nothing, 2:45 PM – 3:25 PM Sun-soaked, fuzzy, dream pop that should go well with a sun-soaked festival. Wild Nothing (QRO live review) is Jack Tatum’s wonderful solo project (QRO live review), and with Nocturne, the follow-up to his wonderful first album Gemini (QRO album review) just out, there’s sure to be plenty of new music afoot (QRO photos at a festival). Also: White Fence, 1:45 PM – 2:20 PM – QRO photos at a festival Kishi Bashi, 12:45 PM – 1:15 PM


Broadway Street Tent Gold Panda, 11:00 PM – 11:50 PM England’s Gold Panda (real name: Derwin Panda) (QRO live review) is one of the many DJ/producers (QRO album review) who also try out performing live, and while that lowers the bar severely, Gold Panda (QRO photos at a festival) is one of the best of that bunch.

Black Dice, 9:50 PM – 10:35 PM Brooklyn experimental electronic act Black Dice (QRO photos outdoors) have surprisingly been around for over a decade.

Nicolas Jaar (live), 8:15 PM – 9:25 PM American-Chilean Nicolas Jaar brings his ruminative & emotional “blue wave” to FYF Fest.

Glass Candy, 7:00 PM – 7:50 PM Now coming up on fifteen years together, the Portland, Oregon electronica duo of singer Ida No & instrumentalist/producer Johnny Jewel have moved from their noise rock-meets-electropop origins to incorporating such diverse sounds as Italian disco & Marilyn Monroe as Glass Candy, and are playing FYF Fest for the third time in four years.

The Field, 5:40 PM – 6:35 PM Sweden’s Axel Wilner expands electronica to the Arctic Circle as The Field.

Tiger & Woods, 4:20 PM – 5:15 PM Secretive dance duo Tiger & Woods state, “We love loops.”

Comedy, 2:45 PM – 4:00 PM Expect the Comedy Tent to be packed for headliner David Cross of Arrested Development, Mr. Show with Bob & David, and much more, but there’s also Brent Weinbach, Brendan Walsh (not the character from Beverly Hills, 90210), Matt Dwyer, and Sean O’Connor.

Daughn Gibson, 2:00 PM – 2:30 PM Former Pearls and Bass drummer Daughn Gibson recently broke out on his own with this year’s All Hell.

Comedy, 12:45 PM – 1:45 PM Check out The Comedians of Comedy‘s great Maria Bamford at the Comedy Tent, along with Rory Scovel, Garfunkel & Oates, DJ Dougound, Joe Sib, and Jerrod Carmichael.