Float Fest 2016 Preview

Cool River Ranch welcomes fans to take a tube at Float Fest this weekend, July 16th & 17th, in San Marcos, Texas....
Float

Float Fest 2016 Preview

Cool River Ranch welcomes fans to take a tube at Float Fest this weekend, July 16th & 17th, in San Marcos, Texas:

 

SATURDAY, JULY 16th

Rick Ross, Water Stage, 11:00 PM – 12:00 AM

To headline Saturday, Float Fest has recruited one of the hottest MCs in the game, Rick Ross (QRO photos). The first artist signed to Diddy’s management company Ciroc Entertainment, Ross comes to Texas behind last year’s Black Market.
Rick Ross
Santigold, Do512 Stage, 10:00 PM – 11:00 PM

Formerly known as Santogold (changed due to threat of lawsuit from an infomercial jeweler Santo Gold – QRO live review), Philadelphia’s Santi White (QRO photos) toured with everyone from Coldplay to Kanye West – but coming to Float (QRO photos at a festival) a star in her own right (QRO photos at a festival), behind this year’s 99¢ and stellar live show (QRO photos at a festival), even at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).
Santigold
Future Islands, Water Stage, 9:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Baltimore’s Future Islands (QRO photos) play a highly acclaimed, darker form of synth-pop (QRO photos at a festival) as they come to Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival).
Future Islands
Kongos, Do512 Stage, 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Greek-by-way-of-South Africa-by-way-of-Phoenix, Kongos (QRO interview) come to the Texas melting pot for Float Fest.
Kongos
Yeasayer, Water Stage, 7:00 PM – 8:00 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 spotlight on) brought Fragrant World (QRO review) and songs like “Reagan’s Skeleton” (QRO video) in 2012 – though guitarist Anand Wilder (QRO interview) stopped wearing his camo jumpsuits. They come to Float Fest behind this year’s Amen & Goodbye (QRO review).
Yeasayer
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony, Do512 Stage, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM

When East Coast and West Coast rappers were throwing beefs in the nineties, Cleveland’s Bone Thug-n-Harmony put melody into their hip-hop (and is the only group that has worked with deceased artists 2Pac, The Notorious B.I.G., Eazy-E & Big Pun while they were still alive – no holograms…). This century/millennium has seen hiatuses, returns, members departing, members returning, but it’s still Bone Thugs-n-Harmony (QRO photos at a festival).
Bone Thugs-N-Harmony
Also:

Slim Thug, Water Stage, 5:15 PM – 6:00 PM

Fat Tony, Do512 Stage, 4:45 PM – 5:15 PMQRO photos at a festival

Riders Against the Storm, Water Stage, 4:15 PM – 4:45 PM

Holiday Mountain, Do512 Stage, 3:45 PM – 4:15 PM

Blue, the Misfit, Water Stage, 3:15 PM – 3:45 PM

Blue Healer, Do512 Stage, 2:45 PM – 3:15 PM

Löwin, Water Stage, 2:15 PM – 2:45 PM
Slim Thug


Fat Tony

 

SUNDAY, JULY 17th

Chromeo, Water Stage, 10:00 PM – 11:00 PM

There are combos and then there are combos: Montreal’s Chromeo (QRO live review) are the electro-funk duo of Dave 1 (David Macklovitch) and P-Thugg (Patrick Gemayel) has been best friends since childhood (QRO live review), billing themselves as, “The only successful Arab/Jewish collaboration since the beginning of time” (but what is their stance on Québécois independence?…). And their electronica works outdoors (QRO photos outdoors), day or night (QRO live review), even at a festival (QRO photos at a festival). They come Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival) with their great show (QRO live review), off of the release of 2014’s White Women (QRO review).
Chromeo
Big Gigantic, Do512 Stage, 9:00 PM – 10:00 PM

Boulder’s Big Gigantic (QRO photos at a festival) mix (big) electronic beats with live drums and even live saxo-mo-phone. Known to set crowds in a writhing heap of body parts (QRO photos at a festival), Big Gigantic (QRO photos at a festival) has been showcasing their electronic fervor all across the globe (QRO photos at a festival), and the last ever New Year’s Eve at New York City’s closed landmark venue Roseland Ballroom (QRO live review).
Big Gigantic
Metric, Water Stage, 8:00 PM – 9:00 PM

Is it wrong to resent a band for finally getting breakthrough success? That question is always at the heart of any discussion regarding Toronto based band Metric (QRO live review) – love them or hate them (QRO photos at a festival), the quartet (QRO live review) has done pretty well for themselves (QRO live review). 2009’s Fantasies (QRO review) earned them a couple of Juno awards, as well as shot listing for the prestigious Polaris Prize, two Canadian awards the band certainly no stranger to (QRO photos at a Canadian festival), and 2012’s Synthetica (QRO review) took them even higher, racking up Junos. While they may be one of the more mainstream acts in indie today (QRO live review), they are undeniably a charismatic take on the pop/punk genre (QRO photos at a festival), and their growing fan base (QRO live review) reflects this over and over again (QRO photos) – including playing Radio City Music Hall (QRO live review at Radio City).

Always a safe bet to tear up any stage (QRO live review), Metric (QRO photos) comes to Float Fest (QRO photos at a festival) behind last year’s Pagans In Vegas (QRO review). The band (QRO live review outdoors), fronted by singer/songstress extraordinaire – and your indie-rock crush – Emily Haines (QRO solo album review) is entirely capable of winning over the indie purist in all of us (QRO photos outdoors at a festival) with songs from Pagans singles “The Shade” & “The Governess” to Synthetica’s own “Youth Without Youth” (QRO review) & team-up with Lou Reed “The Wanderlust” (QRO video with Reed), to Fantasies” “Sick Muse” (QRO video) & “Stadium Love” (QRO video), to older numbers like “Dead Disco” (QRO video), “Handshakes” (QRO video), “Help I’m Alive” (QRO video) & “Monster Hospital” (QRO video).
Metric
Bleachers, Do512 Stage, 7:00 PM – 8:00 PM

Jack Antonoff of fun. (QRO live review) launched his own indie-pop side-project, Bleachers (QRO photos at a festival) only a few years ago, but it has quickly become as well known as his ‘main’ gig.
Bleachers
Also:

Rooney, Water Stage, 6:00 PM – 7:00 PM

Nina Diaz, Do512 Stage, 5:15 PM – 6:00 PM

Auto Body, Water Stage, 4:30 PM – 5:15 PM

Night Drive, Do512 Stage, 4:00 PM – 4:30 PM

Wild Moccasins, Water Stage, 3:30 PM – 4:00 PMQRO spotlight on

Emily Bell & The Talkbacks, Do512 Stage, 3:00 PM – 3:30 PM

Pop Pistol, Water Stage, 2:30 PM – 3:00 PM

Buhu, Do512 Stage, 2:00 PM – 2:30 PM
Rooney


Wild Moccasins

 

 

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

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