This year marked the inaugural year of Sound on Sound Fest (SOS), formerly Fun Fun Fun Fest, and proved that it has what it takes to place within the Austin festival circuit. Though it still had some hiccups throughout the weekend, many times they led to memorable experiences and fun. Sound issues led to impromptu sing-a-longs and musicians telling stories, the choice of using the Renaissance Fair grounds out of town as a venue led to better festival experience for festival goers, and even the rain-generated evacuation led to campers and attendees meeting new people. Though the grounds were about a forty-five minute drive from Austin, the remote area meant that there was no strict sound curfew and bands played until one in the morning.
The fairgrounds themselves are nestled in a forest with permanent building installations like old style houses and a large castle which gave even more character to the festival. Those festival goers that opted to camp were treated to a campground surrounded by trees and also given the opportunity to attend extra “late knight” music and comedy shows within the campground. The location being a bit of a drive out of town also contributed to a small crowd of people in attendance, which was probably a disappointment to the promoters, but was a great boon for ticket buyers as it meant less crowded stages, and the people that were there came for the music as opposed to the casual concert goer that only goes to shows and festivals because everyone else is and want a band to be playing in the background of their conversations with their friends. Though the lineup was stacked, there were a handful that stood out over the others for various reasons. Here’s a list of the ten best experiences over the weekend…
This is Spinal Tap performed by The Midgetmen
This set started off the entire festival at The Keep Stage, which would host most of the hardcore and metal bands throughout the weekend. The Midgetmen took the stage dressed appropriately in 80s hairband attire and proceeded to play all of the Spinal Tap songs from the beloved mockumentary, many times imitating some of the moves from the film. They even lowered down a miniature replica of Stonehenge while one of their pals danced around it in leprechaun garb.
Empress Of
The solo project of singer-songwriter Lorely Rodriguez was probably the most impressive performance of the entire weekend. Alone on stage with nothing but a sample board, a few drums and cymbals, and a microphone, Rodriguez wowed audiences with her stage presence and excellent songs. Her performance was reminiscent of Björk if she performed as a solo artist. Performing songs from her debut album Me, Empress Of was definitely the talk of the festival for those who caught her set.
Bob Mould
The former frontman of 80s punk/alternative rock band Hüsker Dü has been largely a solo artist for the past couple of decades. However, his live shows include a nice mix of songs by Hüsker Dü, the short-lived 90s alt-rock band Sugar, and his solo work. The trio did not disappoint and the energy on stage was palpable as they continued to play one rocking song after another. Predictably, the Hüsker Dü songs like “Flip Your Wig” and “Makes No Sense At All” got the best response from the crowd, but there was no lack of love for his solo work, which could sometime be indiscernible from his past projects.
Diarrhea Planet
Anyone who has taken the time to go check out the band crazy enough to call themselves Diarrhea Planet knows that these guys know how to rock. The garage rockers from Nashville treated the crowd to mix of songs spanning their past three albums, leaning a bit heavier on songs from their latest release Turn to Gold. After announcing that they only had one more song left, the band launched into an excellent cover of Rage Against The Machine’s “Bulls On Parade”, which became a scream along with the crowd and had people running over to the stage to watch.
Courtney Barnett
As the festival grounds were evacuated early in the afternoon on Sunday due to torrential downpours, there were many that thought that it was going to be a another festival cancelled due to weather and that their plans to see the Australian songwriter would be foiled for the second time that year. Luckily, after a two hour delay, the festival opened the gates again and the festival started again like the delay never happened. Though the crowd was a bit sparser due to people leaving or not coming at all, those that stayed were treated to a great set from Courtney Barnett and her band. Performing songs from her debut album and past EPs, the garage grunge rock songs had everyone in attendance enraptured and surely new fans were made that night.
Descendents
The punks from the 80s generated tons of excitement before the festival and were a deciding factor for many on the fence about attending. Milo and company did not disappoint. Playing a set that included songs from their four decade career, the crowd sang along to every song and a nice sized mosh pit accompanied almost every song. Halfway through their set, the bands in-ear monitor went out and instead of delaying the show, Milo announced that they would just go “old school.” Without even being able to properly hear each other the band seamlessly played through a few songs before the issue was corrected.
American Sharks
The Austin metal trio played probably the most “punk rock” set of the weekend. Looking visibly both drunk and hungover even though it was still the afternoon, the band launched into a set of songs from their eponymous debut album and their forthcoming LP. A few songs in, the band stopped mid-song and just started playing a new song. After bassist/vocalist Mike Hardin dropped his bass he announced that they would play two more songs. They played only one more and then left the stage with no explanation. It doesn’t get more punk than that.
Run the Jewels
Fans of the hip-hop supergroup already know that a Jewels show is going to be a memorable experience. Killer Mike and El-P spat rhymes back and forth and told jokes between songs. After starting the songs “All Due Respect” from their sophomore release, their DJ’s table collapsed, and while they got set back up El-P joked with crowd that he would use the opportunity to jumpstart his spoken word poetry career. The duo brought out guest Gangsta Boo for the track “Love Again (Akinyele Back)” and did an “encore” of their latest song “Talk To Me” from the forthcoming RTJ3 album.
Dillinger Escape Plan
After announcing that the band would be breaking up next year fans of the band are taking every opportunity to see the band while they still can. Backstage at the festival, lead vocalist Greg Puciato admitted that they would be trying to hit all the cities that they can but wouldn’t be back to Texas. Playing an almost “greatest hits” style of set list, fans got to mosh and scream along to all their favorite songs while Puciato screamed his heart out.
Beach House
While Beach House is definitely not a super exciting band to watch, their brand of ambient music provides a much different experience at a festival inundated with hard music and hip-hop. While their set was very well attended, most in the crowd could be seen lying back and looking at the stars while letting the atmospheric melodies wash over them. It was a kind of musical oasis as fans laid there listening to Victoria Legrand’s vocals on songs like “Myth” and “Sparks” sooth them.
Photos by Maggie Boyd and Arthur VanRooy.
