Following a last minute cancellation of the festival in 2016 due to weather, Levitation (formerly Austin Psych Fest) took a year off to consider the best way to carry on. This year Levitation returned to Austin in an entirely new format. Instead of setting up on a large expanse of land with the option to see bands across multiple stages, festival organizers divided bands into small groups of individually ticketed shows. Fans were forced to prioritize which acts they wanted to see the most. While almost all shows took place within walking distance of each other in the Red River music district of Austin, attending multiple shows was somewhat impractical and seeing everything you wanted to see was damn near impossible. However, Levitation did their best to book some artists on multiple days and times to accommodate the demand for acts like Ty Segall and Thee Oh Sees. Though the format was less than ideal, the shows themselves were far from disappointing.
Friday night saw many festival goers attending Stubb’s to see doom metal legends, Electric Wizard. However, those in the mood for some psychedelia found themselves at the sold out Desert Daze Caravan showcase. Seeing how Desert Daze is a sister festival to Levitation out in California, their lineup fit right in. After some last minute unexplained substitutions, the two stage venue played host to a wide variety of musical acts. Synth-based trio Dallas Acid started off the night with their cosmic soundscapes, giving festival-goers a nice mellow entrance to the show. The indoor stage found a large crowd for L.A. Witch, who played a great set filled with songs from last year’s self-titled debut album. The all-female trio managed to create a huge sound and undoubtedly gained quite a few new fans due to their great stage presence and the overall cohesion of the band. The majority in attendance came to see the “godfather” of the chillwave movement, Ariel Pink. Ariel Marcus Rosenberg entertained fans with his lo-fi aesthetics and played songs spanning his entire catalogue. Finishing off the night, Suuns played their brand of experimental electro-pop to a crowded room on the indoor stage. Known for their extremely loud live shows, Suuns pummeled the ears of the attendees with a set heavy on their new album, Felt.
Saturday proved the toughest set of shows to choose from, with artists like Oh Sees, Ministry, Slowdive, OM, and Dan Deacon all performing at separate shows. While most of the shows sold out, the biggest draw was the sold out concert at Stubb’s. Opening the show was the live debut of psych-rock collaborative group, MIEN. The band is comprised of The Black Angels’ Alex Maas, The Horrors’ Tom Furse, Elephant Stone’s Rishi Dhir and John-Mark Lapham of The Earlies’. They rocked through a set made up of material from their newly released self-titled debut, complete with sitar. Following this amazing display of heavy psych-rock was SURVIVE, an electronic four-piece from Austin that made big when a couple of their members scored the synth-horror soundtrack for the show Stranger Things. Besides having great visuals, the performance became monotonous after about twenty minutes. After SURVIVE’s hour long set, the crowd was becoming restless and loud. However, when shoegaze pioneers Slowdive took the stage, all attention was instantly directed back to the stage. After reuniting a few years back, the band recorded their first album in over twenty years and played pretty heavily on it during their set. Fan favorites like “When the Sun Hits” and “Souvlaki Space Station” also helped to round out a stellar show.
Sunday definitely had fewer conflicts for most festival goers and Stubb’s was again the place to be. Longtime favorites of Levitation (Psych Fest), The Brian Jonestown Massacre, played a career spanning set with a few new songs included. “Hold That Thought” and “Who Dreams of Cats?” were two songs that made their live debut. Both songs fit right in with fan favorites like, “Vad Hände Med Dem?” and “Anemone”. Of course, a BJM set wouldn’t be complete without frontman Anton Newcombe’s neurotic complaining, and he did not disappoint. Several times he delayed the show because he didn’t like the sound from his bandmates and even ranted about the Monsanto-Bayer merger. Levitation would not be complete without a performance from festival founders The Black Angels. The psych-rock quartet brought a massive setlist to complement their massive sound. Having already toured on their new album Death Songs last year, the band was free to play whatever they wanted. The set was interestingly heavy on songs from their debut album, Passover, as well tracks from their newest LP. Fan favorites like, “Black Grease” and “The Sniper at the Gates of Heaven” played well with newer hits like, “Half Believing” and “Currency.” It was an exhilarating way to end the weekend in the midst of the festival’s founders.
While it’s not certain if the format will stay the same or find a new direction next year, Levitation is not afraid to try new things in order to keep itself going. Though it was tough having to choose who to see each day, most fans agreed that it was just good to have the festival up and running again.
All photos by Maggie Boyd.
