Psych Fest 3 Preview
This weekend, the 3rd installment of Austin Psych Fest takes place @ Mowhawk, happening April 23rd, 24th and 25th. Three days of music and art in an environment encouraging and embracing the idea of artistic expression.
While the success of Psych Fest has been a bit of a slow grow, the founder’s, consisting of members of Austin’s own Black Angels, continue on with the festival seemingly satisfied with the spirit of what they have created, and not focused entirely on financial success. While psychedelic rock may bear the weight of it’s history, rife with the imagery of tie-dye wearing hippies expanding their minds chemically, Austin Psych Fest has done a great job merging the forefathers of the genre with some of the modern purveyors that straddle the fringe. An accomplishment that hasn’t quite been fully recognized, but should see more appreciation with this upcoming installment of the event. Booking Warpaint, The Raveonettes, The Duchess and The Duke, Silver Apples, and even Austin’s own Yellow Fever are prime examples of expanding the festival to reach out to more music fans.
Three days, two stages, a crawfish boil on Sunday @ 3:33, and all for $40. In this economy, it’s a pretty good deal. You can buy single day passes as well for $15 advance or $18 at the door.
Lineup and some picks after the jump
FRIDAY APRIL 23
Outside Stage
8:00 – Ringo DeathStarr
9:00 – Warpaint
The female outfit from Los Angeles grabbed my attention early this year with the late 2009 EP release Exquisite Corpse, which fostered attention from Beggars Banquet who signed the band soon after their CMJ performance. Their live appearance at The Parish a few months back solidified the belief that the band has a solid future ahead. Sexy, beat driven psych tinged rock that never seems to repeat itself.
10:30 – The Raveonettes
Embracing the sounds of pop music from the 50′s and 60′s rooted in psychedelic rock, this Danish duo will be of interest for many a music fan who may normally shy from Psych Fest. Definitely one of the biggest draws of the weekend, and they kick it off on the first night.
Inside Stage
8:30 – Christian Bland & The Revelators
9:30 – Von Haze
11:50 – Indian Jewelry
1:00 – Daughters of the Sun
SATURDAY APRIL 24
Outside Stage
2:00 – Shapes Have Fangs
3:00 – Sisters of Your Sunshine Vapor
4:00 – The Tunnels
5:00 – Smoke & Feathers
6:00 – Headdress
7:00 – The Night Beats
8:00 – Golden Animals
9:00 – Pink Mountaintops
Big fuzzy guitar rock with female vocals thrown into the mix from British Columbia. What else needs to be said?
10:00 – Spindrift
So good during Austin Psych Fest 1, they’ve been invited back. Just listen to “The Legends Of God’s Gun” on their myspace and you’ll be intrigued.
11:00 – The Black Angels
They’re hosting the party for crying out loud. And if you call yourself a music fan, live in Austin and haven’t seen The Black Angels, it’s time to check your cred.
Inside Stage
2:30 – Ancient River
3:30 – Tia Carrera
4:30 – Telepathik Friend
5:30 – Cry Blood Apache
6:30 – Screen Vinyl Image
7:30 – City Center
8:30 – The Frequency
9:30 – Greg Ashley
10:30 – (intermission)
11:50 – The Vandelles
Hailing from Brooklyn, The Vandelles seem to share the same blood as fellow Brooklyn noise rockers A Place to Bury Strangers while channeling Duane Eddy’s soul.
1:00 – The Meek
SUNDAY APRIL 25
Outside Stage
5:00 – Mondo Drag
6:00 – Sky Parade
7:00 – The Dutchess & the Duke
8:00 – The Black Angels
9:00 – The Warlocks
“Time isn’t constant or concrete. It’s made of color and shade. Time flows, blurs and fades away in dim morning light. Time melts. And The Warlocks are the ecstatic, hazy, foreboding, holy tick tock of time that isn’t anything at all.”
I got that from their myspace page. It was too good not to use.
10:00 – Silver Apples
Don’t really know much about this band, but they are going to bring a new element to the festival with their electro psych rock. Expand is right.
11:00 – Gaslamp Killer
Inside Stage
5:30 – All in the Golden Afternoon
6:30 – Strangers Family Band
7:30 – Rayon Beach
8:30 – Ghost Songs
9:30 – Pure Ecstasy
10:30 – Yellow Fever
11:50 – Voices Voices
1:00 – PJ & the Bear
