photos by Tyler Nutter

"Cro-Mags (jam)" were great, and a huge hit, at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin on Sunday, November 9th. They played to a massive, enthusiastic crowd. Who knew there were so many hardcore fans, in Texas, and in Texas and willing to to go see bands at an outdoor festival? I'm sure it helped that the bill also included Bad Brains, not to mention Bouncing Souls, Integrity, and DOA.

As previously posted, the difference between Cro-Mags and Cro-Mags (jam) is that the "jam" version is John Joseph with a mostly new Cro-Mags band that doesn't include Harley Flanagan or Parris Mayhew. And, as previously mentioned, the "jam" band at Fun Fun Fun Fest consisted of an impressive lineup of hardcore alumni. They were John Joseph, AJ from Leeway on guitar, Craig Setari of Sick of it All on bass, and Mackie Jayson (one of Cro-Mags' past drummers and a former member of a million other bands, and currently in Madball) on drums. Collectively they ripped through at least 14 songs that mostly came from the Cro-Mags' 1986 debut album The Age of Quarrel and also included a cover of Wire's "12xU". Lots of people were going nuts. Lots of people knew all the words. Lots of people were slam-dancing, and I think there were more (and more experienced) stage-divers than during any other band's set at the fest.

John Joseph was on a roll with his between-song banter as well. He gave shout-outs to lots of other bands on the bill including Walter and Sammie of Rival Schools, and, of course, Bad Brains who John was also later seen watching from the stage. John also spoke about the government, about living with Ian Mackaye and Henry Rollins after he went AWOL from the military, asked what happened to punk and hardcore meaning something, said 9/11 was an inside job, and found it symbolic that the stage was clearly facing the lit-up Texas State Capitol building that happens to be located in Austin.

More pictures, the setlist, and some videos below...

Continue reading "Cro-Mags (Jam) @ Fun Fun Fun Fest, Austin - pics & setlist"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Every other band at Fun Fun Fun Fest over the weekend made it a point to give the fest's co-headliner Bad Brains a shout-out - a respect kind of thing. It makes sense. That's kind of what you do when you're sharing a bill with a band that helped paved the way for your own sound. That said, it was also really refreshing to hear one band take a slightly different approach. Leftover Crack's Stza also gave Bad Brains, or more specifically HR, lots of shout-outs. They were even positive shout-outs, but they were to call out HR's questionable politics/alleged-still homophobia. They were positive because they started with a speech about equality for all people, and were said in a way as to educate HR (if he was listening), AND Stza even announced his cell phone number in case HR wanted to give him a call. You can hear that last part in the first video below.

So, as pointed out, NYC's anarchist ska punk band Leftover Crack (who I had no idea were so popular because I honestly don't follow punk music that much) love everyone, EXCEPT, notoriously,...

...Oddly, the visit from detectives came just after cops arrested Leftover Crack lead singer Scott Sturgeon [also known as Stza Crack] on Friday for--no kidding--throwing donuts at the police during a demonstration outside the 9th Precinct in the East Village. Sturgeon says he was pissed off that the cops wouldn't let the band play their music at a reasonable volume.

In the complaint, Officer Richard Labore wrote that Sturgeon's antic "caused people to express alarm." Labore also wrote that Sturgeon was chanting "kill the police, kill the police."... [Village Voice, September 2008]

Continue reading "Leftover Crack calls out HR, police @ FFF Fest - pics & video "

Photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

If not obvious by the 2008 Fun Fun Fun Fest coverage so far, I was having the most fun (fun fun) over the weekend with all the punk, metal and hardcore on stages 3a and 3b (two connected stages to avoid long times between sets). Highlights and pictures from day one are HERE. Highlights of day two (9/9) were DOA, Frightened Rabbit, the ska punk, politics and crowd of Leftover Crack, Cro-Mags (jam) (John Joseph w/ one of Cro-Mags' past drummers, AJ from Leeway on guitar and Craig Setari of Sick of it All on bass), what I saw of St. Vincent and Black Angels, the vegan sausage pizza, and Bad Brains. I managed to catch a few songs of Islands who sounded great, but totally missed Spinto Band and Annuals. Also saw pieces of Kevin Seconds, Chuck Ragan, and Ben Nichols's solo-frontmen sets. Saw Black Joe Lewis and most of Trash Talk, but neither lived up to my expectations in the daytime festival setting. I went back and forth between the pre-headliner sets of Minus the Bear and Bouncing Souls, and ran over to watch one song of Clap Your Hands Say Yeah during a Bad Brains reggae segment. Despite the competition, CYHSY still pulled in a respectable sized crowd. The stages were far enough away in general, but I could also still hear Alec Ounsworth's unmistakable voice at times between Bad Brains songs depending on where I was standing (I watched Bad Brains from various areas throughout their set). Clipse were headlining on the stage farthest away from Bad Brains so I totally missed them, and Kool Keith, who played that same stage earlier. Bad Brains ended earlier than curfew which meant I got to run over and catch about 20 minutes of Tim and Eric which was a great way (laughing) to end the hectic two day fest.

One unfortunate aspect of the weekend was the dust. It was a problem at ACL this year too. Dry dirt and wind meant you were constantly breathing it in. A signifigant portion of the crowd was wearing bandanas or other gas mask-like things on their faces. I didn't, but I should have because I think it made me a little sick. More pictures from day two below...

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2008 - (some of) day two in photos "

This past Fun Fun Fun Fest weekend was filled with artists you might categorize as living hardcore and punk legends. There was the Dead Milkmen, Killdozer, Rival Schools (members), Bad Brains, Kevin (7) Seconds, All, and Cro-Mags, and there was D.O.A....

They are often referred to as the "founders" of hardcore punk, along with Black Flag, Bad Brains, and Minor Threat. Their second album Hardcore '81 was thought by many to have been the first actual reference to the second wave of the American punk sound hardcore. Singer/guitarist Joey "Shithead" Keithley is the only founding member to have stayed in the band throughout its entire history, however original bassist Randy Rampage has rejoined DOA after a long absence and is in the current lineup. [Wikipedia]

Continue reading "D.O.A. @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2008 - pics, setlist & video "

Bad Brains FFF Fest, Waterloo Park, Austin, TX, Nov 9, 2008 - setlist

I'm not sure how much the Bad Brains stuck to the setlist because I'm stupid like that, but HR, dressed in a blue robe-like outfit, did keep pulling a copy out of his pocket to see what was coming up next throughout their headlining Fun Fun Fun Fest set on Sunday night. They definitely closed the pre-encore set with "Pay To Cum" (or "Pay to Come" as they spelled it on the set list) though. After that HR grabbed his bags (literally) and left the stage as the crowd yelled for one more. You can see all of that happen in the video below...

Continue reading "Bad Brains - Fun Fun Fun Fest setlist & 'Pay to Cum' video "

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Fun Fun Fun Fest (a music festival this weekend in Austin) successfully mixes punk, indie, singer-songwriter, hardcore, dance, hip-hop, metal, comedy, new and old. For instance, after blowing my mind to the thrash metal stylings of Municipal Waste, I immediately ran over to catch the end of Bishop Allen's family friendly indie rock set. I like that. One of the bad things, like most festivals, is how much overlaps. On Saturday I had to completely give up seeing The National, Z-Trip, Neil Hamburger, Yacht, and Hawnay Troof. Tonight (Sunday, November 9th), I'll probably have to miss all of Clipse, Tim & Eric, and Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, in favor of seeing Bad Brains. I also have to decide between Bouncing Souls and Minus the Bear.

Highlights from day one (yesterday, Saturday) included Dead Milkmen, Municipal Waste (wall of death), Dead Milkmen, Walter Schreifel's solo set (Rival Schools was good too), Dead Milkmen, Killdozer (killed it), Dead Milkmen, Dan Deacon (camp counselor of the year), Dead Milkmen, and Krumbums (punk is not dead). What I caught of Octopus Project, Trail of Dead and Deerhoof was also great. If I say anymore, I'll be late for Black Joe Lewis and the Honeybears and/or Kevin Seconds. For now, here are some more pictures from day one...

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2008 - (some of) day one in photos "

Dead Milkmen @ Fun Fun Fun Fest, Austin, TX - Nov 8, 2008

After Schulthise's death, the surviving Dead Milkmen took the stage once again for two consecutive nights in November 2004 at the Trocadero Theatre in Philadelphia. Proceeds were donated to a variety of mental health organizations and to a Serbian monastery that Schulthise supported. Dan Stevens, bass player of Genaro's band the Low Budgets, performed on bass.

In 2008, the band announced its plans to play the Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin, TX, their first performance since the Schulthise memorial show, with Stevens again on bass. When asked if they were planning a corresponding tour, the band said they were not planning to do so. However, the band played two unannounced concerts in Philadelphia in October, 2008, billed under their pseudonym Les Enfants Du Prague. Both shows, including one at the small bar Johnny Brenda's and another at the all-ages venue the First Unitarian Church, sold out despite their lacking proper billing. [Wikipedia]

Continue reading "Dead Milkmen - Obama's Bitchin' Camaro (FFF Fest video) "

During their performance at Fun Fun Fun Fest in Austin on Saturday (11/8), Tony Foresta announced that lame bands like Atreyu and Yelloward were doing the wall of death at their shows and therefore this would be Municipal Waste's last. The crowd was essentially challenged to make it extra special, and this is how it came out...

Continue reading "Municipal Waste's final wall of death @ FFF Fest (video)"

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2008 - final lineup and schedule"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Fat Possum Records is excited to announce that the Heartless Bastards are set to release their third record on January 20, 2009. The record is called The Mountain and was produced by Mike McCarthy (Spoon, Trail of Dead, Patty Griffin). The Mountain delivers the swamped-up rock howl that fans have come to love from the critically acclaimed Heartless Bastards, but it also weaves in an adventurous sonic evolution, expanding their three-piece rock palate by adding pedal steel, mandolin, banjo and strings, all in support of Erika Wennerstrom's transcendent voice that Rolling Stone once described as "channeling all the swagger and spit of a young Robert Plant."

Continue reading "Heartless Bastards - 2008 Tour Dates, 2009 album, ACL pics "

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

M. Ward took the stage first to start off Conor Oberst's aftershow at La Zona Rosa around 10 p.m Sunday, without the high-powered band that accompanied him during his Friday set at the festival. Ward is just as good solo as he is with his band, however, as the big sound of his finger-picking style compensates for the lack of umph. He played a few repeats from his Friday set, including, "Sad, Sad Song" and "Chinese Translation," before bringing out Gillian Welch and David Rawlings, who appeared at the festival on Sunday. Rawlings and Ward traded licks and Welch sang backup on Ward's "Fuel For Fire," a mellow cover of "It Hurts Me Too" and Ward's "One Life Away" to finish the set.

Lewis came out second. Her performance on Friday in the WaMu tent was good, but inside La Zona Rosa the show was bigger and better. [Austin 360]

Continue reading "Conor Oberst & Jenny Lewis @ La Zona Rosa, Austin - pics"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

"At 37 years old, Badu is a sweet and unpredictable presence (and about five months pregnant). Her teased-out fro shook in the Austin breeze and the Dallas native made a point of her politics with a long, mid-set riff on occupation and the Zapatistas and the coming World War featuring the people against the system. If she's an analog girl in a digital world, she gets a flexible, bass-thumping groove from her big band, featuring dueling beat pads, live drums, flute and three tightly rehearsed back up singers/dancers. The sea of festival freaks never stopped bouncing." [RiverFront Times]

Continue reading "Erykah Badu @ ACL 2008, Austin, Texas - pics"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

The Mars Volta were one of Friday's headliners at the 2008 Austin City Limits festival. Omar also gave a video interview backstage where he mentioned a finished new album that they'll be mixing in NYC soon. Pictures and video below...

Continue reading "The Mars Volta @ ACL fest, Austin TX - pics, video interview"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

CSS

Gnarls Barkley

Gnarls Barkley and CSS shared a bill Friday night in Austin. The show at Stubb's was of many official Austin City Limits festival after-shows made up of artists who also were in Texas to play the festival proper. More pictures below...

Continue reading "Gnarls Barkley & CSS @ Stubb's, Austin, TX - pics, setlist"

photos by Kyle Dean Reinford

Last night, Thursday, September 25th, David Byrne kicked off the non-festival grounds portion of the 2008 Austin City Limits Music Festival with a performance at The Paramount. He played some Eno-produced Talking Heads crowd favorites as well as songs off his new Eno-produced album, "Everything That Happens Will Happen Today." We don't have the setlist, but you can get an idea of what he played by looking at the one from the first night of the tour.

It was a loaded performance with backup dancers whose choreography complemented Byrne's tunes perfectly. Byrne and co. will do it again Friday night, this time as one of the actual ACL festival headliners on a day (today) that will also see performances by Yeasayer, Vampire Weekend, Gogol Bordello, Jamie Lidell, Hot Chip, Jenny Lewis, N.E.R.D, The Swell Season, The Mars Volta and Manu Chao. You can view the entire ACL festival schedule HERE. More pictures of David Byrne below...

Continue reading "David Byrne @ the Paramount, Austin, TX (ACL) - pics"

AUSTIN, TX - Transmission Entertainment is proud to announce this year's Fun Fun Fun Festival line-up. In the tradition of years past, FFF08 once again teams punk rock legends with the hottest indie buzz bands, crowd-pleasing dance and hip-hop acts, and cutting-edge comedians. Fun Fun Fun Fest will be held November 8 and 9 at Waterloo Park in downtown Austin, TX. A two-day pass will be $59.99, available through FrontgateTickets.com. Children under 10 get in free and discounts will be made available to all students.

Continue reading "Fun Fun Fun Fest 2008 lineup - Nov 8-9 in Austin, Texas "