Aug 27, 2013 FYF Fest 10 Recap
A lot has changed since I last attended FYF Fest two years ago. Back then the Los Angeles music festival was already far removed from its DIY roots, taking on a family-friendly acronym and being transplanted from the clubs and alleys of Echo Park to a national park in Chinatown, but it has exploded into a two-day extravaganza. The headliners are bigger and the crowds are even huger. But you know what? The lines have shrunk (just moments to enter, minutes to take a whiz), the food has improved (trucks I’ve actually heard of, i.e. Kogi, and many meatless options), and the vibe is still kick back (I didn’t see one O.D. or altercation). Ninety-nine bucks for two days ain’t bad, either.
Yet none of that would matter if the music was lame, right? The taste still leans indie but the variety is mind boggling. Clockwise from top right are photos I shot of college rock royalty The Breeders, garage rock king Ty Segall, and underground soul hero Charles Bradley. There were also mutations of soul (Solange), hip hop (Death Grips), metal (Baroness), folk (Kurt Vile), and even Arabic music (Omar Souleyman). Truly, FYF offers something for almost everyone who has an ear to the ground.
And while the fest is aware enough to please young fans of electronic and dance music (top right), it is also attractive to old guys like me who like loud guitars. Clockwise from bottom right, there were reunited ex-members of Black Flag representing L.A. hardcore, the freakish showmanship and musicianship of post punkers Les Savy Fav, and the crossed-over art rockers Yeah Yeah Yeahs. Sunday night’s closer was the shoe gaze pioneering My Bloody Valentine, whose gorgeous and noisy aesthetic overloaded the PA and sent everyone home similarly broken, exhausted, and thrilled.
My ears are slightly ringing and I’m still coughing up phlegm from two days of breathing secondhand smoke and dust, but that’s a price I’m willing to pay for two afternoons and evenings jam-packed with cool music just 15 minutes from home. I read that the park won’t be available next year due to renovations (the spot has turned out to become popular for music festivals so perhaps its days as a dust bowl are nearing an end) but if this year is any indication the challenge will be met handily. Seeya wherever FYF happens next year.