Fun Fun Fun Fest (Friday)

It think it would be fair to say that I have been to a wide variety of music festivals. As a Chicago native, I've frequented Lollapalooza throughout the years, as well as Pitchfork Music Festival in Union Park. I've made the long journey down to Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival in Manchester, Tennessee. Yes, I've even wandered my way through electronic and rap oriented fests like Ultra Music Festival in Miami and North Coast Music Festival, also in Chicago. With that said, I have observed quite a few trends amongst these modern music festivals:

1. There are always the very drunk under aged kids who don't quite understand common decency and find it acceptable to be intoxicated beyond control at a show. 
2. There are the bigger-than-anything festival elites that seem to surf along the headliner spots from festival to festival all summer long.
3. There is the merch and below average food, all laughably overpriced.

The list goes on...

However, I attended Friday of Fun Fun Fun Fest 2013, and I can confidently say that this festival defied all these stereotypes. Located at Auditorium Shores in Austin, Texas, Fun Fun Fun Fest was one of the most progressive music festivals I have ever attended. The typical crazy, drug-riddled teens were replaced with very chill, behaved, and less scantily clad music fans. The line-up was very unique and versatile, featuring artists across genres from rap and electronic to indie and metal. The festival also had comedians, a small skate park, and even a food truck area (which had a pretty good line-up itself). Overall, I actually found myself enjoying being in the presence of others while watching some of my favorite artists.

Johnny Marr @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2013 (Friday)

Johnny Marr took the stage a bit after four o'clock on Friday. He was a bit late starting the set if I remember correctly. Being an influential leader of The Smiths and also having worked with many other bands, such as Modest Mouse, Marr impressed many. The set consisted of many songs off his new album, The Messenger, along with a few covers. A highlight was Marr's "cover" of "Stop Me If You Think You've Heard This One Before" by The Smiths (which he co-wrote with Morrissey). The guitars were groovy, and the covers quite nostalgic. If there is one real rock star left in the world, it would definitely be Johnny.

Kurt Vile and the Violators @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2013 (Friday)

Kurt Vile and the Violators were next up on the Orange Stage, that Friday. Kurt Vile, also someone with a history of involvement in a few different bands, began the set as the sky began to darken. The darker skies complimented the mellow sounds and introspective lyrics of the songs off of their new album, Wakin On A Pretty Daze. Vile's relaxed singing and intricate guitar melodies proved to be very lovely on stage.

Thee Oh Sees @ Fun Fun Fun Fest 2013 (Friday)

Another favorite of the day were the San Franciscan garage rockers, Thee Oh Sees. Their set began a bit after Kurt Vile's on the black stage, this time. Thee Oh Sees consist of a creative mix of garage, psychedelic, and punk rock influences. Their energetic set sent the crowd wild, as many fans were seen crowd surfing in the front. Even Mac DeMarco, who played the fest earlier that day, stage dove into the sea of fans according to the festival's twitter account:

Photo: Mac DeMarco stage diving during Thee Oh Sees' set. Photo by @PoonehGhana pic.twitter.com/WZz2JVxrE8 — funfunfunfest (@funfunfunfest) November 9, 2013

Fun Fun Fun Fest, please continue your valiant efforts towards curating great festivals. Hopefully, in the future I'll be able to attend all four days and some of the fun "Nites," which were the fest's sponsored after shows with free admission for those with festival passes. 

Until next time,

Sam