FoolsFest: donate by August 13th!

I got an email in my inbox a few weeks ago about something called FoolsFest and honestly,

 my first response was, “great, another Texas festival”. I love music and consequently music

 festivals but these days it seems like everyone wants to start their own and there are plenty

 of casualties: festivals you hear about one year and then never again. 

But unlike a lot of others,  Mark's event puts an unusually strong emphasis on community and a 

unified festival experience. And as an added bonus, it barely has no ties to imperious corporate

sponsors; if it works, it will be one of the world's first crowd-sourced festivals.

What exactly is it about those European festivals you attended that you
think created such a sense of community?

European & British style music festivals have at their core an amazing sense
of history behind them; Glastonbury (the largest greenfield festival in the
world) began in 1970, Roskilde (the largest fest in northern Europe) in
1971, Reading (officially) in 1971, and Rockwerchter in 1975; just 4
examples. What this has created is a shared history of music festivals. You
have so many music festivals that have existed for such a long time that
people have grown up with them and when you attend one of these events you
get to commune with people who have been going for years or decades.
 
The other huge piece of community is that 90% of the time you're camping at
these festivals. Most festivals are not in major cities and therefore your
fellow campers are your community...you're creating a village of music
lovers. Very few festival attendees stay in cities outside the festival; in
my opinion this is because of the ease of camping (many festivals offer free
transport and all that I know of offer free camping and parking) and the
friendliness of your fellow campers.
 
For instance...I went to the V festival just east of Northern Wales...I was
there by myself and set up my tent near a couple who looked nice enough,
shortly after a pair of girls set up their tent next to us. After we set
everything up we introduced ourselves and chatted about who we were
interested in seeing and discussed specific artists that we'd seen before
and what festivals we'd attended. Of the 5 of us, none of us had been to V
but all but 1 had been to a major music festival before. We related with
each other because we were all there camping for 4 nights. Being neighbors
we shared our experiences.
 
The 5 of us ended up spending most of the weekend together, adding
additional friends here-and-there during different times and separating from
the group when we wanted to experience something that the rest didn't. This
wasn't a onetime occurrence, every festival in the UK & Europe I've attended
I met people from different walks of life, whether I initially came alone or
with a group.
 

Festivals have been popping up all over the place for the past few years.
Some have come and gone (Houston's GhoulFest for example). What makes
FoolsFest something special enough to outlast other new festivals?

There are alot of events out there, and certainly in the past 3 years it has
become quite a challenge to keep track of them all. In my mind there are a
few really amazing music festivals in the US that are similar to the
European events, but there certainly aren't enough when you look at the
number of people in the country.
 
FoolsFest is not only an event but is an escape from every day life, the
mundane. The scene is set in the beauty of Texas ranch land in the spring.
It's a place where the only rule is to obey the laws of the land and leave
all judgments at the door. The sense of community, size and plethora of
unique entertainment sets FoolsFest apart.
 
FoolsFest is set in the country to allow for not only community but space.
The festival is built upon three times the amount of acreage that a typical
festival facilitating 80,000 people per day would hold. It is about movement
and freely being able to enjoy the environment and what interests each
individual attendee.
 
FoolsFest will have 6+ music stages with a wide variety and caliber of
artists. It's about showcasing some of the most popular bands of the time,
showcasing bands you have always wanted to see and never had the opportunity
and introducing you to new bands that have amazing talent, just haven't
found their place.
 
FoolsFest is equally about introducing the attendees to new forms of
entertainment & art. It is about having surprises and unique things around
every corner. Imagine walking to see one of your favorite bands and finding
a poi dancer or leaving the main stage to go to your tent at night and
seeing the sky filled with sky lanterns floating overhead.
 
The end goal of FoolsFest is to have people leave saying "I am so tired, I
can't wait to come back next year." I want to create an experience for
people where they're so exhausted from fun that they cannot wait to come
back. I've gotten to experience amazing festivals because I've made the
journey to the UK, for some people that isn't feasible.
 

This is a gigantic undertaking. How long ago did you start the
nuts-and-bolts planning of this event?
 
I've been working on FoolsFest for just over 5 years, however it has been a
lifelong journey with a career working behind the scenes in the
entertainment industry and fully understanding what turns an event into an
experience. It certainly is a gigantic undertaking, but I know it is worth
it.
 
The amount of money that a festival like this costs is massive. Most people
cannot imagine how much some of their favorite bands cost...and when you get
10-20 major touring artists plus 75-100 smaller artists you're looking at
enormous expenses. The cost to put Foolsfest together is not only in the
artists, it is also in setting up an infrastructure and creating a whimsical
environment. To achieve such a feat does not come at a small price.
 
 
Have you encountered any haters yet?

Most people I've spoken to or have posted about FoolsFest have been positive
about the event and excited to have something of this magnitude come to
Texas. People have been shocked with the amount of money that I'm attempting
to raise (and that's the only negative that I've gotten). Lots of people
don't think it's possible. It definitely is a challenge and I'm aware that
the odds are against me, however I am passionate that FoolsFest is something
that is needed in the US. My passion is about giving people the European
festival experience close to home.
 
 
If you don't reach your goal on Kickstarter will the show still go on, at
least in some capacity?
 
I cannot say that I'll be creating a smaller version of FoolsFest if the
Kickstarter campaign doesn't reach it's goal. Part of the reason that I
decided to use Kickstarter to raise the funds for FoolsFest is because I
felt that if the festival was funded by people who were truly passionate
about music and having a unique experience that I would begin to create the
community feel that is so essential to FoolsFest. The attendees would be
able to come to the festival and say, "I helped to create this." These
people would begin the FoolsFest legacy and be essential to creating a
festival like those in Europe that stand the test of time.
 
In order for the true vision of FoolsFest to remain it needs to be created
on a grand scale. If the Kickstarter goal is not reached I still plan to
work towards finding the funding to create the vision and bring FoolsFest to
Texas.
 

How can people donate to help make this festival a possibility?
 
For those who are not familiar with Kickstarter, it is a crowdfunding
website. The great thing about it is that people make pledges and in return
receive unique perks that are not available once the festival is funded. The
pledges don't turn into contributions until the festival reaches its funding
goal. So, no one who pledges will be charged until August 20th and they are
only charged if we reach our goal. Pledges range anywhere from $1 to
$10,000. People can go to Kickstarter.com and search FoolsFest to view the
project.
 
One final thing I wanted to point out, is that we've gotten a great response
from one of our Kickstarter rewards. For a $50 pledge, the backer has the
opportunity to buy 1 FoolsFest ticket per year for only $100 (this is a
LIFETIME rate). These backers get their ticket reserved for them at $100
each festival year.

PLEASE, DONATE HERE! 

The Flaming Lips - Heady Fwends

This is not your average collaboration album. From beginning to end it sounds like The Flaming Lips. The album's narrative doesn't get hi-jacked by each of the collaborating forces. 

Normally collaboration-themed albums fractures the style of the principle artist. Blunders like DJ Shadow's 2006 collaboration effort "The Outsider" come to mind. It was a full-on sonic war, the collaborators fought viciously and no one really emerged as the winner. The is similar to Yankee's Law, which I named for the catastrophic super-group failure Damn Yankees. When one combines the creative forces of 2 or more commercially and or artistically successful entities there is a division or subtraction of talent rather than an addition or multiplication. Some high-profile collaboration efforts buck that trend but normally that's a surprise, not the rule. 


The real reason this album succeeds is that at no point do the Flaming Lips succumb to the temptation to do silly cross-over numbers that no one wants to hear.

Collaborations on here are done largely with fellow rock artists who have their own stylized way of doing things (sorry Kings of Leon). I was bracing myself for a catastrophic hip-hop breakdown but that never came. Best collaborations include Prefuse 73, Plastic Ono Band, Bon Iver (who normally puts me to sleep), and lastly the electrifying Nick Cave. 

The only track that sounds a little ridiculous at first is the opener "2012" which is the product of working alongside Ke$ha. Now I have no beef with Ke$ha. She is super hot in my opinion and has the stage presence and musical sensibilities to write/perform some truly high energy pop. She's no Brian Wilson but still, as far as radio fare, she does a better-than-average job. But the track gets marred firstly because of the corny repetition of the dystopian "you must be upgraded". Then the song starts into this strange space-rock cabaret led by Ke$ha. It was the only track I hated the first time I listened but it gets better as it unfolds. The intro still remains questionable to me though upon further listening.

Mission of Burma - Unsound

Before MoB released Unsound last month, I had no idea that they'd done any studio albums since they reunited in 02. Roger Miller's hearing has been in tatters since the mid 80s so I figured it was safe to just continue on with the assumption. Well, apparently this is their 4th since coming back together and it is heavy. 

To get a feel for the post-reunion albums I compared Unsound to 2009's "The Sound, The Speed, The Light" and the former is far heavier, rather than tending toward more harmonic, radio-friendliness as MoB can at some moments. If there's any song on here that sounds uncompromisingly like golden era Mission of Burma it's "Second Television"with it's over-the-top punk energy but clean guitars.


Other gems on here include "Fell-->H20" with chugging guitars, galloping bass lines, and doom-ridden lyrics. "What They tell Me" features something I never thought I would hear on a Mission of Burma album: horns. Somehow it works out pretty well and adds to the track's the power, however MoB, don't try this again. It surely can't work out this well a second time. "7's" also manages to conjure up a good classic MoB sound. 

Random closing thought, it's very pleasing to hear that MoB is still able to do those almost Who-like oohs and ahhs on certain tracks. What other punk or post-punk band does that? There's plenty of ohhhs but ooohs, now that's rare! It's part of the band's soul. Fantastic record and I cannot wait to see them play at Fitzgerald's in September.

An open invitation to all my readers

Since late May, I've been working to get Houston's most famous outsider artist, Jandek, to play another Houston date this summer. Luckily, my friend Jonathan and I have been planning monthly music showcases and we already had one set up for July 12. On that date the representative from Corwood and an ensemble of two punk musicians will join together and make beautiful music

The event will be hosted at Mango's Cafe (403 Westheimer Road) and will be 7 dollars at the door. There will be no advance tickets. Lineup order is kind of up in the air with exception of the Jandek performance which will start at 8 o clock SHARP according to the representative. Come out and show your support for local Houston music and for the city's coolest enigma: Jandek!

RSVP to the Facebook event here.

The Presets finally showing signs of life again

I've always enjoyed The Presets. Even the overly-dramatic, machismo sophomore album "Apocalypso" had me bebopping. Although at points it got SO utterly priapic and silly-sounding that I was wondering if they were going to lose their coolness. However, flash forward four years to last Friday when their latest single "Youth in Trouble" was released. It's got a catchy, minimalist beat, (and thankfully no gimmicky appeals to mindless dubstep latecomers) but most importantly it sounds modern and dark, like their 2005 debut "Beams".

Watch the music video if you want; it's mostly a mish-mash of lo-fi psychedelia that I could take or leave. The song though, it's pretty good. It's off their third full-length "Pacifica" which will hit the streets in September.

And just as a general observation to provide more goth/post-punk context for my blog's overall theme (not that I always will) Julian Hamilton's vocals are totally Gothy sounding, now and previously.

PiL - This is PiL

It surprised the hell out of me the other day, when I was working my shift in the Barnes and Noble music section, to discover a newly released Public Image Ltd. album in one of the boxes I was unpacking. The artwork was garishly bright and seemed like an odd choice but as soon as I got off work I looked it up on Rhapsody and discovered that despite having some strangely incongruous album art, PiL had some good new material. 

Now, my favorite PiL album is "Metal Box" and this is no metal box but overall, I enjoyed it. Starting out with some general comments, Lydon's voice does sound a bit more strained but it's been 20 years so I can certainly forgive him. As I've said, it's not as dark and experimental as some PiL material. He keeps it relatively light. The difference in sound is probably due to time and personnel changes. It's still very much PiL though, even though Jah Wobble still hasn't returned.

Title track, "This is PiL", bugged the hell out of me at first. It sounded like a naively headstrong hip-hop artist trying to pimp his crew and act cool. Lots of posturing. But then I realized after listening more that it's very true to Lydon's character. It's very manic sounding, like a crazy homeless guy screaming his lungs out at passersby at dirty, dilapidated bus-stop he's managed to take over. This is not a slight at Lydon. He has this ability explode with an uncontainable energy that will look loony to some people who don't dig PiL or post-punk; however, to me and many others, it's something to be admired.

"Human" is also a resounding success. Lydon waxes poetic about England and how he misses the way things used to be. That's kind of a brave thing for a punk to do, especially the punk who started out his career singing "Anarchy in the UK". Some of the best lyrics in the song:

It's like looking across the great divide
Trapped in a class system
It's pushed you all aside
All to the left, all to the right 

So Lydon manages to get nostalgic while acknowledging the past's problems at the very same time. Not to gush TOO much but who else can do that? Not a whole lot of people. 

There is one song that is awful, terrible, garbage though. It was a song that would not play for the longest time on my Rhapsody account. I had to find it on YouTube to make my experience complete and I almost wish I hadn't. "Lollipop Opera" goes a little too far for me into "non-rapper trying to rap" territory (think Anthony Kiedis). Maybe it will grow on me but it's hard to think it will with a title that sounds like it was chosen by Jeffree Star.

More Jandek pt. 2

Now that Summer Fest is over I am officially back on my Jandek kick. I am doing another Jandek review medley for you today that should be helpful for anyone who is overwhelmed by his gigantic discography.

Glasgow Sunday

Many of the albums I'll be reviewing today are live ones. This, if I'm not mistaken, is Jandek's first recorded live performance and it is probably his first ever live public performance. It gets a little confusing because there also happens to be a "Glasgow Monday" as well as "Glasgow Friday" and it's not clear to me if Monday and Friday are in the same, next, or previous week. Anyway, on this one Jandek is joined by a bassist and drummer while he sings and plays a jangling discordant electric guitar. Like all of the live guitar albums that will follow, the listener will notice that the vocals are now far lower and far more guttural than the soft, high, pitches of early classics "Six and Six", or "Ready for the House". Highlights of the album are "Blue Blue World" and "Real Wild". This set up will define many of the live albums.

Glasgow Friday

Similar to Sunday. Possibly all the same musicians. Full of great songs. "These Kokomos" is probably the coolest track on here. Jandek takes a relatively stable drum and bass beat and spackles the spaces with a thin, wiry, funk. Rhythmically, it turns into something you could almost dance to. The real fun starts with the lyrics, however. "They shake me up, theeeeeeese Kokomooooooos! I explode! OOOOOOH! [. . .] I'm wallllking on Maynarrrd Street but these Kokomos didn't understand!" It sounds a bit more soulful than I'm accustomed to hearing and if I were there I definitely would be doing some serious head-banging. What are Kokomos, you ask? Fuck if I know. It's all part of some sort of vaguely discernible narrative though.

Maze of the Phantom

This one was released in 2012 and it is way different than anything I've ever heard. If I had to compare it to something else in the discog I might say it reminds me of "Where do you go from here" in the sense that it is very calm compared to "classic" Jandek but it still retains that extremely mysterious aura. 

The instrumentation seems to be cello, harp, synth, and operatic female vocals sung in an Eastern scale. I assume Jandek is probably playing the synth but it's hard to know more than that. If you're expecting Khartoum or guitar-hero Jandek then you'll find it anti-climactic but if you listen closely and relax you'll be able to appreciate its sombre beauty. And for once, the title of the album somehow seems to fit.