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Tuesday, November 8, 2011



- Fun Fun Fun Fest Recap (Dan) -

Sometimes bigger isn’t better. While I wouldn’t classify the expanded Fun Fun Fun Fest as a raging success, by no means was it a failure. If anything it was a victim of its past success and the inflated expectations placed on this year’s festival. I would’ve preferred they didn’t add the third day, but I appreciated that there were less scheduling conflicts. As for Auditorium Shores, it may not have the advantages of Waterloo Park, but I’m not going to blame the organizers for that. Fun Fun Fun is still one of the premier musical festivals and one of my favorite times of the year. Now on to some of my favorites performances.

PS - All pictures were taken by SOTO's own John Laird.



Mind Spiders

FFF Fest isn't necessarily about discovering new bands, so I tend to see the acts that I know will deliver. Mind Spiders are such a band.  Their self-titled release is one of my top albums of the year, and I was really thrilled to hear favorites such as World’s Destroyed, No Romance, and Go!.  The band even played some new tracks off their new album, which is due in early 2012.

:Mind Spiders - No Romance:





Spoon

Now THIS is a band that knows how to deliver the goods. The headliners on Friday night were a disappointment at best - Passion Pit was Passion Pit (sorry, not a fan), we all know about the Danzig debacle, and Public Enemy was kind of a train wreck. So, Spoon was a pleasure to watch.

:Spoon - Written In Reverse:





Le Butcherettes

After all the SXSW buzz this band received (including some from this very blog), I made sure I was in the front row for Le Butcherettes. The performance wasn’t as wild as what I heard transpired during SXSW, but it was highly entertaining nonetheless. Lead singer Teri Gender Bender commanded the attention of the entire crowd as she flailed and stomped around the stage. Of course, it helped that the riot grrrl-esque songs were equally catchy, angry, and danceable.

:Le Butcherettes - New York:





Ted Leo And The Pharmacists

By Sunday afternoon I was pretty wiped out and knew I wouldn’t last the entire day. I stuck around for Ted, though, because he’s one of my all time favorites. So much so in fact that I named my daughter after one of his songs (you’ll have to guess which one). Backed by The Pharmacists, Ted churned out a string of his indie hits before closing out the set with a bunch of Misfits covers, complete with a Danzig-like wig.

:Ted Leo And The Pharmacists - Me And Mia:




Hot Snakes

This was one band that I kinda-sorta knew about. My friend Steve (aka BabyStew), though, assured me they were right in my wheelhouse and that I’d really dig them. Man, was he right. They put on a blistering set and despite the fact I didn’t know any of the songs, I was loving the entire performance. Sadly, I had to bail a little early so I could catch the aforementioned Spoon set.

:Hot Snakes - Braintrust:


Bands I’d Seen Before That Were Just As Good The 2nd Time Around: Okkervil River, We Were Promised Jetpacks, Joe Lally, Tune Yards, and Asobi Seksu

Disappointments: Public Enemy, Wugazi, Dan Deacon, Omar Souleyman, The Budos Band

Bands I’m Bummed I Missed: Black Lips, Blonde Redhead, Thee Oh Sees, No Bunny, Shapes Have Fangs

- Dan Corbin -



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