Another day, another festival in Austin, and that's what fine-tunes our mental health as locals. The Sims Foundation (stylized SIMS Foundation), a local nonprofit for better mental health in the local music industry, understands this delicate balance, offering up the inaugural, aptly named Feel Good Music Festival on May 27 and 28.
Two days of music will hit the Far Out Lounge this Memorial Day Weekend, along with a market, drinks, and food trucks Los Danzantes and Press Kitchen. All of this benefits the foundation, at least in part thanks to vendor donations, and marks Mental Health Awareness Month. This is not the nonprofit's only special effort this month, but it looks poised to be one of the cornerstone events for the season as music events start picking up, but aren't in full swing yet.
This is an affordable alternative, too, to the massive festivals and the crushing crowds of some free festivals that draw in passersby. Single days are priced at $25 in advance and $30 at the door; Two-day passes only cost $40.
It wouldn't be a Sims Foundation event without the local bands. The first day shows off world electronic band Easy Compadre!; current SXSW Artist to Watch according to NPR, Caramelo Haze; popular hard rock band Megafauna; and Latin-psych and Cumbia supergroup Money Chicha.
The new festival folds in an existing occasion on Sunday: "Bob vs Bob by Graham's Give Back." Musicians Graham Wilkinson and Graham Weber have organized two previous cover series in which artists put their own spin on songs by Bob Dylan and Bob Marley, and are returning for their third, including their own covers.
Even though musicians mostly enter "Bob vs Bob" on a solo basis, they will receive support from the festival's "house band," so to speak: Jeff Botta, Joe Beckham, Willie Webster, Trevor Nealon, and Graham Wilkinson.
The following musicians will play in "Bob vs Bob":
- Cory Reinisch (Harvest Thieves)
- Ali Holder
- Courtney Santana
- Kelley Mickwee
- Joe Faulhaber
- Chris Baker
- Sarah Dossey
- Jordan Young
- Evan Charles
- Jenny Reynolds
- Kalu James
- Scott Collins
- Patrice Pike
- Suzanna Choffel
- The Reverent Few
- Scott Strickl and Tony Kamel (Wood & Wire)
- Graham Wilkinson
- Graham Weber
Tickets are available now at tickettailor.com. This event at the Far Out Lounge (8504 South Congress Ave.) runs from 6 pm to midnight on May 27, and noon to 4 pm on May 28.
