Festival Frenzy
Fun Fun Fun in Review: The best moments from this year's fest
Fun Fun Fun Fest did it again: another epic weekend of music, comedy, taco cannons and random celebrity sightings (Val Kilmer cutting his hair!).
As you recover from the 7th annual fest, relive the best moments from FFF Fest's takeover of Auditorium Shores, as selected by CultureMap's staff and contributors.
My favorite four minutes was Bob Mould, late in the set. After 45 minutes of Sugar tunes with very little banter in the hot weather, a beet-red Mould simply said: "I love this song. It's new. 'The Descent.'" He then succinctly proved that his new work was the equal of his past, which was precisely the point. The crowd wasn't massive for that set, but I suspect Mould grabbed a lot of new fans on Friday.
- Tom Thornton, Contributor
I was never able to catch At The Drive-in during the band's reunion tour, so I jumped at the chance to see Omar Rodriguez-Lopez play with his newest project, Bosnian Rainbows. Seriously, I could watch him vibe and move with his guitar for hours. Between that and frontwoman Teri Gender Bender's "interpretive" dance (read: often imitating the stance of a gorilla) coupled with her insane attractiveness, I couldn't peel my eyes offstage — and that's not even talking about the music, which was psych-funk infused rock 'n roll that wasn't too far out to grasp.
- Caitlin Ryan, Editor-in-Chief
I tend to steer toward the metal/punk side of FFF Fest, but this year I did my due diligence at the Orange Stage, and was rewarded with Santigold's dance-heavy Friday night set. Even with a few early technical bumps and a late start, the Philly beauty's performance had all the ass-shaking components and curious-at-times choreography one could want. Santigold's set warmed me up for a Run DMC reunion show, and seriously got me reconsidering my back-up dancer dreams.
- Arden Ward, Managing Editor
Sharon Van Etten's set on Friday afternoon was a perfect intro to the fest, if you didn't get there right when the gates opened to catch the Midgetmen kick off the entire thing with their "Weird Al" Yankovic tribute fest, that is. Van Etten has grown considerably as a songwriter since the days one could catch her in Austin playing living room shows off of Manor Road, but the most impressive thing about her set at Fun Fun Fun Fest has to be the fact that, while she's still writing intimate, "I wrote this in my bedroom" style songs, she and her band play them as big-time rockers.
As an early introduction to a festival that's always a bit unpredictable, one could have done a lot worse than listening to the big, tight rock band that plays under the name Sharon Van Etten right now.
- Dan Solomon, Contributor
Omar Rodriguez-Lopez sightings
Fun Fun Fun is a different kind of festival, where it's not strange to see performers walking around checking out other acts and talking with fans. Seeing Omar Rodriguez-Lopez hanging out a few feet away from me enjoying the fest and then seeing him perform was a huge highlight for me. Santigold was also really fun, and her backup dancers killed it.
- Jessica Pages, Photo Editor
Every year at FFF their setup has been getting bigger and better — they really outdid themselves this year. I remember four years ago all they had was a tiny, rickety mini ramp, and to see how far they've come on the art, design and the scale of the ramp echoes what the festival is all about. My favorite part was seeing skaters and BMX-ers ride the Project Loop ramp.
- Bill Sallans, Photographer
I geeked out pretty hard at the Yellow Stage (presented by Moontower Comedy Festival) all weekend. I was lucky enough to get an artist badge for hosting an event on the stage on Sunday, and I took advantage of it. On Saturday afternoon, Friday's headliner, Hannibal Buress, and the Sunday night headliners, Eugene Mirman and Doug Benson, came to watch David Cross and Wyatt Cenac perform.
For about half an hour backstage, five of the biggest names in comedy were all hanging out, taking photos and catching up with one another. All of their shows had amazing turnouts, and they all delivered incredible sets. Big ups to the folks who organized this year's lineup.
- Michael Graupmann, Senior Editor