Rock out at Blackout Fest, pt. I
Thursday, April 17's line-up
By Dana Stewart, Copy Editor
April 16, 2008 | 6 p.m.
Blackout Booking head Scott Winland’s annual Blackout Fest has come a long way since its debut in 1995.
“We had a birthday party show, and then we started going from there,” Winland said. “I think it was the fifth one when we decided to do two days instead of just one day. I started booking about eight acts, and now I book over 30 acts. Getting that many good bands together to play one show is really fun.”
Blackout Fest celebrates its thirteenth anniversary as a three-day music extravaganza April 17-19 at the Union. The fest features at least 33 bands throughout the weekend with ten bands performing Thursday evening.
Thursday’s line-up highlights local bands Wheels on Fire, Casual Future and Spooktober, as well as national underground favorites The Preacher’s Kids, Psychedelic Horseshit and Grafton.
“There are more bands from Columbus this year than in past years,” Winland said. “I’m kind of thinking that could help bring more people from Columbus down to Athens. There are a few people from out of state who come to the show. I think that’s great.”
This year marks the third involvement in the fest of Athens-based Wheels on Fire, whose members are used to their local fan base but look for new faces at Blackout Fest.
“The coolest thing is that the people from Athens can see bands from all around the United States,” said Wheels on Fire guitarist Michael Chaney. “One of the bands we’re playing with on Thursday, The Preacher’s Kids, is from Mississippi.”
Winland recognizes the potential of Athens' central location for bands traveling through the country to be involved with Blackout Fest.
“Geographically we’re located pretty conveniently between New York, Chicago, Detroit and Memphis, so you can usually catch somebody on their way from one to the other,” Winland said.
“The idea of having an underground music festival like others around the country…there wasn’t really anything in Ohio that was like that,” Winland said. “It was really cool just to start something like that. By the fifth [year] we were including more bands from Chicago and Detroit.”
Spooktober, Thursday, 6:30 p.m.
Start the evening off right with hyphy, dance-friendly Spooktober. Friendly sums up the sound well, too, especially on songs like “So Much Fun.” It is hard not to swing hips to the constant beats of this Athens-based duo, but some advice: do not resist the spookiness.
Spooktober members Michael “Miguel” Evanosky and Brian “Sci-Fi” Rudell seem to have a knack for not taking themselves too seriously, judging by songs titles like “Ghosts in the Hood,” featuring the lyrics “When you’ve got a restless skeleton/and it’s trying to get out of your skin/just let him out/what else can you do?”
For a darker minute, “Se Vende” turns the mind to thoughts of the Pixies with enough intensity to turn smiles into pensive looks but in the most heart-warming of ways. Before the show visit Spooktober on MySpace for a special song featuring Jesty Beatz that brings out Spooktober’s hip-hop side.
Wheels on Fire, Thursday, 11 p.m.
The name might imply that a circus show inferno is a part of the band’s act, but have no fear. Unless grooving to melodic piano and guitar-driven rock tunes reminiscent of The Band spontaneously sets pants on fire, the Wheels on Fire crowd should be safe.
Their back-to-basic but never boring classic rock sound has already proven an Athens success, in addition to garnering success stories from tours through Indiana, the American south and Europe. Thursday’s Wheels on Fire show is sure to guarantee a great, rocking time for those wary of trying out less familiar names on the Blackout Fest roster. With a new demo titled “Three Sisters” and some recording time spent in the studio over the past few months, one can hope to hear some new material in addition to old favorites.
Psychedelic Horseshit, Thursday, 12 a.m.
“One band that’s getting a lot of well deserved press right now is Psychedelic Horseshit from Columbus,” Winland said. “They’re a lot of fun…when I was at SXSW they were packing everywhere they played. It was great; they put on a really fun show. And they’re from Columbus, you know, it’s just nice to see an Ohio band that does well.”
From rolling Bob Dylan-esque jams, Blackout Fest takes a turn to wall-of-sound, shoegaze-loving Psychedelic Horseshit. These fellas use their lo-fi tech-rock sound to poke fun in songs like “New Wave Hippies.” Jumping into finger-picking string sounds mixed with plentiful distortion in other songs like "Bad Vibrations," this band may seem like garage band mayhem but is merely melodic goodness hidden under all of that noise. The trick is to embrace the treasure hunt rather than to run screaming...leave all the screaming vocals up to them.
The Preacher's Kids, Thursday, 1 a.m.
With songs like “The Devil’s Hitlist” and “Blow You a Kiss,” the Preacher’s Kids quickly explains that this show is not a typical southern revival attempt to turn Athens ablaze for JC. On the contrary, the band's MySpace boasts that “these scum rockers ask the question: Is rock’n’roll dead?—‘HELL NO!’”
Expect a revival in the sense that full-blown, great rock’n’roll will rock faces off onto the Union floor from the impact of nonstop guitar riffs. Think the Rolling Stones meets the Clash meets anything that moms would not want their kids singing about, much less stomping their feet to, on a Thursday night. These boys could pass for Wheels on Fire’s cousins, who are looking forward to seeing their southern friends.
“For me, its The Preacher’s Kids and [Reigning Sound’s] Greg Cartwright [that I’m looking forward to],” Chaney said. “It’s always really good, it’s always really fun. We go, we play the show, but mostly it’s exciting to see all the bands we like a lot.”
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Check out the Blackout Fest event Web site for more details and a blog containing the full weekend schedule.
Tickets for Blackout Fest are available through the Union and Haffa’s Records for $10 per day or $25 for three-day passes. Stay tuned to ACRN throughout the week for a chance to win tickets.