By Yasi Salek
It’s not easy to throw a music festival. And while last year’s FYF Fest boasted a compelling and diverse line-up (featuring newish indie acts like Best Coast and Warpaint alongside legends like Ted Leo) the Communist country-style lines for everything from water to restrooms really put a damper on the festive mood.
But this year Sean Carlson, Phil Hoelting, and the rest of the FYF crew teamed up with Goldenvoice for a decidedly smoother day. In fact, it seemed like every thing lined up just right -- from the mild weather to the ease of movement to the incredibly awesome bands (I might have cried at both Guided By Voices AND Descendents). The line-up held enough up-and-comers to keep the young-folk happy, and teenagers spilled over to see No Age, Girls, Cults, and Smith Westerns. FYF also proved they knew how to please old-timers by filling the voids in a thousand late Gen Xers hearts with the above-mentioned tear-jerking GVB and Descendents, as well as Dead Milkmen, who united many aging punkers in a rousing sing-a-along to “Punk Rock Girl.”
Rounded out by crowd favorites Explosions in the Sky, Death from Above 1979, Broken Social Scene, and Cold War Kids, this year’s FYF seemed to leave pretty much every one happy. I guess sometimes water just has to be $3 for everything else to be cool. Well played, FYF, well played.
Slideshow captions by Katie Bain.
