Fun Fun Fun Fest - Day 1 Preview

Now that Austin City Limits is over it's time for Austin's next big music festival: 2008 Fun Fun Fun Fest. It's a two day event in downtown Austin on November 8th and 9th. There's plenty of bands to choose from. The main stages are divided into three types of music: indie rock, punk/hardcore, and hip hop/dj. They also included a bunch of comedy acts for good measure. The 2007 lineup included bands such as The New Pornographers, Of Montreal, Cat Power, Explosions in the Sky, White Denim, Against Me!, Ted Leo, Okkervil River, Girl Talk, Cadence Weapon, and Battles. Not too shabby. This year's lineup is just as good. Here are the bands I'm most looking forward to. There are a number of good bands that overlap. If you disagree with my choice let me know in the comments section:

And the Award for Ugliest Band goes to...

The National (8:40-9:40) or Dead Milkmen (8:45-9:45)

I like The National but I'm definitely going to see The Dead Milkmen reunion. They're getting back together for one show and that's it. When I was 16 years old I snuck backstage at their show in Rochester, NY. My buddy Lou and I hung out with the band and talked about MTV, baseball, and other alternative bands of the day. It was a cool experience for a kid from a crappy little town. I'll catch The National another time.

Deerhoof

Dan Deacon (7-8) or Deerhoof (6:30-7:30)

Tough choice between oddballs. Dan Deacon is a funny dude and his sets are usually pretty insane. He was my favorite artist at last year's Pitchfork Music Festival. However, I can't miss a minute of Deerhoof (even if the new album is a bit of a disappointment). I've listened to them for years and have only seen them live twice.

Did Corey Feldman join the Trail of Dead?

...And You Will Know Us By the Trail of Dead (4:50-5:35)

Considering the festival is right by the University, this set is likely to be filled with frat guys. I saw ...Trail of Dead in DC and it was a sausagefest with a mosh pit. Super cheesy. Perfect example of the crowd ruining what otherwise was a entertaining show. I'm holding out hope it won't be as bad this time.

Other Saturday bands I plan on watching:

Bishop Allen (3:20-3:55)
Octopus Project (3:45-4:45)
Centromatic (2:45-3:15)
Parts & Labor (2:10-2:40)
Krum Bums (2:30-3)
James Petralli (White Denim) (1:40-2:10)
Frank Smith (1:00-1:30)