[Ed Note : Again, I am an awfully late editor, but this is a great article. Enjoy! – BP]
Boise, Idaho. Where everyone is exceptionally generous and where Treefort Music Festival resides. Here is a list of my favorite acts of the festival.
Thee Oh Sees @ El Korah
These guys closed out El Korah Thursday night of Treefort. They were quite nonchalant, and didn’t seem too specific about the way they sounded during sound check. After their first song it was very easy to understand what these guys were about. They did not care at all (I mean that in the coolest way possible). They seemed to know exactly what they were doing to create the exact atmosphere that they wanted. The crowd loved em. Each member, including both there drummers played as close as they could to the stage. John Dwyer, Thee Oh Sees lead man described one of their songs as “long and thick,” and I would easily apply those adjectives to the whole set to be completely honest.They rocked so hard. So Hard. So. Hard.
And And And @ Neurolux
After catching the first part of Cocorosie I headed to Neurolux to catch And And And. I only heard a few songs of theirs before, and came to the show with no expectations. There were about 20 people in their late twenties going hard and singing their lyrics. I was surprised they had such a loyal following. Their music was great, and they had a wizard guitarist. I was super into it. Please check out their music.
Ancient Psychic @ The Linen Building
I am sure if Ancient Psychic stumbled upon this review they would hate the label that I am about to describe them as… emo revival. Although a lot of presumptions are probably popping up in your mind right now, let me tell you these guys wear the term very well, and their music doesn’t sound exactly sound like the early 2000s music you listened to in middle school. I found their music quite refreshing honestly. It was very sad, and at times maybe ironic. It was hard to tell (kind of like those people who you talk to and are unsure if half the things they are saying are sarcastic or not). Either way, it was obvious that they were very self aware of what they were doing, and delivered a very majestic set. Although sad, Ancient Psychic could also be described as mellow and amiable. It’s a very odd feeling listening to their music, and I imagined everyone in the room was feeling happy and sad at the same time. Like accidentally walking into wet cement with a new pair of shoes, and getting disappointed that your new shoes are ruined, but at the same time are happy that you left your mark on the sidewalk for years to come.
Youth Lagoon @ The Main Stage
If you are a blogger/journalist that went to Treefort, it seems almost mandatory to write about this set, doesn’t it? This was Youth Lagoon’s last US show ever, and there is no better place to end it all than in their hometown. You could tell that the songs written were birthed in a very intimate setting, and were later evolved into anthems. Very loud anthems, to say the least. The electronics they used were quite heavy on the ears. Many of their songs included this formula of a slow build up and then bringing the tone back down again. It was a hell of a sight to see them give it their all during their last hometown show.
Yacht (DJ Set) @ Neurolux
The end of the festival! The KXSU staff was completely worn out after 5 days of live music. However, after rallying we made it to our last set of Treefort Music Festival. I didn’t expect much since I’m not very into DJ sets nor a club-like setting. All I can say now is – I AM SO GLAD I WENT. This was the exclamation mark to the whole festival. I was boozin’ quite hard, so honestly I have nothing substantial to say about this set. You know how it goes. Thanks for the fun DJ set Yacht!
JOE MANUEL | Recipe for disaster | KXSU Promotions Director