Photo by Liz Perlman
The clouds that hung over Austin on Friday the 12th were omnipresent, looming and spitting even after the sun went down. The mat grey sky blanketed everything as the temperature dropped below 80 for the first time in months. But even with muddy shoes and moist sleeves, upon walking up to the gate of the inaugural Stargayzer Festival, it was clear a strong community of people had rallied to fill Pine Street Station. Fluorescent costumes, abundant make-up, neon wigs, robes and capes and scarves, bright flashing smiles all danced around three stages, steady with performances. Even early in the evening, the energy felt palpable, an electric fog hovering over everyone. Upon entering the gates, I immediately stumbled upon NYC’s occult dance outfit The Crystal Ark. With a new EP out on DFA and plenty of gold jackets to go around, the band had hypnotized a large number of attendees gathered at the main stage. Ever escalating beats spanned genre’s from traditional house, to more forward thinking tribal and techno, all while collapsing synth washes, pulsating samples and group chants brought to life the history of dance music.
Photo by Liz Perlman
The center stage provided a space for the more eclectic performances of the night, including Austin’s premier drag collective The Poo-poo Platter, as the queens and divas invited from around the country took turns dominating the stage with a blinding array of costume and their impeccable abilities to lip-synch 90’s R&B. Acts like Big Dipper and Cakes Da Killa dominated the main stage and indoor stage with their own brands of hyper-sexual hip hop, slowly losing all their clothing throughout each set. Big Dipper brought his indoor-stage crowd to a frenzy, having everyone light his bare chest with their cell-phones, while screaming “put your money in my pants!”
Photo by Liz Perlman
Throughout the weekend, guests were treated to a wide variety of genres, accommodating all music tastes. Some more festival ready than others, highlights included main stage acts like Trust, Big Freedia, Austra, and of course the infamous Christeene, but also smaller stage performances by Mirror Travel, White Walls, and Baathhaus. An easy jaunt between stages made the fest feel intimate, cared for, and never rushed as the walk from stage to stage was more of a turn of the hips. The sound was fantastic and the drink prices fair (which make sense as Cheer Up Charlies handled bar duties). There were really no available food options (other than Bouldin Creek’s tamale stop), which could easily be fixed in coming years as the festival grows in popularity.
Photo by Liz Perlman
Closing each night with parties at the North Door proved to be hit or miss. Friday night in particular was a golden ticket with Christeene taking the stage at midnight. A vulgar, fowl, ingenious punk-rock-romp through an electronic post-porn display, Christeene and her dancers violated the packed out North Door stage, chugging the whiskey of anyone in proximity, chastising all those with phones out. Saturday night’s party fell a little short of those extremes, with Mykki Blanco stumbling around the stage in a free-for-all slam poetry mishap.
Photo by Liz Perlman
Sunday night’s end found Austra taking the fest by storm with their tasteful blend of electronics and balladry. Frontwoman Katie Stelmanis, doing her finest Kate Bush meets Stevie Nicks, garnered praise from all directions, slinking around the stage in her gold blouse and flailing blonde hair. Songs weighted with love and loss, fear and forgiveness doused the tent with emotional intent. The band even closed their encore set with a gorgeous cover of Nothing Compares 2U. If their set was lacking anything, it certainly wasn’t charm.
Photo by Liz Perlman
For it’s first year and unfortunate weather circumstances, Stargayzer treated its guests to something very special. For all of Austin’s festivals and music centered events, the queer community was represented with vibrant colors; its artists and musicians created a purposeful atmosphere that was not only engaging and a multi-faceted grab-bag for the senses, it was equally welcoming and diverse. 2014’s Stargayzer Festival exceeded all expectation and is a deserves addition to Austin’s yearly festival schedule.
All photographs © Liz Perlman & Pop Press International; all rights reserved. Click any image to open in slideshow viewer.
