The format for yesterday’s coverage of the 2nd day of Austin Psych Fest went over well. We enjoyed writing it, and it seemed like you enjoyed reading it. Rather than drone on, here’s a brief single sentence about each of the eight acts we saw on the final day of Austin Psych Fest 2014. We saw less acts than any other day on Sunday, but we did spend part of the afternoon conducting an interview with Pink Mountaintops’ Stephen McBean, which we will publish next week.
1. Greg Ashley played one of the fest’s most divergent sets, and although he remained seated, delivering socially incisive and blunt lyrics accompanied by acoustic guitar and upright piano, the performance carried sincerity and captivating directness.
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2. One of the weekend’s hidden gems was Kikagaku Moyo, a band I had not previously known, but who impressed everyone with their balance of delicately nuanced sitar tinged instrumental song sections and more authoritative crunchy guitar riffs.
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3. Chicago’s Secret Colour’s played a set of lo-fi psych pop with simple musical arrangements built on guitar, bass, and melodica.
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4. As sun set, Mikal Cronin issued an incredible, high energy set featuring outstanding garage pop songs such as “The Weight” and “Shout It Out” from his most recent album
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5. Considering sonic quality, The War on Drugs played the weekend’s best set, a hazy blur of washed out rock that sounds like Bruce Springsteen’s emotive rock filtered through fuzzed out pedals.
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6. In the Levitation Tent, Higgins Waterproof Black Magic Band performed a solid set of their intricate, sprawling experimental pop songs with TV On the Radio’s Tunde Adebimpe at the helm.
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7. Earlier in the afternoon, we spoke to Pink Mountaintops’ Stephen McBean about the spirit of rock ‘n’ roll, which was on full display during the band’s blistering set of heavy psych rock down by the Colorado River at the Elevation Amphitheater.
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8. In a weekend permeated with light projections, Panda Bear easily topped them all with his custom imagery that incorporated swirling colors, snakes, and the grim reaper ripping off the head of a teddy bear.
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