As you can probably gather from the title of this top ten, I am sadly not going to The Fest this year but that doesn’t stop me from listening to plenty of the bands on the line-up. I’ve decided to write about the top ten bands I would go and see, if I was going to Fest this year. I’ve chosen ten bands that I’ve never seen live before and, conveniently, none of my picks clash!
Okay, before we get into this, I realise that I’ve managed to pick only one ‘international’ band that’s playing The Fest this year for which I apologise but, given that I don’t live in the States, that kind of makes sense. (See the end of this post for a further note about international bands.)
Lone Wolf (Friday at High Dive 22:00–22:30)
First up we have said international band – Lone Wolf from Rotterdam in the Netherlands. I first became aware of this foursome when I spotted their debut self-titled album in All Ages Records, Camden. It has a wolf on the cover and wolves are one of my favourite animals so obviously I was intrigued. Lone Wolf play catchy, melodic tunes featuring some excellent dual vocals from Merel and Ox. Their second album, Together Alone, which came out two weeks ago, is definitely worth your time. (Full review of said album coming soon!)
Big Nothing (Friday at The Wooly 23:20–23:50)
Big Nothing, a four-piece from Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, recently played their first UK tour… and I ‘discovered’ them a couple of days after the London date thanks to their album Chris popping up on Colin’s mega 2019 playlist. I should have found out about them sooner given that they have a familiar face in the band in the form of Pat Graham from Spraynard but, alas, I did not. Big Nothing play big fuzzy indie punk and, like Lone Wolf, also feature some killer dual vocals from Liz Parsons alongside Pat.
Cold Wrecks (Saturday at Boca Fiesta 13:20–13:50)
I may have mentioned it once or twice already but This Could Be Okay by Cold Wrecks is quite possibly my album of the year. If you’re not familiar with the band, they are from Brooklyn, New York, and play a perfect blend of emotional pop punk – music that is highly singalong-able that also gives you all of the feels. In my review of the aforementioned album, I said something along the lines of ‘Sorry, Spanish Love Songs, Cold Wrecks are my new favourite band’ and they are probably the band I am most gutted to not be seeing at Fest.
Nightmarathons (Saturday at Boca Fiesta 14:10–14:40)
I have to be honest, I knew the name Nightmarathons but until writing this list I knew next to nothing about this band. When we were looking at the line-up however, Colin pointed out that they were one of those bands where I always said ‘I like this, who is this?’ when a song of theirs is playing – I had their album Missing Parts on my ‘New For Prew’ playlist earlier in the year. Nightmarathons are from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and play melodic punk rock with post-punk and emo influences that shine through.
Devon Kay & The Solutions (Saturday at CMC Paper + Plastik Showcase 16:40–17:10)
Devon Kay may be most well-known as the guitarist of Direct Hit! but Devon Kay & The Solutions, based in Chicago, Illinois, are a six-piece who play the most wonderfully eclectic brand of punk rock. On their last album, Yes I Can’t, alone the songs range from jangly power pop, to vibrant folk and ska punk. It’s a whole lot of fun musically but also features some relatable lyrical content that will make you think as well as dance. Rerelocating is one of my favourite songs of the year.
The Eradicator (Saturday at The Wooly 21:10–21:40)
Also from Chicago, The Eradicator is an artist that I figured everyone needs to experience at some point. Sometimes solo and sometimes backed by a mixed cast of backing members, The Eradicator play aggressive punk rock songs that are quite often about squash (the sport, not the vegetable or drink). I imagine a live performance to be as absurd as that description sounds but also to be heaps of fun. Plus, I just really want to scream along to I’m A Squash Man!
Worriers (Saturday at 8 Seconds 23:20–00:10)
It feels well overdue time to see Worriers live, having missed them the times they’ve been to the UK in the past. The Brooklyn, New York, band whose music centres around the songwriting of Lauren Denitzio alongside friends including Mikey Erg, Lou Hanman and Nick Psillas play melodic punk rock. Their 2018 album, Survival Pop, was so, so good and I know the band have finished recording the follow-up. I’m not sure if it’s due out this year or not but, either way, I’m keen.
Telethon (Sunday at Hardback Cafe 12:30–13:00)
Another of my favourite discoveries this year, Milwaukee, Wisconsin, based five-piece Telethon released an absolutely brilliant album called Hard Pop in June. It, and the band in general, are difficult to describe in a single genre but that’s just one reason why I love them – their songs are so varied, there’s got to be something for everyone in a Telethon live set. They’re playing early on the last day of Fest but I reckon there will be a lot of people battling through hangovers to make sure they see this band play.
Ramona (Sunday at High Dive 18:50–19:20)
Colin reviewed Ramona’s Red Scare debut Deals, Deals, Deals! earlier this year and it has understandably been on a lot at CPRW HQ – we both love it. The Philly via Seattle, trio play catchy and energetic indie pop punk songs that are equal parts sad and cathartic. We’d love nothing more than to see the band live and sing along with some of our favourite songs from the record. Also, from what I’ve seen on YouTube, Ramona seem like a damn good live band.
Rebuilder (Sunday at Downtown Fats 01:10–01:40)
Closing the whole damn festival (and partly clashing with my equally beloved Überyou) are Boston, Massachusetts, foursome Rebuilder. I wrote about Rebuilder last year in a sort of bucket list of bands I’d really love to see live (which you can check out here) and also reviewed their 2017 EP Sounds From The Massachusetts Turnpike EP. The EP, quite frankly, blew me away and made me a big fan. I have since tweeted them many times asking when they’re coming over to the UK. Unfortunately it doesn’t seem likely in the foreseeable future but I think watching them at The Fest would be ten times better anyway.
Finally, my special mentions go to New Junk City, Spanish Love Songs and Überyou, all of whom I have seen before but would absolutely love to see again. I was also going to list some of the UK/European bands that I’d personally recommend (other than Lone Wolf and Überyou, who are from Switzerland) but Colin has a post specifically about just that coming next week so I’ll leave it to him! And if you are going to The Fest this year, have an amazing time – I won’t be at all jealous of your photos and videos on Instagram…
This top ten was written by Emma Prew.
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