MY FIRST FESTIVAL EXPERIENCE

Two weeks ago I experienced my very first music festival. I impulsively bought the tickets the day they went on sale. I didn't think twice when clicking the checkout button and I ignored all the alerts from my bank account letting me know that there was a withdrawal over my $20 limit (waaaay over) all that mattered was that I was going to watch Tame Impala and Kendrick Lamar perform live #priorities.

I was ready to experience walking until my hips hurt, paying for over priced food and being surrounded by a bunch of drunk (fun) strangers. These all sound like bad things. They aren't. It's a legitimate experience I wanted to have because I knew it's what is included in a music festival in all it's glory.

I'd felt so overwhelmed by all the artists I wanted to watch, I felt like I needed to watch all of them in order to get the ultimate festival experience. I wanted it to be perfect but ultimately I realized that that wasn't the point. These last few months filled with local music really influenced a new perspective on my concept of music. I started to realize that I don't need to be a complete music snob to enjoy music. I don't need to look a certain way or even be the bands #1 fan. I just need to enjoy it and I think that was a great mentality for me to have during FYF because it was such a big and diverse line up.

On Saturday the first act we saw was Grimes. I haven't listened to Grimes since she released Genesis back in 2012 and even then I'm pretty sure that's the only song I was familiar with. Since then she's evolved so much and, honestly, I'd never seen such a cute, dainty person scream into a mic like that, it was awesome.

I was looking forward to Tame Impala the most. We were a little late and ended up at the edge of the crowd, we tried to push ourselves in but I mean, everyone else was trying to do that too, so it was pretty useless. I was pretty bummed about my spot because I couldn't even see the screen on the stage. There was a girl that was shoving and climbing over people to get to the front. A dude, that quite honestly looked like a complete asshole, was watching her do that and started calling her out. I think getting mad over people pushing to get the front is completely useless but, there he was. He then realized that she made it to the front so he decided to push his way to the front as well. Another dude called him out and that's when a fight almost broke out. They started shoving each other and saying  "bro" a lot. It was all so pointless, ridiculous and it killed my vibe. The only good thing about this was that they started moving closer together so Stephanie and I were able to move past them and get better spots.

 After that dumb situation everything was fine. Honestly, I think Tame Impala was my favorite performance. There was a moment while watching Tame Impala perform 'Eventually' where it seemed like the entire audience was singing along and I felt chills. It was an incredible feeling to be surrounded by complete strangers that all share the love for this one band. It was a really nice feeling.

On Sunday, we were tired. We genuinely didn't think FYF would physically wear us out because we're used to walking so much around LA. I mean, we took a trip to San Francisco where we literally walked all of it (including hills) and not even that killed us as much as FYF did. My hips were on fire and Stephanie's calves hurt. That's not something two 20-year-old girls should say.

So, needless to say Sunday was supposed to be a more chill day. We started the day by watching Black Lips perform. They are such a cool band and it was amazing to get to see them live but it was the opposite of chill. The complete opposite. People created a huge mosh pit and since they were playing at the Trees Stage , which had a dirt floor, they created a huge dust storm that had us coughing for a week. Stephanie experienced bruises on weird parts of her body and I got hit on the head and it hurt for a week. I was worried I had a concussion but I think I'm fine. During the Ty Segall I stayed near the back while Stephanie moshed and got hit in the face #goodtimes.

Stephanie left to go watch Young Thug while I sat and watched from a distance. I was so utterly exhausted but watching her run off with her friend Lily into a jumping crowd made me so happy. I don't even know why, I can't explain it.

To end our day at FYF we watched LCD Sound System. I have to go ahead and admit that I'd never actually listened to an LCD Sound System song before that moment.

Oops.

I don't think I would've liked them if I'd heard them online first. I think I benefited from hearing them for the first time ever live because I appreciate them a lot more. Their performance was so much fun. It felt like we were at a huge party because everyone was dancing and singing their heart outs. They were a pretty perfect ending to the festival. I was exhausted and a little irritated because I'd lost Stephanie in the crowd but I couldn't help but feel the good vibes, especially when they brought out that huge disco ball. I'm a sucker for disco balls.

It was a fun experience. I'm ready to go to more festivals and have my hips burn some more.

words by diana 

HEARTCORE FEST 2016

Saturday night was full of pure local talent. Heartcore Productions put on their first(?) festival featuring 20 local bands in Whittier, CA. We watched Gold Vine for the first time ever and they didn’t disappoint! We also saw The Biscuits for the first time, they did a solid cover of The Red Hot Chili Peppers “Give It Away”. The singer for Devas Mantra gave an energetic, and might we say very rock'n'roll, performance that we’ll never forget with their guitarist dressed in a very nice dress. They definitely stole the show for us. All in all it was a memorable night. This D.I.Y festival was so good it even included a taco man and an ice cream truck. We love the whole D.I.Y scene and this is the perfect example as to why. The fact that this relatively small production company was able to throw together such an event with detailed things, like having 2 stages for bands to perform, is amazing. We don’t know the people behind Heartcore Productions but we gotta hand it to them, they threw a pretty impressive fest.   

PICTURED IN ORDER ARE GOLD VINE, KIKI DIAGO, AND THE RED PEARS.

SEE YA LATER SUMMER

We can easily say that this summer was filled with a lot of cool music. We went to a lot of backyard shows , did some sweet interviews and overall really appreciated the local scene.
     We like ending our summers with a bang so this year we went to FYF where Kendrick Lamar + Tame Impala + LCD Soundsystem + Grace Jones were headlining. It was epic.
      A couple day's before FYF, Robyn from Mother Mareand I realized we were both going to be there and saw it as the perfect opportunity to finally meet. 
     Stephanie warned me that at FYF you can't just meet up with people, it doesn't happen. What does happen is you casually, unexpectedly bump into them. I didn't believe her because the concept of meeting up at a music festival doesn't seem that complex but she was right. It was Stephanie that casually bumped into them when she lost me in the crowd while watching LCD Soundsystem. The point is that I didn't get to meet up with the duo despite my rigorous (excessively rigorous) efforts to do so. It just wasn't meant to be that weekend.

Mother Mare has since released their debut single "UNWORTHY" on Soundcloud and honestly, we are obsessed. 



We were in my car when we heard it for the first time. The moment it ended we both agreed to play it again. And again. And again (And again. And again. And again.).  They are a terrific duo and we are excited to hear more music from them in the near future.

Keep up with them on Instagram!