Los Angeles – FYF Fest recovered from last year’s growing pains, giving festival-goers one of their most user-friendly events to date. Lines were relatively short, moving between the stages was quite a bit easier (though the walks are still a long distance), and a last-second cancellation from Frank Ocean wasn’t even an issue. While the out-of-left-field injection of Kanye West into the lineup may have driven a ton of walk-up ticket sales, there were plenty of highlights from the day’s up-and-coming artists. Here are just a few of the many new bands at the festival:

Mikal Cronin

Mikal Cronin may have cut his hair and released his most accessible album to date in 2015’s MCIII, but judging by Saturday’s early afternoon set at The Lawn Stage, he still has punk rock spirit left in the tanks. While the Ty Segall-collaborator played a ton of tracks from his latest record, he also touched on some of the songs that have thrust him into the spotlight. Distorted, surf-influenced garage rock anthems like “Apathy”, “Am I Wrong”, and “See It My Way” drove the crowd into pogoing madness, while “The Weight” showcased Cronin’s exceptional Brian Wilson-esque pop songwriting chops.

Photo Credit: Matt Matasci

Alvvays

While chatting with a friend who, to his chagrin, arrived too late to catch Alvvays’ early set on the Main Stage, he commented the 40-minute set was long enough to cover every song from their self-titled full-length. That was pretty much the case, as the five-piece from Toronto was able to perform every highlight from their extremely popular debut full-length. The band’s only misstep was a wardrobe issue from vocalist Molly Rankin; she sported an Oakland Athletics jersey just a few days after they swept the hometown Dodgers. She offered up her dubious defense: “I had no idea this was a baseball shirt.” The crowd was forgiving, bopping their heads in approval.

Photo Credit: Kelsey Heng for FYF Fest

Melody’s Echo Chamber

One of Saturday’s early highlights was Melody’s Echo Chamber’s mid-afternoon set. Fronted by the ever-chic Melody Prochet, her five piece band added European fabulousness to the The Lawn Stage. The best dressed (and most attractive) band on Saturday’s bill, Melody’s Echo Chamber could also lay down the grooves. The French band performed tracks from their acclaimed self-titled debut and upcoming, still to-be-announced follow-up. Oscillating between too-cool mod-pop and distorted psych freak-outs, the band moved and grooved all over the stage, never breaking a sweat in the 80+ degree August sun.

Photo Credit: Matt Matasci

Tennis

Tennis offered up one of the smoother, more relaxing sets at FYF Fest on Saturday, performing at The Lawn Stage. Patrick Riley, Alaina Moore, and company took onlookers on a tour through the band’s discography, touching on their most popular tracks from their Fat Possum and Communion records releases. The band even gave the early afternoon audience a preview of a new song, as Moore explained that it is still very much a work in progress and that it tends to be a little different each time they perform it. In no way signaling a departure from their trademark sound, the song indicates that Tennis will continue to capitalize on their popular brand of lo-fi indie pop.

Photo Credit: Matt Matasci

Savages

In my preview of this year’s FYF Fest, I mentioned that there would probably never be anything like Fucked Up’s 2012 set. Well, I was wrong; Savages won the night with one of the most intense performances in FYF history, blowing minds at The Trees Stage. The beginning of their set was chock full of tracks from their forthcoming sophomore full length, due out in 2016 – including a song “about surviving” and another called “Sad Person”. As the crowd shouted for songs from Silence Yourself, singer Jehnny Beth replied, “We’ll get to the hits later!” Get to the hits they did, with Beth climbing a good 30-40 feet into the crowd for several of the band’s intense closing tracks, including a show-stopping rendition of “Husbands” towards the end of the set. Like in the good old days, FYF-goers that caught Savages’ set left the festival coated in a thick layer of dust.

Photo Credit: Chris Carrasquillo for FYF Fest

With so many new bands on the FYF Fest bill, it is impossible to catch them all. While moving between stages I was also able to catch snippets of Metz’s post-hardcore stomp, Kevin Morby’s folk-punk storytelling, and Purity Ring’s futuristic dream pop. More coverage from Sunday’s lineup is on the way!

Top Photo Credit: Savages  on The Trees Stage by Meg Matasci

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Matt Matasci

Perhaps it was years of listening to the eclectic and eccentric programming of KPIG-FM with his dad while growing up on the Central Coast of California, but Matt Matasci has always rebuffed mainstream music while seeking unique and under-the-radar artists.Like so many other Californian teenagers in the 90s and 00s, he first started exploring the alternative music world through Fat Wreck Chords skate-punk.This simplistic preference eventually matured into a more diverse range of tastes - from the spastic SST punk of Minutemen to the somber folk-tales of Damien Jurado, and even pulverizing hardcore from bands like Converge.He graduated from California Lutheran University with a BA in journalism.Matt enjoys spending his free time getting angry at the Carolina Panthers, digging through the dollar bin at Amoeba, and taking his baby daughter to see the Allah-Lahs at the Santa Monica Pier.

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