School of Seven Bells

There’s no doubt that the music industry is dominated by the male gender, but successful female bands have been increasing in numbers and popularity. For instance, one of the most buzzed about groups, School of Seven Bells (a two sisters/one guy trio), is currently on a nation-wide tour, having just released their album Disconnect From Desire on Vagrant Records. Saturday’s FYF Fest in Los Angeles was unquestionably packed with all-male bands, but the female-dominant groups had no problem holding their own among their male peers.

The first band I got a chance to hear was The Blow, frontwoman/artist/mastermind Khaela Maricich‘s high voice coming across the hilly field from Sequoia Stage just as clearly and sweetly as if she were standing right next to me. “Thanks for hanging out in the hot sun to see us!” She said, the large crowd cheering loudly. She then shared the backstory to her next song, a collaboration with a certain unnamed female celebrity who wanted to express her relationship with another female to her unsupportive mother. It was a touching story set to a dark, down-tempo dance number that elicited shouts of support from the fans in the front of the stage. She closed The Blow’s brief set with the fan favorite ‘True Affection’ off of their latest album Paper Television, everyone standing in the crowd swaying along to the relaxed ballad and Khaela’s soulful lyrics.

Warpaint was next, an all-female group from Los Angeles whose serious psych-indie rock chops and impassioned vocals reminded me of Stevie Nicks. They performed at Redwood Stage, the stage with the widest audience area that allowed the crowd to really pack the field. They are just as sincere when they’re creating haunting vocal harmonies in ‘Burgundy’ as they are when eerily guitar picking over the driving blues beat in ”Beetles’. I can see why Warpaint is such an in-demand group, with national and European tours lined up through the end of October when they will be releasing their debut album The Fool.

After the sun went down, I rushed back to Sequoia Stage for School of Seven Bells, the oft-discussed trio sounding just as dark, poppy, and danceable live as their music sounded online. I was reminded a little of of a much trippier Ace of Base, with cooler, more up-to-date beats.The female singers stood on opposite sides of the stage, their voices meeting in the middle of a cacophony of electronic and live instrument sounds that encouraged dancing to slow and fast numbers alike. The audience really showed their appreciation for the group during the bright dance anthem ‘Windstorm’, everyone shifting into serious party mode and moving freely once the stars came out.

After School of Seven Bells, I decided to call it a night. The great and terrible burden of the festival-goer is choosing how one spend’s one time wisely, and it’s a day spent making difficult decisions. I only caught a few notes of Best Coast‘s surf pop and electro-minimalist Washed Out, and it was enough to make me regret not being able to stay for more of their shows. But that’s the hidden beauty of a festival like this- even if you don’t get to stay for every song, you get a feel for (and usually gain an interest in) lots of new and different artists you would have never been able to experience otherwise.