'Tower Porchfest > Coachella.' Fresno's mega music festival in review
Plus, a check of new released and The Carlos Montano Band opens for George Lopez in Fresno.
If you wanted, you could look at Tower Porchfest as a litmus test of Fresno’s receptiveness toward cool shit; that is too say enthusiastic, if not absolute.
When the festival started in 2021, I called it “the music festival Fresno needs right now.” Which was true based on pragmatism. We were coming out of the pandemic, most of the music venues were still shut down and performers had no place to play.
So, the idea of musicians making their own venues (outdoors even!) seemed perfect. And also, like, kind of genius. Why hadn’t anyone thought of this before?
The festival has become Fresno’s signature musical event by keeping that grass-roots, community fed, DIY mentality.
There is an organization at play. It does important work coordinating scheduling and publicity and (more importantly) heading off any potential hazards associated with massive crowds (things like public restrooms, traffic control and parking overflows).
But mostly, it stays out of the way and lets the festival happen on the micro-scale, block-by-block, porch-by porch.
Which means Porchfest remains free.
That is monetarily speaking. There’s no cover charge.
But it’s also free of gatekeepers and commercialism (mostly, so far).
And because Porchfest is open to anyone with a space willing to share, the festival crosses generations and genres and is, by far, the best representation of the diverse scene of active musicians in Fresno (and also some damn-good hobbyists).
Vince Cosentino made the rounds and documented that diversity on Instagram if you wanna look.
I was busy either performing or ferrying equipment between porches on Saturday, so I can’t give much of a review. But:
Brother Luke played “Summertime,” a song I love, love.
Cherry Auction nailed the vintage country-twang with punk aplomb.
Mantis Watch proved they are masters of the dumb-but-catchy AF 45-second punk song. Seriously, few, if any do it better.
Knuckleball came in with some super-tight indie-rock with edges of emo/math-rock. Their drummer played five sets for the day, which brings back memories of Eli Reyes at F.U.S.E. Fest 2011 (for those who were there).
I almost don’t want to mention Seven Asterisk doing that Cranberries cover, because they are an original band with some good grungy tunes, but every time I hear them play “Dreams,” I am impressed. So …
Other than that, I will say there were crowds everywhere and everyone seemed to be vibeing (some way more than others). From a performer/musician/artist standpoint, it is beyond heartening to see the streets filled (literally in many cases) with hundreds of artistic-minded people supporting what is essentially an artistic endeavor for nothing more than the sake of doing it.
Oh, it also rained for a portion of the day and everyone adapted and no one seemed to care. Final thoughts: Tower Porchfest isn’t Coachella or Outside Lands or Aftershock.It’s not even Grizzly Fest, which remains an achievement in its own right.
It is something arguably better. To quote this online review: “A genuine triumph of community power.”
For more, check out this story I did for The Fresno Bee talking with some folks about what makes Tower Porchfest so special.
New musics: Guaya, Crossbreaker, Michael Faeth
Here’s a quick check on some new releases that have come my way of late.
“Nothing,” is the new single from Endrique Cardoba, who writes, produces and performs under the moniker Guaya. The song has a nuevo surf rock vibe (a la early the Frights), but replaces the garage rock with soul music vibes. The screamy part around the 1:30 mark makes my day.
Crossbreaker just dropped “Delusion Spreading,” a full album of thrashy metal. The nine songs are throaty and riff driven, not quite speed-metal in pacing (though it gets close on songs like “Upon the Cross”). This is head banging music, for sure.
Michael Faeth just released “Making Smiles,” the latest single from his self-named solo project, which he describes as: “Mothersbaugh on the Moog, Levin the bass, Katché the drums, Summers the guitar, and Yorke on vocals.
“That would be some music worth checking out,” he writes.Yup.
Carlos Montano Band + George Lopez at the Saroyan Theatre
File this under, something we don’t see often.
Carlos Montano announced his band would be opening for George Lopez for his performance at Saroyan Theatre May 10.
Why it’s cool:
One, it’s rare to see a musician opening for a comedian (typically it’s the other way around, as when Jim Breuer opened for Metallica in 2019 or whatever).
Two, it’s rare to see a Fresno band (that’s not classically trained) performing on the Saroyan Theatre stage. I’d have to do some archive work to confirm, but I can’t remember it happening.
Montano and his band have a relationship with Lopez and have opened for him in the past. And it does feel like the pair would share a fan base. But it’s awesome to have the Central Valley home town tie-in. It will be well received.
That’s it for this week. Remember you can now hear me on the Homegrown Show Sundays at 8 p.m. on New Rock 104.1 FM. I’m in the studio with Art Silva and Chris from the band Something UR Not. Follow my other writing at The Fresno Bee. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com