Upcoming: Porchfest is back for 2022 and it's shaping up nicely.
Plus, Napalm Death comes to Strummer's and new music from Bel, Hill Blocks View.
Who would have known Fresno would have taken such a liking to Porchfest?
I mean, one might have guessed. The whole idea fits well with the city’s general brand of decentralized cool making. After all, Fresno’s various fests (Rogue, Swede, Fresyes, Greek) were all born from normal folks just kind of making stuff happen outside the normal processes.
And that’s kind of Porchfest’s scene.
There are no venues or talent buyers or managers throwing roadblocks. Do you have a front porch? Cool. Some friends or neighbors (or random acquaintances, even) who make music? Cool.
Here’s a random Spring Day and a community of the like-minded to coordinate the happening. Now, go enjoy your music festival.
Last year’s Tower Porchfest had some 30 “stages” and more than 45 performers playing a full Saturday (from 10 a.m. to 8 p.m. or so). The bulk of the porches were within walking distance north of Olive Avenue between Van Ness and Palm avenues, but there were some spots on the outskirts, too.
This year’s festival is slated for April 9th and already has 30 porches signed on.
At least one of the porch lineups has leaked.
Former TV show host/Tower celebrity Chuck Leonard, is hosting Pieter Moerdyk, Vince Warner, Electric Funk Explosion and Pamela Henri and the Big Boss Band with food from Bensmokin BBQ.
Organizers have teamed up with Creative Fresno this year on a fundraiser campaign to help pay for pay for t-shirts, posters, insurance “and all the other things a proper festival needs.”
They are also creating a porch on wheels for next weekend’s Mardi Gras Parade.
You can follow @TowerPorchfest for updates.
Napalm Death + Elder Devil @Strummer’s
While we’re adding things to the calendar, here’s something that’ll set your ears ringing just to think about. Grindcore pioneers Napalm Death announced an April 13 date at Strummer’s. It looks to be the first night of the UK band’s North American Siege tour, which runs through mid May.
As a cool bonus, Fresno’s own grindcore act Elder Devil opens the show. The band was recently signed to Prosthetic Records and is slated to release their debut this year.
Bel, “Big City”
“Big City,” is the latest single from Isabel “Bel” Whelan, a San Joaquin Memorial High and UCLA graduate, now making music in Los Angles (though she was back and forth some during the pandemic).
The song is a pretty self-explanatory true story of girl who doesn’t want to run into her ex at a backyard show in Silverlake. So, she goes to Target instead.
“I found out my ex was on the lineup of my friend’s show I was going to see,” Bel says.
“I decided not to go and instead aimlessly wander around Target and write lyrics in my notes app on my phone.”
“Big City” is the first single off of Bel’s, Jet Lag, which is set to release in Spring. It is out on Wednesday, but you can presave now.
Hill Blocks View, “Broken Windows”
On Friday, Hill Blocks View (or HillBlocksView, I guess) released their latest single, “Broken Windows” across digital platforms and with an official video. It’s a continuation of what we’ve come to expect from the band — a well produced post-punk pop-rock radio track for fans of Hawthorne Heights, later-day AFI and the like.
Here’s the band playing the track on KMPH’s Great Day back in October.
You can catch them live next weekend at the Fresno Tattoo Expo or at Strummer’s March 13.
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. If you have anything you think I need to be looking at or listening to, feel free to let me know: jtehee@gmail.com