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The inaugural Best Friends Forever Fest kicked off October 11 at the Downtown Las Vegas Events Center as a three-day celebration of midwest emo, \u201990s indie rock and the connections we\u2019ve made along the way.<\/p>\n
In many cases, this was the first time in decades festival goers were seeing this lineup, which included veteran bands like Cap \u2019N Jazz, The Dismemberment Plan, Built to Spill and Unwound. The Blood Brothers, for instance, were reuniting to celebrate their 20-year-old album, Crimes<\/em>. Others, like noise-rock vets The Jesus Lizard, were performing in support of their first LP in 26 years. And the festival did a bang up job of creating space for those moments, ultimately scheduling legacy acts on the main Best Friends Forever stage, while their newer, more hardcore contemporaries played the Third Street Stage.<\/p>\n October\u2019s unusual heat wave didn\u2019t bode well for many festival goers, who sought refuge under the DLVEC\u2019s large tent setup, where misters and fans awaited them. On Day 2, the Weekly<\/em> was originally told complimentary water would be no longer available after 4 p.m. However, festival organizers clarified that water, in fact, had just run out and was restocked by no later than 5 p.m.\u00a0Outside of that miscommunication, the weekend ran smoothly, feeling aptly like a chill reunion with all of our favorite bands. Here are some of the highlights.<\/p>\n Friday, October 11<\/strong><\/p>\n We\u2019ve been looking forward to catching Vs Self<\/strong> at BFF Fest since our interview with guitarist and vocalist Kyle Schlenker last week. They harped on the significance of being on the same bill with some of their most influential bands and we just knew they were going to show out\u2014and show out they did. Standing among the new generation of emo kids at the Third Street Stage reminded us what it looked and felt like to await your current favorite band to take the stage. They stood giddy, but not for long, as the band ripped into mosh-heavy jams like \u201cLeave Everything,\u201d \u201cYesterday By Beatles Or: Imagine By Yoko Ono As Sung By John Lennon\u201d and \u201cMourn.\u201d The pit swelled and shrank, bodies dropped below and surfed above the crowd in communal frenzy. This was one of the most fun sets of the day and was worth leaving with sticky skin. \u2013Gabriela Rodriguez <\/em><\/p>\n By the time Foxing <\/strong>hit the stage at 5:30 p.m., fans were drenched in sweat from the harsh heat, but vocalist Conor Murphy demanded even more. \u201cGet all sweaty so the American Football guys can smell you,\u201d he said. \u201cIf they don\u2019t smell you, you\u2019ve failed. You\u2019ve gotta stink good.\u201d The band then barreled through ear-rattling cuts from their self-titled LP, with Murphy\u2019s gently delivered intro on songs like \u201cSecret History\u201d belying immensely cathartic screams. By the end of the set, one man grabbed his friend, saying, \u201cThat\u2019s good music right there. This s**t makes me so glad I\u2019m alive.\u201d Indeed, brother, indeed. \u2013Amber Sampson <\/em><\/p>\n American Football<\/strong>, the band that once tore open our teenage guts and spilled them on our bedroom floors, just gave us the gift of reliving it all\u2014live. For the 25th anniversary of their debut album they played the whole thing. And those who thought they\u2019d outgrown the private turmoil of teenage sadness, were immediately proven wrong. As frontman Mike Kinsella and the band settled into the intricate, mathy guitar lines, there was a stillness in the crowd. \u201cHonestly, I can’t remember (teen dreams)\/ All my teenage feelings, and their meanings\u201d a line from the \u201cHonestly?\u201d hung in the air as shimmering guitar motifs, introspective strums and drumming unfolded. While the set went on, we found ourselves zoning out, consumed by old memories and thoughts. But before going too far into the abyss, some nearby comedic relief brought us back. \u201cThis is an AirBnb ad,\u201d quipped a fest-goer, referencing the photos of the Urbana, Illinois home that were displayed on stage. The house, famously pictured on the emo-acclaimed album cover, has since become a musical landmark that was later purchased by the band in 2023. \u201cI don\u2019t know if this is a funeral, or a high school reunion, or a funeral for a high school reunion,\u201d said Kinsella before the opening riff of one of the greatest emo songs of all time, \u201cNever Meant\u201d\u2014a song about coming to terms with a failing relationship. After an hour, the set wrapped and we had to walk away, take a deep breath and shake off the heavy feelings before the next act. \u2013GR<\/em><\/p>\n Fiddlehead<\/strong>\u2019s Patrick Flynn wasted little time winning the crowd over, joking that he was \u201cincredibly honored to have this new, young band American Football play for us.\u201d The lead vocalist went on to express his gratitude for American Football and other definitive \u201990s bands like Karate, who had a profound impact on him. Fiddlehead then proceeded to pummel us with its crunchy, vibrantly toned guitar playing and mountain-moving energy. \u201cGrief Motif\u201d exploded in power, both onstage and off, as the track threw the GA and VIP pits into a sweat-soaked frenzy. Security had their hands full as people crowd surfed and one fan attempted to rush the stage. Flynn for his part, dangled the mic out to each riled up group, belting the lyrics back to them and stomping his feet so aggressively you\u2019d think they were on fire. \u2014AS<\/em><\/p>\n Saturday, October 12<\/strong><\/p>\n La Dispute, <\/strong>the five-piece band from Grand Rapids, Michigan, has been an influential presence in the experimental hardcore community over the last decade and is cultivating a new era of fans as time goes on. And it\u2019s with good reason. The band\u2019s discography faces the truths of the real world and thrusts the listener into a sometimes uncomfortable and dim place. Vocalist Jorgan Dryer still stands as one of emo\u2019s best spoken word storytellers. Seeing him throw his body around the stage on a hot October afternoon while shouting the poetically dark lyrics from tracks like \u201cKing Park\u201d and \u201cFirst Reactions After Falling Through the Ice\u201d was cathartic. And while this may not seem like a vibe at a Vegas centered music festival, the set fit perfectly. Dryer took a moment to speak to the crowd and deliver this sentiment\u2014\u201cIt becomes increasingly important that people with big hearts and compassionate minds look out for the people around them and push back against oppressors in favor of the oppressed.\u201d The group closed with one of their shortest but beloved tracks, \u201cSuch Small Hands,\u201d which invited the crowd to shout along. \u2013GR<\/em><\/p>\n Following an incredibly tight set from Built to Spill, Sweet Pill<\/strong> devoured the spotlight on Day 2. The charismatic Zayna Youssef flexed her stagecraft on \u201cHigh Hopes\u201d and \u201cRed String,\u201d twirling in circles and wagging her mop of gorgeous curls into her eyes as her guitarists danced their fingers over the frets. The Pool Kids singer Christine Goodwyne also joined the band for a song, surprising fans who weren’t expecting Goodwyne and her crew until the following day. Eyes remained glued on Youssef though, who exhibited a vocal power that recalls that of Paramore\u2019s Hayley Williams. This band, while still developing, is bound to go far. \u2013AS<\/em><\/p>\n Sunday, October 13<\/strong><\/p>\n If you weren\u2019t dancing in the pit to Drug Church <\/strong>on Day 3, were you even there? Patrick Kindlon took no crap when it came to moshing at his rowdy set. \u201cCome on up!\u201d he called out to a crowd surfer. \u201cHop on over!\u201d he said to another. \u201cF**king move!\u201d At one point, the lead singer stopped to analyze why the VIP section\u2019s energy had begun to wane. \u201cYour parents passed on, left you the house in Rhode Island and now you don\u2019t think you gotta put work into the pit?\u201d That reinvigorated the older lot, who joined the GA in going ballistic for \u201cMillion Miles of Fun,\u201d a highlight of the set that reinforced just how damn good hardcore can be. \u2013AS<\/em><\/p>\n Mics were dropped, beer cans were thrown and crowds were surfed by The Jesus Lizard\u2019s <\/strong>David Yow. It was a show of epic proportions, bolstered by the vocalist\u2019s wild, and at times precarious, stage presence. Yow opened the set on the main stage by revealing he and his sister had been born in Las Vegas. After a warmly sung happy birthday to Yow\u2019s sister, the debauchery began. The lead singer unbuttoned his shirt and catapulted himself into the crowd, singing directly to them, or more aptly slurring to them in a way that was giving drunk uncle at Thanksgiving. Meanwhile, the rest of the Jesus Lizard kept their composure, tightly blasting through newer songs from the band\u2019s Rack<\/em> LP. Before fans knew it, the 64-year-old Yow was being crowd-surfed through the air, giving us a finale we\u2019ll never forget. \u2013AS<\/em><\/p>\n<\/p><\/div>\n