Preview: Nadafest 5

You know what we don’t need in the seaside shores of Amazon-encrusted Emeralds? Another music festival. No. No we do not.

More so, we don’t need another music festival featuring some variation of the exact bands that performed at every other music festival this year. We need that like we need more condominiums and high-rise tech bro hang pads. We need that like we need Kids Play zones blocking public streets (looking at you, Ballard yuppie dicks). We need that like we need Jeff Bezos on PCP dancing naked through the streets of Seattle, shouting “Feed me the children”.

We don’t need that, is the point.

So why am I writing this? Why am I writing about a music festival? Didn’t I just say we don’t need that? We don’t need more music festivals. But we DO need outlets for artists that haven’t yet climbed the holy mountain of “Seattle famous” to be featured for the incredible work they do.

Rising like Seattle’s indie undead Lazarus, NadaMucho.com presents the 5^th iteration of Nadafest this Friday, 10/18 and Saturday, 10/19 at Skylark Café in West Seattle. Taking place for the first time outside of Fremont’s Substation and pairing down from three days to two, Nadafest 5 boasts its most congruent, cohesive lineup yet.

All bands selected are current inductees in to NadaMucho’s #41for2019 list or were featured in a past list. This year’s fest is prominently rock-heavy but the acts included make it one for the ages.

Day 1. Friday, October 18^th.

Headliner: Downtown. Fuck. If you haven’t seen Downtown play you are not alive. Genre-wise it’s a well-done electro-punk extravaganza. But the true power of Downtown is their unflinching deadpan parody of male aggression and stupidity. It’s not for the faint of heart but if you can hang, it’s well worth it.

Day 1 is the decidedly louder night of Nadafest. Indie rock wordsmiths Golden Idols write some of the wittiest, most hilarious lyrics of in the city as they lay down their incredibly smart songs. Shitty Person brings their haunting, terrifying drone psych to bear (as well as incredible song titles like “Butthole”). Double or Muffin are an excellent blend of noisy pop and garage simplicity, huge Television vibes (said with love). Levi Fuller and The Library bring uncompromised political fire and a metric shit ton of intensity. And kicking off the night will be Seattle institution and bedroom pop extraordinaire (and Nadafest co-founder) TBASA.

Day 2. Saturday, October 19^th.

Headliner: Antonioni. Fuck. Antonioni has been steadily climbing the aforementioned “Seattle Famous” holy mountain for some time now. And there’s been damn good reasons for that. Their passion and intensity live is something to behold. They've strung together two fantastic EP's of alterna-pop infectiousness and there's no reason to think they're going to slow down any time soon.

Day 2 features more female-fronted bands and a hell of a lot of good rock, though of a more contemplative variety. Temple Canyon, fresh of their incredible release "Fortress" just a few months ago, will be featured. Gospel punk rockers Garden Chat have been one of the sleeper bands for me in 2019. Heavy, holy (sounding) and uncompomising, look for them to light up the night. Few do pitch perfect 60's garage psych as well as Fever Ray. Ethereal witch rockers Hel Mary will be on hand with a configuration and set list specifically for Nadafest. Debbie Miller and her ornate, inensely personal songs will enchant the audience. The night will be kicked off by Guthrie-esque political folk artist Aaron Semer.  

Day 1 - More Info | Day 2 - More Info - Music starts each night at 7pm. $10 at the door.

The Verdict

Though I'll miss the alternating 2-stage setup of years past, this is by far the most cohesive lineup Nadafest has ever featured. Top to bottom, this is an impressive lineup of rock bands and solo artists diverse enough to avoid overkill and surpirse those who haven't heard them before. We may not need more music festivals but Nadafest has managed to keep things fresh each year with a focus on rising stars in the community.

Words by Patrick Galactic