Unconventional Music, Unconventional Musicians
Duane The Jet Black Eel 11:30PM (website)
The Jet Black Eel is the embodiment of the artist’s own inner freak. Spawned in unknown waters but somehow traveled through the river bends of fate to the city of Detroit, Michigan. Where he grew to let his inner eccentric blossom. At the turn of the current decade he witnessed the arrival of other outside beings who came to usher in the era of the so-called “New Detroit”. Intrigued by the new settlers in his homeland he chose to imitate their image to slip into their spotlight.
Lt.baD 10:30PM (website)
Detroit-based duo Lt.baD was formed in 2012 as a tribute to early eighties boogie, electro, and breakdance music. Lt.baD has previously released mixtapes of favorite tracks from the classic breakdance era interspersed with original material. Their periodic DJ sets draw from a large body of funk, classic soul, quiet storm, and disco, and often include semi-live versions of Lt.baD originals.
Pewter Cub 12:30AM (website)
From Regan Lorie’s beautiful vocals, poignant lyrics & groovy bass lines to Scott Sanford’s ethereal yet hook- laden guitars to Dave Jenning’s space walking drum beats, Detroit’s Pewter Cub write songs for the heart,soul and spiritual beyond. Stylistically, their music bridges the gap between such genres as spacey psychedelia, shoegaze and jangly pop.
Isles of ESP 11:30PM (website)
Isles of ESP provide an otherworldly storm of musical contortions and driving rhythms. Lead by Eric Dilworth’s sheets of guitar raining down and around like a hurricane and supported by the fluid pounding of Justin Walker on drums and Matt Luke’s pulsing bass, the band blows into the room and overturns the notions of what a traditional rock-based arrangement can create.
Dear Darkness 10:30PM (website)
Dear Darkness are a post-punk duo whose sound is waxing and combustible—the rawer side of PJ Harvey mixed with the rock economy of The Ramones, the drama of Siouxie Sioux mixed with the faux-pomposity of Pulp. Dear Darkness’s music could be called “bedroom pop,” but only when the curtains are drawn and the lamps are covered.
Arthur Colvin 7:00PM (website)
Dave Graw and Scott Stimac, two Detroit-based multi-instrumentalists are Arthur Colvin—a continuation of the deep strains of ambient music that have perpetuated in the area since the early-to-mid ’90s. Warm tones slowly rise over the listener like the dawning of the sun on a dewy summer morning, reaching a fullness as bright as noon, and fading into cool introspection that matches the glow of dusk in the sky. Their music radiates an intensity that belies its stillness, and holds to a deep cosmic spirituality.
Betsy Soukup 4:30PM (website)
Betsy Soukup is a bassist, composer, and improvisor living in Detroit. She studied classical music for the majority of her life, but currently focuses her creative energy on playing freely improvised music, writing and performing her own compositions, writing poetry, and performing comedy improv.
BURNS 2:15PM
One woman’s effort on the electric viola to recreate the alien signal sound from the movie ‘Contact,’ starring Jodie Foster.
Plague Suns 12:00PM
Drone based musical explorations of reductivism, dynamics in volume, and repetition. Inspired by ritual and catharsis, the music is more sound piece than song, and changes to suit the time and place of the performance. This is a prayer and process for rebirth, self-immolation with sound that can rage like towering bonfires or smolder like embers.
Fest Performance Photos (167 Photos)
Photography by Lume Photography
