Sloss Fest's Bests

SlossFest’s Bests The supply and demand of glitter and fanny packs increase during festival season as a nomadic breed of fans brave the elements all in the name of music. SlossFest was no exception. Under the unrelenting sun, the fierce Sloss Furnace of Birmingham hosted a two-day affair highlighting the musical styling of various big-name bands and up-and-coming acts. With a variety of sounds booming from the three main stages, SlossFest has been added to the collection of music festivals electrifying the South. 1. Glass Animals These invading Brits were a crowd-pleaser at SlossFest on Saturday, kicking off an electric night of shows. Equipped with his Morrissey-like voice, boyish frontman Dave Bayley, cast a spell over the congregation with his wild and whimsical movements across the stage. Caught in an instrumental undertow, his arms would outstretch above the audience like a master puppeteer, coercing an ocean of sweaty swaying bodies. Like a tamer Tame Impala, with heavy synth and trippy, scattered vocals, these electric knights slayed the crowd with hits such as “Life Itself” and “Hazy.” 2. Grouplove The wild party that is Grouplove took fiery Sloss Furnace in a whirlwind of dancing lights and colors. On stage, amid hair slinging and howling ‘oohs’ and ‘ahhs,’ an energetic minx, clad in a lace bodysuit, appeared. Punky and vicious frontwoman, Hannah Hooper screeched life into a heat-exhausted audience. With mesmerizing music escaping from her writhing body like a siren calling out at sea, she was a rush of estrogen on a male-dominated stage. Christian Zucconi, an interesting childlike temper to his voice, accompanied her onomatopoeia vocals with his hypnotizing sounds. The anthem, “Welcome to Your Life,” rang like the ending of a John Hughes blockbuster with a bright hope and airy confidence that carried into an unexpected cover of the Beastie Boys’ “Sabotage.” 3. Washed Out For a change of musical pace and an escape from the heat, the Shed stage housed the dreamlike sounds of Washed Out. The stalking rhythmic guitar, reminiscent of the 80s, paired with the spacey visuals caught spectators in a tidal wave washing them out to a distorted underwater parade. From columns of colored smoke, Ernest Greene’s drowsy voice cooled then herded bystanders like livestock through the Shed and out into the sweltering night. 4. Death Cab for Cutie A pilgrimage to the Steam stage, as many were called to worship, started early. Since the 90s, the cold steel of Ben Gibbard’s wintry voice has beckoned an array of fans to the Mecca of Death Cab for Cutie. Alive and welcoming, this audience favorite was a reminder of the past. Onlookers were a mix of the band’s ride-or-die fandom, seasoned by the many album releases and endless tours and newly exposed followers who fell in love with the group’s revival. Expecting a moody set, Death Cab blew minds with their loaded gun of a performance. 5. Sylvan Esso Space marionette and festival it-girl, Amelia Meath, had no problem showing off her weird during Sunday’s festivities. Framed on stage like a Monet, up close she looked less like a goddess in water and more like an eccentric savage dancing for the impending rain. Her ghostly voice paired with Nick Sanborn’s instrumentals made for a continuous groove. With an airy ABBA essence and rhythms felt in the chest, Sylvan Esso hosted one of the best raves of the day. 6. Dr. Dog Festival-goers’ tails were wagging as the drumming from Eric Slick thundered along with rain clouds overhead. Like robotic brothers of soul, leading men, Toby Leaman, Scott McMicken, and Frank Elroy, strung the audience out to dry with in-sync and artful guitar rifts, not one overshadowing the other. Their heavy, but classical voices cried out as the rain came in buckets during “Broken Hearts.” The torrential downpour went unnoticed as the electric gospel echoed from Zach Miller’s possessed keys accompanying the raindrop choir. 7. Fitz and the Tantrums Monsoon soaked fans soldiered the storm to get a glimpse of the conniption that Fitz and the Tantrums brought to the stage. The upbeat neo soul that resounded from the band had many dancing with strangers in an attempt to dry off. The sounds felt wild and free as powerful anthems escaped vocalists Michael Fitzpatrick and Noelle Scaggs. Their set was alive and energized with popular songs, “The Walker” and “Roll Up,” resembling an electric symphony of color and light on the main stage. 8. The Flaming Lips A pyrotechnic orchestra displaying a metallic magic amongst giant balloon creatures and columns of smoke, the Flaming Lips embraced the unusual. Drowning in a kaleidoscope of lasers and lights, the stage went from festival to carnival. “What is the Light?” and “Do You Realize??” were questions answered by lead, Wayne Coyne, cloaked in a robe of electric hued tentacles or walking over spectators in a giant hamster ball. With the song “Space Oddity,” a tribute to galaxy rock godfather, David Bowie, seemed fitting and had the masses calling out to Major Tom. The psychedelic opera ended in a snowfall of cleansing confetti as the final song closed in an echo. .

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