Luckily, I was indeed right, and just before artist Dana T. went on at a 9, the audience swelled with lots of people, crowding the upstairs of Gabe’s into a proper audience. Even more people came just in time for the start of Younger’s performance. I remained, if I had to guess, the youngest person there by several years, which was readily apparent as the other music goers all held beers and I held a cup of water (sigh). Water and all, the atmosphere was very fun and enjoyable, just as I expected it to be when listening to some women jamming out to their songs under the blinking lights at Gabe’s.

As I was reading about Iowa City-based Younger on the Mission Creek festival website, I found it funny that the band, composed of members Sarah Mannix on the drums, Amanda Crosby on the bass, and Rachel Sauter on guitar, “accidentally” wrote their first album as a sort of experiment, diving into what collaboration really means. I’m not sure how that happens in the first place, but I’m glad it did. Younger’s songs are simultaneously “feminine and tough” and tackle such topics as crappy experiences with men, frowned upon behavior, complicated relationships, and more.

What I noticed the most about Younger throughout their 35-ish minute set is their ability to maintain the initial energy established with the first song all the way to the end. Some other artists or bands may start strong, but then play a song that slows the room down, deflates the audience, and ruins the overall upbeat vibe. This was not the case with Younger – each song was lively and fast, fitting together cohesively, yet unique at the same time.

The very first song they played immediately reminded me of “Reputation” from the original Shrek soundtrack (side note: what a masterpiece that soundtrack was); awesome drums, strong female vocals and unapologetic lyrics. The audience, myself included, was compelled to jump around and bop our heads to the infectious song. I believe the second song they played was “Trash,” a crowd favorite for its funny lyrics and somewhat outrageous concept of using such an unappealing title. They later threw in a cover song, which I unsurprisingly did not recognize since they prefaced it with “this will show you old you are.”

The titles of their other songs are pretty straight forward, such as “20s,” “Art School,” and “Divorce,” highlighting the band’s upfront honesty about the topics they are exploring. Bold and energetic, Younger is yet another band to keep an eye out for as they promote their second album. Read more about them here.

The post Mission Creek: Younger @ Gabe’s 4/4/2019 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Hot Tang and Younger opened up for Current Joys. They both featured female vocalists and had unique sounds. Hot Tang seemed to be influenced a lot by an indie band I am very familiar with, Frankie Cosmos.

Younger had a very great and original sound, mixing complicated, fast-paced bass riffs with sweet harmonies between the women of the band.

It was 10:30 when Current Joys started on stage. Along with Nick Rattigan, the front-runner, there was a bassist, drummer, and keyboardist. I could tell I liked their energy just as soundcheck started. I had only known two songs by them while going to the concert. I knew I liked their sound, but I didn’t know all their music, which kept me with a fresher ear. I snaked a spot in the front row, observing the band and the crowd.

As they started off with the song “Become the Warm Jets”, which starts off their album, A Different Age. Nick sang acapella, which lead to a soft guitar sound. The one thing I noticed throughout the night was how much passion he put into his music. His body would physically move with the music and seeing this made you feel more apart of the sound.

I caught some of the songs below they played live: “Desire”, “My Blueberry Life”, “Kids”, “My Nights Are More Beautiful Than Your Days”. These songs were a mix of soft, melodic, slow sounds and upbeat, loud, energetic sounds; which all were equally entertaining and enjoyable.

I literally liked every song they played and I could tell the crowd did too. There were a few fans in the front who were dancing and swaying, clearly very into the music. The girl next to me would egg me along with her as we danced to the music. Only the front few rows were dancing though, the farther back the more stoically the crowd stood.

The best part of the show was watching the energy Current Joys gave off, then simultaneously seeing the crowd eat it up. Nick was so into it, his feet and body didn’t stay still the whole of the 30-minute-long setlist. The only member who was a lot more peaceful and chill was the girl playing the keyboard. She stayed still the whole time and I found the contrast very interesting. She didn’t seem any less into the music and the art of performing, she simply just faced it differently with an overall calmness, while her band members shook and shimmied to the music.

Coming out of this show I gained a new favorite band. Their sound is very well-rounded and enters many different categories. They played wonderfully live and were well mixed. Not once did I cringe at bad musicianship and I honestly held trust in their musicality, it shone through the inevitable passion of their performance.

The post Mission Creek Festival: Current Joys @ Gabe’s 4/4/2018 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

It’s no surprise that when the Mission Creek Festival rolls around, some great artists come through as well. Tonight I got to see the all-girl band Younger at Gabe’s, and it was a hell of a time.

The Iowa City-based trio opened up with their new single, “Trash,” which is forthcoming on their sophomore album set to release soon.

According to their Facebook page, their set tonight included all of the songs on their new album. I really enjoyed the instrumentals to their songs, which I really found myself vibing out to.

Also, it’s nice to see some more girl bands on the scene, since it feels like we seriously lack them in the mainstream.

I asked my friend Melinda what she thought of them, and her response was spot on: “Imagine Barbie meeting 90’s grunge and hanging out with Kurt Cobain.”

Tbh, I can see it. They weren’t super grungy, but like, still kinda grungy. Ya know?

Their set was definitely a lot more lowkey, which is something I like after a day of dealing with classes and homework.

While I liked the performance, I usually enjoy performances with a little bit more stage presence from the band — they really vibed out and just kind of swayed around, which after a while gets old (if you’re not in the right mood). Nonetheless, you could tell there was a lot of heart and soul poured into their music.

I think this was a perfect set to be played at Gabe’s — as I’ve said before, and will a million times more, I love the vibe that Gabe’s gives. With the twinkly lights, dark setting, and good drinks, it’s hard to be unhappy there.

What I also enjoyed about this show was that it wasn’t overly packed — I’ve been to some bigger pop punk concerts at Gabe’s where my knees were smashed against the wall up at the front of the stage from people crowding themselves around you.

At this show, I was able to peacefully sip on my Angry Orchard without fearing that some hipster 16 year old would bump into me and cause me to spill all over myself.

The rest of the crowd seemed to be enjoying themselves too, with a select few at the front absolutely jamming out without a care in the world. I would say that they drew in a decent sized crowd, as it wasn’t too packed but not too empty either.

Not convinced yet that you need to see them? Check out some of their promo pictures for some previous shows they’ve done. I mean, c’mon. You had me at hot Cheetos.

While I can’t find a for sure date on the release of this new album of theirs, I did find a video of fans talking about what the group sounds like and I think it’s pretty spectacular. Check it out here!

The post Mission Creek Festival: Younger @ Gabe’s 4/4/2018 appeared first on KRUI Radio.

Featuring: Built to Spill / Wye Oak / Jamila Woods (Reading + Performance) / Carrie Brownstein + Roxane Gay + Amber Tamblyn (In Conversation) / Julien Baker / Lidia Yuknavitch / Quinta Brunson and Friends / Margaret Glaspy / Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith / Algiers / Cakes Da Killa / Laurel Halo (Live + DJ Set) / Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib Xylouris White / Deb Olin Unferth / The Weepies/ Horse Lords / S. Carey / ONO / Alex Zhang Hungtai / Horse Feathers / Current Joys / Gordi /Kundiman / Lambda Literary / VIDA

IOWA CITY, IA – We are proud to announce that Mission Creek Festival will return to Iowa City April 3 – 8, 2018 for its 13th year, produced by The Englert Theatre. Join us for a week of performance, literature, and community-minded programming across downtown, stretching south to Big Grove Brewery & Taproom and north to Hancher. Full week passes for all six days of events will be available for $150, and — new this year — festivalgoers can purchase a weekend pass ($75 for access to events Friday through Sunday). Individual tickets to select shows will become available in January 2018. The lineup will be released and passes will go on sale simultaneously this Friday, December 8 at 12:30 p.m. CT.

The lineup reflects Mission Creek’s commitment to exploring and showcasing live performance, the literary arts, and radical community happenings.

Headlining this year’s festival are Carrie Brownstein + Roxane Gay + Amber Tamblyn (In Conversation) at The Englert Theatre. All proceeds from ticket sales will benefit Girls Rock! Iowa City, a nonprofit dedicated to fostering creativity and self-esteem in young girls and trans-identified youth through musical instruction and expression. This event is co-presented by local literary speaking agency, The Tuesday Agency.

Mission Creek’s 2018 musical programming boasts a characteristically diverse range of artists and groups, weaving into the week many fast-rising and genre-defining artists across indie rock, singer-songwriters, electronic and experimental music, rap, and spoken word.

A feast for indie rock fans, this year’s music program will include Built to Spill, who have been at the forefront of the genre for more than twenty years; rising singer-songwriter Julien Baker, known for a confessional style landing her on multiple “best album” lists since her surprise debut album in 2015; and returning festival favorite Margaret Glaspy, who performed with Andrew Bird and Bridget Kearney at Mission Creek in 2017. Mission Creek will partner with University of Iowa student group SCOPE Productions to present soul singer-songwriter and poet Jamila Woods (performance and reading) and dream-pop duo Wye Oak.

In 2018, Mission Creek Festival will also feature avant-garde composer and master of the Buchla synthesizer Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith, who paints “warm, absorbing and gorgeous” music ( Rolling Stone ); groundbreaking gay rapper Cakes Da Killa ; Atlanta post-punk/gospel/blues outfit Algiers ; World-music party band Xylouris White featuring Cretan lutist Giorgos Xylouris and Australian drummer Jim White (founder of chamber-rock band Dirty Three); and Bon Iver member S. Carey. The lineup will also have deep Iowa representation, including Iowa City-based, nationally-known indie pop outfit The Weepies, performing at Mission Creek for the first time; Extravision (Des Moines), Squirrel Flower (Grinnell), Sister Wife (Rock Island), Paul Cary, Purcha$e, Collidescope, Peanut Ricky & The Fiends, Elizabeth Moen, Jack Lion, Younger, and Hot Tang (all Iowa City). Comedian Quinta Brunson will perform with a roster of comics,comedian/satirist Bassem Youssef, who will perform, and Chef Dave Wieseneck (formerly Motley Cow Café) will return to prepare a special meal on the opening night of the festival (details forthcoming).

This year’s literary programming will be led by best-selling essayist Roxane Gay ( Bad Feminist, Difficult Women, Hunger); Carrie Brownstein, who chronicled her life in riot grrrl band Sleater-Kinney in the memoir Hunger Makes Me a Modern Girl ; poet Amber Tamblyn. Friday and Saturday’s literary programming will now reside under Litscape , which includes the Lit Walk (formerly Lit Crawl), a book fair hosting independent writers and presses, ICE CREAM comics and zine fair, and readings and conversations. 2018’s Saturday keynote reading (sponsored by The Iowa Review) will present Lidia Yuknavitch, whose lyric memoir The Chronology of Water gained an online cult following; poet and singer-songwriter Jamila Woods, and poet/essayist/culture critic Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib ( They Can’t Kill Us Until They Kill Us ,The Crown Ain’t Worth Much ). Additional readings from Iowa Nonfiction Writing Program graduates Sarah Viren, Lina Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Venegas, and Sandra Allen; and many more.

On Saturday, April 7, the festival will offer a series of free, daytime community events, including its Art + Life + Tech (ALT) speaker series, a book fair featuring literary magazines and small independent presses, the ICE CREAM comics and zine fair, a free rock show at Big Grove Brewery & Taproom, and other community happenings taking place downtown.

Festival Dates:
April 3 – 8, 2018

Pass & Ticket Information: 

Festival passes will be available for purchase beginning Friday, December 8 at 12:30 p.m. CST, online at missioncreekfestival.com or at the Englert Theatre Box Office. Individual tickets to select events will go on sale in January 2018.

Full Week Pass – $150
Our usual full week pass, granting access to all Mission Creek Festival ticketed performances (music, comedy). Entrance to ticketed events at The Englert Theatre and Hancher is guaranteed at all times. Entrance to other venues is subject to capacity. Special programs like culinary events are not included in the festival pass and require the purchase of additional tickets.

Weekend Pass – $75 (NEW THIS YEAR)
Introducing the weekend pass, friendly to folks with busy schedules or those traveling from afar. The weekend pass grants access to Mission Creek Festival ticketed performances (music, comedy) Friday through Sunday, subject to capacity at all venues. Special programs like culinary events are not included in either festival pass and require the purchase of additional tickets.

Confirmed Lineup Includes:
Performance – Music
Built to Spill
Wye Oak
Jamila Woods (Reading + Performance)
Julien Baker
Margaret Glaspy
Kaitlyn Aurelia Smith
Algiers
Cakes Da Killa
Laurel Halo (Live + DJ Set)
Xylouris White
The Weepies
Horse Lords
S. Carey
ONO
Alex Zhang Hungtai
Horse Feathers
Current Joys
Gordi
Paul Cary
Squirrel Flower
Younger
Peanut Ricky & The Fiends
Hot Tang

Collidescope
Extravision
Jack Lion
Mission: Beat
Sister Wife
Purcha$e
Dana T
Bstar
Elizabeth Moen

Performance – Comedy
Quinta Brunson and Friend

Bassem Youssef

Literature
Roxane Gay + Carrie Brownstein + Amber Tamblyn (In Conversation)
Lidia Yuknavitch
Jamila Woods
Hanif Willis-Abdurraqib
Deb Olin Unferth
Sarah Viren
Lina Maria Ferreira Cabeza-Venegas
Sandra Allen
Jesus Carrasco
Lyz Lenz
Brandon Taylor
Stephen Ira
Hafizah Geter
William Johnson
Cathy Linh Che
Helene Achanzar
Melody Gee
Kundiman
Lambda Literary
VIDA
The Believer
The Rumpus
Dorothy, a publishing project
Forklift, Ohio: A Journal of Poetry, Cooking, & Light Industrial Safety
The Iowa ReviewTwo Dollar Radio

Iowa Youth Writing Project

Rescue Press

Title Sponsor:
University of Iowa Community Credit Union

Little Village

General Festival Sponsors:
City of Iowa City
SCOPE Productions
Iowa City Downtown District
The Tuesday Agency
Iowa House Hotel
Big Grove Brewery
Iowa Public Radio

Event-Specific Sponsors:

The Tuesday Agency (Carrie Brownstein + Roxane Gay + Amber Tamblyn [In Conversation])
SCOPE Productions (Jamila Woods, Wye Oak)
The Iowa Review (keynote reading with Lidia Yuknavitch, Jamila Woods, and Hanif
Willis-Abdurraqib)

Grant Support:
Iowa City/Coralville Area Convention & Visitors Bureau

About Mission Creek Festival:

Mission Creek is dedicated to delivering a riveting 6-day artistic experience for our community that builds on the cultural geography and capital of downtown Iowa City. Programming focuses on music performances, literary readings, film screenings, public lectures, local food culture, and educational outreach. Nestled in the heart of downtown Iowa City, with most venues within a five minute walk of each other, Mission Creek thrives on intimacy and cross-medium experiences, turning music lovers on to new literature, writers on to new music, and expanding
appreciation of arts, community, and culture. Our focus is on quality, independent-minded sounds, words, and events. We are keen on emerging artists and embrace renegade spirits who have been around for years. Intimacy is integral to the Mission Creek experience: Our smallest festival venue fits 30 people and our largest holds 1800; but most rooms are in the 200-300 capacity range, allowing for visceral connections between artists and audience. The festival is presented and produced by The Englert Theatre, Iowa City’s 105-year-old historic
performing arts space.

Website: http://missioncreekfestival.com
Facebook: http://facebook.com/missioncreekfestival
Twitter: http://twitter.com/missioncreekic
Instagram: http://instagram.com/missioncreek

The post PRESS RELEASE: Mission Creek Festival announces 2018 lineup appeared first on KRUI Radio.

The anticipation leading up to the main act was filled with a ton of entertainment value from the openers. Maiden Mars, a band hailing from Iowa City, and Younger, an all-female band who also got their start in the home of Mission Creek.

Maiden Mars started off the night with the lead singer, Alex Skalla, in a bashful voice, introducing the band, and welcoming everyone to the show. Her timid approaches at interacting with the crowd slowly became a wall of bold riffs and a spectrum of guitar tones once the music started.

Maiden Mars gained confidence and momentum as their set continued, and by the time they started playing their third track they had hit their stride and audience member’s heads started to interact with the beats of the drum more.

Next up, as Younger took the stage, adorned in matching Younger band merchandise t-shirts, riled up the already excited crowd. The drummer of Younger’s floppy curls wavered through the music that along with the rhythm of the bass, set with the melody of the guitar, gave the cues the audience needed to participate in synchronized rhythms that the band played.

The audience itself grew more and more as Younger continued through their set. The last song performed by Younger was a song that, “we wrote last week so hold onto your seats.” But by this time there was little sitting occurring inside Gabe’s.

From the time Cloud Nothings got onto the stage, until the moment they stepped off, the room shook and rattled as people began springing off the floor. The crowd and Cloud Nothings’ energy fed off each other well to create an atmosphere unlike any show I had been to before. The once sparsely filled room, had very little area left unoccupied. Since all their albums have featured such unique themes and sounds from that of their previous work, their show contained something for every variance of Indie Rock fan.

The best part of the whole show was the last five minutes, where their last song ended, and their instrumental improvisation continued. The guitarist and lead singer, David Baldi, took to the floor to play out his impassioned strums. Although if you couldn’t spot him on the ground over the crowd, the drummer, Jayson Gerycz, could be seen at the back of the stage in his own reverberating bliss.

By the end of the set, the front half of the audience in front of the stage had formed a mosh pit of fans clearly feeding off the talent and entertainment of Cloud Nothings. The night ended in the same way that it began, with a steady flow of talented musicians boldly capturing their audience’s attention and creating lasting memories for Mission Creek concertgoers.

The post Mission Creek: Cloud Nothings @ Gabe’s 4/6/2017 appeared first on KRUI Radio.