Mikki's Top 10 for Total Fest

Mikki Lunda's Top 10-ish bands she's most excited to see at Total Fest XIII:

(in particular order)

1. Greco- Fri. 8pm, Palace
I hear from a reliable source that he wears a full-body-tiger-print-cat-suit, when he plays live.  And he's a bigger shameless self promoter than I am. All of his songs are about how rad he is.
[Editor's Note: You can listen to a couple of his tracks here at the Total Fest band camp.]

2. Obnox- Thurs. 9:15, ZACC
Dane Hansen (Bad Naked) told me "you can't miss this set."

3. Shannon & the Clams- Thur. 10:45pm, ZACC
I love this band's live energy. I've seen them bunches of times and they still made my top 3, that's saying something.

4. Underground Railroad to Candyland- Fri. 9:45pm, Palace
Last month I played with these guys in Pomona, CA. They are a party on stage, super fun to watch and are super tight. (multiple drummers)

5. j sherri- Sat. 12pm, Big Dipper
I'm just going to come right out and say it. These hotties have been my favorite local band for the last 2 years. I'm stoked to see them in the HOT HOT summer sun while licking a melty ice cream.

6. Woolen Men- Thur. 8pm, ZACC
I've never seen them live, but I NEED YOU TO KNOW: I really dig their sound.

7. Toupee- Sat. 8pm, Badlander
My pop idol, Richard Album, was in town last week and he said "in Chicago, anyone with our musical integrity will have this band on their list of favorites". I trust that.

8. Dreamsalon- Fri. 10pm, Palace
I've never seen them live, but I NEED YOU TO KNOW: I really dig their sound.

9. Kitten Forever, Sat. 10:15pm, Badlander
This band does it right. How they figured out how to transition instruments like that, is a straight up miracle.

10. Wimps- Sat. 9:15pm, Badlander
I've never seen them live, but I NEED YOU TO KNOW: I really dig their sound.

11. Dear Rabbit- Sat. 12:35pm, Big Dipper
Love his stage persona, he has a great booming voice and I'm impressed by people who can play 2 instruments at once. (Accordion/ trumpet)

12. Chemical Lawns- Fri. 8pm, Badlander
Another of my FAV locals.

Wowie, I can't wait to see all these amazing bands and more!
See you all there!
- Mikki "internet" Lunda

Check out Kate's Top 10 for Total Fest over at Missoula Punk News and Tom "T. Money" Helgerson's Top 10 over at Weird Missoula.

LIL TITS

Any band that self applies the term "dirt rock" is okay in our book, and Chicago, IL's Lil Tits are one (and maybe the only) such band. They're touring with Toupee out to Total Fest.

Their tunes remind me of Julia Cafritz, Kim Gordon, and stuff like Ciccone Youth and Pussy Galore. Aggressive, cruddy and totally blasting.

GAYTHEIST WANTS TO HOLD YOU

I swear it wasn't intentional, but we've seemed to hold off til the end on announcing the bands with the most ridiculous names. Rounding out the last few of our Total Fest performers are Portland's GAYTHEIST.

The amazingly named trio comes from Good to Die Records, the Seattle-based clearing house for the heavy sounds of the Northwest that has brought us TF vets like Sandrider and Constant Lovers. If the name wasn't an indication of their commitment to the absurd, these guys are a pretty off-the-wall bunch set on ruining your day.

A frenzy of maniacal drumming, guitar wizardry, and a hysteric, foul-mouthed (though very well-dressed) vocalist, Gaytheist churns out songs like "Post Apocalyptic Lawsuit" and "Wisdom of the Asshole" that have this whole Big Biz meets a 4-pack of Sparks and a packet of Pop Rocks sort of vibe. It's too bad that Fantasy for Adults on Main isn't on our list of venues for this year - it might just be the perfect place to witness this madness go down. Our whole all ages thing might be a problem though, so you kids will just have to settle for the Palace.

COMMENCE OX-GORING.

Seattle, Warshington's He Whose Ox Is Gored may have the single most unwieldy name this side of Kowloon Walled City, but that hasn't stopped a molecule's worth of their ever-forward, momentous, dense and complex and alternatingly heavy, intricate, doomy and combination-of-those-elements output from laying waste to town after-town, like some kind of a tornado that just passed over a lead shot factory, or something.

My god is this stuff just aggro. And in a good, Jon Weisnewski/Nat Damm, kind of way. I think about Akimbo when I hear this stuff, even if it's not exactly the same vibe, it's that same type of tightness and intensity that I think's gonna be a huge treat to rage with on a Saturday night.

Dave Segal wrote a nice piece about the band here, for the Stranger. Some notes about He Whose Ox Is Gored:

1) This band officially gets the blue ribbon for persistence and patience with us at the sprawling suburban office complex that houses Total Fest. Our wait list was packed with awesome bands this year (as it always is) and our typical plan is that we hear from bands pretty soon after announcing them that somebody's quit, or their ability to tour just got upended because of a wedding or something. This year was different, and the space we typically have free up didn't occur. He Whose Ox kept in touch, booked shows on all but the final day, and even printed posters with the words Total Fest on 'em before we'd inked the deal. Remember we do this thing in our un-copious free time, and our (okay, my) communication could be better.

2) They seem to be playing at least two places with the word "shred" in the name on this tour. Apparently both Boise and Salt Lake are shred-friendlier than I would've guessed.

3) Paul was supposed to write this.  -JV

MEGAGIANT STOMP, MEGAGIANT DESTROY

such gnar. very core.

Billings duderuses Megagiant are here, just in time to crush Total Fest!

And by crush, I mean, like, play power-pop and be genial and goofy, 'cause that's just how these dudes (Nels, Austin, Kelly and Caleb) roll. As I said elsewhere: "Megagiant's new album, Today (And Every Day), recorded in Missoula at Club Shmed, features fittingly big-ass power chords and butt-kicking riffy numbers, with a vibe that reminds me of Weezer. There's no Rivers Cuomo-style obnoxiousness here, though, since Megagiant has the benefit of La Croix's poppy vocals, which fans of Noise will recall fondly."

 I sort of wish these dudes would ditch Billings and play here more often. But it's okay--Billings probably needs them more, whether anyone there appreciates 'em or not. (KW)