DOG SHREDDER RIPPING IT UP

Dog Shredder hail from lovely Bellingham, Washington.

Described as "prog-metal freakazoids" by Pitchfork, Dog Shredder deliver a blast of technical metal that almost veers into cacophony before returning to pummeling hardcore beats. Like the best stunt drivers, these fellas look like everything is about to explode, but they're totally in control.

Total Fest is proud to welcome them to our fair burg this year. Listen to a sample of Dog Shredder's album and EP on Bandcamp.
-Kate

NARROWS. TOTAL.

I've always been interested in towns and cities where bands come from, and like to think about how they might impact the music that bands play. It's probably a long shot, but its fascinating and important to know where bands come from for me. So, here's the rest: Olympia, Washington's got it's less-cool neighboring communities. Your Tumwaters, your Laceys. Kind of far, but maybe Bucoda. Etc. Your, uh, you know, western Washington strip malled, pawn shop and payday loan dusted, mostly city-centerless mossy-sidewalked whateverlands. Softball gets played. Budweiser drank.. Its from one of those places that the Narrows come from, and for me, that's added an authentically western Washingtonian vibe to their slow, slow, built-around-incredible riffs, jams. 

Technically, the Narrows began as a band and did most of their most active years from the area code known as Bellingham in northwestern Washington state. They toured with Federation X, and by themselves, they were interested in ghosts. And horrible malt-liquor/Cisco wine concoctions. Most of all, they made music that transferred raw human emotion into guitar, bass, drums and vocals better than anything.

Time intervened, and members started up new endeavors. Law school and practice. Bar/resaturant ownership, married life, kids. But there wasn't ever an end to the Narrows because the idea of the Narrows is more of a family affair than a business proposition. They've been playing a couple shows lately, and we got 'em for Total Fest XII. Yup.

SCUZZ FEAST: FED X!!

Full disclosure: I recently organized my records, and I found a glaring hole in my vinyl collection. I do not own a single FederationX record. My computer possesses the dreaded digital versions of American Folk Horror, X Patriot, and an "unknown" folder with some indecipherable live tracks, but my shelves lack it. This I can rectify in August when Fed X graces Missoula and Total Fest yet again. It's a long, rich, exhausting history. Fed X played the inaugural Total Fest way back in 2002 (shake those cobwebs people), played TF a couple more times (2004, 2007, 2008 -- correct me, if I'm wrong on the years), as well as a host of shows here and there throughout the years. They're like our favorite cousin .... or something.

Since Fed X spread out across the country (sometime in 2004), they've been on an exceptionally frustrating intermittent touring schedule. If you've been lucky enough to catch them, then you should be done with your bucket list. Fed X has that classic sound that never sounds stale. As local connoisseur, Andy Semetanka, writes "you can drop the needle just about anywhere and feel like you’re riding the right wormhole between meat-and-potatoes ‘70s rock and a post-everything deconstruction/annihilation of same, a thick scurf of guitar grime and the industrial solvent that strips it away" (Indy 2004). Hell, there's no need to reinvent the wheel when someone else has expressed it perfectly. Similar to the review, Fed X records stand the test of time. From what I understand, Ben, Bill, and Beau are somewhat re-anchored in the Northwest. They've recently recorded a new record,We Do What We Must, that should be released this summer. If the t-shirt is any indication, the record will be a sinister, meticulous execution that will taunt your ears and recall some deeply rooted desires. (It's a kitten about to attack a dragonfly. Have you ever witnessed a cat terrorizing an insect? Enough said).

We all love power trios. Fed X is one of the top notch power trios running. We love Fed X. We know all of our total bros and total sisters love Fed X.  It's essentially rock but with that north west groove cut with a knife. Fuzzy riffs, feedback and reverb saturated vocals, punctuated by a drummer who seems to be everywhere at once, Fed X continues to stir the sludge metal cauldron with fantastic and awesomely unexpected results

SUGAR SUGAR SUGAR: ADDED TO THE TOTAL BREW
When this August gets too hott and even the coldest ice cream won’t cool you down emerge yerself in the sweet sweet sound of Sugar Sugar Sugar.

Bellingham’s music scene sweethearts Sugar Sugar Sugar (whom I will henceforth refer to as SSS) are a three piece, one sugar for each member, fronted by two dudes who know how to rip and backed by one girl-b***h drummer who hits hard. SSS applied to Total Fest with an impressive Curriculum Vitae of bands and musicians they have played with over the years including but not limited to: Black Diamond Heavies, Pierced Arrows, Lozen, Helms Alee, The Trucks, Coconut Coolouts, Bugs, Yogoman Burning Band, The Narrows, and Lana Rebel of the Juanita Family. They are also talented enough to have played with members of The Stooges, The Minutemen, The Germs and Dead Moon. So we said “please, pour some sugar on us, your sexy blues songs and heart pumping beats are what we love to have at Total Fest”. … And it turns out hot sticky love is what they want to make you feel. They will be sure to give you the sounds of good lovin’ and hip swangin’ no matter if the lyrics break your heart or make you sweat.

Enough with the sweetness though, their sound is anything but. SSS serves you loud, hard blues tunes with an edge of grunge rock. SSS’s brand of sex-core (if I can call it that) is about more than getting some; it is about creating a corporeal experience in four dimensions.

Come to think of it, SSS may make you hotter than that melted ice cream cone so prepare to lose some layers and sweat Pabst profusely.

NO FI SOUL REBELLION: SHOW US WHAT YOU GOT
Outrageous, Infectious, participatory and undeniably dance-rageous are just a few words that first come to mind when trying to describe this band. Something tells me though, that there are not too many people to whom this band needs introduction or explanation. No Fi Soul Rebellion has played Missoula a whole bunch, they've toured a bunch, self released a bunch of records and has spent a fair amount of a bunch of time blasting you with songs, videos, show announcements, art, etc... via every virtual platform available. Bonus: A few years back, they toured with Presidents of the United States of America, putting them on massive stages in front of massive crowds, which is right where they belong.

If you lived in or passed through Missoula in the early 2000s you had the pleasure of seeing a handful of different versions of NFSR before Mark met and finalized the line-up with his wife Andrea. It's a unique and special opportunity to witness that type of positive growth and transition and how exciting to see them here at Total Fest IX! One of the hardest working, furthest traveling, wildest energy producing, breaking-WAY-into-your-comfort-zone bands to ever form in the Garden City, No Fi Soul Rebellion, welcome home to Missoula, welcome finally... it's been way too long, to Total Fest!