PUGFEST III in Ferndale Is the Banger We All Needed
PUGFEST III took place June 27-29 in Ferndale, Michigan, and packed a ripper of a good time into multiple venues across the city. Relive the experience with us below.
DAY 1
CULT THERAPY
Catharsis is a strong theme throughout the music of PUGFEST. Whether it’s Cult Therapy’s religious trauma, Latter’s ex who sent them an invoice, DoFlames’ unconstrained anger at the government, or just some dude killing the vibe during For Your Health, we all just have to let shit out sometimes. PUG Day 1 was that release. I’ll be honest, my week before PUG sucked, but through it all, the fest stood strong, beckoning me to Friday, like the White Castle at the end of ‘Harold and Kumar’s’ grand trials. With 9 through-the-roof sets (including an eye-poppingly hard battle in the middle) it’s hard to capture in words the warning shot day 1 provided for what the rest of the weekend would hold.
BLIND EQUATION
STAR STUDENT
The Orchid Theaters 2 stage setup provided for non-stop crowd action, with only a few minutes of sound check to catch your breath before the next mosh started. The crowd was not afraid to get rowdy from the drop, a telling sign for the rest of the weekend. The quintessential Cult Therapy and vibe-setting eyewash provided a solid kick of momentum to get the night rolling, both playing stellar sets. Next up was the battle set; Blind Equation vs. Star Student. It would be simply unfair to call this set anything but a draw, as both bands ran the room, moved the crowd, and screamed until the words got lost with the distorted guitar wails (or keytar in some cases).
LATTER
By the time Latter took the stage to put their chaotic touch on the night, the room was ready for what would be a wild ride (and we weren’t even half-way), sending the crowd off with the perfect call and response, “My Body is My Sickness”, screamed from atop a towering amp, and ending in a hospital gown sawed in half. It’s as much performance art as it is music.
DOFLAMES
GREYHAVEN
I don’t know if there was more than a few seconds that Mateo, singer of DoFlame stepped off the speakers at the front of the stage; I don’t think there was a single second that he didn’t belong up there, commanding the floor with his intense punk style. When For Your Health took the stage the crowd almost got a little too rambunctious when one attendee needed to be “asked to leave.” With the vibe-killer vanquished, the crowd’s excitement could not be halted, picking up with just as much energy as they had before. Greyhaven (a PUGFEST 1 returner) came through as they always do, leading to the first, of what would be very many, stage dives for the night.
AWAKEBUTSTILLINBED
Even operating on the floor level stage 2, awakebutstillinbed brought about their own rounds of crowd surfers, mosh pit fiends, and circle pits. To cap the night off, and officially kick off the weekend, Modern Color took the stage. While I was immediately drawn in by their Dream Exterminators services, the set they put on left me wishing they could have kept playing until the sun rose on Day 2. As they brought the night to a proper end, and the fest to a proper start. Countless stage divers, including 4 photographers, of which I was one, rained down on the crowd, which carried them surprisingly well when you account for the ever-expanding pit they were diving into. You could tell when the last band left the stage the crowd was yearning for more, good thing they still have 2 days to get it all out.
MODERN COLOR
DAY 2
THE DETROIT PARTY MARCHING BAND
ORANGE PEEL PLEASE
Day 2 of PUGFEST started in a way only PUGFEST could; The Detroit Party Marching Band promenading down the sidewalks of Ferndale followed by a small army of the most dedicated PUG fans awaiting doors at Orchid, oh and a wagon full of skeletons handing out Mardi Gras beads. Although it was hot and sunny, the Pied Piperesque precession into Orchid was the perfect reminder that the party was just starting. The first two non-marching sets at Orchid—Orange Peel Please and Newgrounds Death Rugby—delivered on their names. OPP peeled not one, but two oranges live on stage, all while providing some vibey midwest emo tunes, while NGDR crashed full speed through the wall and left nothing on the table.
NEWGROUNDS DEATH RUGBY
FROSTISRAD
FORMER CRITICS
Next was a quick trip to 215 W to see the local alternative rock-rap group FROSTisRAD (I personally loved “Jesus in Detroit”), then straight back to Orchid for a couple more. Goings’s colorful synth provided a pleasant addition to the more traditional emo elements of their tracks. Former Critics showed up as their usual punchy punk rock selves, dripping with drama and drawing the crowd into a mass of pulsing dancers at the front of the stage.
MT. ORIANDER
HEADBAND HENNY
At 215 W again, Mt. Oriander, Family-Game-Night Rock for kids whose dads have a BoardGameGeek account, provided a nice oasis of calm amidst the rush and rumble of the rest of the fest with their mathy but laid back style. It was nice to catch a break for a second, but the warmup at Orchid after with Headband Henny was the perfect lead up to a night of raucous performances. Even on the back patio of Syndicate the Goblin Zone was able to find a garage door to perform (almost) under, and the Goblin Zone deities, Tequila Mockingbird, tore that place up, respectfully.
TEQUILA MOCKINGBIRD
Even out in the heat and the sun, the pit formed quickly and violently, and held on all the way to the end of the secret set. Back in Orchid we were treated to the femme-powered Gully Boys adorned in Rosie the Riveter reminiscent shirts, even down to matching “Mike” monograms. If by “Do It” Rosie meant consuming the Orchid theater with a wall of wonderful sound then the Gully Boys can definitely do it.
PANDA HOUSE
After that was the final voyage to 215 W for the day to see Panda House. I kept a small notebook with me to take notes in to keep track of my in-the-moment thoughts about bands. About Panda House I wrote “would be the perfect soundtrack to the smell of a damp basement and a warm High Life.” That means they had some great melancholy emo licks, mixed in with just the right speed to keep the pit moving.
MACSEAL
SWEET PILL
When I settled in for the night at Orchid the back to back banger sets from Macseal and Sweet Pill were the perfect end to the night. Long Island Indie has a long history of genre paragons, and Macseal are certainly among them. Their music carefully toed the line of power pop and indie punk, and was the perfect setup for the Sweet Pill headlining set to follow. Dark, explosive, churning emo rock that pushes genre boundaries and drives you to pushing, jumping, finger-pointing, and yelling like any good emo, but their structures and melodies challenge both genre and expectations in the best way possible. By the end of their generous hour-long set the crowd was still moving, surfing, and moshing, and with one more day of shows in store this was a strong ending to the second night.
DAY 3
ANTIGHOST
Sunday, Day 3, the final day of PUGFEST 3. To start off the day we saw one of the bands I was personally more excited to see, Antighost. Their churning emo riffs and moody vocals were the perfect start to the day, and “I Can’t Feel the Sun” will never not be a scream-at-the-top-of-my-lungs classic. Today was another loaded lineup so I made my way to 215 for a minute to check out Feast for the Crows, who delivered an energy that I don’t know if 215 had seen up to that point. Jumping, yelling, pointing, circling the crowd up and owning the floor. Back at Orchid, Parting was getting started; a supergroup pulling from each member’s roots in other bands and putting out classic mathy midwest emo. I also took another stop at 215 to check out George Montrelle, a guitarist and singer who once again provided a perfect chill to recover from the relatively high energy of the morning so far.
GEORGE MONTRELLE
I AM NOT A GUN
Having found ominous stickers all over Ferndale advertising something in 215 w at 3:30 on Sunday I had to check out the set by I Am Not a Gun (also a huge Iron Giant fan so respect there). Their hardcore leaning emo was a great setup to get ready for the rest of the night. I took a quick break here to get some food and get ready for the rest of the fest, and was back in the pit ready for Clipboards down at The Loving Touch. I wished I had made it down here yesterday but never got enough of a gap, however, the quick stop to see the East Lansing rockers tear it up for a moment was well worth the walk. My last trip had come, returning Orchid to catch what turned out to be 5 stellar sets (with one short aside) in a row, slowly building (in heat and energy) all the way to the headlining Oso Oso.
CLIPBOARDS
SEE THROUGH PERSON
STAY INSIDE
I felt myself starting to fade a little from the wear and tear of the last 3 days, but See Through Person was the perfect shot in the arm to get me going again (or maybe the redbull I got from the corner store where the clerk asked me if Che Guevara or Santana was more famous). After them, Stay Inside provided pure grungy indie emo, with swinging riffs and punchy vocals. The yooper group, Liquid Mike, awash in a striking lime green, had a power pop edge that gave the crowd a chance to have some fun dancing in the pit. The penultimate PUG performance by Charmer (more locals!) was a welcome return for a band that was not too long ago on an indefinite hiatus.
CHARMER
OSO OSO
Their more traditional, tapped out, midwest emo sound did not lack the energy to get stage divers diving and the rest of the crowd pushing to get up front. By the end of their set the Orchid theater was packed, and the crowd was ready for the final act: Oso Oso. But first, One more quick trip to 215 to catch the headlining FinalBossFight!. Their set was many things, a ripper, absolutely off the walls, but I think the best way to describe it would be there was a crowd surfer in 215. Their basement emo energy sent the crowd into a frenzy, jumping, moshing, and even some high-speed spinning in the pit. After that quick aside it was back to Orchid for the end of the night. Oso Oso’s performance felt expansive and open, the whole room moving together, their sound swaying between fierce emo and more gentle indie rock. They provide the perfect end to the festival, bringing the crowd to an excited and energetic peak and slowing it down to send us all off.
FINALBOSSFIGHT!
Overall, The Pleasant Underground put together 3 days of incredible music, excellent venues at 215 West, The Orchid Theater, The Loving Touch, and Luisa’s Street Food, well curated showcases by The Goblin Zone, Choke, Bella’s, Save the Cat, and Free Space, and proved definitively that Ferndale, Detroit, and Michigan overall are the place to be for the emo music scene.