Author: Neon Reverb

Having returned from hiatus with a widely praised 2016 edition, Neon Reverb will look to keep energy high for its upcoming 12th edition. And the Downtown festival, scheduled to return March 9-12, appears to have the musical pieces in place to make that happen.

Heading up Neon Reverb’s 2017 touring lineup will be a trio of popular indie acts: synthy Brooklynites The Drums, who have sold out their past two Las Vegas gigs; Mexico-based garage-punks Le Butcherettes, led by the charismatic Teri Gender Bender; and English psych-pop outfit Temples, set to release a new album a few days before the fest.

“I think the top line is every bit as strong as last year’s,” says talent buyer Mike Henry, who helps organize and run Reverb, along with scene mainstays Jason Aragon, Ronald Corso, Thirry Harlin, Graham Kahr and James Woodbridge. “There’s no [2016 poster-topper] Ty Segall, but I think all three of this year’s headliners are equal in draw.”

Other 2017 notables include Bash & Pop, fronted by The Replacements’ Tommy Stinson; LA’s Chicano Batman, set to return to Coachella in April; veteran hip-hop DJ Peanut Butter Wolf; fast-rising New York rockers LVL UP; and the remainder of the Temples-topped touring Desert Daze Caravan—Night Beats, Deap Vally, Froth and JJUUJJUU.

Also confirmed: Jay Som, Sego, Calliope Musicals, Wheelchair Sports Camp, MNDSGN, Prism Tats, Soft White Sixties, SadGirl, The Shacks, Residual Kid, Palm, Death Hymn #9, Death Valley Girls, Richard Grewar and DJ Jonathan Toubin’s Soul Clap. Local participants are expected to be announced February 2.

This year’s shows will take place in some of Fremont East’s anchoring venues—the Bunkhouse Saloon (which will feature an outdoor stage for the fest), Backstage Bar & Billiards and Beauty Bar—along with two Arts District spots: Velveteen Rabbit and a to-be-revealed warehouse space. Reverb’s overall scope will be slimmed down some, in an effort “not to stretch the audience too far,” Henry says. “There’s a bit of a reduction in the number of acts, but the shows should all be more packed, so I think you’ll see a magnification of the overall experience.”

Festival passes—good for admission to all events on all four nights—are on sale now for $60 at neonreverb.com. Tickets to individual shows will be available closer to March.

Note: The Weekly is Neon Reverb’s exclusive media partner.

This story was written by Spencer Patterson and first appeared in the Las Vegas Weekly.

Bang The Drums, a leaner, meaner Neon Reverb is back.

The four-day, downtown-centered music fest, which takes place March 9 to 12, has announced its lineup of national touring acts, with the aforementioned indie pop favorites leading the way, along with feisty garage rockers Le Butcherettes, British psych pop throwbacks Temples, hip-hop DJ-producer and Stones Throw Records founder Peanut Butter Wolf, rockers Bash & Pop (featuring ex-Replacements and Guns N’ Roses bassist Tommy Stinson) and nearly two dozen more.

Vegas acts, which generally make up over half the lineup, will be announced at a later date. Venues will include The Bunkhouse Saloon, which will be outfitted with a second, outdoor stage, Backstage Bar & Billiards, Beauty Bar, 11th Street Records, Velveteen Rabbit, Inspire Theater and a warehouse show in the Arts District.

The full lineup of bands announced thus far can be found at www.neonreverb.com, where tickets can also be purchased ($60 for a festival pass; $15 for individual shows, which go on sale later).This year’s Neon Reverb will be the event’s second incarnation since returning last spring after a three-year hiatus.

“The biggest change is that this one will be smaller, a bit tighter,” fest booker Mike Henry says. “Last year, we wanted to throw a big party and really be celebratory about coming back. I think that the energy will be packed in a little bit more because there’s less venues and later starts.”

This doesn’t mean Neon Reverb is downsizing,

“While we’re trying to tighten things up, we’re aiming to grow,” says James Woodbridge, one of Neon Reverb’s founders. “We’re looking to include some new venues, expand to new areas, just not be an every venue, every night kind of thing. That’s sort of too much.”

Though Neon Reverb has featured indie heavyweights like Akron/Family, Melvins, Ty Seagall and The Walkmen in previous outings, and has booked its share of established acts this go-round, the fest continues to be defined more by a sense of discovery, landing of-the-moment bands before they break big.

“It’s always been one of our strong points in the past, getting the band before it blew up,” says Jason Aragon, another Neon Reverb founder. “I think the main goal of Neon Reverb has always remained the same, bringing good garage, indie, middle-tier bands to Vegas and spotlighting what we have here to the outside world.”

When Neon Reverb debuted in September 2008, the downtown music community had yet to develop into the hot spot that it is now, with mainstay the Beauty Bar and the previous incarnation of The Bunkhouse book-ending a comparatively sparse district.

“When we started this, there would be like one show in one place on one night downtown, and then maybe two shows in a weekend, if we were lucky,” Woodbridge says. “We looked at that and were like, ‘Well, that’s not where we want it to be. We want downtown and the music scene to do more.’ And so we created the festival to be like what a weekend should be like regularly.”

The times have since caught up with Neon Reverb, the seeds that the fest planted years ago blossoming into a vibrant music scene.

Neon Reverb’s return last year, then, was a welcome one.

“It was really nice to see that everybody remembered it as fondly and cared about it as much as I did,” says 11th Street Records owner Ronald Corso, who’s played a central role in garnering sponsorships for the festival. “Now, the job is to continue to build and make sure that six, seven years from now, there’s people who love it just as much as the people who loved the original iteration.”

The festival ranks have exploded throughout the country in recent years, developing into a circuit that often features many of the same acts.

Neon Reverb, by comparison, operates on a more grassroots level, overseen by the four principals aforementioned along with marketing head Graham Kar and, as such, is more reflective of its community.

If there’s no other city quite like Vegas, the same could be said of Neon Reverb.

“A lot of more traditional, big box festivals come in and just try to plop down a big name with million-dollar budgets and you can see that same festival in a million different cities,” Henry says. “Neon Reverb is only here.”

This story was written by Jason Bracelin and first appeared HERE

Rock ’n’ rollers rejoice!  Local festival Neon Reverb, spotlighting psych, garage and indie music, returns March 9-12. Headliners include Brooklyn indie-pop band The Drums on Thursday, ‘60s-inspired psychedelic rockers Temples on Friday and garage/punk band Le Butcherettes on Saturday. Four-day passes ($60) go on sale today.

“We are still building our audience base, building a more regional and national presence,” says co-founder James Woodbridge. “One of the things that we’re trying to do while keeping within budget [is] trying to expand our footprint.” So this year, the festival is making it’s way to the Arts District on Saturday, March 11, with shows at Velveteen Rabbit and a yet-to-be-revealed warehouse location. The warehouse shows are a collaboration with Raw Femme blog, emphasizing female-fronted bands and visual artists.

Psych lovers will be pleased to see the extension of the Joshua Tree festival, Desert Daze’s Caravan tour, appearing as part of Neon Reverb bringing bands Night Beats, JJUUJJUU, Deap Vally, Froth and Temples.

The Bunkhouse will be home base for the festival all four days with shows inside and outside. Other Fremont venues include Backstage Bar & Billiards, Beauty Bar and Inspire Theater. Last year 11th Street Records was the all-ages venue, but this year the record store and studio is functioning as a space for the performers.

Woodbridge says expect to hear more announcements coming soon. The local music lineup will be released February 2.

Touring Lineup

The Drums
Le Butcherettes
Temples
Chicano Batman
Peanut Butter Wolf
Bash & Pop
Night Beats
Deap Vally
Jay Som
LVL UP
Sego
Calliope Musicals
Wheelchair Sports Camp
Froth
MNDSGN
Prism Tats
Soft White Sixties
Sad Girl
The Shacks
Residual Kid
Palms
JJUUJJUU
Richard Grewar
Death Valley Girls
Death Hymn #9

 

This story was written by Jessie O’Brien and appeared on DTLV.com.