FYF’s lineup this year was killer but the layout was a cluster fuck. Chet Faker played an amazing show, a nod to how it all started with ‘No Diggity’ echoing in the Arena’s chambers. Todd Terje also kept us groovin’ to his electric disco sounds. Grimes and Phoenix closed out a chilly Saturday night and we went home exhausted with packed lines at the metro but ready to recharge for Day 2.
The collection of musical geniuses made me forget about the poor layout. Armed with my Contax T2 film camera and 4 rolls of film, I sifted through crowds of Ocean Pacific corduroy shorts, polo hats, UNIF dresses, floral patterns and dip-dyed faded green hair. I ran into the beautiful couple Dev Hynes (@devhynes) and Samantha Urbani (@samandude), fellow photographer David M Cortes (@davidmcortes), bloggers Jill Wallace (@littleblackboots) and Joellen (@joellenlove).
Sunday we started off with Les Sins in the pitch black Arena once again swirling in magenta pink lights. I even had to sneak around in the photo pit to snap a photo of Chaz because the guard said DSLRs and pro gear only; I tried to explain the difference of analog film but he didn’t care. At least I got the shot by shooting from the hip unbeknownst to him. We came back up to watch Kindness play a great set while the crowd basked in his lyrics for ‘House’ and guest appearance by Dev Hynes. Other noteworthy acts of the day were Blood Orange singing through the sunset with a live band and back-up dancers, Flying Lotus and his shadow-boxed barrage of geometric warpy visualizations of light and sound, and of course ending with The Strokes playing their best hits with everyone feeling nostalgic.
Upsets of the weekend: missing out on Little Dragon, Caribou, and Darkside due to poor layout. But I still had a blast.
Text and images by Jeffrey A Tang
