I recently sat down and took some time to fill out the
80/35 post-festival survey, and I was stumped by one very simple question: How would you rate your 80/35 experience this year compared to past festivals? a) better b) same c) worse. First of all, if anyone selected "same," you're just being lazy. How could any two music festival experiences possibly be the same?! Impossible. Next, I tried to break down "better" v. "worse" as simply as possible, but there are so many minor details that make one festival better and another worse. For example, this year, I was lucky enough to win VIP tickets thanks to
Dwolla! But did that make my experience better....Well, quite honestly, yes; but just having access to Vodka Red Bulls and indoor plumbing isn't everything (though it is a lot).
 |
| Hipsters, hippies and yuppies alike descend on downtown Des Moines |
On the one hand, this year's 80/35 seemed to really be coming in to its own and running without a hitch. Even when stages were behind schedule, the brand new 80/35 app kept those with a smart phone or those who knew someone with a smart phone (which was probably 80-90% of the attendees) updated on the status of the shows. The new layout of the stages and vendors really kept the festival contained around the main stage as opposed to years past where most of the booths and food were scattered farther down Locust St. On the other hand, there was a noticeable decline in star power with the lineup, and I have to say I was not blown away by any of the acts this year. But then again, I didn't get rained on for an hour and ruin my phone this year. I also didn't get to see an awesome show while standing in said rain like I did last year with The Walkmen. So 80/35 was better
and worse. But before we get too carried away with saying, the acts were subpar this year and 80/35 has gone downhill, let's just think about how lucky we are to have 80/35 in the first place.
I still remember the feeling I had just over four years ago when I saw an ad in Juice proclaiming a brand new music festival right here in Des Moines that would bring the Flaming Lips and the Roots to town for two days of music awesomeness. I immediately reached out to all of my college friends living in various places across the country to gush with pride and excitement about having such a fantastic extravaganza occurring right here in the backyard of where I grew up. It was a major moment for Des Moines, and 80/35 is still the most exciting thing to happen to the city in a long time (a lot more exciting than the sculpture garden, that's for sure).
Admittedly, there was not so much excitement this year, and a noticeable amount of grumbling from Des Moinesians feeling a bit slighted by headliners Girl Talk and Of Montreal. I'm ashamed to admit that while in year's past I had gleefully invited friends from out of town to come visit Des Moines and enjoy 80/35, this year, I did not extend the invite. I was frankly too ashamed of the small acts and wasn't sure it would be worth the time and money for my friends.
But then the festival came, and I admit my excitement level was back. It wasn't just the fact that I won VIP tickets a week before (though, again, it didn't hurt), but rather I was just excited about the opportunity to be outside on a holiday weekend drinking, eating and listening to music. Does it get any better? Why would you want to do anything else? Though I wasn't blown away by any of the acts, that's not to say that they were bad. In fact, I enjoyed feeling free to roam the festival grounds and check out stuff I probably wouldn't have checked out if there had been big acts every hour on the main stage.
 |
| Hanging out before Edward Sharpe. Did I mention we were VIP? |
The local artists playing on the aptly named Independence Stage were some of my favorite acts of the weekend.
Christopher the Conquered and
Poison Control Center absolutely killed it. There was no one who played with more passion. Not even Girl Talk jumping around to get the crowd amped on Saturday night came close.
 |
| Poison Control Center rocks harder than just about anyone. I enter into evidence this sweat-laden t-shirt. That's some fine rockin'. |
And speaking of the much maligned headliners, they weren't half bad either. Face it: Girl Talk is fun. Girl Talk is a dance party. Girl Party gets everyone, and especially
white people excited to dance. Honestly, he couldn't mesh better with Des Moines, Iowa. In the 80/35s that I've attended (which is all but the first year) Girl Talk was by far the best at getting the crowd fired up. And Of Montreal, from what I was able to hear while arguing with security about ripping off my friend's taped on wrist band, which he had stupidly taken off the night before, sounded like a fun, interesting live show.
 |
| Hate all you want, but Girl Talk puts on a sexy, fun time. |
The big problem is that as more and more summer festivals have popped up and continue to pop up, 80/35 will struggle to compete. This year, Kanrocksas took a lot of great acts that would have been great for 80/35, and then they had the balls to take a vendor booth and basically rub it in our faces that they snagged the better acts. (Better acts, yes, but it's being held at a speedway. Lame).
So what are we to do with this competition with bigger festivals from bigger markets? Role over and let 80/35 die? From all the negative talk leading up to the festival about how it was a down year and not work going to, I was afraid this might be 80/35's destiny, but when I showed up for the festival, I could see that there were hoards of music supporters still willing to support 80/35 even in a down year. This was extremely heartening, and the more I've thought about it post-festival, the more I realized that the only way we can compete with a Kanrocksas is to up the ante in our support.
80/35 and the
Des Moines Music Coalition need Des Moines' support, and more important, the support of the young people who could easily sit back and accuse Des Moines of being a small city with nothing to do.
80/35 is too important to Des Moines and its growing class of young professionals to simply sit back and let it fade away. Next year, whether 80/35 brings Kanye West or a band even more obscure than Of Montreal, we need to be there to support it and promote it to our friends here in Des Moines and throughout the country. I certainly won't make the mistake of not inviting friends from out of town again. 80/35 is a unique festival, in the heart of the city and it is worth the trip (you hear that, out of town friends?) The bigger the turn out, the more support, the bigger the musical acts we will see come through our fair city, and the happier we'll all be.
So this is our call to Des Moinesians, Iowans and music lovers everywhere to support 80/35 and the DMMC year round. Because Rock and T-shirts are like Hank Moody and women (they belong together), we're asking you to go to shows when they come through town. Donate your time and/or money. Become a
member of the DMMC, and you'll even get some kickbacks from local businesses. Do whatever you can. Just don't sit back and criticize a great event that Des Moines wants and needs!
Cheers,
Dave Murrin-von Ebers
Chief Entertainment Officer
Honeybadger Shirts
