Austin Psych Fest began Friday, April 25th at The Far Out Lounge. The three-day, two-stage event was dense with talent and plenty of excitement.
Austin Psych Fest returns once again to transform the Far Out Lounge to a destination that is simultaneously past and present. The trippy weekend featured sets from The Octopus Project, La Luz, Dinosaur Jr. and many more.
BlackWater Holy Light
Live, BlackWater Holy Light sounded the way I imagine being in the eye of a storm feels. The chaos of drums and distortion against Allison Faris’ angelic vocals made their set inescapable. Faris is also the band’s bassist, which helps seamlessly blend melody and rhythm. The group treated the crowd to a few new songs off their EP, If You Only Knew, which they released earlier this month. Hearing “Torn Reckless” live for the first time was beautiful. Now I’m addicted to the fuzz.
Black Mountain
The Vancouver group Black Mountain has spent the last 20 years making music and memories. Friday, they maintained a steady groove that pacified the crowd just as the sun began to have mercy. Their keyboard and organ in songs like “Wucan” kept a consistent and mesmerizing melody that was hard to detach from.
Federale
Photos by Jacqueline Fierro
Kadavar
The Berlin band stopped by Austin before heading back to tour some of Eastern Europe. The group has just released their EP, Regeneration, and let the crowd have some of the new stuff like “I Just Want to be a Sound” and “Hysteria”. Christoph Lindemann’s vocals cut clearly through the distortion and make the whole performance sound the way running up a mountain feels.
Godspeed You! Black Emperor
The Montreal group Godspeed You! Black Emperor exists to tell stories. The visual and audio ensemble began their US tour, Liberation Spring of ‘25, at Psych Fest this past Friday. Fresh off their European explorations, the group was well-rehearsed and knew how to hypnotize the crowd with the combination of sounds and sights. The band tours with a director named Karl Lemieux, who excites the senses with experimental film projections that compliment the performance and alter reality for just a moment.
Jesse Sykes
Photos by Jacqueline Fierro
The Octopus Project
Austin darlings, The Octopus Project, closed the Janis stage by bringing up the energy. The bounce of their synth melodies was infectious and had everyone grooving. Vocalist, Yvonnne Lambert, charmed the crowd with her mastery of the Theremin, an instrument which requires no physical touch to control, interacting only with the electromagnetic field surrounding the antennas of the device. It was stunning to watch her hands command the instrument to sing. She had the whole crowd at her fingertips.
Explosions In The Sky
Explosions In The Sky closed out Day One of Austin Psych Fest by slowly building layers of smoke and sound until the night erupted in excess. The Far Out Lounge was completely transformed into a scene from a film, everyone was suddenly immersed. The Austin band is known for their dense soundscapes which conjure images of adventure. They often compose soundtracks for video games, documentaries, films and television series. (Most recently, the band created the soundtrack to the 2025 Netflix show, American Primeval.)
I am a student at Texas State studying Digital Media and Psychology. I am always carrying my camera with me, it feels like my true voice. Some of my favorite artists are Courtney Barnett, Tainy, Frank Ocean, Art Lown, Fleshwater, Turnover, SZA and Wynton Kelly. Central Texas always has talented people passing through and I try to catch as many shows I can. I really love fashion, part of the fun of going to a concert is seeing what the artists wear on stage and everyone's outfits in the crowd. I tend to use musical elements in my fashion photography, the two are so intertwined to me. I also love to read and run, but not always at the same time.
I am an Austin-based photographer and social media manager. My love for photography started in high school which lead me to study communications at Texas Tech University and The University of the Incarnate Word. Aside from my love for photography and live music, I enjoy spinning vinyl, kayaking, biking, and chilling with my cat, Petrie.
