My Austin Psych Fest Must-Sees

By Lillian Jones

Local Music Director

With the 2025 annual Austin Psych Fest just right around the corner, I have compiled a list of my must-sees on the three day lineup. While I am most excited to see these bands, that does not take away my excitement from others on the lineup! My favorite thing about music festivals is the possibility of being introduced to an unexpected new favorite artist. This will be my first time attending Austin Psych Fest so I’m buzzing with anticipation!

FRIDAY 

The Octopus Project 

The Octopus Project is an Austin, TX treasure! I was introduced to them at a young age from my parents wearing one of their old merch shirts featuring a bunny driving a robot. One of my favorite “Austinite experiences” was shortly after we moved back to the city and watched them play a set before a showing of cult classic film, Dazed and Confused. They put on an energetic show, enjoyable for all ages. 

Godspeed You! Black Emperor

Godspeed You! Black Emperor is an ambient noise band known for their lengthy, mind bending tracks. I was first introduced to them with their 2000 album, Lift Your Skinny Fists Like Antennas to Heaven, which while only having four tracks, is an hour and 27 minutes long. While I usually have a Gen Z brain with a short attention span, this album is so beautiful, I have no choice but to slow down and appreciate it. They released their latest album, “NO TITLE AS OF 13 FEBRUARY 2024 28,340 DEAD” in October of 2024; a collection of slightly shorter tracks with a more mundane sound and equal amount of beauty. It will make for a unique performance that I can’t wait to see live. 

SATURDAY 

Geordie Greep

 This is probably the person I am most excited to see! I was a little late to the Black Midi-obsession-train, having only dabbled in a couple songs before the announcement of their indefinite hiatus. Shortly after though, Geordie Greep released his solo project, The New Sound, and it finally clicked. This guy rocks. Being only 25 years old, Greep plays guitar like he’s been doing it for 50. The New Sound has a bit of a modern take on the Bossa Nova sound which I fell in love with. It’s unlike anything I have heard from modern musicians. His lyricism can come across as jarring at first as it breaks down the topics of toxic masculinity and misogyny.  He’s a musical genius to me and many others.

STRFKR

If you weren’t bumping “Rawnald Gregory Erickson the Second” on the school bus at 7a.m. are you really an indie-pop truther? STRFKR is a very nostalgic band for me and indie-pop lovers alike. I was fortunate to see them at Stubbs back in 2022 with my dad, but I was unfortunate to be surrounded by people with maybe the worst concert etiquette ever. Despite the bad crowd experience, the actual performance put on by the band was magical! Get ready for fun visuals, dancing and maybe an astronaut doing the splits while crowd surfing. 

Kim Gordon 

Seeing Kim Gordon’s name on the lineup made my jaw drop. Gordon has already lived the rockstar lifestyle through Sonic Youth, now she’s dabbling in the experimental realm with her solo project. In 2024, she released her debut album, The Collective, featuring songs like “BYE BYE” and “I’M A MAN”. Honestly, I didn’t know what to make of the album when I gave it a first listen, but then I remembered Gordon’s insane level of bad*ssery and realized she can do whatever she wants! If you’re expecting a throwback to Sonic Youth, you’re in for a surprise.

SUNDAY 

Dean Wareham 

Dean Wareham is performing tracks from Galaxie 500 solo. Galaxie 500 is a sentimental band for me as they sparked my love for CD collecting. Back in my senior year of high school, my friend let go of her Copenhagen album to help me start building my collection. I had never heard of Galaxie 500, but once it started playing through my CD player, I instantly fell in love. Their song “Strange” off of the 1989 record, On Fire, recently gained popularity after being featured in the soundtrack of 2024 movie “Lisa Frankenstein”. In 2024, they also released Uncollected Noise New York ‘88-’90, a collection of previously unreleased tracks. I’m excited to see what tracks Wareham chooses to play! 

Bôa 

Bôa recently regained popularity over the past few years due to their song “Duvet” gaining traction on TikTok. “Duvet,” off of their Twilight record, was used as the intro song to the 1998 psychological anime, “Serial Experiments Lain,” aiding in its popularity. The entire Twilight album is full of that ‘90s whimsical shoegaze instrumentals with Jasmine Rodgers angelic voice breathing over. After a 19 year break, Bôa released their third record Whiplash in October of 2024. Whiplash takes a modern twist on that previous Bôa sound that I appreciate. 

Yo La Tengo

I was a little late to the Yo La Tengo train, finding them during a rotational DJ shift in 2023. However, they have since become one of my top favorite artists of all time. I had the pleasure of getting to see them in concert with my dad last year. They put on a unique three hour long show. Instead of having an opening act, the band first came on stage to play their slow songs and deep cuts. This made for a relaxing ease into a concert which was broken up with an intermission with a quirky remix of “Twerkulator” by City Girls playing from the Mohawk speakers, making me giggle. They later came back on stage to play more of their energetic and popular songs such as “Autumn Sweater” and my favorite, “Fallout”. I’m very interested to see how a Yo La Tengo festival set will differ from a solo concert.