FYF Fest highlights span musical genres, include Kanye West set

For the second year in a row, Los Angeles’ Exposition Park played host to FYF Fest for two days of eclectic beat-making and expensive food-trucking. With a sprinkling of every genre from noise rock to hardcore hip-hop to dance-funk to anything that might remotely fit in between, Saturday and Sunday demonstrated modern-day American music culture at its most multifaceted, though also at its most uncomfortably disconnected.

The awkwardness primarily came from the park’s overall setup: unlike FYF Fest’s former home, the L.A. State Historic Park, Exposition Park wasn’t easy to navigate from one end of the curved festival grounds to the other without getting decidedly lost. On my weekend-long quest to avoid buying ridiculously overpriced tacos (which I caved to twice), I encountered plenty of confused high schoolers and dance-happy adults who couldn’t tell one end of the claustrophobic event map from the other.

Still, for those who wanted to sway to the beat all day, scream with deathly melodies, lose their minds to bass or sing along to their childhood hits, there was a place at FYF to find comfort. Here are some of the highlights from the weekend’s most engaging, provocative and commanding artists.

The ravaging through the Trees

The acts that played at the Trees Stage, located near the center of the grounds, brought hardcore-rock stylings to a rampaging peak amid a consistently moblike sea of fans. From the garage-rock chords of BRONCHO and Savages to the experimental genre-bending of METZ and HEALTH, the bands that played between the Trees shredded guitars, drums, vocal chords and eardrums to thunderous, noisy wonder.

Run the Jewels doesn’t have time for haters

Though “haters” is a more PG term than what Run the Jewels actually refers to its nonfans as, the point was clear – anyone who isn’t in the “RTJ family” was going to be left in the dust during rap duo El-P and Killer Mike’s powerful performance Saturday evening. But at the sight of Mike doing his trademark pelvic-thrusting, arm-swaying dance right next to his best friend in the middle of a Zack de la Rocha guest verse, who wouldn’t want to be part of it?

Yeezus runs through the years

A lot has already been said online about Rihanna’s surprise appearance mid-set to sing alongside the entertainer who easily confronted FYF Fest’s most enthusiastic crowd Saturday night. But more has to be shared about Kanye West’s closing moments, in which West claimed he had “10 minutes left and 10 years of hits” left to share. He did just that, playing one of his pop-rap masterpieces each minute, with a lovely rendition of the ballad “Only One” to close.

The synth pop doesn’t stop

Sunday’s acts brought dance music to the Main Stage in a glorious fashion. Back-to-back performances by the refreshingly enthusiastic Neon Indian, the too-funky-for-his-own-good Toro y Moi and Flume, who got his own surprise dance party from a backstage-dwelling Lorde, had hundreds grooving all afternoon.

Like floating through space

The L.A. Memorial Sports Arena was easily the most closed-off stage during the rambunctious weekend, but that didn’t stop the bands that played there from putting on luminous shows. Acts like Spiritualized and Nicolas Jaar melted the atmosphere inside the starry stadium to trance-inducing effect, while BADBADNOTGOOD brought a dazzling saxophone-filled light show to the delirious masses.

FYF is a circus and D’Angelo is its ringleader

Soul master D’Angelo walked onstage about 10 minutes late Sunday night, played a few chords on his guitar and then stopped with a glimmering spotlight shining down on his trademark white hat and black coat. The crowd proceeded to go absolutely berserk, though not quite as berserk as his backing band The Vanguard did for the next hour, jamming like a jazz orchestra who just mastered the true meaning of funk.

Leave it to Morrissey to make an impact

After singalongs to a blend of songs from his The Smiths days and solo career, Morrissey projected footage of slaughterhouses and abused animals on the Main Stage’s gigantic screen during a performance of “Meat Is Murder.” Did the crowd turn sour at the up-close sight of chicken eggs being birthed? Possibly, though it’s not as if always-controversial Morrissey would mind.

FKA Twigs makes for a truly grand finale

It was hard to tell Sunday night whether the U.K. performer was born to be a singer, producer or dancer at heart, considering she was better than most of the festival’s acts at all three, moving with demonic convulsions while wailing angelically to a captivated crowd. Disturbed, wonky, trippy and beautiful, FKA Twigs and her assembly of contortionist dancers ended 2015’s FYF Fest on an artistic high point.

– Sebastian Torrelio