It looks like Austin’s annual Fun Fun Fun Fest is going to be even more fun this year. The ninth incarnation of the festival will take place from November 7-9 at Auditorium Shores and Butler Park. This year, however, metal will take center stage, or “Black Stage,” as there’s going to be a stage set for metal, hardcore and punk. It will be headlined by Judas Priest playing their first Austin show in over 25 years. If the return of the Metal Gods isn’t enough, King Diamond will be playing. Other bands playing include Death From Above 1979, Amon Amarth, Deafheaven, Iron Reagan, Pallbearer, Pissed Jeans, Gorilla Biscuits, Sick of it All (playing Blood Sweat and No Tears and Scratch the Surface).
While Priest’s return to Austin is pretty noteworthy, all eyes will be on the Black Stage for King Diamond’s return. Aside from appearing onstage with Metallica at their 30th anniversary shows in 2011, King hasn’t played an American show in years. His last album, Give Me Your Soul… Please, was released in 2007. In 2010, he’d had triple bypass surgery, and while he made his return to the stage in 2012 in Sweden, unless more shows are added before then, this will be his first American tour in years.
There’s plenty of non-metal at the three day festival as well. Death Cab for Cutie, Neutral Milk Hotel, Nas, Whiz Khalifa, Girl Talk and Dinosaur Jr. are among those playing. There’s also going to be a comedy lineup announced, and skate & ride athletes, as well as scavenger hunts. In all, Fun Fun Fun Fest sounds really fun (fun fun).
Tickets are on sale for the Fest now. Here’s the lineup:
BLACK STAGE:
Judas Priest, King Diamond, Death From Above 1979, Rocket From The Crypt, Death Grips, Gorilla Biscuits, Blood Brothers, Amon Amarth, Glassjaw, Black Lips, Hot Water Music, Iceage, Sick of It All (Blood, Sweat and No Tears / Scratch the Surface anniversary set), Deafheaven, Jello Biafra and the Guantanamo School of Medicine, METZ, Pissed Jeans, Pallbearer, The Bots, Iron Reagan, Pianos Become Teeth, Fat White Family, Radkey, Twin Peaks, Crooked Bangs, Communion, Breakout
ORANGE STAGE:
Death Cab for Cutie, Neutral Milk Hotel, Alt-J, The New Pornographers, Dinosaur Jr., First Aid Kit, Guided By Voices, City and Colour, Yo La Tengo, Failure, Dum Dum Girls, Foxygen, Courtney Barnett, Sun Kil Moon, Yann Tiersen, Majical Cloudz, San Fermin, Angel Olsen, Tinariwen, J Mascis, Mineral, King Tuff, Knapsack, Chelsea Wolfe, Reputante, Spider Bags, Julianna Barwick, Wildcat! Wildcat!, Scott H Biram, The World is a Beautiful Place & I Am No Longer Afraid to Die, Nostalghia, This Will Destroy You, Dana Falconberry, The Sour Notes, Good Fields
BLUE STAGE:
Nas (Illmatic 20th anniversary), Wiz Khalifa, Girl Talk, 2 Chainz, Atmosphere, Flying Lotus, Sky Ferreira, The Presets, Gary Numan, Cashmere Cat, Ginuwine, Z-Trip, Run The Jewels (El-P/Killer Mike), Lunice, Yelle, Ryan Hemsworth, The Internet, SOHN, SZA, Thundercat, Mas Ysa, Say Lou Lou, Gardens and Villa, Roosevelt, ASTR, Jacuzzi, Cities Aviv, Zorch, Blue, The Misfit., The Digital Wild
