The third annual FEaST Music Festival unfolded over four days at the James Theater, where attendees experienced a rich, resonant program of esoteric sound artists and avant-garde musicians. Founded by the late programmer Chris Wiersema, the festival began as an extension of Feed Me Weird Things, an 8-year-running series focused on rare and esoteric music styles meant to arouse empathy from immersive, focused listening. FEaST’s unconventional programming has made it a unique cultural fixture in Iowa: a celebration of boundary-pushing artistry and deep, attentive listening. As evidence, past artists include world-class avant-garde artists like Sun Ra Arkestra and Laurel Halo.
The beloved curator’s vision continues to ripple throughout the music scene he fostered. When the 2024 lineup was announced, festival organizers shared that “this year’s FEaST is the commemoration of [Wiersema’s] ethos, programming and legacy and looks to celebrate the mad genius of our dear friend and guide to and through the deep, dark and unknown.” This was manifestly apparent in attendee conversations, organizers’ introductory addresses each night, and the potent performances by artists from throughout the U.S. and Canada, almost all of whom Wiersema had booked before his death in March.
FEaST’s esoteric sound-world opened fittingly on the eve of Halloween, with guitarist Ava Mendoza’s dexterous, punk-influenced free jazz stylings setting an electric, intimate tone in the blank space provided by the black box theater. Friend – a duo comprising percussionist and composer Jon Mueller and Bon Iver member Andrew Fitzpatrick – followed, immersing listeners in energetic, percussive textures.
The festival continued the next day with boundary-pushing performances from Zeena Parkins and Robert Aiki Aubrey Lowe. Parkins, a pioneering avant-garde harpist, captivated the audience with prepared harp techniques, and pushed at the edge of the harp’s potential with layers of sound ranging from ethereal to dissonant. Lowe conjured otherworldly atmospheres using his signature technique of blending vocals with modular synthesis, adding an appropriately spectral dimension to the Halloween evening.
Friday saw Maria Chavez and noise duo Wolf Eyes continuing the auditory explorations. Before she played, Chavez, known for her improvisational turntablism and utilization of broken records, invited festival organizers to shatter several records in Wiersema’s honor. Using the vinyl shards on four turntables, she created a collage of sounds filled with crackling pops, rhythmic skips, and soothing low-end tones, gracefully and assuredly creating ephemeral samples from the shattered, jagged plastic bits. Wolf Eyes closed the night with their immersive, hypnotic noise, incorporating intermittent bursts of soprano saxophone, growling vocals and pulsating sludgy beats, filling the room with a primal, trance-like quality.
Chavez’s connection with her craft was evident in the workshop she led on the final day of the fest in the Hageboeck Hall of Birds in The University of Iowa Museum of Natural History. Flanked by a taxidermied dodo, heron and other fowl, she guided attendees in turntable basics and manipulating record shards on her signature four-turntable setup, including two that belonged to Wiersema. She explained her philosophy of letting “time” act as artist and embracing chance in her work. From rhythmic shard loops to dragging needles across grooves, she shared her techniques with the audience, breaking down the barriers between performer and listener.
Many Iowa-connected musicians and composers were in attendance as well. Noise musician Kyler Vande Kieft of Des Moines caught all eight performances as well as Chavez’s workshop. When he wasn’t at the festival, he parked his van in a parking lot or at a park and recorded drone compositions using effects pedals and cassette players.
On Nov. 2, Sarah Davachi and Circuit des Yeux closed out the festival with performances that celebrated the meditative aspects of experimental music. Davachi, a composer known for her minimalist style, delivered an introspective set of slowly shifting harmonies, enveloping the audience in a sonic meditation. Singer-songwriter Circuit des Yeux, a vocalist known for her stunning four-octave voice, gave a haunting and powerful performance, her voice resonating with raw emotion as it floated above her nylon string guitar parts.
The performances at FEaST 2024 succeeded not only in honoring its founder’s legacy but in reinforcing the festival’s role as a space for boundary-pushing, expansive artistry. The collaborative effort involving many of Wiersema’s friends and colleagues left attendees with a powerful reminder of the community he helped create - one that will continue to thrive alongside Iowa’s experimental music scene.