Sunday, August 11, 2013

RICHARD DREYFEST 2013 PHOTOS

A few of our favorites:


It's like it's 1993 all over again!
Weather-Control

Ando Ehlers shortly before forming a conga line that went to the next venue!
Reid Perry

It's either The Deadnecks or JR from Dynasty.

Tales From Ghost Town
Duchovny
Duchovny x2

The Helligans
Jamz Dean and Legacy
We were visited by the spirit of Dreyfest
Those faces... Idaho Green 
Idaho Green creeps the crowd out
Buddy Jackson
Showgoers at Nova

The Nova crowd

Old men have a hard time hearing (Noise Noise Noise)

Noise Noise Noise says goodbye

Arvin Davis doing the triumphant kickball strut.

The Harper & Madison show

Inside Harper: No Cigar
Look at the sticker, dummy!

Medicine Bow


Outside at the YAM

Grunt...grunting.

Part Time Ninjas

Farley Moore. One last huddle!
Farley Moore

Minot men.

The Getters

Kiddo

Oxen Free

Posture

Posture poppin' "p"s

Things get weird.

MR. (FUCKING) DAD!!!

Mr. Dad

Tumbleweed crowd

Friends of Cesar Romero

scurrying between venues

The Budgets

Quadruple duty: Noise Noise Noise, The Budgets, Friends of Cesar Romero, Greater Apes.
That was exhausting!

And we can't wait to do it again next year!


Photo credits: Yasmin Morup, Hannah Jacobsen,
Ë Media, Andrew Verry, Zachary Lucy, Scott Wagers, 
Nicole Jensen, Timmy Arrowtop, Caleb Addy, Kelly,
Samantha Gores, Cody Weis, probably quite a few more...
If we missed crediting you, please let us know and we'll throw 
your name up here.

Monday, August 5, 2013

THANK YOU!

Well, folks, we’ve got to hand it to you- you really helped make Dreyfest something to remember. After a couple days off to slow our pulses and take in what happened, we’ve come to a couple conclusions:

a.) Richard Dreyfest 2013 was a resounding success! We’ve received an immense amount of positive feedback and we’re extremely happy that you were all a part of it- artists, venues, attendees, curious onlookers, and the guy in the tutu: please give yourselves a hand. Oh sure, there were a couple of hiccups- but nothing that would prevent us from doing this all again in the future...

"You...magnificent...bastards."


b.) Yeah, you heard us- we’ve already agreed: this is going to be a yearly deal! So get in the garage and start practicing, save some money for band merch, and shape your hair into a grey shark fin & scare the kids at the pool in preparation for Richard Dreyfest 2014 next summer! Hell, there’s even talk of Julia Louis-Dreyfest being a smaller event during the winter...but I digress.

c.) Later this week, we’ll be throwing up some photos of the fest. If you have some pics- camera phone, pro shots, Kodak Funsavers, whatever- we’d love to see them! Send ‘em to us or tag us on facebook or hit up our email account: richarddreyfest@gmail.com.

d.) Van Halen bailed at the last second! I suggest you send them irate hatemail in response to their complete disregard for their contractual obligations. Also, for hiring Gary Cherone.

e.) There is no “e.)”- What else do you want from us, you ungrateful jerks!? 



Check back in with us soon about those photos, and- 

Thank You for Participating in Dreyfest!






Saturday, August 3, 2013

DREYFEST DAY 2!

The first day of Richard Dreyfest was a great success! We're kicking off day two with RICHARD DINEFEST at 12:30 in Pioneer park. It's a potluck, so bring some food if you can (you're welcome to come whether you do or don't, though!). Kickball, sitting around, and ultimate frisbee afterwards!

Dinefest: there'll be more than just mashed potatoes. Promise.

Afterward, head to: 

Harper & Madison. 3pm-7:30pm. No Cigar, Bedlam Saints, Shangri-La, AssNyne, Tribe, Armaund Hammer, Halfway Killed, and Part-Time Ninjas!

The Yam. 4:30pm-7:30pm. Katy Kemmick, Medicine Bow, Grunt, and Farley Moore's LAST SHOW!!! (and more!)

Tumbleweed. 5:30pm-9:30pm-ish. Stranded by Choice, Oxen Free, Show For Nobody, The Getters, Mr. Dad, Friends of Cesar Romero, The Budgets (and the raffle for a TON of band merchandise from the artists you've been watching all weekend!)

See you at Dreyfest!

Friday, August 2, 2013

DREYFEST BEGINS TODAY!

DREYFEST begins today! (yeah, we're so excited we said it twice!)

FREE show at YVBC: 3pm-8pm. featuring Alex Nauman Organ Trio, Reid Perry, Weather-Control, The DAMN Union, Idaho Green, DUCHOVNY, The Michael Character, Vibe Technicians, & Too Many Teeth!


Discontent: 5pm-8pm. featuring Poetic Intelligence, Ando Ehlers, Jamz Dean and Legacy, Tales From Ghost Town, and PD Lear!

Nova (formerly Venture Theatre): 7pm-10:45 pm. featuring The Deadnecks, KaNcErUs, Buddy Jackson, Greater Apes, Duffy and the Beer Slayers, The Helligans, and Noise Noise Noise (their last show!)!

$10 bux gets you into to ALL these shows plus 3 more tomorrow. Or a $6 fee for any single show, not including the FREE show at YVBC.

See you at Dreyfest!

Thursday, August 1, 2013

ANDO EHLERS


It was a rainy Seattle night. Ando Ehlers, musician extraordinaire was skipping home from his favorite coffee shop after he had played one of the happiest ukulele sets he's ever performed. He decided to skip through an alleyway when a strange man carrying an accordion case, wearing a dark robe and a mask of a goat stepped in front of him. He pulled out a knife, and threateningly yet calmly said, "You wanna dance, Ehlers?" Ando was stunned. He shook his head in agreement. The man continued. "Well... I wanna polka."

This probably isn't exactly what happened, but I have a feeling that something almost as strange prompted Ando Ehlers to play the type of music that he does. He calls it Death Polka, which is pretty much a cross between punk rock, bluegrass, and polka. If pirates were still around, he'd be booked year round, going from port to port playing singing tales of "Whiskeydick" and letting everyone know that "This World Can Suck My Cock". This isn't to say that the more refined of us won't enjoy his set either, as his musicianship is really quite amazing. Ando Ehlers is the real deal, he's dynamite! Too much?

What is Ando Ehlers, where are you from, and how long have you been
playing death polka?


Ando Ehlers is a punk rock accordion-playin’ fool from Seattle WA who loves nothing more than to sing and scream his guts out on stage while people dance, get offended or have fun heckling him. All about a good time! Death Polka had its first performance in 2009 so I guess that makes it 4 years or so at this point.



 Some of your songs are recorded with a band. Is that you or other
musicians?

I play accordion and ukulele on my records. Otherwise I’ve had some good friends who have helped me out lending their musical talents to the Death Polka extravaganza!


 About how much time do you put in on the road each year?
Since I started touring with this project about three or four years ago I’ve been slowly increasing my amount of time that I spend each year on the road. This year so far I’ve been out for four months total, with a one month tour that I have coming up in the Fall. That’ll be five for this year and next year I’m hoping that I can stay out for six to seven!

This photo was taken in a transitional period of
Ando's life, when he quit his job as a kindergarten
teacher to pursue a career in Death Polka ((Probably) Not true).

Bears, beets, or Battlestar Galactica?
Battlestar, baby! Gaius Baltar is probably my favorite character from that show. I want to say why, but I truly don’t want to give any of the show away in case someone hasn’t watched it yet. If you haven’t watched Battlestar Galactica YOU REALLY SHOULD. It’s worth the crazy length of time that the series takes!

 You've played in Billings a few times before. Any fond or disgruntled
memories? Based on past experience, what  do you expect from
Billings/Richard Dreyfest?

Only fond memories of Billings for me! Every time that I have played there has always brought a good night to the table. From my experience people in and around Billings seem to enjoy making music, hearing music, drinking and having a fun time. I don’t find anything wrong with that! I’ve got a hunch that Billings is going to bring it the way that they always do when Richard Dreyfest rocks their socks all down the block. I’m just hoping that by the time I hit the stage on Friday night everyone isn’t too worn out from dancing all day to all of the other great bands that are playing!


Which world can suck your cock: Kashyyk, the World of Warcraft, This
World, or Disney World?

Did we forget to mention that Ando sings through a bottle of whiskey
during his set? Well, it's more like "into" a bottle of whiskey, to be
honest.
Kashyyk can suck my cock because I feel that Wookies are one of the most profoundly uninspiring creatures in science fiction history. Seriously, that costume is just a shag carpet rolled around a dude who grunts. Lame.

The World of Warcraft can suck my cock because I know that if I played that game (I would really like to) I would lose my job and do nothing with my life. I got the 14 day trial of that little demon and did not allow myself to play any further because I fell so far behind on my projects and personal life that I knew I would become one of those weirdo guys who never leaves his house and only talks about WoW because he plays it for 15 hours per day.

Disney World can suck my cock because it’s too expensive for me to go there right now. I want to ride the Dumbo ride, damnit! Ugh! Suck my dick, Mickey.

I play a song called “This World Can Suck My Cock”, there’s a little more story behind that one here on my website:
http://www.deathpolka.com/blog/this_world_can_suck_my_cock_by_reed_avoided/

What is your favorite aspect of performing as a solo project?
Probably the fact that I can just hit the road and tour whenever I would like to. I’ve worked with a lot of band members, and to me the hardest part is coordinating schedules between each other for tours and shows. Can’t say that I don’t miss having a band, but there’s also no way I would have been able to do some of the shows/tours that I’ve been able to play if I was still trying to coordinate schedules with other people.

Lastly, what would you like to tell Dreyfest-goers who have never seen
your show before? What's in store for them?

They should expect zazz! Pyrotechnics! Naked people! Special guest
appearances by Ronald McDonald, The Energizer Bunny and the entire lineup of Jim Henson puppets! They should expect an accordion, a drunk guy yelling at them about misanthropy and his ex girlfriends, a ukulele with spooky tones cursing Kashyyk, WoW and Mickey Mouse! A stomp box that is demonically possessed and occasionally has been known to bite fingers off of people! Some of that is true. Some of it is…exaggerated. Just bring your dancing shoes, when Death Polka hits the stage the only rule is that you need to have fun!



...So maybe he's not as scary as "Death Polka" might imply, but hey, he called out the entire Wookie race! That takes serious audacity, even if Wookies aren't necessarily... real. And stuff. Regardless, check out Ando's set at & 7:30 on Friday, at Discontent Billings!

See you at Dreyfest!