Friday's NMF started out with a disappointment: Football, etc. canceled their set because their drummer broke both his feet (what?!?).  Instead, I caught Thee Bad Newes on Opolis' inside stage, where I spent a surprising amount of time throughout the festival. I'm becoming sedentary, and this is proof.

Nevertheless, Thee Bad Newes were fun to watch. I'm all about the DIY attitude and aesthetic, and TBN has both in spades. The duo releases music on cassette tapes (definition) and sings lyrics about working to build a life in community. The acoustic guitar/cello duo's songs were a blend of the gentle and the harsh, as the nylon-stringed acoustic guitar was most often played in a fingerpicking style reminiscent of both The Tallest Man on Earth and Bob Dylan. The cello provided lithe, swooning accompaniment.

Similarly to both aforementioned artists, the vocals were somewhere between a bray and a bark, bringing a raw element to the sound. It was a unique and interesting set, which was sad in light of the comment "This will be our last show for a while."

Rolling on out to Sooner Theater, I caught the back half of FRMR's set, which just about blew my mind and eardrums. The bizarre, carnival-esque tunes that erupt from the many members of FRMR are dizzying in their volume, erratic changes and general chaos. The bass (held down by local staple John Calvin) powered a lot of the tunes, as well as the army of keyboards. The vocals were oddest of all, making me marvel at the fact that some people's musical brains just work so much differently than mine. It was a fascinating set, and I would suggest anyone interested in experimental pop to check out FRMR's variety of it.