Project Pabst 2017: Punk is Alive in Atlanta
Project Pabst proved that punk rock is alive and well in the city of Atlanta, Georgia. Besides an eclectic mix of artists on the line-up, Project Pabst offers attendees a unique, interactive festival experience fueled by the local talent flowing out of the Atlanta area. Between three stages, interactive art installments, and local food at reasonable prices it’s crazy to think Project Pabst welcomed thousands of attendees for just fifty bucks on Saturday, October 7th. Usually you have to pay around one hundred to two hundred dollars to get tickets to a festival with this kind of lineup and activities throughout the venue. The best thing about Project Pabst is that it highlights the local talent of each city that it stops in. So for the event in Atlanta, the undercard had some of the city’s best like Ruby Velle and The Soulphonics, RMBLR, The Coathangers, and Vincas, just to name a few. Honestly, Project Pabst is probably the best fifty bucks anyone could have spent in Atlanta for that entire weekend because it was about ten hours straight of phenomenal live music.
The doors opened up at noon and the first show was set to start at 1:00pm. This gave attendees a little time to get familiar with the grounds, grab a drink and enjoy some of the Pabst Blue Ribbon art throughout the venue. There was a glorious unicorn constructed out of recycled Pabst Blue Ribbon cases right next to the Unicorn stage, funky beer themed graffiti lined the brick wall outside the Earl Stage, and directly in front of the Captain Pabst Stage attendees had the opportunity to participate in the PBRVandalism project.
The PBRVandalism project is an interactive art installment by Project Pabst where fans get to let their creativity shine by utilizing some spray paint and a van as a canvas. This is definitely one of the aspects that makes Project Pabst so unique; attendees get to watch the PBR Van change throughout the day and witness the creativity of their city unfold.
The performances throughout the day were nothing less than amazing. The lineup was overflowing with local talent with a couple world-renowned names sprinkled on top as headliners. The day started with some funky, laid back vibes from Ruby Velle and The Soulphonics. Their set was fueled by their love for Atlanta and highlighted some singles off their new album ‘State of All Things’, which is set to debut in early 2018.
As if Ruby Velle and The Soulphonics didn’t show enough Atlanta love, Lord Narf took the stage after them and really got the crowd jumping. Lord Narf and her Awful Records crew brought so much energy to Project Pabst, you would have thought they were the headlining act and not the second band on the bill for the day.
The rest of the day was filled to the brim with insanely talented local punk and alternative rock artists. By the time The Coathangers hit the Unicorn Stage, you could barely get past the soundboard. People were buzzing with energy when this punk rock powerhouse trio hit the stage decked out in their jumpsuits. This powerhouse trio is able to switch spots multiple times and play each other’s instruments and keep on rockin’. Their set really got the punk-rock vibe for the day started.
Other local bands that kept this vibe rolling were Dicaprio, RMBLR, Gentlemen Jesse and his Men, and Vincas. There was honestly so much incredible talent on this line-up it’s crazy to think they all played on the same day. RMBLR rocked the Captain Pabst Stage with their Operation Ivy meets Ramones vibe. Their frontman, Chase Tail, is a spitting image of energetic east-bay, California punk that makes you question if he’s really from the east coast. Then there’s Vincas, a band that rolls three men strong, but packs a punch as if there’s six of them on stage. To see this many talented musicians, you usually have to trek cross-country to a four day camping festival and spend triple the money.
Sprinkled on top of the amazing local talent were some of the most phenomenal headliners Project Pabst could have picked for the event. The limit-breaking, boundary-pushing Peaches absolutely blew Atlanta away with her set. Her ‘in your face’ attitude and passion to push everyone to embrace who they are as individuals had everyone at Project Pabst feeling fabulous and groovin’. Then, the crowd really got into a groove when The Internet took the stage with their trip hop, alternative, soul vibes. Not a single attendee was able to leave Project Pabst and say they didn’t dance their tails off for the day.
The day built up to two headliners worthy of closing such an amazing lineup. Dinosaur Jr. is a rock band from Massachusetts that's been around since 1984. Their hour long set really got the crowd pumped up and ready for the godfather of punk to grace Atlanta with his presence. The main act of the night was the one and only Iggy Pop. Atlanta went nuts when he came out. Seeing Iggy Pop wiggle and bounce across the stage like a kinetic ball of energy makes it hard to believe he's 70 years old and been rockin' since the late '60s. His set was phenomenal and absolutely killed it for over an hour. Iggy Pop was definitely the icing on the cake for Project Pabst presented by Pabst Blue Ribbon.
The whole day was a non-stop roller coaster of local talent. To think about ninety percent of the lineup came from local talent is amazing and really says a lot about Atlanta. Project Pabst 2017 was an absolute hit in Atlanta, and Concert Hopper loves watching this festival continue to shine light on some of the city's best and brightest musicians.
