Words and Photos by Adrian Gandara

If you’re following the festival circuit, then last month you and your friends packed into a car, hit the road and headed to… Fort Worth? Yeah, I’m just as surprised as you are.

But Fortress Fest turned it out over a two-day weekend. But seriously, like, how did Fort Worth get Flying Lotus and Run the Jewels playing back to back? Ok, maybe that’s plausible — but then they got not one, but two (!) big-name headliners to fly all the way. From England. To FORT. WORTH. (?!) Slowdive mesmerized with their pedal-heavy wall of sound, and god bless Peter Hook & The Light for playing spot-on throwbacks from his days in Joy Division and New Order.

This lineup still leaves so many unanswered questions. But hey, Fortress Fest pulled it off, killed it, and blind pre-sale tickets are already on sale for Fortress Fest 2018.

The festival was also a great opportunity to showcase the DFW music scene: Burning Hotels, Sam Lao, Sudie, So-So Topic, and a bunch of others. S U R V I V E and Golden Dawn Arkestra represented Austin. Plus a boatload of other acts from across the country and Canada.

Alright, I grew up there and love it, but that doesn’t explain wtf happened musically that weekend.

Get your pre-sale tickets now I guess? At this rate I can only assume next year’s lineup will have Radiohead, Robert Johnson and the Beatles reunited ?_?

Day 1

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Day 2

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