In other less exciting cities across the country, Halloween is over. It is time to stow away the plastic skeletons, toss out the last-minute costumes and shamefully finish off the candy stashes. In Tucson, though, the end of October isn’t the end of the spooky holiday spirit.
The first week of November is packed full of events all around downtown Tucson leading up to the All Souls Procession on Sunday. Maybe the most exciting of these leading events is the Night of the Living Fest.
After two successful years under its belt, NOLF, as it’s marketed, has officially been named the pre-party of the All Souls Procession. This local one-night music and art festival is being held on Saturday from 4 p.m. to 1 a.m. around the area of the Old Town Artisans on 201 N. Court Ave.
The festival will feature 18 musical acts spread across three stages. These are acts pulled from both the local scene and the national underground. The array of nationally touring artists stopping by to rock out Tucson include Athens, Georgia, psychedelic rock group Of Montreal and San Francisco, California, avant-garde rock group Deerhoof. Both of these groups have been active since the mid-90s and are sure to put on stellar performances.
From the local level, NOLF’s lineup includes the exceptional Tucson bands Katterwaul and Wight Lhite. The former is a girl-power, garage rock group that has gained a lot of traction with their fantastic records “Gimmie Fever,” “Desert Kats” and their newest “15 Forever,” which was released Sept. 18. The latter band was founded by guitarist Elvis Freshley in August 2014, though the band’s website tells a different story: “Wight Lhite began on a late spring evening. The rushing wind howled and the debris scattered and made a hissing sound. I met a man about a horse and traveled up the great mountain. He shot me in the leg and stole my gold.”
Perhaps it’s the wild imagination of the band’s aliased members that helped lead to the group’s outstanding heavy-psychedelic punk rock style.
The best part? Attendants can gorge themselves on all of the live music, art displays and food they’d like with the comforting knowledge that this is a festival made by Tucsonan artists for the people of Tucson.
For all three years so far, the festival has been organized by festival co-founder and local musician Ben Schneider. Since the festival’s beginning in Old Tucson Studios in 2013, it has expanded significantly. This year’s lineup is the biggest yet and there will also be art installations, hand-made carnival games, a special event menu from La Cocina Restaurant and Cantina and plenty of food trucks.
According to Schneider, the inspiration for the NOLF was simple. “I was just kind of wondering why there wasn’t a big pre-party for the All Souls Procession,” said Schneider.
Now that gap is filled with one of Tucson’s most exciting music festivals and Schneider has even helped to organize a post-party for the procession on Sunday night.
To help keep Tucson’s spooky tradition running, 25 percent of alcohol sales and a portion of all ticket sales at this year’s NOLF will go to funding the All Souls Procession. Tickets are $30 online before the festival or $35 at the door.
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