King Gizzard Wins Over Fans Once Again At Field Of Vision II In Colorado
King Gizzard had a monumental return to Buena Vista Colorado this weekend for their second-annual Field Of Vision music festival. This weekend we learned that there is a level of fame that can surpass arenas and stadiums. When a band is this big in popularity and lore, they can do whatever they want. For King Gizzard And The Lizard Wizard that means playing three headlining sets in the Rocky Mountains, a diverse lineup including Angine De Poitrine, a drag show, creekside floating, late night movies, and much much more.
featured photo by Maclay Heriot
Our trip began Wednesday evening as we flew into Denver from Los Angeles. Meadow Creek is the venue hosting Field of Vision, and it is located almost 8,000 ft above sea level. Our day in Denver was spent acclimating to the higher altitude before venturing up to Buena Vista. By Thursday afternoon we were ready to get picked up by our shuttle from Downtown Denver. Unfortunately, the shuttle got in a small accident right outside of our stop, this delayed the pickup by around 3 hours. We decided to ditch this plan and hitched a ride with our friends instead.
On day zero we touched down at Meadow Creek and checked into our Pond Glamping setup. This accommodation was perfect for us as it provided a queen bed, table, chairs, and a portable light. Right off the bat we were very impressed by Meadow Creek. The venue was basically a miniature Electric Forrest with tons of trees glowing in the night sky. At a glance you can see hammocks, a giant pond, and mountains in the distance. Upon closer review in the morning, you would be able to see the creek that zig zags through the campground offering a cold plunge for anyone looking to cool down.
One of the biggest highlights to our trip was the town of Buena Vista. We were able to walk a short mile to the downtown area of BV. Here we could enjoy brunch, thrift stores, coffee shops, and everything you can imagine from a small town in Colorado. Each visit to BV made us feel like we really were on vacation and not just bumming it at a festival all weekend!
Friday’s music eventually began with a beautiful disco set from DJ Boogie Boudreaux at Phantom Island. This stage was literally on an island blasting out to everyone in the pond. Her combination of deep disco cuts and indie dance edits got the party going. Simultaneously, Stu Mackenzie opened up the Castle stage with a fully modular set. Later on the mainstage opened up and we made our way there by 6PM for the wacky math rock phenomenon that is Angine De Poitrine. Angine played a high energy set of odd time signature jams that kept the crowd moving the entire hour. We were astonished how much power such a small duo could conjure up. Anyone who was not about the hype definitely ate their words after that set!
King Gizzard finally made their way to the stage and began the weekend with straight metal music. It was our first time seeing the Gizz live and we couldn’t believe the amount of genres they crossed in just 3 hours. Metal, psych rock, electronic, jazz, and everything in between. Things peaked around the halfway mark when they jammed alongside their giant modular synth. They played a 100 BPM halftime jam and went into Smoke & Mirrors while Ambrose rapped up a storm while rocking a clown mask.
After night one we stopped by the Cinema on the way back to camp for a screening of The Fifth Element. We loved that they served popcorn alongside an outdoor movie for those looking to unwind after the event. For those looking to stay up, The Castle stage kept the vibes high until 3AM with after hour sets from Blood Incantation, Nikki Nair, W.I.T.C.H., La Luz, and many more throughout the weekend.
After our first full day at Field of Vision we were ready to explore more. We ventured into Mirage City on day two. This is their version of Shakedown Street, the infamous bootlegger row that you can find at every Grateful Dead show. It is basically the band allowing their fans to express themselves through their own art and merchandise designs. We loved this concept so much. Instead of getting a few shirt designs from the official merch booth, here you could find dozens of them, most of which in unique tie dye colors. People sold posters, stickers, magnets, and anything else you could think of.
Saturday was blessed with a heavy death metal performance by the Denver natives Blood Incantation. This group took the stage before Gizz and absolutely slayed it with prolific riffs layered over a cacophony of booming double time kick drums. Each chaotic moment was resolved with beautiful ambient sound scapes and lush melodies that gave a nod to bands like Rush and Pink Floyd.
Gizz’s night 2 set slapped just as hard with the highlight being their live debut of Alien Metal, the lead single off of their latest record.
Our final day was spent soaking in the creek within the festival. Feeling the rush of cold water flowing through the rocks while being surrounded by Gizz fans is something that is cemented in my memory forever.
We have attended diverse festivals such as Coachella before, but Field of Vision was a lot different since it centered around one band. Something was in the water because everyone felt like they were plugged into the same magnetic energy. This audience and scene was reminiscent of what it might have been like in the early Grateful Dead days. Having a tight knit community so devoted to a band creates an otherworldly experience.
We couldn’t have asked for a better introduction to the band. This festival brought out the best in everyone in attendance. We danced. We swam. We explored a beautiful terrain. It all came together as one of the best festival experiences we have ever been to. On our shuttle ride back to the airport we could still feel the buzz in the air. “See you next year” was murmered all around as everyone grabbed their luggage and headed into the terminal. Until next time!
