Burning Couch Festival showcased indie, rock and hip-hop artists on April 23. Music Industry Creatives held the all-day festival at a member’s house.
About 20 artists performed on three stages, one in a backyard and two in basements.
The Meanwhiles, a local band, brought funk and rock to the backyard stage, playing “Superstition” by Stevie Wonder, “My Generation” by The Who, “Psycho Killer” by Talking Heads, “Santeria” by Sublime, “Light My Fire” by The Doors and “Dear Mr. Fantasy” by Traffic. They also played their first unreleased original they wrote that morning.
In the basement of the house, known as The Reef, Class Action played originals “All I Need” and “Sunday Afternoon” while surrounded by a selection of psychedelic tapestries that covered every inch of the walls with people occupying the entire room.
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Holumb played multiple originals on the backyard stage, including “Cinnamon Candle,” “Oh No” and “Oil Diffuser.” Later, Jordan Nouri, band member, serenaded the crowd with a cover of Daniel Caesar’s “Best Part.”
“I hope you all like to fucking jam,” Nouri said to the crowd before Holumb played an unreleased original song, “Sunrise.”
Too Many Cooks, a psychedelic punk funk blues band, started their outdoor set with “Dani California” by Red Hot Chili Peppers. They also played “Dark Necessities” by Red Hot Chili Peppers, “Purple Haze” by Jimi Hendrix and an original song: “Four Years Old.”
Tree To Stone performed multiple original songs including “Rabbit Hole” and “God Damn.” They also covered “Yer Blues” by the Beatles.
As Westhead closed the backyard show, the crowd stood from the ground and swung their arms back and forth.
Throughout the night, people talked in the backyard and basement, the neighbors’ garage and its roof and the neighbor’s backyard and basement.
People packed into the neighbor’s basement, known colloquially as The Pit, to watch D Slay, Ed Winn, Abdul Fall and other hip hop artists.
La Poblana Taco Truck catered tacos, burritos, tortas, quesadillas and more. They also sold horchata and Jarritos.
A water slide greeted people on their way into the festival and other yard games were available. Attendees played cornhole and table games. Karaoke was available in the garage.
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WIUX provided a DJ set from 2 to 4 p.m. during intermission. WIUX also had a table to sell merch and hold a vinyl record giveaway.
MIC invited local artists to sell their artwork, including clothing, prints, and other items. Gonzo Hydraulica sold clothing at the event. IU junior Isabelle Davis, sold art prints, bookmarks and handbound journals.
“I naturally am inclined to make art, and I have a lot of it, so I like to sell it,” Davis said.
Anna Prager, owner of Art Wurmz and IU freshman, sold clothing, buttons, prints and stickers at her artist booth.
“I feel like (Bloomington) is a really good community,” Prager said. “There’s a lot of people who really honor the arts and it’s really great to get back into art and find other people that are into it as much as I am.”
Alexa Dow, president of Undergraduate Student Arts Managers and IU senior, was selling artwork at a table. She said the proceeds were donated evenly between the Ukrainian Crisis Fund and the Civil Disobedience Movement in Myanmar.
The festival was named “Burning Couch Festival” to honor their first house show, at which a couch was thrown into a bonfire. In that festival’s memory, a couch was burned in a bonfire at the end of the night.
