The Free for All Festival, featuring Akron/Family and more

By Olivia Forman
The Free For All music festival, which Funny Ha Ha’s Chris Martins helped curate, goes down at the Echo and Echoplex this Sunday. The headliners include Akron/Family, Frank Fairfield, Active Child and Langhorne Slim, but the real story is in the openers — Dreamcatcher and Mouse Heaven — who were chosen by a panel of judges from a bevy of self submissions.

Promoters had issued an open call for aspiring participants and although only one band was to supposed to be selected as the victor,  these two achieved a dead heat amidst the selectors (which included Martins, Justin Gage, Jason Bentley and a few others), so both have joined the bill.

And if the final three-stage line-up isn’t enough to get you excited, there are plenty of other enticements, as outlined in detail on the Free For All site (click for the full schedule). To name a few? A bike valet, craft areas, some tantalizing food trucks, and, of course, the pay-what-you-want entry.

The fun kicks off on Sunday, August 14, at 4 p.m. at the Echoplex. Read John Payne’s Pick for L.A. Weekly.

The Free For All fest, featuring Akron/Family and more

by Olivia Forman

Funny Ha Ha’s Chris Martins will join the judges panel for the Free For All music festival, casting his vote for which band will open the August 15 event at the Echoplex in Echo Park.

The festival is the brainchild of Jody Orsborn–creator of When You Awake, L.A.’s leading indie roots music blog–accompanied by fellow promoters Bobby Kittleman and our friend Phil Eastman, a member of folk crew Hi Ho Silver Oh, who will be taking the stage for the show. The creators of Free For All are aiming for “a pay-what-you-want, ticketless music & arts experience… [to] help bridge the gap between fans and bands with as little money being lost between the two as possible.”

Also on the esteemed panel of judges:

• Jason Bentley, KCRW Music Director
• Justin Gage, founder of Aquarium Drunkard and Autumyn Tone
• Chris Ziegler, editor-in-Chief and co-founder of LA Record
• Neil Schield, owner of the always awesome Origami Vinyl
• Judy Miller Silverman, owner of PR firm Motormouthmedia

The protocol? Bands submit music to an open vote online and the five public-determined favorites are judged by the panel, with the winner opening the festival. Already confirmed are Akron/Family, Langhorne Slim, Active Child, Old Man Markley, Frank Fairfield, Bad Weather California, Dustbowl Revival, Hi Ho Silver Oh, and the Smart Brothers.

The results will be announced August 2. Plus, in the spirit of the festival’s name, a donation of your choice will be taken at the door instead of tickets, so be sure to be there when it all goes down.