Sheiks, Subteens heat things up as Sweat Fest returns
Following two years of widespread cancellations, music festivals have finally come roaring back this summer, but unfortunately their return has often been less than triumphant.
Issues ranging from overcrowding to last-minute cancellations and unruly audiences have plagued festivals across the world, leading to refunds, public apologies, and even lawsuits.
“The audience is out of practice. Security is out of practice. Everybody is out of practice,” Billboard senior editor Eric Renner Brown told Music World earlier this month.
But Memphis’ own Shangri-La Records is back with a festival that promises to be immune from these all-too-common headaches — the oppressive heat being the likely exception, of course.
On Saturday, Aug. 13, the Midtown record store will bring back its annual Sweat Fest for the first time since 2019, a welcomed return for the aptly named celebration that features both massive sales along with tons of live performances. The festival, which is free and open to the public, kicks off at 11 a.m., with musical performances beginning at 2 p.m.
“The Sweat Fest origin story begins with Jared (McStay) and I joking about adding to the annual Shangri-La spring and fall day parties, but doing it in the dead of Memphis summer when nobody does anything outside because the heat and humidity are almost comically hellacious,” said John Miller, who co-owns Shangri-La with the McStays. “After thinking about it for 10 seconds, we realized it needed to happen.”
Since Sweat Fest launched in 2015, it had become one of the record shop’s most popular events pre-COVID.
The idea for Sweat Fest started initially as a joke between Jared McStay (pictured with his wife, Lori McStay) and Shangri-La co-owner John Miller. (Mark Weber/Daily Memphian file)
“It was definitely bizarre to not have had our big annual parties at the shop, but that was sort of the way it was for most everyone trying to figure out public events,” Miller said. “Luckily, we survived the pandemic because of a lot of phenomenally loyal customers. ... We’re grateful that people travel from all over to dig around in the store, talk music and get recommendations on what to do and see in town. That’s the vibe that we missed so much in 2020 and 2021.”
According to Miller, this year’s Sweat Fest promises to be the biggest yet, especially for eager crate-diggers looking for deals.
“Since we haven’t done one in a couple years, the backlog of records is pretty astounding,” he said. “There will be a ton of great LP titles for $5 or less, including a porch full of $1 near steals.”
There will also be CDs and DVDs available for $1, along with 45s for a quarter.
“We will probably have more than we can fit under all the tents initially, so we’ll be reloading the bins throughout the day for those arriving later,” Miller said.
As for the music, Shangri-La has assembled an impressive line-up of regional acts in a variety of genres.
“We like a lot of different sounds, and Sweat Fest always gives us a chance to host an eclectic mix of artists we’re excited about hearing, as well as hopefully connecting some attendees with a new favorite act,” Miller said.
Two music fans searched for posters at Shangri-La Records during the shop’s 25th year in business. (Daily Memphian file)
Per tradition, The Sheiks (who Miller refers to as “Kings of Sweat Fest”) will be headlining, bringing their manic rock ‘n’ roll energy to the event for the sixth straight year.
In addition to The Sheiks, Sweat Fest will also include an anticipated performance from local stalwarts The Subteens, who are preparing to release their first album in 18 years sometime in the fall. Mississippi rockers The Guiding Light, “crybaby punk metal” band Little Baby Tendencies and rootsy wunderkind Jas Roa round out this year’s lineup.
Although Saturday’s weather forecast currently appears to be relatively mild, visitors would be wise to bring water, sunscreen and any other tools to help ward off the summer heat.
After all, it ain’t called Sweat Fest for nothing.
Sweat Fest Music Schedule
2 p.m.: The Subteens
2:45 p.m.: Little Baby Tendencies
3:30 p.m.: The Guiding Light
4:15 p.m.: Jas Roa
5 p.m.: The Sheiks
Sweat Fest will be held Saturday, Aug. 13, at 1916 Madison Ave. The event is free, and sales start at 11 a.m.; performances begin at 2 p.m.
Topics
Shangri-La RecordsEzra Wheeler
Ezra Wheeler is the host of the Memphis Musicology podcast and the radio show Dead Wax on WYXR. He’s also a contributor to We Are Memphis and Choose901.
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