An Interview With Music Tastes Good Festival Co-Founder Josh Fischel!

The lineup for the first-ever Music Tastes Good Festival has been announced and features such names as The Specials, Iron & Wine, Sylvan Esso, Squeeze, De La Soul, Dr Dog, Warpaint, Gallant, Deltron 3030 w/ The 3030 Orchestra, Melvins, Twin Peaks, Girlpool, P.O.S., Living Colour, Cody Chestnutt and many others.

Presented by 89.9 KCRW, Music Tastes Good will take place the weekend of September 23-25 on the streets of historic Downtown Long Beach, conveniently located within walking distance of the Metro Blue Line (128 W 1st St).

Aiming to bring adventurous music fans and foodies together for one epic fall weekend, Music Tastes Good will feature an impressive and eclectic lineup of carefully curated musical acts ranging from iconic genre-definers and singer/songwriters, to world sounds and local favorites, along with the finest culinary offerings, local food vendors, chefs and artists.

Each day of the event will feature its own theme with music and food especially curated for that theme. Things kick off on Friday night 9/23, with a high energy music/food block party highlighting craft beer and local vendors, followed by the main event on Saturday 9/24, offering 4 jam-packed stages of music which will take over Pine Ave, plus an optional VIP farm-to-table dinner. The weekend concludes on Sunday, 9/25, spotlighting more great music and a Bloody Mary brunch.

3-day and single day tickets will be available starting at 12pm pst on Friday May 13th at http://musictastesgood.com/#tickets. See prices below.

3-Day Ticket – $120

DON’T MISS A MOMENT. EXPERIENCE ALL THREE DAYS OF MUSIC TASTES GOOD

Friday – Single Day Ticket $25 (one stage)

RX BANDITS, LIVING COLOUR, SON LITTLE, THE SOUND OF URCHIN, SPARE PARTS FOR BROKEN HEARTS + MORE TO BE ANNOUNCED

Saturday – $75 (4 stages)

THE SPECIALS, IRON AND WINE, SQUEEZE, DR. DOG, WARPAINT, DELTRON 3030 W/THE 3030 ORCHESTRA, MELVINS, TWIN PEAKS, VINTAGE TROUBLE, GIRLPOOL, P.O.S., EASY STAR ALL-STARS, METZ, KATE TEMPEST, NICK WATERHOUSE, CODY CHESTNUTT, LE1F, POKEY LAFARGE, HIPPO CAMPUS, OPEN MIKE EAGLE, SKINNY LISTER, LOS MASTER PLUS, RIOTHORSE ROYALE, JESSICA HERNANDEZ & THE DELTAS, FOY VANCE, THE DEAD SHIPS, THE ZIGGENS, CAMBODIAN SPACE PROJECT, DUSTIN LOVELIS, RUDY DE ANDA, LEMOLO, MACHINEHEART, SPIDER, LP3 & THE TRAGEDY, NEIGHBORS TO THE NORTH, GOLDEN DRUGS, SPECIAL C, MC IMPRINT, THE LOST WEEKEND, AND SISTER CROWLEY

Sunday – Single Day Ticket $35 (one stage)

SYLVAN ESSO, DE LA SOUL, GALLANT, LAS CAFETERAS, CHRISTIAN SCOTT, EAGLE ROCK GOSPEL SINGERS, SOLO & INDRE, PREGNANT, AND BOOTLEG ORCHESTRA

3-Day VIP – $240

GET ACCESS TO VIP AREAS, A SWAG BAG, AND A TICKET FOR THE VIP FARM-TO-TABLE DINNER

Long Beach locals will have the opportunity to purchase 3-day tickets at a discounted rate of $110 dollars at the Live After 5 and Summer and Music events hosted by the Downtown Long Beach Associates happening throughout the summer.

A limited number of discounted tickets will also be available at Fingerprints Music.

VIP tickets will include access to VIP areas, a swag bag, and a ticket for the VIP farm-to-table dinner, which will pair local Long Beach chefs with acclaimed chefs from across the nation who will build plates using locally sourced items. More details on the dinner will be released in July.

Festival founder/curator, Josh Fischel, himself a seasoned touring musician, and 20 year resident of Long Beach says, “Our city is a vibrant, evolving place that’s ripe with community, commerce and culture. Within our city limits, we hold the second largest port in the United States, and proudly claim a dynamic food, music and arts scene. We are leaders in the crusade for equality and environmental rights, residing on the cusp of where Los Angeles and Orange County connect. This is now. Being the world class city we are, we have been long overdue a festival that mirrors the passion and diversity that we experience from our neighbors everyday. It’s time to show off Long Beach and draw the rest of the world in. It’s time for others to experience what us locals have always known. It’s time to allow our residents, once a year, the chance to see Downtown in a different light. MUSIC. TASTES. GOOD.“

Additional support for Music Tastes Good comes from festival sponsors Lagunitas Beer Co,RideYellow and Lola’s Mexican Cuisine.

Learn more about the festival in the following All Access interview with Josh Fischel:

Thanks for your time! How’s 2016 treating you so far? How’s your summer been going? What were some of the highlights of 2015?

Hey! 2016 has been action packed. A lot of traveling, talking and planning. The summer is getting off to a great start. We’ve been getting amazing press and reactions about MTG. It’s all pretty exciting.

Now that the band selections are over for the upcoming Music Tastes Good Festival, what’s next up for you?

Well, first off, my other production company, RIOTstage is teaming up to do Pink Floyd’s The Wall Live with 30 plus musicians and singers. It’s gonna be rad. Also, we were given the go ahead for MTG 2017 and have already started booking. It’s looking just as cool as this year.

Why do you think Long Beach is a good place for this festival? How does the city influence the music you select for it?

Well, first off, Long Beach rules. We are so diverse and big fans of music and food. When curating MTG, the mantra was “make it look and sound like Long Beach” We are such a diverse city in the same way New York or Philadelphia are. We wanted to embrace and celebrate that.

I’ve read that you feel Long Beach is overdue for a festival. Can you elaborate on that?

Well, left me clarify that. There are plenty of amazing festivals in Long Beach. I meant Long Beach is due a festival of this type. Big, diverse and multiple days.

Can you talk about the festival’s lineup? Why were these specific bands chosen?

Well, we started with Dr. Dog. I’ve known those guys for awhile. Their tour manager is a good friend and was born and bred in Long Beach. It was the right fit. Once we locked them down, booking became a lot easier. We wanted to separate ourselves from fests like Coachella and FYF. They do their thing and they do it very well. Copying them would be boring. So, we went after bands that, mostly, aren’t on the festival circuit. Bands like Squeeze, De La Soul, Sylvan Esso, The Specials, Iron and Wine, and Warpaint aren’t playing a bunch of fests which makes our line up special.

How do you think your own experience as a touring musician has helped you create this Music Tastes Good Festival?

I think the fact that my primary career has been as a musician is another way we’re unique. I’m looking at the fest through the fans eyes AND the musicians eyes. I’ve been touring since 1999 and have experienced, first hand, what an artist needs. We want our bands to be very happy when they leave. I also think being a musician really helps with the programming, creating a mood that seamlessly connects each bands sets.

What were some of your favorite memories playing and touring with artists like Los Lobos, Dr. Dog, Run DMC, Black Eyed Peas, Weezer and others?

Oh man, I am a huge, long time fan of Los Lobos. I was asked to sing with them at The Vault in 2006. My friend was playing drums with them on a couple tunes and when they started the song before the one I had to sing, I asked my buddy how long the song was because I had to go to the bathroom. He said 6 or 7 minutes, so I went downstairs to go to the bathroom. Now, the Vault is cavernous and you can’t hear the music from the stage. I took about 3 minutes down there and all of a sudden I hear people yelling my name upstairs. I run up and hear that Los Lobos had already started playing the song. I run onstage and did the song with them. I was so stoked until after when everyone told me that they had been playing the song and saying “Where’s the homie?”. I didn’t realize how bad it was until I saw the video the next week. They had played the ENTIRE song as an instrumental before I got up there. So embarrassing.

What kind of food vendors can festival-goers look forward to? How will these go with the themes each day?

On Saturday we will have a local restaurant pop up food court. There will be a lot to choose from. Friday with be BBQ and craft beer and Sunday will be a Bloody Mary brunch.

Can you talk about the different ticket prices and options available to people?

Yeah, Single day tickets are $25 for Friday, $75 for Saturday and $35 for Sunday. Three day tickets are $125 and our VIP component is for all three days, will have a VIP viewing for the main stage and a Farm to Table dinner for $225.