Phono del Sol went bigger this year, without losing local touch
Held in a small, sunny corner of the city — Potrero del Sol Park, in the south of San Francisco — the festival isn’t crowded or expensive (the bar even had a happy hour), but the acts selected to play the sixth annual rendition of the dual-staged event were major fest caliber nonetheless.
The event is produced by John Vanderslice’s recording studio Tiny Telephone, and The Bay Bridged, an independently-operated non-profit site delivering local indie music news.
The chosen headliners, Toronto’s fuzzy dream pop group Alvvays and Brooklyn’s electronic pop outfit Chairlift, were two of the biggest acts they’ve ever booked.
Seven-piece collective The Seshen featured glassy soul harmonies over R&B keys, and bouncy post-punk outfit Born Ruffians got listeners bobbing their heads.
Rapper Adam Vida surprised the crowd by rhyming along to the theme song for the classic Nickelodeon show “All That,” and San Francisco darlings The She’s played ‘60s surf pop tracks from their forthcoming album before closing with a sweet cover of The Ronettes’ “Be My Baby.”
Though not crowded, the park was populated early; people filtered in to see Bay Area bands play long before headliners took the stage.
“We’re a festival that’s much more relaxed, but still really fun and engaging just like other festivals,” Valle added.