Midwest Friends Fest is back for year two in the Cincinnati and Northern Kentucky area. Once again taking over Southgate House Revival on May 28-30 (tickets), the festival brings together an incredible and diverse mix of national and regional acts for two days of loud guitars, DIY spirit, and the kind of community you only find in independent music scenes. With artists like Teens in Trouble, Little Low, The 1984 Draft and Tooth Lures a Fang joining dozens more across multiple stages, Midwest Friends Fest is shaping up to be another unforgettable weekend.
This year, MWFF is treating the lineup like a pack of trading cards where each band is its own collectible piece of the Midwest Friends Fest universe. In the lead-up to the festival, we’re spotlighting the artists one by one so you can get to know the players before the doors open. Next up in the set: Patrick Cost and Jacob Tippey, collectively known as Nice Device
For anyone discovering you for the first time… what should our readers know about Nice Device? What’s one song in your catalog that feels most important to you personally or best displays your sound and voice, even if it isn’t the one people know best?
PC – Nice Device is a brand new project from 2 dudes that have committed most of their lives to the idea of playing in bands. We are currently working towards our first release. I think “Carry the Dead” will be a great track for grabbing a listener’s attention.
JT – We’re a two-piece irreverent hardcore band about the end of humanity from technology. A good example from our catalog would be “Violence”, as it is dynamic and showcases both the melodic and atonal aspects of our music.
You’re gearing up for Midwest Friends Fest. What does the festival circuit mean to artists like you right now… especially festivals that feel community-driven rather than industry-driven?
PC – Being in a new band, festivals are the best chance we have of grabbing new fans/listeners.
JT – The community driven festival is certainly more up our alley. These events feel like an opportunity to bring people together that also showcases and shares community resources. It feels to us like any audience member could leave a community-driven festival with more knowledge and resources than they came with, versus an industry-driven festival which feels specifically geared to separating you and your money in as many ways as possible.
What’s something you’re still figuring out as an artist, and feel comfortable being honest about?
JT – We’re admittedly still mastering how to coordinate ourselves to achieve the concept we’ve come up with. I am splitting a bass into guitar and bass amps with their own pedals, Patrick has a sample pad for the first time, there are vocal effects. There’s a lot to go wrong and we’re finding out through trial and error just how many ways we can mess up.
When you’re not writing or playing music, what’s feeding your creativity lately?
JT – The perpetual and pervasive doom is doing a lot to provide inspiration for apocalyptic punk anthems.
PC – I always say “I should be a much better drummer for as long as I’ve been doing this.” I’m a better band member than I am a musician. My creativity outside of bands tends to focus on my collecting hobby and home repairs/improvements.
Looking back so far, what have been the most memorable moments in the band’s journey? The most unexpected? And yes… the weirdest still counts.
PC– All very new. Our recent week living above a home studio in Nashville was a great experience. Being THE hardcore band at a folk festival was an experience.
When it comes to live sets, what are you most excited to bring to the MWFF crowd? Ideally, what do you want people to say about your set when they’re driving home or texting friends who skipped it?
JT – We’re excited to bring a visceral, in your face wall of sound to MWFF. We hope people will find delight in our diverse 2-minute song collection and talk to their friends about how they think we got all those sounds from two people.
PC – “they sounded fuller than 4pc. Bands that played earlier…”
Punk, ska and indie scenes have long been leaders in inclusion and community, yet gatekeeping still creeps in. Why do you think these scenes can feel so welcoming on one hand and so closed-off on the other?
PC – I’m old and irrelevant. I feel like I’ve done something right in life to still be invited to play shows and festivals.
JT – I think there can be a performative aspect of inclusivity, and some of those ideals can fall to the wayside once something becomes inconvenient. Like, it’s one thing to say you’re open and inclusive, but it takes concerted effort to reach and include marginalized communities. Gatekeeping has a duality to it, being part of “the cool club” is certainly there but it’s also important to maintain integrity in small circles. That isn’t to say people shouldn’t be welcomed, but if you’re building an intentional community you have to keep your intentions in mind. Revolutionary ideas can get watered down when too many interests seek to be met, it is important to be collaborative but know your focus as well. There is of course the paradox of “being intolerant of intolerance”, but there are bad actors who must be kept out of these places in order for a truly safe space to be fostered.
Everyone talks about “the scene”… what’s something the scene gets right right now, and what’s something you hope improves?
PC – I more hope the music industry takes a step back to notice what “the scene” contributes no matter what. It would always be a blessing to watch musicians provide their own living doing what they love.
JT – In Cincinnati at least we are seeing an emergence of art-focused, heavier music and young people being drawn to the raw energy of hardcore shows. As older guys we’re really excited to see this, and hope for some revitalization of DIY and community oriented events.
Midwest Friends Fest has a reputation for feeling intimate even as it grows. What makes a festival feel “right” to you as an artist?
PC– certain festivals just feel like a family reunion. Family you hand pick vs. family you’re born into.
Hypothetically speaking… if you made a Midwest Friends Fest friendship bracelet, what word or phrase would it say this year?
PC– WWID -what would I do?
Post-show, stereotypically Midwestern empty field, questionable bonfire, everyone’s tired but happy… what song are you covering?
PC – I don’t tend to be much of one for covers (or campfires.) This band used learning a cover of Royal Blood -Out of The Black as our reason to meet at the practice space for the first time.
MWFF is stacked. Which bands are you most excited to see, and are there any you’re hoping to connect with offstage as well?
JT – We’re pumped to see Fat Heaven and Small Steps, curious to see and maybe meet Origami Summer, Common Sage and Hit Like a Girl.
Once MWFF wraps up, what’s next for Nice Device? New music, touring, a reset, or something unexpected?
JT – We’re planning to do some weekend warrior runs and our album should be out sooner than later. We’re going to make a few music videos for it as well, so we’re doing our best to be patient and get our ducks in a row. Not easy to do when you’re excited to share it with everyone!
Bad Dad (occasionally called Ed) has been on the periphery of the punk and punk-adjacent scene for over twenty years. While many contributors to this site have musical experience and talent, Ed’s musical claim to fame comes from his time in arguably the most punk rock Blockbuster Video district in NJ where he worked alongside members of Blanks 77, Best Hit TV and Brian Fallon. He is more than just an awful father to his 2 daughters, he is also a dreadful husband, a subpar writer, a terrible dresser and has a severe deficiency in all things talent… but hey, at least he’s self-aware, amirite?
Check out the pathetic attempts at photography on his insta at https://www.instagram.com/bad_dad_photography/