Breakin’ Even Fest: A Q & A with American Television
You’ll find Breakin’ Even Fest on the 730DC’s Weekly Scheduler out today. It’s a punk and indie showcase people plan for.
Words and interview by Rodrigo Duran and David Meni.
If you look at articles from 2016 about the first Breakin’ Even Fest, you’ll see it was greeted with excitement. Rather than going on tour, the pop-punk band American Television decided to host an event in the city with their friends and fellow punk bands, cramming a tour’s worth of energy into three action-packed nights.
Breakin’ Even is now in its third year, and American Television’s punk and indie showcase is becoming a fixture, the kind of event that people plan for. While the DIY scene has seemed uncertain lately — unofficial house venues have been closing left and right — there are also a lot of new commercial venues popping up. Events like Breakin’ Even are operating in this new scene to continue a tradition of punk festivals that has existed in DC for decades.
This year, festival organizers partnered with Dangerously Delicious Pies, (picturing the wonderful insanity of a guitarist snatching a slice of pie straight out of the hands of an audience member, and gleefully eating it.) They’ve attracted acts like 730DC favorites Homosuperior and Worlds Scariest Police Chases.
Ahead of the show, we chatted with Steve Rovery and Bryan Flowers from American Television. This interview has been edited for clarity and length.
730DC: Where did the idea for Breakin’ Even come from
Steve: Bryan and I have both been booking shows since we were teenagers. We were really enjoying the bills we were curating for our band and were getting feedback that there needed to be “more shows like this.”
We thought, “Maybe if we keep doing that but scale it up, we could have an impact on the scene as a whole.”
So we’ve taken a DIY approach to it all. The name is 100% indicative of our intent. This is not a profiteering festival. We pay all our artists, keep ticket pricing modest, and spotlight as many bands as we can in the time allotted.
730DC: Why did you choose Pie Shop this year for the venue?
Steve: Pie Shop opened this year and we were taken by it immediately. The room is gorgeous, there’s a roof deck, and they can host 18+ shows because they offer pie and other food options to their patrons.
That, and the story behind the space being built by the owners with a total DIY ethic was the kicker.
Washington DC punk and hardcore has always maintained an activist edge, and with #DontmuteDC there’s a sense that music (in the city, by locals) is still very politicized, how does that factor into your thinking when you’re putting something like this together?
Bryan: We definitely try to think of ways to incorporate some of the activism that has always been present in DC punk and Go-Go into our event. First off, some of the bands we book carry a little more of a political edge. And we have a few organizations we try to benefit. Sales from Breakin’ Even Fest merch goes to Girls Rock DC, we provided some tickets as a raffle prize for the Trans Visibility Community Fest, and made a monetary donation to the Fort Reno Concert Series.
730DC: The DC population is constantly in flux. New people move into the city all the time. For some this could be the first showcase of the city’s punk talent they’ve seen. However there’s also a dedicated scene of avid fans. How does that affect the artists you choose to book?
Steve: People who like underground music will find it, no matter where they live. I think we have a tendency to book artists with an accessible sound. This helps get people to come for one band and discover something new.
Bryan: Our idea has always been to book some great touring bands with awesome local bands. With both of those we try to mix bands that we know and some we maybe have only read about or listened to online. It’s worked out ok so far.
730DC: It’s been a number of years since DC had something as big as In It Together Fest, which spread across the city at multiple DIY venues. Do you think something of that scale is still possible in DC, given the changes in the scene? Is that something that’s in your sights for future years?
Steve: Damaged City Fest just concluded their 6th year 2 weeks ago. Their event span multiple nights and venues, so that’s definitely happening, and it’s definitely an inspiration.
What I liked about In It Together Fest was that each stage was curated by different people. Bryan and I do this solo, but if someone approached us about running a stage, I think we’d be open to the idea.
730DC: What do you think is the most interesting sonic trend in the DC punk scene right now?
Bryan: One thing that has always stood out to me about DC punk is how wide ranging it is sonically. Nowadays bands can range from dancy keyboard driven rock like Bacchae to thrash punk like Coke Bust and it’s all under the flag of DC Punk.
730DC: What local bands are your inspiration?
Steve: We’re inspired by the people in bands that do more to build the scene. Our friends in The OSYX have built a DC label called This Could Go Boom!, Chris Moore from The Rememberables and Coke Bust has done so much to keep punk and hardcore flowing through DC, and the bands that are organizing things in nearby towns/cities and their own houses to keep underground music alive and well like DoubleMotorcycle, Subtastics, and Braceface.
730C: American Television has definitely not shied away from ambitious collaborations. What’s up with Death Defier, your coffee?
Bryan: This was a collaboration with a local roaster in Herndon, VA called Weird Brothers. It’s where my wife and I get our coffee. And when American Television was thinking about new ways to release music, it just kinda clicked. It seemed to be a little bit of a trend as the Descendents, Dead Broke Rekerds, Red City Radio and others did their own coffee blends around the same time. Ours is really, really good though!
Breakin’ Even Fest will be held at Pie Shop on 1339 H St NE Washington, DC 20002 . You can buy tickets here.
