Modeling's Cuinn and Ryan Brogan and Ghost Hollow's Sabin Hice and Mason Gills join Raif Box in the Firmin Garner performance studio to discuss this year's Anvil Fest, taking place Aug. 16 and 17 at The Momentary in Bentonville.
Sophia Nourani: Thank you guys for being here today. We are here to talk about Anvil Fest 2025. What year is this?
Raif Box: Uh, this is the third year. Third fest.
Sophia: Okay. So KUAF has definitely heard about Anvil Fest before, but remind listeners what that is and what the mission of that is.
Raif: Yeah. I mean, it's, uh, it's something that—I don't know—I guess it's just kind of evolved into this annual event, right? Where, um, it really kind of started where I was trying to get bands from the Anvil Sessions to perform, uh, like an annual festival. And it's kind of grown to where now I'm having, you know, regional bands and bands that haven't exactly performed yet on Sessions. Maybe I will have them in later. But, um, yeah, it's just kind of this big celebration every year that I like to put on. The years before, it was kind of like a networking event combined. Uh, but this year I'm doing that as a separate thing a few days beforehand. Um, so I'm really interested to see how that turns out. I think it'll be really cool.
Sophia: So there's already a couple changes that we're going to be talking about. But one of those is that you're going to be hosting it at The Momentary in Bentonville this year, which is very exciting—a new location.
Raif: I guess back in, like, December, I had a meeting with a couple of people from The Momentary, um, and pitched Anvil Fest, and we've just kind of been working on it since then to get it set up and good to go at the Roadhouse. I think it's an awesome venue. Actually, the first time that I was there, I saw Modeling at Roadhouse—maybe Format Fest, I think. But the place is cool. It's got like a pneumatic stage and like the sound—or, I mean a pneumatic floor altogether. They can change, like, a whole bunch of different things about the layout. And, uh, the sound's incredible. The team there is awesome. Um, so I'm super excited to have it there. I feel like there's been this kind of like, I don't know, organic trajectory for Anvil Fest. Where it's like, you know, the first year it was at CACHE Studios, and then last year it was at Mount Sequoyah. And then this year at The Momentary.
Sophia: Why did you have it Bentonville instead of Fayetteville?
Raif: Yeah. Well, I mean, last year, Mount Sequoyah is here in Fayetteville. Um, and it's just—uh, I don't know—it's just how it happens. I don't really, like, start with a location in mind. It just happens. Yeah. It just—whoever—like, if it's a place that I pitch to and they're into the idea, I'm just like, okay, cool.
Sophia: Well, kind of going off of that, having the networking day on a different day, is it also taking place in Bentonville?
Raif: Yeah. So, um, this year I called it the Anvil Fest pre-party. Um, and it's August 13, which is just a—it's the Wednesday before that weekend of Anvil Fest. Um, 6 to 8 p.m. at the Roadhouse. And I'm really interested to see how it goes this time because before it was always like the organizations and the businesses that were there for the networking aspect of things—they were there during the show, right? And it was, like, something that's like in between bands playing, you could kind of go and talk to people. But, um, this time it's really kind of focused in. So it's intended to be this place where if you're trying to start a band or you're trying to connect with people and you need local resources, like, you could go there, you could meet people to play with. You could be like, okay, I have people to play with now, I need to record somewhere. And you could talk to me, or you could talk to A Store, or you could talk to Crisp. And then you could be like, okay, now I need art. And you could go see Cody at XP Boost. Or like, I need merch, and you could go see Sheehan with Madhouse, you know? Or, like, I need a video—you'll go to see Deadbeat. And, like, all these resources should be there for you. So that, like, it makes it as easy as possible for people to be as creative as possible around here. Um, and so yeah. So we've got that a few days before. This year we have DJ Girlfriend will be DJing the entire thing, so really excited about that. I think that's going to be really cool. And yeah, it should just be this party, really. That's why I call it a pre-party. It should be a little party just to kind of meet and greet and mingle with people and other creatives around the area and businesses and organizations that can help you achieve what you're trying to do. And then a few days later, we'll all meet up again at Anvil Fest and watch a bunch of cool bands, you know?
Sophia: Going right into that—tell me about this year’s lineup.
Raif: Okay. So this year, day one, we have Silent Wolf, Avery Lee and the Sweeties, Buckshot Princess, Resting and Modeling. And then day two, we have Pyroclastic, Ghost Hollow, Jowls, Medicine Horse and Mud Lung. I'm really happy with the lineup this year. I mean, I'm happy with the lineup every year. But this year is different.
Sophia: Obviously you guys are here with us. Just to start, Modeling, you’re going to be headlining day one. Are you excited for that? I also know you're going to be playing alongside Resting, which is a group that you have worked with before frequently. So maybe just tell us a little bit about what you're expecting and what it's like to be in Anvil Fest. And have you done it before?
Cuinn Brogan: No. We are excited. We don't really know what to expect because we haven't been, unfortunately. But we're very excited. I actually met you at Format Fest, I think. Because when I ran into you. Because we'd been talking for a little bit. Maybe. Yeah. So we're really excited to be a part of it. We've seen stuff. I mean, I've seen stuff for the last couple years. Like just flyers. I was like, oh, this is a cool idea. Like a lot of local bands in one area. As far as Resting goes, we've been playing with those guys since they were in a band called Olympics. I don't know what happened. We just vibed with them. They had a cool sound. They were really cool guys. And ever since then, we've just been like, oh, we have a show coming up. Who do we play with? Oh, let's get Resting. We just played with them last week. So excited to share the stage with them again. And yeah, but also more excited to see all the new bands. No offense to you guys, Resting. But just excited to see—like, I haven't heard of—I’ve heard of Mud Lung, but I haven’t heard of a lot of the bands playing. Obviously Avery Lee and stuff like that, but yeah.
Raif: Yeah, I think I kind of have a tendency to—just because a lot of the bands that I know are like heavier bands, like bands that I've worked with before and stuff like that—I have a tendency to have one day where it's just a bunch of heavy bands.
Cuinn: Did you do that last year?
Raif: Yeah, I've done it every year. Every year.
Cuinn: Yeah. I think it's cool. Like it feels very mixed and inclusive.
Raif: Yeah. Well, and then the other thing too is this year, rather than selling tickets to individual days, it's just one ticket that covers both days. And it's still only 22 bucks.
Sophia: Nice. So Ghost Hollow, you guys want to talk a little bit about day two?
Sabin Hice: Yeah, we're definitely excited. It's probably going to be the best sounding stage we've ever played on, so that's cool. We haven't—well, I haven't seen Medicine Horse yet.
Sophia: KUAF actually recorded a session with Medicine Horse.
Raif: Yeah. No. And it's like—I found them because maybe a couple years ago they did a session at Crisp Recording, and I watched that and I was like, oh yeah. So I pulled that back up and I was like, Medicine Horse is awesome. So I need to reach out to them. So yeah, I'm really glad they were able to play. It was really cool. They're great.
Sophia: And you mentioned it already, that it's going to be one ticket for two days. What other details or things should people know about the event before attending?
Raif: Well, to get tickets, you can go to The Momentary page. There's a page on The Momentary site that has tickets there. That's where you can order tickets, or you can also get them at the door. It's an all-ages event.
Sophia: All ages?
Raif: Yep. Absolutely. I try to make sure that's the case for every Anvil Fest. I try to make it all ages. August 16 and 17. 6 p.m. both days.
Sophia: And what day is that pre-party again?
Raif: Pre-party is August 13. That should be the Wednesday before. I should also definitely thank the sponsors for Anvil Fest. Hadn't mentioned them yet. But we have awesome businesses like Cousins on the Map, Gar Hole, FCTV, Lineup Booking—which is someone that I met recently at a music industry meetup a little while ago. And yeah, that was really cool. So I'm happy to get them involved. XP Boost—that’s Cody. He does all the art for Anvil Fest stuff. Dead Party. Obviously Block Street, Travis Smith Productions, Cove Bentonville and CACHE. And then the people that you could see at the pre-party—all the different businesses and organizations that are going to be tabling there—XP Boost will be there. Madhouse—that's Sheehan. He prints a bunch of shirts for a bunch of bands around here. Cove Bentonville. Lineup. Deadbeat—really awesome videographer from around the area. Did the "Obliviate" music video and a couple other things. Man of the People—that's Robert. He was actually working one of the cameras at the Modeling session we filmed a bit ago. But yeah, insanely good photographer around the area. East Hall. Hop Out DIY. On the Map. A Sound Collaborative. Odd Frequency Studio. CACHE. And Arkansas Music Experience. So all of those people and businesses and organizations will be at the pre-party, ready to connect with anybody that wants to talk to basically everyone you want to know and want to meet if you want to get into music in Northwest Arkansas. That's the goal, right? You could come in there empty-handed and leave with a bunch of different resources and a game plan of future success for whatever project you have.
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