Fun Fun Fun Fest Artist Profile: Walter Schreifels (Quicksand, Rival Schools)

We're just a couple weeks out from the third annual Funx3 Fest, and it's time to begin thinking seriously about which sets we know we can't miss. At the top of this concert-goer's list is Walter Schreifels, former member of Gorilla Biscuits, Youth of Today, Quicksand and Rival Schools. To anyone with even a modest history inside the annals of punk rock, Schreifels' set is highly anticipated (especially since we heard he isn't opposed to doing acoustic versions of "Dine Alone" or "Start Today").

Lately, he's toned down the rage and angst and taken to more generally digestible formats. It's nothing shocking ... all down the line Schreifels has made baby steps away from his crusty beginnings, each new project a little crisper than the last. Back in the day, Quicksand's debut (Slip, on Polydor) was a huge deal. It was more produced than anything he'd been a part of previously, it was on a major label, and it came in CD format. Sound-wise, it was still loud, dangerous and nothing your parents would ever (ever) want to listen to, but that small step towards the mainstream wasn't unnoticed by loyal fans - the same kids who threw hissy fits when Fugazi released Red Medicine (it just freaked them out, but in retrospect seems like a perfectly logical progression). If only they could have heard some of the stuff Schreifels does now: open, sensitive acoustic numbers in the vein of Portastatic or Pinback. When he isn't playing with Walking Concert, he's doing gigs with his solo work.

And after all these years, the haters can't really complain. He blogs about Agnostic Front ("I like The Shins and there is a place for them too but I think that Victim In Pain is more important and unique in the evolution of music, art, mankind, that it goes beyond indie rock and steps into Smithsonian Institute territory.") on his MySpace and still writes songs about being true to your scene, as "Open Letter" pleads to the listener, "Don't forget the struggle, don't forget the streets, don't sell out."

Walter Schreifels [MySpace] [Fan Run Site]