Review: King Gizz’s Field of Vision II goes ‘bigger and better’

King Gizzard & The Lizard Wizard’s love affair with Colorado is well-documented, and the honeymoon phase was on full display last weekend.

The band touched down in Buena Vista over the weekend for the second iteration of its Field of Vision festival Friday, Aug. 14, through Sunday, Aug. 16. The sold-out festival had around 12,000 attendees and over 20 artists on stage, including King Gizzard, which headlined each night, and surging French-Canadian rock duo Angine de Poitrine.

King Gizzard guitarist Joey Walker professed the band’s affinity for the Rocky Mountains oasis when he called the gorgeous Meadow Creek digs “the most beautiful place on Earth,” to much applause.   

He also proclaimed this year had to be “bigger and better,” as Gizz celebrated its return to the stage after ten months away from the states. But the Aussies stayed busy, as everyone found out on Friday, when they did the most King Gizz thing ever and surprise-released a new album, the jungle-house techno offering “Alien Metal,” to kick off the festivities.  

Naturally, the do-it-all six-piece wasted no time sharing it by debuting fresh track “Level 5” live on Friday with the help of Nathan — the group’s unofficial, artificial seventh member comprised of vintage analog synths and electronic equipment. The first three-hour leg started hot, as the crew busted out “Self-Immolate” and followed with “Mars For The Rich” and “Predator X,” before soothing into some more tranquil tomes, including “Am I In Heaven?” and even dusted off “Ataraxia,” ending a 76-show gap.  

But the highlight of Day 1, by far, was Angine de Poitrine, which might be the buzziest band in the world right now after a KEXP performance went viral earlier this year for all the right reasons, specifically the French-Canadian duo’s bizarro black-and-white digs. Marking the band’s first-ever U.S. appearance, their tour started with two sold-out shows in Denver last week. The polka-dotted people-eaters, sparsely speaking in some illegible electro-tongue between songs, bobbed through an entrancing polymath playlist, effectively infecting the eager audience, many of whom were sporting Angine de Poitrine pox.  

Rumors persist that guitarist Khn is the alias of one Stu Mackenzie — yeah, the guitar-slanging, flute-tooting King Gizz leader — while Klek is his drummer brother, Eric Moore. But there is literally no evidence anywhere to be found, online or elsewhere, to make any concrete connection certain. But we must admit, it’s at least a fun little fan theory. (We like to think Angine de Poitrine missed its stop on a time-traveling tollbooth and landed on Earth at exactly the right place and exactly the right time in human history.)

The same sentiment applies to KGLW. Mind-blowing marathons are nothing new for the Gizz, a band that’s made playing night after night without revisiting any songs its calling card. Saturday saw the reemergence of “Dead-Beat” in 239 shows, as well as the premiere of the latest title track and “Kill For The Steel.” Plus, an all-encompassing “Altered Beast” medley.  

Night three highlights included more alien firsts in “Sapiencee” and “Superheavy, Supercritical,” and, naturally, ended with the festival namesake, “Field of Vision.” (We’re not going to deep on setlists here because they’ve already been all over the always active KGLW subreddit.)

If it’s not evident already, the three-day fest Gizz created last year is quickly becoming a must for any self-respecting Weirdo Swarm soldier, and a destination for offbeat music-lovers everywhere. If anyone was thinking about some type of sophomore slump, that notion was quickly squashed.

The improvements were evident upon entering the hallowed grounds, including a beefed-up and built-out stage dubbed “The Castle.” That’s where Blood Incantation stormed the venue on Friday night by breaking out the debut of an “otherworldly” set. Known for its extraterrestrial mix of earth-shattering death metal and tripped-out cosmic rock, Denver’s preeminent prog-metal pioneers treated the curious crowd to a synth-centric ambient experience reminiscent of its 2022 space odyssey, “Timewave Zero.” The 360-sound set-up made it all the more immersive.  

For nerds who are familiar with the spacier side of Blood Incantation, the 40-minute transmission scratched a certain itch. There were talks among the hundreds who gathered to witness it that the lengthy soundcheck was actually the beginning and part of the overall ambience of the continuous setlist. Whether it was or not doesn’t matter, but that’s the effect of such an obscure space jam. Many attendees who were unfamiliar with the band’s brutal chops were mesmerized by the fluidity of it all, as none of the members spoke until the final note faded into the ether just after 1 a.m., and even then, it was simply, “Thank you.”  

Converts could be heard proclaiming Blood Incantation’s set was the zaniest thing they’ve ever heard, and that means something coming from someone wearing a lore-accurate Gandalf the Grey outfit. Metalheads in attendance were giddy for the band’s main stage slot, especially after Friday night’s set didn’t tease any of the typical ferocity Blood Incantation brings — and we were excited to see more reactions.

Everyone remembers their first time, and for many Field of Vision patrons, it happened Saturday when Blood Incantation stepped on stage that second day to face the full Field of Vision contingent. Yes, many a Blood Incantation long-sleeves were spotted throughout the throng, so it’s not like there wasn’t already a fanbase within the larger Gizzverse, but most lawn dwellers were there to maintain and claim their spot for the ensuing KGLW set. When vocalist-guitarist Paul Riedl, drummer Isaac Faulk, guitarist Morris Kolontyrsky, bassist Jeff Barrett and keys king John Gamiño blasted off into the beginning of the 2024 record “Absolute Elsewhere,” the uncontacted couldn’t help but take notice.  

Blood Incantation’s status in the metal world is well-established, but “Absolute Elsewhere,” shared in its entirety Saturday, took them to new heights, well beyond the scene and into the music mainstream thanks to an expertly composed combo of brutal death metal and krautrock synths, all centered around an extraterrestrial trip. An inflatable Martian couple waved against the setting sun, as Blood Incantation opened the stargate and abducted the crowd’s collective consciousness.

Walker showed his respect and fandom by wearing a Blood Incantation shirt during the KGLW set that night, too. All hail! Forever horns! 

Sprinkled amongst the long shadows that haunted the campgrounds each night, you could hear whispers of the weekend’s final set, which ranged anywhere from an acoustic King Gizz performance to an unmasked Angine de Poitrine. That line of thinking proved to be not too far off, as Sunday closed at the Castle with Bullant, Walker’s solo experimental EDM project, capping another weekend filled with sonic surprises.  

We already know Field of Vision is coming back for year three, but this second go around showed us that the ocean and sky can truly change its hue.