So What?! Music Festival 2024 Review

The 2024 So What?! Music Festival has come and unfortunately gone. The post-festival depression is real. This year’s So What?! was out in our neck of the woods at Panther Island in Fort Worth, TX. Mother nature had some plans for us but overall what was this year’s festival like?

DAY 1

We made good time and were able to get a good parking spot to start making our way to the festival. Once we got inside, we headed out to the far stage to catch our first set of the day!

Moonstone.

We made the trek to the back of the venue and arrived at the Ollie’s Backyard stage to catch Moonstone. This DFW band put on a great set to kick off the day. They maintained a high energy from start to finish and got the crowd excited. We had a really good time watching them, and I think left people wanting to check out more music from them.

Sophie Powers

We came in about a quarter of the way into Sophie Powers set, so we missed some of it. While it wasn’t necessarily music that I normally listen to a lot she was putting on a very entertaining set. There was a lot of energy and the crowd seemed to be in to it. When checking out bands that were going to be playing the festival she was one that had a unique sound, so I was glad we were able to see some of her show.

Sleep Theory

We had to head up to the press tent after Sophie Powers for an interview, so we were only able to catch a portion of Sleep Theory’s set and from a distance. With that said they were awesome! This is a band that has steadily been building a lot of buzz in the scene and lived up to it, in my opinion, from the parts I saw. I really want to see them again so I can get a better feel for their show, without being a distance away and missing bits and pieces of it.

Silly Goose (Not pictured)

After our interview and catching the end of Sleep Theory we headed off to find my daughter and her friend over watching Silly Goose. We only made it for maybe the last song or 2, but that crowd was hype. Probably the wildest crowd I had seen so far. The band had caught us in line and came up to talk to us, but we did not know what they had in store for So What?!. I don’t feel I can give a fair rating on this one since I missed so much though, so like Sophie Powers I’ll have to fall in the middle.

LØLØ

We hurried from Silly Goose to catch our buddy LØLØ’s set. She had such a fun show, and we really enjoyed it (even though she controversially hated on skinny jeans, haha). Everything went off so well and her computer didn’t melt this time, which was her big hope she discussed in our interview. LØLØ drew a big audience for her show and the crowd was into it. She played a good mix of songs and looked like she was having a good time on stage. I hope that this was the redemption show she was dreaming of!

Arrows In Action

Contrary to belief I actually have heard of Arrows In Action. They put on a fun show, and interacted well with a crowd that was feeling the heat. I think they chose a good setlist and played an entertaining festival set. While I have heard of them and have listened to some songs in the past I was left wanting to check out some more. They are on my queue of bands I want to listen to some more of.

3OH!3

My wife is a big fan of 3OH!3, and we did see them at So What?! 2 years ago in Arlington. These guys just know how to play a festival, party, and have a blast. Whether you are a fan or not they will get you into their show. I love to see great crowd interaction, and 3OH!3 is always talking to the crowd and joking around with them. They play all the hit songs you want to hear and a nice sprinkling of their other songs. The sun was going down during their set, but the crowd was bringing that heat back up with how invested they were. I don’t actively listen to their music, but I’m always down to catch a show when they come through. This was probably my set of the day.

Iann Dior

Iann Dior came up next in probably a tough slot in the festival playing between 3OH!3 and Boys Like Girls. There were a couple songs that sounds pretty good, but honestly just wasn’t a set that really drew me in. Festivals are amazing, and So What?! always does this expertly in having an awesome mix of bands. What might not be someone that you are into could absolutely be in someone else’s bag. If you like Iann Dior and you enjoy his style he sounds good live. He has a good voice and moves around the stage well.

Boys Like Girls

This is the band my wife was most excited to see, and she absolutely loved their set. Boys Like Girls was her favorite performance of day 1. I wasn’t too familiar with their music; I might have known a couple songs. Their set just didn’t necessarily do it for me. Watching the crowd though, people were pumped. I do think they sounded good though and interacted with the crowd frequently.

Day 1 was a good time. We really enjoyed it and were able to catch a bunch of bands and get some cool interviews in too. There is just nothing like a day out at a music festival and So What?! is consistently one of the best at it. Below is our rating for Day 1.

Day 2

We arrived a little later on Day 2 than the first day but got in really fast. We got our bearings straight and headed right for the Hot & Heavy stage.

Lockjaw

We went straight to see the guys in Lockjaw tear it up! They have been doing so much awesome work that we couldn’t wait to see what they’d bring to So What?!. It was a great way to kick off day 2. They sounded tight and everything was crisp. The crowd was in to it and the hometown boys put on a show. Lockjaw is one of those bands that you need to jump on the bandwagon for because they are going to blow up!

Felicity

We absolutely had to see our dudes in Felicity. 2 years ago at So What?! we were interviewing when they played and unable to see their set, so we made sure we would catch their show no matter what. Needless to say, they did not disappoint. They put on such a fun and entertaining show. The crowd was really into it and the band was giving that energy right back. Plus, there was a good old Texas sized Stone Cold Steve Austin beer bath!

Icon For Hire

Icon For Hire is a band I have been interested in for a long time, but we just have never been able to cross paths. They put on a good show. They had some good interaction and rapport with the crowd and was a fun show to see. The played a good mix of songs and kept everyone engaged.

After Icon For Hire we went to start heading towards the press area for our interview with Felicity. We separated from my daughter and her friend and headed up to prepare. Not too long after we did our interview and were deciding what we were going to do next. The sky had started darkening and the wind was blowing pretty hard. I went down to find the girls and possibly catch some of Bad Wolves when the rain started. Minutes later it began pouring and everyone was being asked to evacuate. I ran up to get my wife so we could get out to our car.

We made the muddy trek back to the car and got in the car to wait for news. Some people went ahead and left, but a lot of people stayed. A few cars down from us they had their hatch up and were playing music. A group formed of concert goers just dancing and enjoying their time together. Mike Ziemer and his time stayed on top of all weather updates and were working hard to get everyone back in. After an hour or 2, we were allowed to re-enter the venue to catch any bands that had yet to perform.

Skillet

We got back in and walked through the mud to try and find a good spot for the show. We were able to get a pretty good spot in the crowd maybe 12 or so rows back from the stage, for one of the headliners, was pretty sweet. It took some time for them to hit the stage past the time they were supposed to come on, but I would assume from getting things sorted and figured out from the storms it was just taking some extra time.

Let me lead into this with I have only heard a few songs from Skillet, so they weren’t a band I was really too familiar with. Their live show was amazing. They put on an awesome and entertaining show. The crowd was entirely invested and were singing, dancing, and there was even a circle pit. They talked with the crowd a bunch but it didn’t cut into their song play as they still performed a lot of songs. The risers were awesome to see at a festival setting and they had huge like smoke guns that was cool to see. Overall it was a really cool way to close out day 2 of So What?! Music Festival and everything made for a very memorable experience.

Day 2 of So What?! was an adventure that people will remember. I feel for the people that ended up leaving and missed that feeling of all of us coming back into the event and seeing those headline acts. It was something special. I really enjoyed day 2 and saw some great sets. Would everyone had loved to see the other bands that were unable to play, of course, but you make the best of the situation and the So What?! team did the best they could with what mother nature gave them. If you have never been to a So What?! Music Festival I highly recommend you go. I’ll post their socials at the bottom of all this and go give them a follow.

OVERALL: 4.5 out of 5.0 stars4.5

So What?! Music Festival: Facebook/Insta

BareBones Ent: Facebook/Insta