Skip to main content
As Andy Warhol said, "Everyone gets their
15 minutes of fame—and, in the future, their own music festival." But
when Rynne Stump persuaded Mississippi Studios to let her book a night
of her favorite metal and psych bands there four years ago, she didn't
intend for it to become an annual thing. It was just an excuse for the
37-year-old, who had promoted shows in Portland before moving to L.A.
with her boyfriend, Tool drummer Danny Carey, to hang out with old
friends. Now, Stumpfest has expanded to three nights, and is always one
of the heaviest stretches on Mississippi Studios' yearly calendar. So
the first question for Stump—now eight months pregnant—is obvious: How
did this happen?
WW: So how did you get your own music festival?
Rynne Stump: I used to do some booking work and production work in Portland in the early 2000s. Years later, Tool had been interested in taking out YOB, a band that were friends of me, and it occurred to me, "Wait a minute, I should just throw my own show." I did two nights the second year, and then it was like, "I'm going to keep doing this until no one wants to do it anymore."
The booking leans toward the heavy and psychedelic. Where did that interest start for you?
I don't know. I grew up singing bluegrass, and the music I make has a lot of country roots. I guess when I started experimenting with hallucinogenics, when I was probably 14, it was a natural evolution for me. And then I moved to Portland [from Northern Michigan], which was this mecca where I could go see a band every night that fit that bill.
Who are your dream headliners?
I'd really love to see my friends in Mastodon play a smaller venue. It's funny this year because I kept bothering them and they're playing a show [in Portland] the night of our show. I'd really love Volto, Danny's band, to come up and play. I think Portland would really enjoy a dose of jazz fusion.
I have to ask about Black Pussy and the controversy surrounding their name. They're playing the festival this year and have played in the past.
Nothing has come out of those guys that isn't love, compassion and rock 'n' roll. I think it's kind of startling because of their character, and what they do has nothing to do with the things that they've been hounded for.
Is there any chance of the festival getting bigger than it is now?
We thought about it this year, with Revolution Hall opening, but we didn't want to change the format too much this year, just because I knew I was going to be eight months pregnant going into running the live portion of the show. Year five, next year, we definitely plan on doing something bigger. I'm not sure exactly what that's going to be yet.
SEE IT: Stumpfest IV, featuring Danava, Lord Dying, YOB, Big Business and others, is at Mississippi Studios, 3939 N Mississippi Ave., on Thursday-Saturday, April 23-25. $15 advance, $17 day of show. Three-day passes sold out. See mississippistudios.com for complete lineup.
WWeek 2015