Thanks to everyone who tuned in for my latest WSNDshow last night. I had some good requests and good response to my Pitchfork Music Festival recap segment. Here’s my set list:
I’m back on air July 27th and will have the return of all my usual segments – Hit the Road, First & Foremost, the Mondo Moment, and Holiday Music. See you then.
Kllo are pleased to announce details of their debut LP Backwater, due for release on October 20th via Ghostly International. Today, Kllo reveal “Virtue,” the album’s slow-building and euphoric first single. “‘Virtue’ is about not knowing what you’ve got till it’s gone, whether that be a part of yourself or somebody else,” the pair say. “It’s the present moment of finally coming to that realization.”
Kllo – an electronic pop collaboration between Melbourne cousins Chloe Kaul and Simon Lam – waded in figurative backwater for much of 2016 amid an extensive world tour. These were exciting times; the duo’s Well Worn EP furthered the promise of 2014 EP Cusp, receiving millions of streams and landing Kllo on festival stages as well as Artists-to-Watch lists. Nonetheless, the stretch kept them far from home, isolated and vulnerable, treading through perpetual uncharted territory while yearning for the comforts of the familiar.
As a result, Kllo’s full-length debut depicts inner adjustment to outer change. Songs were written partially on the road and developed back at Lam’s bungalow, a haven that harbors creative spontaneity and catharsis.
“It’s the first time we hadn’t felt like kids anymore,” says Kaul. “We were really able to dive in deeper and bring out a lot more of us into the music.”
Kllo first emerged with a sound beyond their years; fully formed, fusing elements of R&B, UK garage, and 2-step. Well-versed students of artists like James Blake, Lauryn Hill, and The xx, the duo extend an amalgamation of established pop elements with modern sensibilities and wide-eyed sincerity. Backwater arrives as a refined, coming-of-age account. The LP format finds Kllo with more room to breathe and sync their rhythms with emotions. Kaul’s smoky voice emanates with assurance and leisure. Lam’s production invents brooding, steely undercurrents hemmed with charming crescendos.
Slow to arc, lead single “Virtue” hushes, stutters, and syncopates before locking into a club-ready groove in its second minute. The hook poses a question: “Can I count on you?” Drama is introduced, and heightened without resolution. Instead we’re lead to a stirring and euphoric epiphany.
Kllo have officially come out the other end of the stilted estuary with twelve compositions cultivated to feel timeless and crafted, and equally current. The duo’s second release on Ghostly International — and their most realized work to date — Backwater celebrates the ephemeral and the enduring changes in emotion, the downfalls and the dissolves. It’s an album that parts course with its flow, and flourishes in a lowland.
Backwater Tracklist:
1. Downfall
2. Still Motion
3. Virtue
4. Predicament
5. Last Yearn
6. Backwater
7. Dissolve
8. By Your Side
9. Making Distractions
10. Too Fast
11. Nylon
12. Not Like Them
Kllo Tour Dates: Nov. 12 – Madrid, ES @ Costello Nov. 13 – San Sebastian, ES @ Dabadaba Nov. 14 – Barcelona, ES @ Sidecar Nov. 16 – Paris, FR @ Supersonic Nov. 17 – Rotterdam, NL @ V11
Nov. 18 – Brussels, BE @ Les TransArdentes at Palais 12
Nov. 20 – Amsterdam, NL @ The Sugar Factory Nov. 23 – London, UK @ XOYO Nov. 24 – Bristol, UK @ The Louisiana Nov. 25 – Manchester, UK @ The Soup Kitchen Nov. 27 – Glasgow, UK @ Broadcast Nov. 28 – Edinburgh, UK @ Sneaky Pete’s Nov. 29 – Leeds, UK @ Headrow House Nov. 30 – Nottingham, UK @ The Bodega Dec. 3 – Berlin, DE @ Badehaus Dec. 4 – Cologne, DE @ Yuca Dec. 5 – Hamburg, DE @ Haekken Dec. 8 – Sydney, AUS @ Oxford Arts Factory Dec. 9 – Perth, AUS @ Jack Rabbit Slim’s Dec. 14 – Brisbane, AUS @ Woolly Mammoth Dec. 15 – Melbourne, AUS @ Corner Hotel Dec. 16 – Adelaide, AUS @ Fat Controller
Big Audio Dynamite (Dan Donovan – keyboards and vocals, Mick Jones – guitar and vocals, Don Letts – effects and vocals, Greg Roberts – drums and vocals, Leo “E-Zee Kill” Williams – bass and vocals) were a big part of my high school years, and their final album, Megatop Phoenix, was a great way to go out on top. I had it on a mix tape for years, so it was high time I bought a proper copy of it. Recorded not long after Mick Jones nearly died of pneumonia (special thanks are given to his doctors and nurses in the album’s liner notes), the album is a reflection on the band’s history and a look to the future.
“Rewind” is a battle cry to all of us to stay strong in the face of adversity and to never count out the underdog. The kick-in of Williams’ bass after the first verse still gives me chills. It’s a great blend of their raga / post-punk / new wave / electro mix that made them so innovative. “Union, Jack” is Jones, Letts, and Williams’ call to British people to get back up on their feet in the Reagan / Thatcher years that were grinding them down into complacency. It opens with a sample of the British national anthem and then kicks in some of the slickest beats by Roberts. Lyrics like “Now in the classroom I was told about the Empire, how you were bold. A pint of beer, life passes by, your spirit’s squashed just like a fly.” continue to resonate today.
“Contact” is a song about Jones’ inner struggle to express himself to perhaps a lovely lady or even his own band mates. This was B.A.D.’s last album, after all. His guitar has nice heaviness to it when it comes in during the chorus. “Dragon Town” has Jones expressing the band’s wonder at being lost in a Chinatown while looking for an exotic woman.
“Baby, Don’t Apologize” is, on its surface, about Jones telling a lover not to be sorry things didn’t work out because he can’t or won’t change. It’s probably a veiled reference to the end of the band, however. Jones had a life-changing experience with his pneumonia, Don Letts was becoming a producer and DJ, and the other band members were also involved in other projects. Jones was worried about how he might be perceived (“My head is in the stock. It rains refuse, some shout abuse, and others throwing rocks.”), but as he puts it, “What I am is loud and clear for all to see, for all to hear.”
“Around the Girl in 80 Ways” is a straight-up love song from Jones and Letts as they teach how to woo the lady of your choice. They suggest everything from “a bunch of flowers” to playing it cool. “James Brown” was written after the Godfather of Soul was involved in a domestic violence case and a police pursuit that landed him in jail. Jones and Letts tell the story from Brown’s perspective, paying tribute to him and calling him out on his bad behavior at the same time. The beats are wicked, as is the verbal takedown of American celebrity culture (which is just as bad in Britain nowadays).
“Everybody Needs a Holiday” sounds better than ever in this world that has only gotten smaller, busier, and less personal since 1989. “House Arrest” is a tale of partying on Saturday night until six in the morning when the cops show up. It’s a floor-bumper with heavy bass and kick ass drum licks. Letts gets to take lead vocals on it as he sings about “bouncers, bimbos, lager louts” and “cops and dogs in transit vans.”
“The Green Lady” is a clever and slightly bittersweet song (with great guitar work by Jones) about a man who falls in love with a Chinese woman in a mass-produced photograph hanging in his flat. “London Bridge” is about the Americanization of London, but Jones professes his love for his town with catchy hooks. “Stalag 123” is about Jones and crew being stuck in the studio working on a record while the building’s basement is flooded and they have to deal with “no windows, no air, and secondhand gear.”
B.A.D. didn’t sound like anything that came before them, and no one has really matched their mix of genres since. They had a successful reunion tour a few years ago, and we can always hope for another. If not, there’s always their excellent catalog and this fine end to it.
Computer Magic’s (otherwise known as Danielle Johnson) Obscure but Visible EP is a nice treat. Ms. Johnson puts the whole thing together via synths, computers, drum machines, and lovely vocals for a refreshing record in a world of so much damn noise.
The opening vibraphone-like beats of “Dimensions” instantly calm you, but the snappy beats get your toes tapping. “Lonely Like We Are” soars along free of gravity as the beats get you dancing even though they seem to be miles away from you. “New Generation” has a fun Caribbean beat to it. “Gone for the Weekend” has Johnson requesting, “Don’t bring me down. I’m gone for the weekend, so build me up.” She wants and needs someone to give her a boost because not even the weekend is enough to completely lift her out of her funk. “Been Waiting” sounds like a lost 1980’s synth-pop classic at times.
This is a good introduction to Computer Magic. I need to seek out more of Ms. Johnson’s work. You should, too.
Atlanta, GA trio Omni charged out of the gate in 2016, stunning everyone within earshot with their debut long-player, Deluxe, a dizzyingly refreshing amalgam of wiry post-punk jitters & a dash of zen cool. Multi-task, being released September 22nd via Trouble in Mind, is their latest offering & all signs point to the coveted goal of “next level.” As with Deluxe, Multi-task was recorded with friend & engineer Nathaniel Higgins at his studio as well as a remote cabin in the woods near Vienna, Georgia. “It gave a true peace/piece of mind away from the city” Frobos says, “We could work with no distractions or limitations at our own pace.”
Multi-task is a more musically adventurous step forward for the band, keeping the frantic, fleet-fingered fingerpicking of Broyles’ guitar work & Frobos’ dead-cool delivery while expanding their musical palette & to include whispers of post-Roxy glam & Postcard Records pop. Multi-task balances the band’s trademark off-kilter & unconventional jams with an elegance not found with many of their contemporaries. Their underlying seductive sophistication creates an aura of romance that many post-punk bands dare not tread, and Omni pulls it off with grace & style. Their minimalist funk-fused agit-pop whirrs while simultaneously creating an album that is awash in the excitement of new love, or fleeting attraction. Listen to the first single, “Equestrian,” which the band say is “a song for and about the privileged and self-loathing. It can be unknowingly fun and disgusting at the same time to live in the now. Despicable/Applicable.”
MULTI-TASK TRACKLISTING
1. Southbound Station
2. Equestrian
3. Choke
5. Tuxedo Blues
5. After Dinner
6. Supermoon
8. Date Night
9. Calling Direct
10. Heard My Name
11. Type
OMNI TOUR DATES: Thu. July 20 – Atlanta, GA @ The Earl: Irrelevant Music Fest Wed. July 26 – Nashville, TN @ 5 Spot Thu. July 27 – Indianapolis, IN @ State Street Pub Fri. July 28 – Madison, WI @ The Terrace: Univ. of Madison Sun. July 29 – Chicago, IL @ The Hideout Thu. Aug. 3 – Athens, GA @ Caledonia Lounge Fri. Aug. 4 -Birmingham, AL @ Secret Stages Mon. Aug. 7 – Asheville, NC @ The Mothlight
Tie. Aug. 8 – Bloomington, IN @ The Bishop Bar w/ Kevin Krauter / Peter Oren Wed. Aug. 9 – Memphis, TN @ Growler’s Thu. Aug. 31 – Amsterdam, NL @ OT301
Fri. Sep. 1 – Larmar Tree Gardens, UK @ End of the Road Festival Sat. Sep. 2 – Manchester, UK @ Strange Waves Festival Sun. Sep. 3 – Bristol, UK @ Louisiana Mon. Sep. 4 – Paris, FR @ Point Ephemere Tue. Sep. 5 – Toulouse, FR @ Pavilion Sauvage Wed. Sep. 6 – Madrid, ES @ Sirocco Thu. Sep. 7 – Santiago De Compostela, ES @ WOS Fri. Sep. 8 – Barcelona, ES @ Altaveu Sat. Sep. 9 – Marseille, FR @ L’Emeobineuse Mon. Sep. 11 – Basle, CH @ Renee Wed. Sep. 13 – Zurich, CH @ Katakombe @ Sender Thu. Sep. 14 – Bologne, IT @ Freakout Fri. Sep. 15 – Lyon, FR @ Le Sonic Sat. Sep. 16 – Orleans, FR @ Hop Hop Sun. Sep. 17 – Lille, FR @ DIY Mon. Sep. 18 – London, UK @ Moth Club Tue. Sep. 19 – Birmingham, UK @ Hare & Hounds Wed. Sep. 20 – Dublin, IRE @ Whealan’s Thu. Sep. 21– Glasgow, UK @ Hug & Pint Fri. Sep. 22 – Liverpool, UK @ Liverpool Psychfest Sat. Sep. 23 – Brighton, UK @ Sticky Mike’s Frog Bar
PRAISE FOR DELUXE
“Atlanta trio Omni is only on their first album, but they’ve already caught that essential combination of steely rigor and fiery energy, ripping out quick gems that exude control without sacrificing guts.” – Pitchfork
“On Atlanta trio Omni’s debut album, Deluxe, nothing was surplus. Every snare, every inquisitive, jagged little guitar line, every melody from Philip Frobos’s throat—it was all essential.” – Noisey
“A modern-day paragon of the infinite possibilities, and rewards, of the post-punk form.” – Aquarium Drunkard
“Channeling the likes of Devo and Pylon, their music is a blissful trip back in time to the arty, danceable rhythms of the new wave movement, but with a rough lo-fi flair.” – Stereogum
Day three of the Pitchfork Music Festivalstarted out a bit chilly as the Windy City was living up to its nickname, but we soon got our sweaty groove on thanks to a great set by Chicago house music legend and pioneer Derrick Carter.
Derrick Carter dropping beats like an Olympic power lifter dropping a barbell.
For those of you who weren’t dancing during his set, please see a doctor because something is wrong with you. He put on a house music clinic. It was a great way to start the day.
We also heard a bit of Colin Stetson‘s set. He plays this wild, droning, hypnotizing saxophone music that is difficult to describe but quite mesmerizing. We had plenty of time before Ride‘s set, so we met up with my college pal and his husband again before heading off to do a little shopping and eating.
Ride put on a good set of shoegaze that was a great switch from all the hip hop, electro, and funk we heard during the festival. Unfortunately, they had a shortened set due to some early technical difficulties, but they played new and old material and blasted all of us with the final song of their set. It was a loud, distorted, fuzzed-out assault. “I needed that,” said one man next to me by the time they were done.
Ride melting faces in a killer finale.
Ride did a signing at the record fair afterwards, and I scored a signed copy of their newest album, Weather Diaries (review coming soon). They were happy to meet everybody, and I’m happy to report they had a long line of fans there.
Mandy caught Jamilla Woods‘ set, which she enjoyed very much, after she’d been moved from the Blue Stage to the Green Stage due to the Avalanchescancelling their performance. According to their Twitter feed, a family member one of the band members had some sort of dire medical emergency. My college pal came to the festival mainly to see them, so he was more than annoyed they weren’t playing. He and his husband learned via a Google search that the Avalanches are about as finicky as Morrissey when it comes to performing.
Thankfully, Nicolas Jaarput on an excellent set of his experimental electro / trance music that was both psychedelic and dance-inspiring at the same time. At about the halfway point of his set, a guy in front of me turned to his friends and said, “This is the best set I’ve seen all weekend.” and then left.
Chilean DJ Nicolas Jaar creating intricate beats on the fly.
We split after that, beating the crowds and stopping to meet artist Jay Ryan so we could get one of his posters. He does really neat and cute art for a lot of bands and other projects. We already had a Bob Mould tour poster of his hanging in our living room, and now Mandy has a “It’s Time to Read” poster that will go in her office featuring bears, cats, and a wooly mammoth reading books.
I walked out with a new pair of sunglasses and CD’s by Screaming Females, Vacation, Waxahatchee, Tycho, Priests, Slowdive, She-Devils, Ride, and Wavves, and even a cassette by a band called Diagonal. I’ll have reviews of all this stuff in the coming months.
All in all, the Pitchfork Music Festival was a good time. We’d go back if the lineup was good and we could stay close to the festival. As it’s been for the last few festivals I’ve attended, VIP tickets don’t look worth the money. It’s not as laid back as a Levitation festival, but still fun. It also could’ve used a little more rock, in my opinion, but it was worth the trip.
Keep your mind open.
That’s my pal, Chris, on the far right and his husband, Darin, on the far left. Chris and I hadn’t seen each other since 1993.
[You know what else is worth it? Subscribing to my blog.]
The name of the new Blanck Mass (Benjamin John Power) album, World Eater, could refer to several things: the Fenris Wolf from Norse mythology that eats the sun at the end of the world (the cover art – a photograph of a snarling dog’s teeth – certainly suggests this), the rising population numbers of the human race and the effects of that on the planet, the Internet, Galactus from Marvel Comics, cancer, world politics, religion, or a hundred other things. World Eater attempts to unveil this looming threat (whatever it is) to us, and he does so with fury.
Take, for instance, World Eater’s opener, “John Doe’s Carnival of Error.” It’s a little over two minutes of what sounds like an antique music box in need of repair. This belongs in a horror film score, if it’s not already in one. It’s not a carnival of terror, however. It’s a carnival of error. Our errors, both in real life and especially online, often define us. No one is given the benefit of the doubt anymore, and plenty of us like to sit back and watch the circus as celebrities are taken down, politicians stumble, and even “normal people” suffer pratfalls both physical and emotional.
“Rhesus Negative” brings in frenetic electric beats, fuzzed bass, and short, choppy samples perfect for the short, choppy way we’ve come to want our entertainment, news, and human interactions. “Please” could be Blanck Mass’ asking us to pay attention to our world be swallowed up by seemingly everything. It’s one of the brightest tracks on the record, so I can’t help but figure he thinks we can heal the world and ourselves if we have some compassion for it and each other.
“The Rat” is probably an allusion to scavengers plaguing the world with feeding off of / exploiting the poor. The beat and sound of the track, one of the best, is like something out of a future post-apocalyptic movie (but one with an uplifting ending). I wouldn’t be surprised if “Silent Treatment” refers to the way human beings tend to interact with each other nowadays. We’d rather stare at little screens and type silent words than actually look at each other and tell stories. The song is anything but quiet as it mixes in trance touches with rainfall-like synths.
I have no idea how to explain the title of “Minnesota / Eas Fors / Naked,” but maybe that’s the point. It’s chaotic and seems to come at you from several directions, and I definitely think that’s part of the message. The things that tend to gobble us up in this world come at us all the time from every direction imaginable. Perhaps Blanck Mass wants us to be naked of such distractions, and this song is a reflection of those distractions. I’m going with that.
World Eater ends with the song “Hive Mind.” We’re all nearly there, aren’t we? Everyone wants to be famous, liked, upvoted, tagged, retweeted, and shared. As a friend of mine once put it, “They all want to be individuals like everyone else.” We want to belong, but we don’t want to put in the effort of belonging to something. The song’s slick beats and popping synths keep you nodding and awake. It keeps you from falling into the hive mind.
Blanck Mass wants us to wake up and readjust. He wants us to remember that nature is truly highest on the food chain, but he also wants us to remember that we can avoid being consumed by the beasts we’ve created. This record is a warning, an alarm, and a solid piece of work – one of the best I’ve heard all year, in fact.
We were happy to learn that the folks at Pitchfork Music Festival decided to open a second entrance on the east side of Union Park. This saved us from having to walk around the park to get into the lone entrance (unless you were a VIP), and saved probably thousands of people from waiting in another long line at the start of the day.
The new entrance, located at Ogden and Washington, sent us straight into the poster and print exhibition.
Posters and prints everywhere!
We immediately noticed it was far busier than the previous day. The weather was better, too. It was sunny and just a tad humid, whereas it had been mostly cloudy on Day One. The new entrance also put us near the craft and record fairs.
Clothes, jewelry, sunglasses, hats, one-hitters.It’s a bunch of wrecka stows under one roof!
I’m curious to see how much prices drop on Day Three, as I’m sure all of the vendors would like to pack up as little as possible.
As for the music, we started off the day with George Clinton and Parliament Funkadelic. We managed to find a college housemate of mine in the crowd. I hadn’t seen him in over 20 years, and it was fun to jam with him, his husband, and Mandy while Mr. Clinton and crew went nuts. I was surprised when they ended their set with some trap music. I expected more funk. As my friend said, “They need to have about fifteen more people on stage.” The group did include a foxy lady whose job was to stand next to the drummer and look sexy. She succeeded on all counts.
Mr. Clinton is in the striped shirt. The foxiest go-go dancer / back-up singer I’ve seen in a long while is to his right. MEOW!
We had plenty of time until the next set we wanted to see, so we headed to the food vendors for drinks and snacks. The festival organizers made another smart decision by not checking I.D.’s at the entrance gates (like they’d done on Day One, creating an even longer wait time to get into the park), but instead checking them by the tents where you bought drink tickets. One extremely dry cider and two teriyaki chicken buns later, we were off to see Madlib.
Madlib not caring if you expected more bass or trance beats. He’ll play what he wants, and we’re all better for it.
Madlib gave a master’s course in mixing and spinning. He played a lot of tracks features different rappers he’s collaborated with in the past such as J Dilla and MF DOOM. I geeked out when part of his visual display showed clips of the psychedelic movie Phase IV.
I caught part of S U R V I V E‘s set, which was a neat blend of dark wave and film score music. I saw more than a few kids at their set and figured they were probably jazzed to see the guys who made the Stranger Things score. One man was tripping hard during their set and dancing like he was having a religious experience. More power to him.
S U R V I V E gets bonus points for one of their members (far left) wearing a Goblin shirt.
We couldn’t get even halfway to the stage for A Tribe Called Quest. The crowd for them was massive, and having P.J. Harveyon a nearby stage before their set only added to the number of people on the main lawn of the park.
A photo of a video screen. Mandy and I are somewhere in the back right of that crowd.
Nevertheless, we had a blast during ATCQ’s set. They ripped through classic and new tracks, and Ali Shaheed Muhammad is still one of the best DJs in the business.
Representin’ Linden Boulevard.
The crowd around us was a bit low key, for reasons unknown to us. One woman was wandering around asking random strangers if they had any weed to share. A drunk man danced with Mandy and mumbled nonsense before learning I was with her and then freaking out a bit when he saw me. I patted him on the shoulder and told him not to worry.
One of the best, and most bittersweet, parts of ATCQ’s set was the unmanned microphone on stage for Phife Dawg, who died last year from diabetes. They still played his vocals, and even an a cappella version of one track that had the stage dark and only Phife’s vocals carrying across the lawn. The band was big on “Dis Generation” and “Award Tour,” which they restarted twice.
It’s an award tour so far.
It was a fun way to end the day, but getting out was another story. Pitchfork has VIP entrances and exits, but they don’t open these exits to everyone at the end of the day. As a result, hundreds (at least) of us who figured we could get out through the east VIP exit were sent back through the record fair tents to the entrance and exit gate for the plebeians. This gate still had a folding chair, a box, and some cattle gates across it that should’ve been moved before thousands of people started to leave.
Alt-rock legends Jane’s Addiction recently announced they’ll release a live version of their classic album Ritual De Lo Habitual on August 25, 2017. This was recorded on their 2016 tour and features all the original members of the band. They play the album in its entirety and include four encore tracks (“Mountain Song,” “Just Because,” “Ted, Just Admit It,” and, of course, “Jane Says”).
The album will be available for download (for a mere nine bucks) and on red or blue vinyl. Get it while it’s hot.
I must admit that the Pitchfork Music Festivalcrams a lot of stuff into a small park. I’m used to larger spaces like Levitation Austin, but Pitchfork gets a lot of bang for its buck at Chicago’s Union Park.
Speaking of cramming, the lines to get in were long, but moved well when my wife and I got to the festival close to 2:00. By the end of the day, we were hearing stories of the line to get in wrapping around the block and going the whole length of the park. One friend posted on Facebook that it was almost as bad as getting into the massive Star Wars Celebration convention.
Once inside, I was surprised to see how close two of the stages are to each other. The Red and Green Stages are almost a stone’s throw apart. Mandy and I wondered how noisy it was going to be with the bands playing on each stage, but the Pitchfork programmers wisely schedule the bands so that none are playing on the Red and Green stages at the same time.
We missed Madame Gandhi‘s set, unfortunately, but arrived in time to see Priests.
Priests
They played a set that proved post-punk is alive and well and had a fun time. I later picked up their first record at a record fair located on the park’s tennis courts. We had plenty of time to wander after their set and that’s when we discovered not only the record fair, but also a print and poster fair, a book fair, a craft fair, and plenty of food vendors. I walked out of the record fair with not only that CD by Priest, but also CD’s by Waxahatchee, Screaming Females, and Vacation. I might go back for a Chicago Cubs World Series Champions poster and a cute one of animals reading books.
We wandered to the Red Stage to catch the Thurston Moore Group, who put down a loud punk / noise rock set with hammering guitar solos and thunderous bass. Moore told a funny story about Henry Rollins’ too during the set, so that was a treat.
Thurston Moore Group
We went straight back to the Green Stage to catch Danny Brown, who came out to Black Sabbath’s “Iron Man.” He quickly got the crowd jumping with his crazy rhymes and booming beats. Water and water bottles were flying in every direction from a mosh pit that broke out in front of the stage. There was a lot of call and response stuff between Brown and the crowd, who I’m happy to say looked sharp and healthy (check out his lyrics if you’re wondering why I was concerned).
We stayed in our spot for about an hour to wait for LCD Soundsystem, who got a big cheer just from raising the biggest mirror ball I’ve ever seen above their set.
The crowd kept building as their 8:10 start time grew closer. It was so packed at one point that I had difficulty raising my arms to get this photo.
I’m glad I’m not claustrophobic. That’s the Red Stage behind us, and this is just half the crowd for LCD Soundsystem. Mandy’s checking her phone to my left.
LCD Soundsystem started their set ten minutes early, bringing seemingly enough people for an Earth, Wind, and Fire tribute band with them. They burst out of the gate hard and fast, and the crowd seemed to release energy it had been storing all day. Their big hit “Daft Punk Is Playing at My House” was the second song of the set, so they didn’t waste time.
How it looks when Daft Punk is playing at your house.
A mosh pit broke out next to us at one point, and this aging punk rocker had to get into it and show these young hipsters how its done. Other highlights included “Trials and Tribulations,” a lovely and loud version of “New York I Love You, but You’re Bringing Me Down,” and “You Wanted a Hit.”
LCD Soundsystem won’t be your babies anymore.
I warned Mandy as they started “Dance Yrself Clean.” “This whole place is going to go ape shit,” I said. She had no idea what I meant and thought the entire crowd was going to break into a mosh pit. She was pleasantly surprised when instead we all pogoed when the song kicks into full gear. It’s as great as you can imagine.
Dancing ourselves clean with LCD Soundsystem.
They closed with a wild rendition of “All My Friends.” It was well worth the waits (the hour before their set, and a few years since they called it quits) to see them. I had been bummed that I missed them when they were first on the scene, so their set at Pitchfork was my main reason for buying weekend passes. They didn’t disappoint, and lead singer James Murphy performed with a bad back and keyboardist Nancy Wong with a bum knee – although neither showed much signs of impairment (Murphy stretched at one point, and Wong would sometimes take his arm to walk from one spot on stage to another).
This is how you end a set. Stay home if you can’t bring this kind of energy.
Getting out of the festival was a big harder than getting in since the main entrance and exit isn’t huge. We plan to look for a VIP exit tonight. On the way out, a young man behind said to his friends, “Mosh pits were fun when I was a sophomore three years ago. Now, I’m not so sure.” The old punk rocker in me wanted to give him a backwards elbow shot to the face and say, “I’m getting into pits at twice your age!”
