I haven?t attended Bumbershoot in thirteen years, and having recently moved back to the Northwest, I am ending that drought this weekend. I wasn?t able to attend the first day of the festival, but here is a rundown of Sunday and Monday:
(photo by Christopher Nelson) We finally got into the festival around 5:30 in the evening, and after becoming oriented to the layout, we made our way to the Fisher Green Stage for Das Racist, a Brooklyn rap trio with a sense of humor and a penchant for poking fun at white people (two members are of East Indian descent and one is half-Cuban, half-Ukranian Jew). The group played a particularly interesting set that, at times, devolved into rambling and at one point playing punk rock songs to which the audience did not respond in a positive fashion. When the group jumped into ?Who?s That? Brooown!? the crowd came back to the fray and the show was back on track. The sound of the stage, considered the ?second stage,? was very good. While the crowd didn?t seem to be particularly into the show, they did react when directly told to clap, shout or given other commands. The group received the greatest natural reaction from their final song, their newest, ?Michael Jackson,? which is the first single from their forthcoming official debut Relax. I liked this group prior to seeing their set, and I?m more of a fan now than I was yesterday.
(photo by Morgan Keuler) After Das Racist, we walked around the festival grounds, set throughout the Seattle Center, inclusive of the Key Arena, Experience Music Project, and several outdoor stages scattered about, and looked at vendor booths and art displays. Eventually making it to the Fountain Lawn Stage for Warpaint, who put on a surprisingly raucous performance for the sparse crowd gathered between the stage and fountain. The all-female group?s ethereal sounds, lathered in reverb, had many spectators moving awkwardly and a few near the stage singing along. The group culled their set mostly from their one album, The Fool, released almost a year ago, but picked up the tempo and volume for the Bumbershoot crowd. I was wowed by the group of sirens, and look forward to more of their psychedelic indie-rock.
(photo by Christopher Nelson) Following Warpaint?s set, we made our way back to the Fisher Green Stage for a set that can be easily described as ?interesting.? Butthole Surfers performed their manic experimental rock for a thick crowd on the main lawn and accompanied their sound with shocking visuals compiled from b-level horror movies ranging fromScanners, Wrong Turn 2, Mirrors and many others. I noticed parents, at several points during the B-hole Surfers? set covering, or otherwise diverting, their children?s eyes as the images got progressively more gruesome with each song. Unfortunately, the images took attention away from the band?s music, and eventually, for me at least, became the focus of the performance. Avant art at a level that many can?t appreciate was witnessed by a large swath of festival goers that showed an attraction, if not an appreciation, for the combination.
(photo by Christopher Nelson) With the Surfers? set over, and an announcement that it would be 45 minutes until the Kills took the stage, the crowd dispersed, and us with them. After another walk around the grounds, and with a slice of pizza deposited in my stomach, we made our way back to the Fisher Green Stage and found a soft plot of grass to which we staked our claim. With many a youthful toker around us, and with as many older patrons complaining about the smell, the time eventually lapsed, and the moment we had been waiting for was upon us. If you?re not familiar with Alison Mosshart, she the front-woman of both the Kills and the Dead Weather, imagine a woman that personifies sexy, if not sex itself. That person is Alison Mosshart. And she did not let down her eagerly awaiting fans. With her new cherry red hair flailing around she and partner in crime Jamie Hince, ran through their set with fervor. A set that was mostly from their three most recent albums, including many from their latest, Blood Pressures, including the single ?Satellite.? Several times I caught myself hoping that the next song would be ?Sour Cherry,? and they finally made my desires a reality near the end of the show. Because the sultry, blues rock duo had begun their set late they opted not to exit stage right at the natural point for the encore break. Instead playing through and giving the rapt crowed what they desired: more. And they delivered in spades. When Mosshart and Hince did finally leave the stage, the crowed slowly broke up, with a few fans simply moving closer to the stage. It wasn?t until a man came to the microphone and announced the show was over that there was a general groan from the few still collected and the realization that there would be no more. A sad ending to an otherwise amazing set from a band of which I can simply not get enough.
(photo by Morgan Keuler) To start Monday we caught Purity Ring, an experimental pop duo from Canada, with a small crowd assembled in the EMP Level 3 stage. Those in attendance were into the sound, but my tastes require more rhythm in order to really get into a sound. My friend described them as ?if Ke$ha were a cutter.? Which is both hilarious and accurate. They are set to release a split 7? with fellow countrymen Braids on Fat Possum next month, and there are a few songs posted on Soundcloud to check out.
After Purity Ring we went to the Exhibition Hall stage for Dom. The band?s two EPs are both more than listenable, and their second Family of Love, is chock full of solid indie rock goodness. Until seeing the band live, I had thought there was a synthesizer in the band, but the parts of the songs I thought had been played on keys in studio, were played with guitars on stage and, apparently, using pedals to distort the sound. Even though Dom finished their set more than 20 minutes before their time slot expired (they have, to date, only released two EPs), the songs they did play, including a call to the audience for a request to finish their set, were all solidly performed and entertained the sparse audience huddled in the small Exhibition Hall.
Following Dom?s early finish, we were able to catch the entirety of YACHT?s set on the Fountain Lawn stage. I?ve been a fan of this band for only a few years now, but in that time I have come to really enjoy their sound and aesthetic. I think their new song is dynamite, and I?m in love with the title track ?Shangri-la.? They played several of my favorite songs, including ?Tripped and Fell In Love,? also from Shangri-La, and a B-52s cover song mid-set. After only a few songs, singer Claire Evans took questions from the crowd. One fan asked if they could come on-stage and dance, to which Evans replied, after checking with security, that the fan could. That resulted in a large group, also invited on-stage, to make a Girl Talk moment as twenty or more fans bopped around the stage for the song.
Following YACHT?s performance, we exited the Seattle Center festival grounds to get some great Seattle sushi a couple blocks from Key Arena at Sam?s Sushi. ?Sam? may not be a name easily associated with great sushi, but it is perhaps the best place in the Queen Anne neighborhood of Seattle. And it?s surprisingly inexpensive, too. It is one of my go-to spots for out-of-town friends. And it didn?t disappoint this day.
With our bellies full of raw fish and wasabi, we made our way back to the festival, perused several of the exhibits in Flatstock, a collection of several poster art booths featuring many artists from around Western Washington and elsewhere. I found, and later purchased, a really killer Girl Talk poster from a show that I attended in Salt Lake City (where I used to live) last summer. With some more shopping done, there are so many cool vendors to visit, we made our way to Bagley Theatre for some comedy. The Comedy Bang Bang Podcast recorded a live episode which was hilarious. Featuring Scott Aukerman, Paul F. Tompkins, Doug Benson and Andy Daly had the crowd in stitches for an hour. After a brief break, we were right back in the Bagley Theatre for the Doug Loves Movies Podcast with Doug Benson, Paul F. Tompkins, Kurt Metzger, Eugen Murman and Sean Jordan. Several of my favorite comedians, and none disappointed. With the comedy portion of the day completed, we made our way to the Key Arena for the Mainstage attraction.
(photo by Morgan Keuler) Hall & Oates, a group I?m not a huge fan of, but couldn?t pass up the chance to see, put on a great show. Featuring hits such as ?Maneater,? ?Out of Touch,? ?I Can?t Go For That (No Can Do)? and many others, the 80s pop royalty commanded the crowd like the consumate professionals they are. When they left the stage for their encore I checked the time and realized they had already played for more than an hour, but it only felt like 30 minutes. It is a rare band that can make time go so quickly, and play so many hits in a single set. Though nearing exhaustion from a long day of fun in the sun, watching Daryl Hall and John Oates emphatically play songs that have been in their repertoire for nearly 40 years was a more enjoyable experience than I have anticipated, and I had expected quite a show. The old timers were a great cap to an equally great weekend of music in downtown Seattle.
While Bumbershoot may not compare to larger festivals like Coachella, Lollapalooza, Sasquatch! or Austin City Limits, it continues to be, even it?s pared down state, a quality experience that can easily be enjoyed by fans of many genres. The crowd for this festival continues to be diverse, as the organizers take care to include music for young and old, hip and square, to create a fun and affordable event that everyone can enjoy. Pencil in Bumbershoot for Labor Day weekend 2012, I already have.
All photos are provided by Bumbershoot 2011 and One Reel Press.
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