This weekend in Chicago, the 4th annual Pitchfork Music Festival took over the Windy City’s Union Park for three days of great music. WOXY was on hand and chatted with a few bands we love. Have a look at this WOXY Wants To Know with Bowerbirds.
We’ve been friends with Grant Widmer & Ted Joyner since their days in The Eames Era. Their new band, Generationals, has earned some great reviews for their debut album Con Law, which just hit stores this week. The guys have hit the road on a Park The Vantour across the west coast and will be making periodic updates from the road exclusively for The Futurist. Here’s their first update…
I’ll start off by saying this tour has been a blast so far. A tour of the West that starts in New Orleans is inherently going to include a ton of driving, but we’ve been squeezing a lot in to the few hours we don’t spend in the van. Here’s the rundown of the first quarter of the tour.
We kicked the tour off with a hometown show in New Orleans at the All Ways Lounge on St. Claude Avenue in the Faubourg Marigny. The All Ways is typically a theatrical venue and has a rep as one of the rowdier gay clubs in New Orleans. It did not disappoint. Lots of our friends and family and fans showed up to see us off. The show was great. Keep an ear peeled for Giant Cloud, a great band from Ruston, La., who have just moved their band to New Orleans. They’re fantastic. They opened the show and impressed everyone.
Friday night was in Indianapolis. We had a sweet opening slot for Megafaun and Bowerbirds at Vollrath so it was worth driving all night after the New Orleans show to get up there. We also met Nathaniel Rateliff, a folk singer from Denver who opened the show. He was also excellent. Nathaniel had just struck a deal with a new booking agent so he was in celebration mode. Our set was fun. Megafaun and Bowerbirds did not disappoint. Those guys are awesome. Read the rest of this entry »
…And the Ever Expanding Universe (Arts & Crafts) is the third full-length from the Ontario-based septet The Most Serene Republic. It’s a punchy, pop-vescent collection of tunes heavily influenced by fellow Canadians Broken Social Scene and Stars.
Layering male and female harmonies, synths, guitars, various forms of percussion and strings together to make crisp, busy tunes is the Republic’s forte, and they haven’t slowed down one bit on this record. “Vessels of a Donor Look” and “The Old Forever New Things” are both jam-packed and frenetic in the most compulsive way possible; they mix the ease of soothing pop with all the ambition of Yes in a scant three minutes or so. Ballad “All of One is the Other” divides the record in half and offers a brief respite from all the busty rhythms, featuring hazy vocals and distant bells. Most of this album, however, is complex dance music for a modern society that loves its traditional pop with a few more angles and a lot more punch.
As I awoke in my hotel and pondered the second day of the Pitchfork Music Festival, I got pretty excited about the prospects. Because after all, not only was Day 2 the first “full” day of music, but it also was the first opportunity for the younger bands to shine. The bands that Pitchfork often champions are the up-and-comers, and there were plenty on deck for Saturday at Union Park.
When I arrived, I could already tell that a great deal more people were there than the previous night, which speaks to the fact that Saturday might be the best attended day overall. I knew what I wanted to see on Saturday, and thanks to only having to worry about 3 stages, I was confident I could pull it off. First up for me was a no-brainer: Cymbals Eat Guitars. The band from New York have been one of the more talked about groups to hit the scene this year and WOXY.com was at the forefront of that buzz, playing their debut album, Why There Are Mountains, months before most got a hold of it. Playing to what may have easily been the biggest crowd in the band’s young history, lead singer Joseph D’Agostino was clearly a bit shellshocked at the sight of such a large crowd. That said, he pulled things together and they ripped through a set that was not without its flaws, but was really fun to watch. You could tell the band was having a blast as well. When I spoke with the guys afterwards, they mentioned that there were “zero fails” and it’s hard to disagree.
(Cymbals Eat Guitars)
The next act I had a chance to catch was Plants & Animals, another band whose record we were really into at WOXY.com last year. The band played a very tight set and I was struck by how great some of the tunes sounded in a live setting, especially the long but incredible “Faerie Dance.” Although I had little to no intention to do so, I caught some of the set from Fucked Up next, who were playing the stage directly in my path between Plants & Animals and the press tent. Fucked Up sound mostly horrible to my ears, I have to admit, but the spectacle of lead singer Damian Abraham on stage taking every beach ball that bounced on stage and ripping them to shreds with his teeth was too hard to ignore. The hardcore band provided one of the most energetic sets of the day and even though I could care less for their music, it was hard to look away.
(Fucked Up)
I was unable to catch much of the set from The Antlers, regrettably, because I was now running back and forth between the VIP area to do interviews and the stages, but bounced out just in time to see The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart tear into their set as the clouds looked more and more threatening above. Pains, like many other bands that day, were playing to the biggest crowd in their lives as well, and despite the added pressure, seemed to not only keep it together, but shine in the face of the now oncoming rain. At this point in their young career, they seem incredibly confident on stage. While the sound might not be groundbreaking, they certainly deserve the attention they are getting this year.
More running back and forth allowed me to only catch the start of the set from Bowerbirds, whose new album Upper Air is nothing short of charming. Of course, Beth and Phil are charming as well, and even though I had to turn and leave halfway through their set, it was pretty obvious they were casting their spell on the crowd from the start. After fulfilling another interview obligation, I took a break with the first food of the day as Final Fantasy was playing. Owen does not do very many festival type things, at least in the US, so it was nice to hear some familiar and some new songs from the talented artist.
(The Pains Of Being Pure At Heart)
After some food and actually sitting down for about 15-20 minutes, I made my next stop the C stage, where Yeasayer was getting ready to play. I think I have been a bit of a casual Yeasayer fan so far, really enjoying some songs from their debut album but not really going out of my way to do much about it. Not only was this the most pleasantly surprising set of the weekend for me, it was close to the best overall. Yeasayer had all of the elements you look for in a good festival performance. The downside however, was that the rain was now coming down more than it really had been the entire weekend as well. I decided to stay though, and I’m glad I did. It may have been “the moment” of the day when the band was playing their song “Sunrise” and not only did the rain cease, but the sun actually peeked through the clouds in the midst of the tune. Perfect. Just perfect.
(Yeasayer)
From there I was able to catch an excellent performance from Beirut, who I had never seen live before. His stage setup, probably the only one all weekend without an electric guitar present, was not only unique in setup but also in sound. The brass section carried the songs, just as they do on record and Zach’s voice seemed even larger than on tape, floating above the mass of people gathered for the show.
(Beirut)
From there, I had my eyes on the prize. And that prize was The National. I mean, how can you go wrong with one of the best bands on the planet headlining after a great day of music? The Cincinnati-bred boys started the set off with a brand new song called “Runaway” and I was immediately hooked. I had seen and heard them performing this previously and seeing it live was a great. They then launched into a set full of emotion and raw energy that builds from meek and mild into a violent rage. Songs like “Mistaken For Strangers”, “Squalor Victoria”, and “Secret Meeting” still carry that sense of urgency that attracted me to the band years ago.
(The National)
And I have to say, the new song that is for now being called “Vanderlye, Cry Baby Cry” and has also at times been dubbed “Strum Club” may have been the best song of the set. Get a taste right here and enjoy the tune along with guitarist Bryce Dessner using a bow on his electric guitar. The guys finished their set and day two off with the epic live staple “Mr. November” and included “About Today” as an encore as well.
While exhausted from the previous two days, there is nothing quite like the satisfaction of hearing one of your favorite bands to close out a full day of live music.
This weekend in Chicago, the 4th annual Pitchfork Music Festival took over the Windy City’s Union Park for three days of great music. WOXY was on hand and chatted with a few bands we love. Have a look at this WOXY Wants To Know with The Antlers.
In addition, check out the session The Antlers did with us earlier this year…
From Nashville by way of Boston, The Young Republic visited the Lounge for their fourth session in as many years. Currently signed to Britain’s End Of The Road label, the sextet treated us to a complete set of unreleased material including tracks from their upcoming Balletesque CD, due for an October release. The Berklee College of Music grads honed lead singer Julian Saporiti’s songs in their home studio, and finished recording earlier this year.
Relocated to Tennessee for over a year, TYR plays an eclectic mix of pop, rock and folk that creates their own unique blend of Americana that seems to be increasingly influenced by their surroundings, and reflects Saporiti’s Southern roots. During the interview, in fact, he asserts that all American music is rooted in the South. Listeners will enjoy the rich orchestration of this classically trained band (i.e. these guys can play!) along with Saporiti’s ability to vividly tell a story with his lyrics.
Track Listing:
Black Duck Blues
An Artist. Am I? No!
Sam Clemens -interview-
The Wolf
Bronagh
Weather can play a big role when it comes to how much you enjoy a music festival. Just ask the concert goers who attended the Pitchfork Music Festival a couple years ago, when temperatures in the Chicago area rose above 95 degrees for most of the weekend. So, as someone who prefers NOT to have to deal with that much heat, I was pretty happy to see that the forecast for this year’s festival, was much more welcoming. They had been calling for temps topping out in the mid 70s, but when I arrived in Union Park off of the L train, a light rain and cold breeze made me feel like I needed a sweatshirt rather than sunscreen.
(The Jesus Lizard)
This is my first Pitchfork Fest, and after attending Bonnarooo, Lollapalooza and SXSW, I can appreciate the smaller feel that P4K resonates. Union Park after all is really a sports park, with baseball fields and basketball courts and tennis courts that get covered with hipsters one weekend a year. The first evening of the festival also allows you to ease into things, since there are just 4 bands playing and none of them are competing with another stage. Tortoise kicked off the festival and was just a few songs into their set when I arrived. Plenty of new tunes from Beacons of Ancestorship were present, but I felt that at times these guys had very little to offer visually and strode off before the set ended to check out the remainder of the festival grounds.
(Yo La Tengo)
One of the best things about the festival is the merchandise area, which is an independent aritist’s dream. Covering what is usually the tennis courts is a full-on art fair, complete with t-shirts, jewelry, clothing and tons of vinyl records. Indie stalwarths like Sub Pop Records are represented, as well as plenty of local indie labels pushing their artists as well. This is the anti-mall. This is the anti-corporate paradise, where there are just as many handmade items as shoppers. After perusing the area and finding some cheap sunglasses that fit me better than anything at a gas station could, but not costing any more, I moved back to the music and got a nice spot in front to the stage for Yo La Tengo.
The New York trio are really some of the more unassuming musicians I have seen despite their indie rock god status. They, like many of the other bands playing Friday night, had put out a ballot of sorts allowing fans to vote on their setlist for this performance and so it was obvious we would be getting some of their most well known tunes. Among the hits was “Autumn Sweater”, “Tom Courtenay”, “Cherry Chapstick” and “Let’s Save Tony Orlando’s House.” But I really got a kick out of a new song, “Periodically Double Or Triple”, which Ira dedicated to former Chicago Cub legend and broadcaster Ron Santo “wherever he is.” It made me even more excited for the brand new album, due out this fall. YLT are able to not only perform a delicate ballad as easy as a guitar shredding 8 minute jam, as evidenced by fan favorite and set closer “Sugarcube”, which left me reeling.
(The Jesus Lizard)
After YLT, it was time for The Jesus Lizard, a band that I have to say, I have never really been a huge fan of. That being said, I can totally respect and appreciate the fact that they are indie legends and this set would be important. After all, this was the first performance from the band in nearly 10 years! As soon as frontman David Yow hit the stage, the energy within a a wide portion of his epicenter turned from a cool summer evening into a drunken sloppy mess, complete with indistiguishable lyrics, thick pulsating guitars and a stage dive during set opener “Puss” that lasted for the entire song and at times had folks wondering if and when Yow would emerge from the pit to finish the show. It was hard to deny the energy the Lizard was dishing out, and I would say that for fans of the band, this set would be a highlight difficult to top for the whole weekend.
(Built To Spill)
Built To Spill were the final act of the night, and I was more than ready to hear yet another indie rock legend dish out their hits. Doug and company have just about the opposite energy level that the Jesus Lizard employ however and opened up things with “Liar” to the biggest group of people all night long. Here is the thing about Built To Spill, they are an amazing band on record, some of their songs, as evidenced by the setlist for the night, belong in the canon of indie fame forever. My only complaint is that the guys just don’t make me want to stick around and watch anything. They sound great, but there is something about a live performance that makes me yearn for stage banter, energetic band members pushing the energy out and letting the crowd push it right back, and sorry to say this, but Built To Spill do not do that.
That being said, I am really happy I got the opportunity to see them do their thing live this weekend, and despite my objections, “Goin’ Against Your Mind” was brilliant live, as were many of the other tunes in the set. I left the festival on day 1 and jumped back on the L headed toward my hotel. The waterside view from the pink line is hard to top, and so was the fun that I encountered on the first day of the 2009 Pitchfork Music Festival.
(Yo La Tengo)
Lots more photos after the jump of Tortoise, The Jesus Lizard, Yo La Tengo and Built To Spill. Read the rest of this entry »
This weekend in Chicago, the 4th annual Pitchfork Music Festival took over the Windy City’s Union Park for three days of great music. WOXY was on hand and chatted with a few bands we love. Have a look at our very first WOXY Wants To Know with Cymbals Eat Guitars.
Welcome to the very first edition of the WOXY.com Friday Five! We are excited to bring you this new feature that we hope to bring your way on a weekly basis. So load up the player below and listen to music from five artists playing the Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago this weekend.
In addition, check out our Pitchfork Music Festival preview right here. Also, Joe will be attending the festival this weekend and bringing you as much coverage of the festival as possible. This means some interviews, photos and of course, obsessive twittering. Follow along!
The Dead Weather took over the WOXY.com airwaves earlier this week and played some great tunes. If you missed out on this WOXY.com exclusive, don’t worry. You can stream both hours below right now. Enjoy!
