Stevie Wonder wields the mighty keytar (Ian Witlen)
Oh, but then there was Day Three, which found Stevie Wonder swinging his mighty keytar against unhappiness and the evils of the world (which on this particular night included the Tea Party phenomenon). It was by far the feel-good moment of the festival (unless you support racism), and you can read about it in depth here.
And in “Best and Worst” coverage, I took on GWAR, Reggie Watts and ISIS, plus Adult Swim’s Unicorn Robot Attack.
The Lips unleash a tickertape explosion (Ian Witlen)
Day Two of Bonnaroo was my personal favorite, mostly thanks to the Flaming Lips who not only performed a full set of their own songs (with all the expected fanfare — see above), but covered Pink Floyd’s Dark Side of the Moon in full with help from Stardeath and White Dwarfs. Read about that cosmic experience here.
And as on Day One, I contributed to Spin‘s “Best and Worse” coverage alongside some very sharp, funny scribes, this time covering Tenacious D, Damian Marley and Nas, the Gaslight Anthem and LCD Soundsystem.
Also: some serious reporting on McLovin and barf in “In Brief.”
L.A.'s Local Natives spreads infectiousness (Ian Witlen)
Dear Bonnaroo, you’ve stolen my heart.
Wait, no, I think I just dropped it in front of the What Stage and the mud swallowed it up along with the thousands of orphaned sandals and pot stashes. (What will the anthropologists think?) But seriously, that was four days of excellent festivalling, and I feel honored to have been a part of the incredibly hard-working Spin team for the duration thereof. Click here to access the magazine’s Bonnaroo 2010 homepage, where you’ll find video, photos and text from the trenches. Specific links to follow.
Here’s the Best and Worst of Day One. Yours truly wrote on the xx, Local Natives and the Dodos. Check out days two, three and four.
Last weekend L.A. indie label Manimal Vinyl threw a big bash in the high desert — specifically at Pappy & Harriet’s Pioneertown Palace, in the shadows of some bizarre rock piles (natural) and an authentic Western town (not so natural). Do read about it here (via LA Weekly), and just be glad that you can experience the freezing cold vicariously. Check the tags to see who played.
Fool's Gold was there with bells on.
Truth be told, not all was ear-blastingly amazing about Saturday’s FYF Fest here in Los Angeles. There was this, and also a terrible human pileup outside, causing severe delays for folks who’d had the presence of mind to purchase their tickets in advance. Festival organizers have issued an apology and promised to make up for the mistake. Read about it here.
But a small segment of that long and winding line.
Wow. That was intense. And incredible. Those who survived FYF Fest this weekend in L.A. should be easy enough to spot: dusty clothes, compulsive head-bobbing, bleeding ears. The LA Weekly‘s West Coast Sound blog has been posting some solid roundups of what went down in the Los Angeles State Historic Park, kicked off by yours truly with this entry.
FYF through sunglasses (as most saw it)
In September, several talented French performers are coming to Los Angeles for the first annual (?) Ooh La L.A. Festival. Read about it here (via LA Weekly), and though he won’t be performing, check out Paris’ Sliimy below because, well, the song and video are awesome. I have a feeling that understanding the lyrics might ruin it for me, but at surface value… love it.
I’m sure I’m not alone in admitting that I’m still recovering from three days spent soaking up desert sun and distortion. These things take time, and weaning, which is why I’d like to belatedly introduce my baby, Coachella Digital, Issue 1.
Still those clucking tongues: this is a real (digital) magazine. Goldenvoice knows better than to launch a publication that feels like a playbill, and they gave us more editorial freedom than I’ve experienced at some indie outfits.
In short, it’s an online/offline digital publication whose primary goal is to cover the culture of the modern music festival. It’s highly interactive, plenty literate, and features as much fresh talent as it does stories of those who operate behind the scenes.
It’s free for download here. Oh, and I’m the managing editor, which means I touch all the text.
Also, I blogged about the fest for LA Weekly here:
Chris Writes Things 