Bonnaroo 2009: Wrap-Up And Final Thoughts

Now that I’ve finally gotten over my Bonna-flu, here’s one last post to talk about what I took from this year’s shenanigans. The Bonnaroo guide book talked about the weird familiarity that Bonnaroo becomes after several years of attending, and that definitely struck me this year. The place now certainly feels “like going back to the neighborhood where you grew up as a kid”. But this installment still managed to be a unique experience from every other. Outside of the hurricanes Thursday night, I think this was the best weather this festival has ever seen, and I feel the constant cloud cover really helped the energy overall stay strong through the last night. The vibe is always fun at the ‘roo, but I felt like this year there was a little extra electricity in the air with the crowd. Having Radiohead on a lineup is pretty awesome, but I think in the end this year’s event will be most remembered for having the strongest top to bottom lineup.

I think you could find a rather large collection of music journalist/blogger types that would agree that Animal Collective‘s Merriweather Post Pavilion, Grizzly Bear‘s Veckatimest, Dirty Projectors‘ Bitte Orca, and St. Vincent‘s Actor are all legitimate contenders for album of the year and Bonnaroo showcased all four artists within a matter of hours. This lead me to ponder some things and I came up with a few observations. First, Brooklyn, New York is the undisputed new music mecca right now. Atlanta has some cool stuff going on, but Brooklyn is the center of the universe. Also, I think harmony, particularly vocal harmonies, is a musical concept that is going to be on a hott trend for the years to come. Complexity, nuance and classical notions of musicianship are also concepts that I believe to be on the upward swing right now in the direction indie pop music is taking. There are plenty of exceptions and even healthy pushback against these trends in this “any flavour you like” internet world, but there is a renaissance going on and Bonnaroo is one of the best places to get a real glimpse at it.

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Bonnaroo 2009: The Female Festival

***Note From The Editor: Our newest guest contributor, Hannah Palmer, decided to do a little something experimental in her Bonnaroo experience this year and share it with us. If you are one our many Atlanta readers, I highly suggest checking out her blog Slumptown, Ga. Enjoy:

The Experiment:

I’m always whining about the lack of women performers included at big festivals. I attended Bonnaroo in 2007 and 2008 and I think the only chicks I saw onstage were Cat Power and Feist.

As soon as I saw the 2009 Bonnaroo lineup it occured to me: this could be an All Girl Bonnaroo. It seemed possible to curate my own personal Lilith Fair, in part thanks to David Byrne‘s practically “all estrogen” stage. As I planned a 4-day itinerary including as many girlie acts as possible, I wondered… would this be really lame? would it feel one-sided and sexist? what difference do female performers make anyways?

Field Observations:

So apparently there’s no more day parking on Thursday. I found this out the hard way and spent the first few precious hours of Bonnaroo driving around Manchester backroads and waiting in lines while Atlanta darling Janelle Monae took the stage. We got to Centeroo in time to catch Those Darlins (from Murfreesboro, TN) in the nicely upgraded Troo Music Lounge. My spirits lifted at the sight of 3 honky tonk babes taking turns doing punky covers of Wanda Jackson while spitting beer on the crowd. Then the tornado warning rain started pelting us and I missed Chairlift (with Solange Knowles??) while trying to track down one of those free XBox ponchos. So I had a sorry first night– whether that was bad planning or overplanning, I don’t know.


St. Vincent

Friday restored my faith in girls with guitars with back-to-back scary-good performances by Kaki King and St. Vincent. From there, I found myself torn between some killer women performers – sacrificing the Yeah Yeah Yeahs for Santigold, Ani DiFranco for Lucinda Williams. As my friends split to see Animal Collective and Grizzly Bear, I felt somewhat relieved to have my little assignment, otherwise the decisions would’ve been even tougher.

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Bonnaroo 2009: Saturday & Sunday (Days 3 & 4): So Much To Roo, So Little Time

Saturday began with hot and sunny conditions, and after hanging at camp and doing some blogging, I went to go see Bon Iver. I arrived late so I couldn’t get inside the packed out This Tent, but listening to them from far away didn’t work out so well for me. The distance from a stage has a large affect on how one experiences a show, especially at a festival. Bon Iver has too many quiet parts for a huge, boisterous crowd and competing stages blasting bass, but the band did do a good set from what I could hear. He even did a Yo La Tengo cover, which was my favourite part of the show.


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Bonnaroo 2009: Friday (Day 2): Oh So Harmonious

Friday morning started with some nice cloud cover that made it easy to sleep in a little while. After hanging out at camp, I headed for the press area to work and sit through an orientation, and then I went to see some tunes. I caught the last half of Katzenjammer‘s set, and it was really good. The Norwegian 4-piece was comprised completely of ladies and they put on a damn good show. They would all be switching instruments between every song and had a striking sense of showmanship to match their musical prowess. At one point they did an a cappella number with everyone singing that was impressive, and this would seem to be the theme for most of the day: Stunning vocal harmonies.

After that I managed to get one person back from the front for Dirty Projectors on That Tent, and they totally brought it as per usual. I’m still blown away by the vocal tricks they employ. They opened with a slow jam in duet form, and then brought the rest of the band in for the second tune as they would continue changing their on-stage configuration for different sections of the show. They rocked some older jams this time in addition to all the best stuff from Bitte Orca. Pretty much everyone expected a David Byrne & Dirty Projectors team up on “Knotty Pine”, and when they closed with just that, the crowd went nuts.


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Bonnaroo 2009: Thursday (Day 1): Rocking Like A Hurricane

I left for Bonnaroo Wednesday and our large ATLien crew stayed at a motel in Chattanooga for the night to pregame. We drank Fat Tires by the pool in the afternoon and I got to bed much earlier than usual to get some rest for the ‘roo. Thursday I headed to the radio station where I had to pick up my press credentials. I ended up standing outside the building for over two hours before finally getting my pass and heading to the other line to wait for another two hours before getting parked inside the gate somewhere after two o’clock. I walked around the campgrounds taking in the scene as carloads of people were setting up their camps and exploring also. The rest of my group got in about the same time as I did, so I made my way to go camp with them. We then began the annual onslaught of beers and shots upon of arrival.

After becoming sufficiently intoxicated, I made my way to That Tent to see Portugal The Man. The tent was packed out full, so I had to watch the show from afar, but I still thoroughly enjoyed it. They played all of their hits all the way back to their first record. They were good when I saw them at the Drunken Unicorn a year or so ago, but I thought they much better this time.

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Ohmpark Mixtape #9: Bonnaroo 2009

Right now I am totally obsessed with Bonnaroo and getting very excited about the coming week. I’ve built my annual playlist of ‘roo artists, but even if you aren’t going, some of these will be swinging by Atlanta as well. Also, I’ve dropped some fun Bonna-links below to get you in the mood too. If you are still on the fence as to whether to go to this fest or not, I suggest you go big, but if you can’t attend, you can go along vicariously with our total coverage.

Grizzly Bear : Southern Point
Dirty Projectors : What I See
Phoenix : Lisztomania
Passion Pit : The Reeling
Portugal The Man : Elephants
Animal Collective : The Purple Bottle
Tobacco : Backwoods Altar
St. Vincent : Dig A Pony (The Beatles cover)
White Rabbits : Percussion Gun
Phish : The Divided Sky

Bonnaroo website
Bonnaroo 2008 coverage
Bonnaroo 2007 coverage
Stories from Bonnaroo 2002 – 2006
Guide to Bonnaroo 2009 Schedule
2009 Weather (Updated daily)
Inforoo (The Bonnaroo message board that can answer any question you have)

Bonnaroo 2009 Schedule Guide

Bonnaroo has unveiled their schedule, so I’m going to break it down for you. Unfortunately there are some big conflicts, but with so many great acts on the lineup, this was inevitable. Regardless of that, this is going to be the summer’s hottest fest, so here is why I’m excited:

Bonnaroo Website




Thursday:


Portugal. The Man @ Drunken Unicorn (8/7/07)

This year’s Thursday night doesn’t live up to last year’s MGMT, Battles, Vampire Weekend kickoff party, but there are still some great acts worth checking out. My Thursday night can’t miss pick is Portugal. The Man, because they are exactly the sort of band that will kill it at the ‘roo. Here are all the acts I hope to catch:

Janelle Monáe 5:45 – 6:45 (Other Tent)
White Rabbits 6:45 – 7:45 (This Tent)
Portugal. The Man 8:30 – 9:30 (That Tent)
Chairlift 9:45 – 10:45 (This Tent)
Tobacco 10:00 – 10:30 (Arcade Discotheque)
The Low Anthem 10:00 – 11:00 (That Tent)
The Hood Internet 11:00 – 1:00 (Silent Disco)
Passion Pit 11:15 – 12:15 (This Tent)
Tobacco 1:00 – 2:00 (Troo Music Lounge)




Friday:


St. Vincent @ SXSW 2009


Grizzly Bear @ Drunken Unicorn (3/2/07)


Kaki King @ SXSW 2008

This year’s Friday lineup might be the best single day collection of quality acts ever. But, that also means some of the worst conflicts I’ve ever seen at this fest. Kaki King vs. Dirty Projectors, Animal Collective vs. St. Vincent, and Grizzly Bear vs. Santigold are just some of the heartbreaking decisions to be made, or you could bounce around and catch a little bit of all of them. I’m actually going to cheat by catching Animal Collective in Florida the week before so I can setup early at the David Byrne curated stage. That night the Phish late night party is going to be intense. I would expect that they will play much later than the 2am they are slated for on the schedule so be ready for a long one. The essential sets:

Katzenjammer 12:00 – 1:00 (That Tent)
Portugal. The Man 12:00 – 12:30 (Sonic Stage)
The Dirty Projectors 1:30 – 2:30 (That Tent)
Kaki King 1:45 – 2:45 (This Tent)
Animal Collective 2:45 – 4:00 (Which Stage)
St. Vincent 3:00 – 4:15 (That Tent)
Santigold 4:45 – 6:00 (That Tent)
Grizzly Bear 5:00 – 6:15 (This Tent)
Kaki King 5:00 – 5:30 (Sonic Stage)
TV on the Radio 6:45 – 8:00 (Which Stage)
Mt St Helens Vietnam Band 7:30 – 8:30 (Cafe Where)
David Byrne 8:45 – 10:45 (Which Stage)
Phish 11:00 – 2:00 (What Stage)
Phoenix 11:30 – 12:15 (That Tent)
The Hood Internet 12:00 – 2:00 (Arcade Discotheque)
Crystal Castles 12:30 – 1:30 (That Tent)




Saturday:


Of Montreal @ The Tabernacle (11/8/08)


Bon Iver @ SXSW 2008


MGMT @ The Earl (1/18/08)

Saturday also has some unfortunate overlaps between Of Montreal, Wilco, The Decemberists, and The Mars Volta, but I’m going to go ahead and skip The Decemberists this year since I don’t like their new album and see most of the other three sets. Also Nine Inch Nails vs Yeasayer & MGMT late night is another bad conflict, but this might be the last Nine inch Nails tour ever and those other two will most definitely come through Atlanta again sometime soon, so that is an easier choice. My favs for Saturday:

Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3 2:00 – 3:00 (This Tent)
Bon Iver 3:30 – 4:45 (This Tent)
Of Montreal 5:15 – 6:30 (This Tent)
Wilco 6:00 – 8:00 (What Stage)
The Decemberists 7:00 – 8:30 (This Tent)
The Mars Volta 7:15 – 8:45 (Which Stage)
Russian Circles 8:30 – 9:20 (Troo Music Lounge)
Nine Inch Nails 1:00 – 3:00 (Which Stage)
Yeasayer 1:00 – 1:45 (That Tent)
MGMT 2:15 – 3:45 (That Tent)




Sunday:


Ted Leo & The Pharmacists @ Variety Playhouse (3/31/07)

Sunday’s lineup is a little weaker than the Friday & Saturday craziness, but if there is going to be a day less stacked than the others, you always want it to be the last one because by the time Sunday rolls around at Bonnaroo you are sunburnt and exhausted. But, that’s not to say there aren’t some great sets. i missed Andrew Bird earlier this year so I can’t wait to hear the tunes from the new album, and Snoop Dogg is going to be the chronic party before the final Phish set to close out the festival. Here is how I plan to end my 2009 Bonnaroo:

Ted Leo and the Pharmacists 1:30 – 2:30 (The Other Tent)
Andrew Bird 4:15 – 5:45 (Which Stage)
Snoop Dogg 6:00 – 7:30 (What Stage)
Band of Horses 6:30 – 8:00 (Which Stage)
Neko Case 6:45 – 8:15 (This Tent)
Phish 8:30 – 12:00 (What Stage)

Festival Updates: Bonnaroo Additions, Lollapalooza Lineup, Coachella Happened

Bonnaroo

Bonnaroo has decided to jump into the “curating” game that All Tomorrow’s Parties has made so popular. The are letting David Byrne pick the lineup for one stage on the evening of Friday June 12. He has chosen the following acts to play it:

Santigold
Dirty Projectors
Ani Difranco
St. Vincent
Katzenjammer

Most of those acts were already on the lineup, but Dirty Projectors is an addition, and a pretty badass one at that. What is unclear to me right is what part of the “evening” these acts would play. They seem an unlikely group for late night, although that would be cool. Maybe Bonnaroo will actually have something else going on during the headliner spot. By the way we are only 50 days away from this, I’m starting to get excited.

Bonnaroo website

Lollapalooza

Lollapalooza has announced its lineup and it is looking very similar to Bonnaroo’s outside of the headliners. Check it out:

Click here to read the entire post…

It’s Official, Bonnaroo Will Own 2009

Seriously, I know Radiohead makes a lineup stellar, but from top to bottom, this may the best festival lineup in the US I’ve ever known. it is going to be a perfect storm of amazing artists combined with the krunkness that will come from the Phish crowd. You had better get your ticket the second these things go on sale (This Saturday at noon). Lineup on official site.

They have a trailer for the lineup with Of Montreal and Santogold for the soundtrack:

TV On The Radio Leak Bonnaroo Lineup

If this is for real, it is gonna be one of the best Bonnaroos ever. According to their myspace:

2009 Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival Confirmed Artists:
Bruce Springsteen and the E Street Band
Phish (2 Shows)
Beastie Boys
Nine Inch Nails
David Byrne
Wilco
Al Green
Snoop Dogg
Elvis Costello Solo
Erykah Badu
Paul Oakenfold
Ben Harper and Relentless7
The Mars Volta
TV on the Radio
Yeah Yeah Yeahs
Gov’t Mule
Andrew Bird
Merle Haggard
MGMT
moe.
The Decemberists
Girl Talk
Bon Iver
Béla Fleck & Toumani Diabate
Rodrigo y Gabriela
Galactic
The Del McCoury Band
of Montreal
Allen Toussaint
Coheed and Cambria
Booker T & the DBTs
David Grisman Quintet
Lucinda Williams
Animal Collective
Gomez
Neko Case
Down
Jenny Lewis
Santogold
Robert Earl Keen
Citizen Cope
Femi Kuti and the Positive Force
The Ting Tings
Robyn Hitchcock & The Venus 3
Grace Potter and the Nocturnals
Kaki King
Grizzly Bear
King Sunny Adé
Okkervil River
St. Vincent
Zac Brown Band
Raphael Saadiq
Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
Crystal Castles
Tift Merritt
Brett Dennen
Mike Farris and the Roseland Rhythm Revue
Toubab Krewe
People Under the Stairs
Alejandro Escovedo
Vieux Farka Touré
Elvis Perkins In Dearland
Cherryholmes
Yeasayer
Todd Snider
Chairlift
Portugal. The Man.
The SteelDrivers
Midnite
The Knux
The Low Anthem
Delta Spirit
A.A. Bondy
The Lovell Sisters
Alberta Cross

Ohmpark’s 2009 Festival Guide

The beginning of a new year comes with rampant speculation of who is going to be on each upcoming festival’s line-up. I’m going to break down some of the rumours, and talk about the festivals I am most excited about in 2009. So break open your calendar and get ready to plan your year in festies:

Click here to read the entire post…

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