This year’s festival offered some of the best weather we’ve seen in recent years; warm-but-not-hot temperatures, little rain and mostly clear skies. Sunday offered an interesting haze along the Gorge which added a surreal hue to main stage shows. More importantly, Sunday’s line-up offered arguably the best day of music. Though that’s essentially like arguing about which of Michael Jordan’s championship ring’s is most bitchin’ (#sportsanalogy). Highlight sets from Beach House, Flaming Lips and Modest Mouse were all unforgettable.
[All photos copyright of Live Nation]
In perhaps the best early show of the weekend, Toronto folk-singer Basia Bulat was a pleasant surprise. Boasting individual talent as a multi-instrumentalist and pitch-perfect harmonies with guest singers, Bulat’s sweet, earnest folk settled well with the sun basking temperament of the early afternoon crowd. And I don’t believe any other performer was as gracious for the reception as Bulat.
Stream Basia Bulat Set
Victoria Legrand is the dreamiest woman in indie music. And her musical creations with Alex Scally is equally as dreamy. Earning many “best album” recognitions last year (including our own), Teen Dream was an album that lifted Beach House to new heights. I caught a few of their shows last year and they stood apart as the best of each of those festivals. Rather than growing tired of the material since then, Beach House only seemed to grow more comfortably in the well-worn songs. This was one of the weekend’s finer shows.
Seattle bands fared well at Sasquatch for obvious geographical reasons. However, 206 rappers Mad Rad were a standout in term’s of hometown crowd reception. The Yeti stage was absolutely packed with fans sprawling up the neighboring hillside. And if you don’t believe me, just check the photo above.
After the Flaming Lips set, our group pondered whether Wayne & Gang ever tired of their confetti canon, space ship entrances, multi-dimensional sound systems, dancing girls, psychedelically color coordinated equipment and, of course, the inflatable ball. We concluded “no”. At this point in the Lips career, the show is as much theatre as music. So as Wayne guided us through The Soft Bulletin album from front to back, we were treated with many-a-monologue, details behind the songs, emotional pandering and a 10 year “Happy Birthday” for the Sasquatch Festival itself (cake included). The Lips show is truly a marvel of showmanship and production.
This weekend I was considering that Isaac Brock might be the Kurt Cobain of my generation, if only in terms of pure influence upon music fans in the Northwest. That being said, the elated anticipation for Modest Mouse’s set led many to forge through 5 hours of standing in the pit. The wait did not disappoint. The degree to which Modest Mouse conquered the enormous venue of the Gorge Amphitheatre was ridiculous. They owned the domain. Moreover, for as wild, weird, dynamic, and complex as the band’s songs can become, the standout aspect of the entire show was their precision. Every transition, dynamic change, tempo alteration and 180 degree musical turn sounded effortless. Considering that they played near two hours, the intensity and accuracy of their set was even more impressive
Stream Modest Mouse’s Set
The blessing, and simultaneous curse, of Ratatat is their incredibly unique tone. While this might make for repetition is record plays, the live rendition offered a very refreshing perspective. Utilizing the Bigfoot stage’s massive system, Ratatat delivered their trademark pure, clean, resonating tones across the sea of people attending the late-night show. On that scale, the duo’s sound itself seemed reinvigorated, as if the joke was on anyone who enjoyed Ratatat outside of a live show.