Bumbershoot 2008

[JohnnyRoyale]

Check here all weekend long for updates from Bumbershoot 2008 in Seattle!

Have any bands, shows or performances you’d like us to review for you? Tell us about it here.

[JohnnyRoyale]

It was a gorgeous, sunny afternoon here in Seattle, so I made sure to spend most of that time indoors! I started off the day at the Intiman Theatre to see the trio of comedy from Hannibal Buress, Karen Kilgariff and Doug Benson

Major apologies because I don’t remember his first name, but host Pete (?) was really great and he spent most of his act on this kid in the front row whose arm was in a sling due to being shot in the arm by his drunken friend. It seems scripted, but this was a true story and a dream for a comedian, I’m sure.

Buress was okay, talking about all the white people in the room (he was one of the few blacks) and about how the comments on YouPorn aren’t very necessary. Kilgariff (who has a petite frame) spoke about how she recently lost 60lbs and used the crystal meth diet to do it. She also mentioned that since she lives in L.A., she only needs to drop about 45-50 more to look viable down there. She claims the flab on her arms used to house chewed-up Burger King and she did a spot-on imitation of Bjork if she were accepting the presidency of America (Bears for everyone!)

Doug Benson looked as high as his THC Comedy Tour sweatshirt would suggest. He spoke how the fact that ginormous recently being accepted into the Webster’s dictionary is fuckdiculous and that ginormous should only be used as code words between gynecologists.

As his recent DVD Super High Me would suggest, he was able to name all 12 states that allow medical marijuana and how he doesn’t like the rest. And he laughed about watching Kill Bill on regular TV (censored) and how Buck’s part was changed to “I’m Buck, and I like to…..Party. Benson suggested maybe they should have changed Buck’s name to Marty.

To add to his stoner-isms, Benson raved a lot about the beauty of McGriddles at McDonalds but how it pisses him off that you have to get there before 10am. A word of advice from Doug Benson: Don’t use Purell Hand Sanitizer for masturbation. He also mentioned how each time he goes to meet a new date he’s met online, how he hopes that Dateline won’t be there to meet him….again.

Next I moved on to the film room for the Best of SIFF Jury Award Winners. This is where 5 of the best voted on short films from the SIFF were being shown in a row. First was Newboy about a young black student entering a private school (of mostly white, English children) on his first day. Scared and timid, he immediately gets bullied by other kids, until one tries him, and he grabs the kid by the finger and puts him into submission. Flashing images of his father teaching his class in a poor, African classroom occasionally pop up. But as time goes on, the kids learn to befriend each other, in silly ways that kids do that.

I’ve previously covered Self Portrait of Cows Going Home and Walnut both during our SIFF coverage earlier in the year. Rewind is a fantastic film all shown in reverse from end to beginning, though in a slower frame. In this, gangsters commit burglary, smoke, murder, play Russian Roulette, gamble and really risk it up. However, it’s the power of the ear that leaves one man standing in the end (beginning). Lastly was Kaveri, a film shot in black and white that makes Brokeback Mountain look like child’s play. A man struggles with his bi-sexuality as he cheats on his wife with the man visiting them. They nearly get caught by the wife several times. What will his final choices be?

So this is a music fest mainly, right? I finally ventured out to see Thao with the Get Down Stay Down. Fellow writer Evan Brown (good to finally meet you!) said it best as calling her a less-psychotic Cat Power. I’m usually a pretty good snake in the crowd, but by the time I got there, I wasn’t getting any closer than 150ft as the field was PACKED! But even being that far away, I was damn-near in range for a “shot” as Thao wore a blue skirt that was WAY too short to be wearing up on an elevated stage.

Still, she’s as cute as a button and her guitar looks huge on her little body. Her playing is a little more fluid and fun than Jack Johnson, and her hearty vocals kept the crowd in a playful mood.

So, some technical problems kept me from seeing Estelle, but I’m going to try to catch the Asylum Street Spankers for a minute, and then go check out Band of Horses and Beck a little later, which have both been sold out for hours. Every friggin’ interview today flopped on me, but I’ve made some good contacts regardless.

[JohnnyRoyale]

Also, we have no idea why, but uploading pics takes about an hour and we don't have the time for that. Andrew will upload pics either tonight or tomorrow morning.

Technology, you gotta love it   

[JohnnyRoyale]

Thao

[JohnnyRoyale]

Like I mentioned earlier today, we had some technical burps, so here are some pics that Andrew shot today. I'm sure he has more he'll want to post and I'm not even sure which bands these were of, so he'll have to update that...

[JohnnyRoyale]

So yes, sadly I missed Estelle, as I had hoped to become her “American Boy.” Maybe next year.

However I was able to walk up and hear the sweet, soaring sounds of rapping rockabilly of the Asylum Street Spankers. Straight outta Austin, they rapped about George Jones, ya know? They were able to blend hip hop, the Beverly Hillbillies, and playing, um, a rubber chicken on stage. Other lyrics were about leaf blowers at 8am and being thankful of not owning a gun.

On another jam, Christina Marrs and Wammo sang a duet sounding cheesy like Edith Bunker in a 30s style jazz and folk jam. But with lyrics like “me and my baby, wake and bake,” their vibe is anything but traditional. Or maybe the salsa/mamba song: “before you turn off the light, take a peek at da hermaphrodite.” Asylum was a complete blast and a real fun time. Ending the show with their song “Beer” had the crowd roaring for more.

As for Band of Horses; sigh. Okay, first off I’m not a huge fan of them and everyone makes them out to be saints. I think they are okay and I like a few of their songs, but Chuck D once told me: “Don’t believe the hype.” I can’t really say anything bad about this band, but I just don’t see what’s so special either. To me, they sound like the Shins, but maybe with a little more live energy than the Shins (which a quadriplegic could probably pull off.) The Funeral sounded really good and the band seems like it’s working its way up to winning over anthem crowds. Lead singer Ben Bridwell does have a beautiful voice though, and I was surprised at well he sounded live. Band of Horses are okay. And to be fair, I spent most of my time during their performance talking to friends.

Beck came out to warm things up and man, did we need it! The temperature dropped down into the low 50s tonight, and the light wind didn’t make matters any better. Beck, in his new Texas-blues look, walked out dressed in black from head to boot, started toiling around with the slide guitar, then launched right into “Loser.” From there he moved to “Girl” and then a personal favorite in “Nausea” from the album the Information. While this was going okay, there were major sound issues that needed worked out with feedback, too-low vocals and fuzzed-out guitars. After about 4 or 5 songs, the sound crew finally figured it all out.

Beck’s stage was littered with gigantic, old-school Hollywood set lights (that didn’t turn on) and his backdrop was muffled live video shots in different colors, kind of resembling a Lite Brite.  A cover of Bob Dylan’s “Leopard-Skin Pill-Box Hat” went over really well, as did a twist to his own “Nicotine and Gravy,” which had some synth-funk added to it. So he did a lot of oldies, but a few of the newbies like “Modern Guilt” were a real buzz-kill and just didn’t work with the crowd. However, “Gamma Ray” picked things back up again.

Then the band all put their instruments down and gathered at the front of the stage. Equipped with only head-sets and hand-held electronics, they began a b-boy jam voyage with songs like “Black Tambourine” morphing into “Clap Hands.”

About this time, I got a call from a friend who happened to have an extra VIP ticket become available. So instead of watching Beck from behind probably 10 thousand or so people, I moved up to the side of the stage, up on the deck. Per Bumbershoot regulations, if I did happen to take any pics of Beck, I’m not allowed to post them...so perhaps search the Myspace world for pics that might have been taken   

Anyhoo, the band did an encore that really rocked out “Where It’s At” and “E-Pro” for a couple of jams. The new, long-haired Beck seems to hang out and play guitar. And while I like him still, loved the show, and still have tons of respect, I kind of like the old, short-haired, dancing Beck a little better.

So yeah, even though my interviews all imploded today, I got to see Beck from the side of the stage tonight.

Day 1 of Bumbershoot has treated me well.

[JohnnyRoyale]

Here are more pics from Day 1

We'll keep things in this thread though. Hey, give us a break....we're friggin tired!     

[JohnnyRoyale]

Moving a little slower today and the weather isn't looking too promising   

Anyone out there in cyber-land have a show you want me to review?

http://www.bumbershoot.org/

[damnable]

ORGONE

[JohnnyRoyale]

Luckily, the sun broke out from the clouds, and it’s a mild, pretty day again today. Walking through the thick crowds, I feel like the Terminator, constantly scanning and calculating spaces between people so I can skip past people. I love this city and I love this festival. But I’ve been to many other festivals in the US, and I have no idea why people lolly-gag and just stroll around casually so much at Bumbershoot. At other festivals, it’s not this bad. My bitch of the day, by Mackenzie McAninch.

I headed indoors to see Orgone at the small, intimate KEXP stage, where they are broadcasting shows live all weekend. The 8-piece jazz/funk/jam band consisted of percussion, organ and a brass section. For the opening song, there was no need for the few vocals as the groove was laid out fine.

But then along came Fanny Franklin, who is like a mellower Sharon Jones, but carries the sexiness of Diana Ross in her day. Her voice demands that you take notice that she’s a strong, sultry, talented woman on the mic. Guitarist Sergio Rios loves what he does more than anyone at this festival and will probably need his knees replaced in 10 years. Franklin and Orgone are a lot like Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, though with a little less Motown, substituted for a little more jam band.

This show was in a theatre, so it was a little confined, but no doubt Orgone will have butts shaking out on the lawn a little later today.

I sat down with Fanny Franklin for a quick interview afterwards (will post soon) and then tried to go catch the spoken word of Saul Williams, but that was sold out. Oh, and rumors are swirling that Scott Weiland might no-show tonight, but rumors are rumors…

[JohnnyRoyale]

So I had the chance to interview Fanny Franklin of Orgone after her first show today. If anything, she probably learned today to not always say YES to interview requests!

Obama or McCain? Obama
Chris Rock or Dave Chappelle? Dave Chappelle
Al Bundy or King Kong Bundy? Al Bundy. Who’s King Kong Bundy?
James Brown or Stevie Wonder? Ooh. Stevie Wonder
Performing Live or Recording an album? (long pause) Come on man. Performing live.
MP3 or Vinyl? Vinyl
Vanilla or Strawberry? Vanilla
In a Death Match: Condoleeza or Hillary? (looks at me like I’m crazy) Condoleeza
Aretha or Tina? Aretha
Van Halen or Van Hagar? Van Halen
Coachella or Lollapalooza? Coachella
Scott Weiland or Amy Winehouse? Scott Weiland
Pot or Wine? Wine (laughs)
Jack White or Jack Black? Jack Black
Bell bottoms or tight, indie pants? Ugh. Bell bottoms.
Bono or Rage Against the Machine? Rage.
Lennon or McCartney? Lennon.
Napoleon Dynamite: sucks or awesome? (long pause, and stares at me) Um, awesome?
Harold or Kumar? Kumar
Bo or Luke? Bo or Luke? The Dukes of Hazzard. Oh, the dark haired one.
Screech or Tommy Lee? Screech.
Knee socks or ankle socks? Knee socks
Miley Ray Cirus or Hannah Montana? Ah, that’s funny (laughs). You have to answer it. Do I, and they’re the same person? Um, Miley.
Courtney Love or Robert Downey Jr.? Robert Downey Jr.
Spinal Tap or Tenacious D? Spinal Tap
New Kids on the Block or the Backstreet Boys? Backstreet Boys are the black guys. Nope, don’t think so. Um, the one with Joey McIntyre (Randomville later does research…New Kids win)
Bike or Skateboard? Bike
Small club or large festival? Large festival
Funk or jazz? Funk
1920s or 1960s? 1920s
Apples or oranges? Apples
Steak or tofu? Steak
XM or FM? FM
Smoking or chewing? (long pause) Smoking
Traffic or cleaning the bathtub? Bathtub
Beatles or Stones? BeatlesOlympics or Superbowl? Olympics
Bush or Nixon? Oof, Nixon.
Ice cream cone or snow cone? Ice cream cone
Ocean or land? Ocean
Seattle or Austin?  (pause) Seattle. Good choice (laughs)
Hot or cold? Hot
Beck or Danger Mouse? Beck

Then Franklin, in a clever move, says “Hey, there’s Eva Longoria over there!” I turn to look, and when I look back, Franklin is out the door, running for her life. Damn, she’s fast!

[damnable]

Showed up a bit late to the 'Shoot today, but I was able to catch the Shackletons, some of T.I. (of whose show we can't post pictures because of the Mainstage rules), and Strange Fruit, which is not a band, but a weird performance art thing with sticks.


Mark Redding of the Shackletons struts like Mick Jagger on speed. Which may be a little redundant. Also, there is a band, holding him in orbit, and they are all from Chambersburg, Pennsylvania. They play rock and roll songs about poignant things like death, roses, and especially love. A surprising number of people obeyed when Redding (who gave praise to Otis Redding - "the greatest singer of all time") instructed the crowd to hug a stranger. I did.


More of the same.


Under the needle. Redding kept insisting that the Shackletons are punk rock. What kind of punks have a stage full of flora? Ones that stole the flora from area parks? It's a long story.


Redding goes David Yow on the last song.


Another skateboard trick I can't identify.


Strange Fruit's stick-up-your-ass ballet.


More Fruit, dancing on the treetops like nymphal faeries, atwitter with the Mithral...ahh, fuck it. I'll let the pictures do the talking.


I am reminded of the E-40 song, "I'm ridin' sideways, this way, that-a-way."


Strange Fruit getting down. Literally.


Taking a bow, which must be really uncomfortable, what with having to hold their insides in after all that pole-sitting. The alternate name for Strange Fruit? "Tenacious Anuses!"

Okay, well, good times are being had, and I'm going to go see if I can catch some of These Arms Are Snakes, watch little kids fuck each other up to death-disco-post-punk-whatever.

Eat elves if you can catch them.

[JohnnyRoyale]

http://waitingforchinesedemocracy.com/


A plug for the chinese democracy shirts for our new friends Brad and Laura

[JohnnyRoyale]

This afternoon, I spent a little more time screwing off, people watching, eating greasy vendor food, watching skateboarding, and looking at thousands of concert posters in the Northwest Rooms. While these displays of art are really fantastic, I caught myself wanting to slowly scan each one with my eyes, trying to find shows that either my friends or I have been to, and that could take hours.

Howlin Rain put on a rather boring, recycled 70s Styx/Yes-like show and I just couldn't get into it. However, after them came the Whigs, who just keep continuing to blow audiences away with their live performances. I covered them this year at SXSW, so I won't spend a lot of time on their performance. But comedian David Cross stood right behind me and was rocking out the whole time, so they must be okay, huh?

After the show, drummer Julian Dorio was nearly raped by a young blonde fan who was out (of her mind on drugs, I presume) to kiss and hug anything that owned a penis. After a daring escape, I caught up with the Whigs for a short, yet playful interview:

Randomville: So who is the big prankster out on the road?
Julian Dorio (drums): Parker and his bad jokes.
Parker Gispert (vocals/guitar/keyboards): Yeah, I don't fool anybody.
Tim Deaux (bass/keyboards/guitar): It's really sad, and nobody laughs.

Rv: Your favorite celebrity/rockstar moment?
JD: We had Angelina Jolie over for dinner.
TD: We ate at Toby Keith's restaurant.

Rv: Last year at a show in Seattle, you performed for about 15 people...
PG: You mean, 15 HUNDRED people. See, that's one of my pranks.
(No one laughs)
Rv: but anyways, you still performed like there was a room full. Is that hard to do when no one is there?
PG: No, that's kind of what we're used to. These festivals are kind of newer to us.
Rv: Are festivals like this intimidating?
TD: No, it's more exciting, but we're definately used to the smaller rooms and a more intimate environment.

Rv: Being on the road so much, do you have a hard time staying healthy?
PG: I do. I get sick all the time and I'm kind of the weakest link

Rv: On that note with your throat, you do a lot of screaming and straining. Have you ever had a voice coach or had any problems with that?
PG: A little, because I just yell like an idiot and wasn't formally trained, but I have a cd that a voice coach made me that I'll warm up with and it's helped me.

Rv: Do you get nervous that your vocals aren't going to stand the test of time?
PG: No (grins). I mean, it might sound like shit, but...

Rv: Which would you rather have happen first: Making the cover of Rolling Stone or having roadies always haul your equipment?
TD: (sings) Roadies!

Rv: Do you mean that with covers hosting the Jonas Brothers and the Hills cast, perhaps that mag has lost its significance?
PG: A roadie would be a daily basis. I mean, I'd be really weirded out and flattered if we were on the cover of some magazine, but in 2 and a half weeks, somebody else would be on the cover.

Rv: Old school bands used to play for 2-3 hours at a rock show. These days you're lucky to get an hour out of a band. What happened?
JD: Today's shows (especially festivals) are designed to cram in as much music as possible

Rv: Do you guys think you could fill 2-3 hours?
PG: No.

Rv: What if you added covers?
PG: Well, we once were asked to play for an hour and a half, and we were just able to do it, as we have 2 albums.

Rv: Do you guys play any covers?
PG: Yeah, we played one tonight. "The Kids Are Alright" by the Who.

Rv: Is it hard to write new songs on the road?
JD: Yeah, we don't really get a chance. I mean, we're booked solid until November and we've been on tour since January.

Rv: Your latest album Mission Control is a little more rock with a tad less pop. Any new elements you'd like to add to the next album?
PG: I'd like to jam more on the new album.
TD: (In a Tommy Chong voice) Just do a lot of drugs, like, before we go in there, and just let it happen man.
PG: Well, like you were saying about playing longer. I sing in about 90% of the songs and there aren't a lot of musical breaks, so I'd like to add some of that.

Rv: Parker, as much as you jump on one leg, have you ever broken or sprained an ankle?
PG: No, I'm in great shape. (rest of band laughs)

Rv: Have you ever fallen off the stage?
PG: Never off the stage, but today I did fall on the stage?

Rv: No, you jumped, remember?
PG: Oh, that's right. We already covered that.

Rv: Is it hard to stay away from the pressures of drugs on the road?
JD: Well, we don't have any money.

Rv: But you're a rock band. You're not rich?
JD: That is a false...
TD: Yeah, we got tens, twenties, ones...
PG: People will offer you things. Actually, people in the crowd were smoking today. See, that's cool.

Rv: That's cool?
PG: Yeah.
Rv: Good.

[JohnnyRoyale]

Once again, the Batphone rang tonight, and I got the V.I.P. hook-up for the Mainstage shows. When I arrived to see the Black Keys, they were blowing out "Stack Shot Billy." I wasn't sure how this blues/rock duo would play out in front of thousands on a converted football field, but they were absolutely killing the crowd. Of course, being 20ft away is a lot different than being hundreds of feet away too.   

A wicked strobe effect during "No Trust" had the groove moving. With not having Danger Mouse (producer of their latest album) on stage with them, the sound does seem a tad less tweaked, but you can certainly hear the broadening in them that his influence has produced.

A feedback-drenched, experimental guitar solo during "I Got Mine" from the new album Attack and Release was simply jaw-dropping to watch, and the crowd really reacted strong for each song. This crowd of mostly youngsters got smacked in the face with blues rock by the Black Keys, and they never knew what hit them. One of the best performances of the weekend, for sure.

Waiting for Stone Temple Pilots to hit the stage was interesting. First, tv monitors with song lyrics were set up for Scott Weiland to read, so we knew that "Big Empty" would be the first song played (and it was). Second, on a huge piece of tape, the words SEATTLE, WA were printed. Perhaps Scott has been having memory issues?

After being over twenty minutes late, the crowd began to cheer "What the fuck?" Suddenly, a huge bus pulls in from around the back, but is too big to fit, so it has to stop. Minutes later, the re-formed STP take the stage.

Watching Weiland (dressed in all black with leather boots and jacket, a cowboy hat, sunglasses, cigarette in the mouth) walk to the mic really did look like Jim Morrison casually walking out to the stage. And then the show casually began. What was Weiland going to do? Tension and curiosity were everywhere.

Next was "Wicked Garden" with strobe lights and a rainbow, 60s psychadelic, melting figure backdrop. The band sounded great, and the DeLeo brothers gave a wicked guitar show all night. Drummer Eric Kretz still looks like Lance, Travolta's drug dealer in Pulp Fiction.

As for Weiland, it was very hard to keep your eyes off of him all night. Most people are shocked he's still alive, and NO ONE ever thought he's be back with STP again. But up close, his face looks weathered and dehydrated. Worn. And he often just stared out into nowhere. Blank. He covered every inch of the stage plenty of times all night, and he even got down into the crowd once. He does still gyrate, groove and shake his hips, but he didn't move around as quickly or as much as he used to. I mean, he is 41 now, but he just doesn't seem to have as much of that swagger anymore. Maybe a half-step off. Between one song, he slurred "And please don't throw any beer cans up here. I really not in the mood for beer at this particular moment."

Regardless of his body and what he does to it, the guy can still sing like hell, and he proved it on songs like "Lounge Fly," hitting high notes that are new creations. And old rockers like "Crackerman" really set things on fire and Weiland stood perched up on a platform, with his megaphone in hand.

And the show truly felt like it was in the 90s also: Crowd surfing, mosh pitting, and a girl flashing her boobies. I had the urge to yell out “Don’t go there!” all night.

"Sour Girl" brought out an arena-sized guitar solo from Dean DeLeo. But the best sing-a-long came with "Creep" as Weiland held another cigarette in hand for this one. But later, the song transferred into a spooky, jazzy cover of Bob Marley's "Redemption Song."

"Dead and Bloated" was the encore song of choice and STP really layed this one on thick for the crowd. For it, Weiland was dressed back in his full, dark man outfit. After he left the stage, a roadie covered him with a jacket as Scott walked by...Elvis-style.

Okay, so STP trumped the Black Keys for my favorite performance so far. Is Weiland back on drugs and about to die soon? I have no clue and I absolutely hope not. Tonight he proved that he's still an extremely talented frontman for one of the better bands of the 90s. People can call this band washed up, old, un-indie or whatever they want, but tonight they kicked ass and anyone who saw it (especially up close) should have a tough time arguing that. What will happen tomorrow is a different story.

Again, we'll abide by Bumbershoot's wishes in not publishing Main Stage pics from our staff, but it's possible one or two (out of probably sixty or more!) might fall through the cracks. Also,a HUGE THANK YOU to all of the kind Samsung people that I met tonight. Very grateful for the gift of great seats.