0 [BONNAROO 2010] The Moondoggies Rock Manchester, TN (Photos)

Words and Photos by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

I'm currently in recovery mode and still reeling a bit from our amazing weekend and the 4 day endurance test called Bonnaroo. We logged right around 50 hours in CenterRoo, rocking hard with showering and sleep an afterthought. It was also hot, very hot! We fought the heat anyway we could, but mostly just accepted the constant stream of sweat and never let it deter our trek from stage to stage which resulted in seeing over 55 performances.

One of my unbiased favorite performances of the weekend belonged to Seattle's own The Moondoggies, who rocked the Troo Music Stage at 5:40pm on Saturday evening. That particular stage was smaller and set up next to a cooling station, but none-the-less seemed to boast quite a few really fun performances from all sorts of relative unknowns over the course of the weekend.

I couldn't have asked for much of a better birthday than Saturday at Bonnaroo and damn if seeing The Moondoggies on a distant farm among a bunch of dirty like minded festival goers didn't make my 30th super special. I am also glad to say I wasn't the only person singing along. The smallish crowd on hand were stoked, and that made it all the better.

Caleb more than once announced they were from Seattle, which eventually drew humorous mocking from Kevin; proudly sporting his Easy Street records T-shirt. The set list was a typical "Don't Be A Stranger" foot stomper, but also featured a couple newish tracks like "What Took So Long", which will be included on their sophomore full length entitled, "Tidelands". Following the show, amidst the balmy 85 degrees, Kevin slipped back on his signature hat and flannel as the local folk rock fab four rode away in style on a festival supplied golf cart taxi.

This trip to Manchester, TN is only the begnning of a two week vacation that'll see me hitting Nashville, Savannah, GA, Columbia, SC, and finally New Orleans, LA before heading back to Seattle. I'll be posting what I can about Bonnaroo, but a majority will come when I return. For now enjoy these photos of The Moondoggies rocking Manchester, TN and Bonnaroo 2010, and keep an eye out for Moondoggies Bonnaroo videos as well.

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Moondoggies | Photo by Nik Christofferson

0 [SASQUATCH 2010] Day 3 Recap: Saved the Best For Last

Words and Photos by Nik Christofferson

The final day of Sasquatch festival 2010 was easily the best day of the three. The frat-dick crowd seemed to have funneled out early, and the vibe was clearly one only concerned with music and amazing scenery. The folks who made it their mission to complete the rigorous musical mission were in high spirits and the bands responded with top-notch performances. The sun also peaked through the clouds which eased the gloom from Sunday, and it was quickly apparent Sasquatch saved the best for last.

Who I saw:

Past Lives, Phantogram, Fresh Espresso, Japandroids, No Age, Quasi, The Mountain Goats, Camera Obscura, Mayer Hawthorne and the County, The Temper Trap, Drive-By-Truckers, The New Pornographers, Passion Pit, Band of Horses, MGMT, Ween

The Highlights:

Past Lives:
Each and every time I see Past Lives they impress me further, and “Tapestry of Webs” being as good as it is, is even better live. Having just missed the other ex-Blood Brothers perform in Jaguar Love, and the rumored onstage snub by Johnny Whitney towards a couple ex-band mates. I would have to say it must have lit a fire under Jordan Blilie and co, because they were scorching hot. Ended up being an omen for how good the day would be? Certainly got things started right.

Past Lives | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Japandroids:
The noise Vancouver B.C. duo, were forced to use foreign equipment after their gear was misplaced by the airlines, while jetting over the pond to make the show. Sasquatch seems to be cursed for Japandroids as last year they were forced to cancel due to illness. This year they were determined to make up for the absence despite the setback. Brian King looked pretty uncertain as he strummed his borrowed instrument prior to beginning, but as soon as they began it was rock and roll time. Japandroids not only made the most of the situation but didn’t miss a beat as far as I was concerned. The crowd also totally had their backs and even attempted to push through the barricade as festival security did their darnedest to stop them. It was awesome.

Japandroids | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Quasi:
My favorite performance of day 3 belonged to Quasi. The veteran Portland based trio has a new fan, and I haven’t stopped listening to “American Gong” since. Just an all around energetic performance, with musicianship at an all time high, and ex-Sleater-Kinney guitarist Carrie Brownstein was on hand for the extent. Some bands you just don’t really “hear” the first time around. The Neumos performance I saw a few years back just didn’t grab me, but now I hear you loud and clear Quasi, and I’m stoked.

Quasi | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Band of Horses:
Band of Horses lit up the Gorge with soaring guitar work, and those beautiful ballads. The band is on a roll, since opening for PJ on the last tour, and they honestly gave My Morning Jacket a run for their money. There is more than meets the eye beyond all the “indie credibility” that their first record brought. I believe they are truly an awesome live band especially since rising to the task and putting on one of the strongest main stage performances of the weekend.

Ween:
I wasn’t really certain what to expect from the geek rock stoner troop as headliners, but to put it as simply and plainly as possible Ween blew my mind. So many amazing guitar solos, so many epic jam sessions, and that awesome green glow. Massive Attack was awesome, but Ween was Epic. I totally get it now, I do. Some bands must be seen in their native setting to understand fully. You can listen to Ween records all day and night scratching your head, but when you finally see them live you can do nothing but bow to their greatness.

Ween | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Lowlights:

None. Monday was the best day, and none of the performances I saw deserve to be tagged lowlight.

0 [SASQUATCH 2010] Day 2 Recap: Good Times, But Pavement Sucks Live!

Words and Photos by Nik Christofferson

Random Awesome Dudes | Photo by Nik Christofferson

After a mostly fair weathered first day, things took an ominous spin as grey skies and a chilly breeze threatened rain for a majority of day 2. Reality also set in early on that crowd energy and performance quality was certainly lacking. As a whole, I was not overly impressed with a few of the bigger names on the bill, and was just plain bored with a few others. A full day of live music is better than 99.999% of anything else I rather be doing, so I’m not complaining but was definitely a little bummed out that one band in particular pretty much sucked. I try to be mostly positive so here were the highlights, lowlights (again very few), and a few photos to boot.

Who I Saw:

Massive Attack, Pavement, LCD Soundsystem, Kid Cudi, They Might Be Giants, Public Enemy, The xx, Dirty Projectors, The Long Winters, Midlake, Caribou, Vetiver, The Tallest Man on Earth, Avi Buffalo, Cymbals Eat Guitars, Fruit Bats, Local Natives, Martina Topley-Bird

Highlights:

Caribou:
Caught a partial Caribou set, and it was my first. Loved the way they circled up in the middle of the stage. Their poppy psych rock swirled in the early afternoon breeze, and their extended tribal percussion interludes echoed in the canyons. It was a great start to the day, and I almost started dancing.

The Long Winters | Photo by Nik Christofferson

The Long Winters:
John Roderick and friends proudly took to their mid-day main stage slot with delight and previewed a bunch of new material. I found the set to be a lot of fun, and it really opened my eyes as to why Roderick is so beloved locally. When I saw them a few years ago at Sasquatch, I was lukewarm at best. Turns out I may have misjudged them a bit or maybe I’m a little more open minded to the indie rock music than I once was. Either way, it’s always a good time watching musicians who seem to be thoroughly enjoying what they are doing. When they launched into a surprisingly faithful cover of the Grateful Dead’s “Touch of Grey”, they completed the task of winning me over.

Fruit Bats | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Fruit Bats:
The Fruit Bats played an inspired foot stomping set on the tiny Yeti stage. One of the best performances of the day. Period.

LCD Soundsystem:
Great live band and excellent festival act. James Murphy won me over immediately, not so much for his singing ability or showmanship. I was more amused by the fact that a guy that looked like someone’s middle aged Father or a high school English teacher orchestrated one the biggest dance parties of the festival. I’d go see these guys again for sure. Oh snap, Bonnaroo is next week, stoked for a late night second round.

Public Enemy:
Of course Public Enemy was a highlight, but the PA cut out at least 5 times during their set, leaving most of the audience in the drizzling quiet while the lucky folks in the front 10 or so rows continued to get the full experience. Boos turned to cheers each and every time the PA kicked back on, which actually became comical after the 3rd time. Luckily the outages didn’t affect some of their bigger hits, as both “Bring the Noise” and “Don’t Believe the Hype” put a charge into the large crowd. The only downside to the spectacle was I’m pretty sure half the folks who got their groove on during Public Enemy’s racially and politically charged performance had really no idea who the fuck Chuck D was, and were probably only excited to take iPhone photos of “that dude” from “Flava of Love”.

Massive Attack:
Wow! So it’s not just a clever name? MA was enormous, humongous, and MASSIVE! for lack of a better adjective. Sounding really nothing like their records, their headlining set has given me a whole new appreciation of the live power of electronic music. I wondered aloud for weeks prior to seeing them live, “why they would be slotted as the headliner over Pavement.” Turns out, Pavement is a terrible live band and Massive Attack is an amazing live music experience, so the jokes on me. With mesmerizing light show, theatrics, and deafening beauty, Sunday’s headliner put on the best performance of day 2 bar none. An achievement that I would say really isn’t all that common.

Lowlights:

The xx:
I still do not get The xx, even though it was fun to photograph the massively popular indie rock “fads”. While it’s true that the open-air festival atmosphere probably didn’t do them any justice, it’s also totally possible that they are just a boring band that some shitty indie rock blog promoted and now everyone thinks they are rock royalty. The jury’s still out.

The xx | Photo by Nik Christofferson

Pavement:
...was horribly sloppy, drunk, and boring. Not a way to make an impression on 20,000 people, though I suppose Pavement does have a reputation for sucking live and 19,999 people didn’t seem to care. I on the other hand stood there trying to figure out what they were attempting to do. Maybe they are genius’, and their grandiose plan all along was to reunite, get drunk every night, play shitty cause they don’t care, and cash the enormous checks while a bunch of indie rock drones in cut-off jean shorts and florescent “Risky Business” sun glasses sing along between sips of $14 non-alcoholic margaritas. Am I missing something? Maybe this should this be in the highlights?

Cymbals Eat Guitars:
Excruciatingly aweful. Shame on you KEXP! Shame!

0 [SASQUATCH 2010] Photos: Quasi @ The Gorge

Photos by Nik Christofferson

0 [SASQUATCH 2010] Photos: Past Lives @ The Gorge

Photos by Nik Christofferson

0 [SASQUATCH 2010] Day 1 Recap: The Good and the Bad, but Mostly the Good

Words and Photos by Nik Christofferson

If you know me you’d know that I’m a sucker for music festivals, so to say I had a great weekend at this year’s edition of the Sasquatch Music Festival is quite the understatement. Upon arriving home I did a final count to see how many acts I actually caught while trudging up and down the hilly landscape of the Gorge for 3 straight days. I was actually taken back a bit, but not overly surprised by the final count.

47.

That’s right I saw 47 acts in 3 days! Is that some sort of record? I’d say my perseverance was only a product of the fantastic 3-day line-up. Sure a few of those 47 were sought only out of modest curiosity (solo set by Massive Attack singer Martini Topley-Bird, Fresh Espresso -- still not impressed), and a few others just in passing (Avi Buffalo, Phantogram), but if you stay long enough to check out a couple songs you saw the band right?. Whatever the case, I was stoked about the workout that basically kept me from getting drunk off those $9 beers all weekend; my only regret.

This also marked the first year I attended the fest as a member of the “media”, with special wristbands and all. SRG hadn't quite been born this time last year, so it was a lot of fun to have access to photo pits, VIP balconies, and well ssshhhhh-- backstage for free Molly Moon’s ice cream and coffee to which I took full advantage. Isn’t that special.

Here’s a breakdown of who I saw on Day 1-- highlights, and lowlights (very few). Enjoy!

Who I Saw:

Minus the Bear, Brad, The Lonely Forest, Portugal. The Man, The Posies, Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros, The Hold Steady, Nada Surf, Broken Social Scene, The National, Vampire Weekend, My Morning Jacket

Highlights:

Minus the Bear:
I’m a fan of their live show, and this marked probably the 5th or 6th time I’ve seen them. The big unknown hanging over the band was how would the “OMNI” material translate live? Well, I’d have to say not bad, actually kind of fun. It was mixed in well with strong live staples from “Planet of Ice”, probably lessening the blow a bit. Overall, MIB churned out a fine afternoon performance and had the crowd eating out of their hand from what I could tell.

Brad:
I already touched on the Brad performance in a previous post, but despite the poor attendance they played a great set full of new material and give me a fucking break-- Stone and Shawn at the Gorge? Awesome! Everyone in attendance who slept on it should make an “L” with their right hand and place it firmly against their forehead for the remainder of the week. Losers!

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros:
What a fun, fun show, and a perfect band for festival atmosphere. I had no idea these guys were a bunch of Manson Family lookalikes, but damn did they throw out catchy sing-a-along after catchy sing-a-long, and the huge crowd was really into it. Half way through the set, I had my run in with “blacked out naked guy”. Yep, dude stripped and proceeded to “flaunt” his bits and pieces for any and all unsuspecting females while his buddies forcibly tried to clothe him. The one and only time I felt bad for the redneck beverage police all weekend was when they had to escort the guy out. Yuck!

Broken Social Scene:
I strolled up to the BSS main stage set a little late, mainly because they weren’t high on my list for day 1. Welcome first big “Ah-Ha!” moment of the festival. Broken Social Scene is an amazing live band, and boasted one of my favorite performances of the entire 3 days. Some bands just have the right ingredients for not only a setting such as the Gorge, but for festivals in general. When they broke into those full tilt jam sessions all I could do was lay back and bask in it all. Sometimes it’s all about the vibe and the moment, and man did they ever capture it.

Vampire Weekend:
For the record, I am not a fan of Vampire Weekend. Now that we are clear, I still cannot disregard the magnitude of their popularity in relationship to the epic dance party that ensued a minute into their set. From my perch it looked like no one was standing still—No One! I was then dragged into the fray by my lovely wife who insisted on my participation, I bowed to her wishes and joined the party. It was one of the more fun moments of the entire weekend, but following their set I went to the nearest port-a-potty to puke my fucking guts out in pure rebellion.

My Morning Jacket:
Some bands deserve to headline the Gorge and MMJ is one of them. They certainly did not disappoint with an awesome greatest hits set, plum full of the southern rockers and freewheelin’ jams that make a MMJ show such a great live experience. Jim James sported his signature moon boots and seemed to be having a blast according to the shit eating grin plastered on the large mainstage video screens. The only issue with MMJ headlining this year was the lack of new material to circumvent the popularity of Vampire Weekend. They delivered with gusto but the chips were heavily stacked against them before even taking the stage.

Lowlights:

- I had high hopes that Portugal. The Man would be a festival highlight, but something was off with the sound and therefore only ended up earning a “shoulder shrug” this time around. Bummer.

- Poor attendance for two veteran Seattle acts. Both the Brad and The Posies’ sets were poorly attended. OK Go of all bands stole The Posies thunder. Kids these days don’t know shit!

2 [LIVE REVIEW] Mastodon / Baroness / Between the Buried and Me / Valient Thorr @ The Knitting Factory (Spokane, WA)

Words, Photos, Videos by Nik Christofferson

The goal since March has been to hit up a show somewhere beside Seattle once a month, and damned if I haven't made that a reality thus far without really thinking about it. #1 was Red Fang in Portland, #2 was Pierced Arrows at the Capitol Theater in Olympia, and now #3 with Mastodon, Baroness, Between the Buried and Me, and Valient Thorr in Spokane, WA. The venue was The Knitting Factory, and even though the place is part of a corporate chain of venues it was super impressive. Huge stage, video screens, pro lighting, spacious main floor, large bar with excellent site lines, and a large upper balcony area. The Knitting Factory had to be designed by someone who has seen a lot of shows in underwhelming venues, because it was great place to see a big metal show.

Mastodon are currently in the depths of a secondary market swing across the US, and are still in the midst of their "Crack the Skye in its entirety” phase. Thus I got to experience it for the 3rd time, and needless to say it was still amazing! The band followed up the 2009 masterpiece with a slew of hits from previous records as they have been doing now for almost two years running. The kicker this time, was the inclusion of "Blood and Thunder" in the setlist, as it was left off the two previous visits to Seattle (Neumos, Wamu Theater). Mastodon plays their stuff so effortlessly and at such a high level it almost makes you sick between uncontrollable full body headbanging fits. These guys are consummate pros; looking, sounding, and playing like they were destroying Madison Square Garden instead of owning a stage in the armpit that is Eastern Washington.

As far as I'm concerned, Between the Buried and Me have lost credibility since the release of Alaska. That record as well as the preceding two were great, but I never did take to Colors nor have I given The Great Misdirect much of a listen either. Live the material droned a bit, and caused the Mastodon hungry crowd to turn half way through their set. The inclusion of "Sequel to the Prequel" and finale "Mordecai" saved the set for me personally, but that didn’t save them from the pitchfork wielding mass who didn’t take kindly to BTBAM's sometimes lengthy over-the-top prog metal and were extremely vocal about it.

This trip was all about Baroness. Period. I drove 600 miles in two days to see and hear Baroness own the "Blue Record" live. I'm very happy to report they one-upped all my expectations. From the opening acoustic interlude of "Bullhead's Psalm" into "The Sweetest Curse" and on down the line it was epic as fuck. It was also the John Baizley and Peter Adams show, as the duo put on a guitar clinic, while frequently hamming it up for some excellent photo-ops. When "A Horse Called Golgotha" came after another beautiful acoustic build-up, I pretty much lost my shit. I barreled into the pit, knocking at least three rednecks to the floor in one fellow swoop (I helped them up of course). I have since placed "The Blue Record" up on this divine album pedestal, where it will remain until someone decides to dethrone it. From start to finish Baroness has made a magnum opus, and the live show only enhanced that sentiment. Bonnaroo or bust. Baroness I'm coming for you again in June.

Stoner party boys Valient Thorr opened the evening at 6:30pm. In other words most metal heads hadn't woken up yet from the previous evening’s debauchery and so the venue was pretty empty. Spokane must have a curfew or something, because that was an early start by anyone’s standards. I caught the last couple songs, and while I’ve never been a fan of Valient Thorr for some reason I own two of their records on vinyl? When and how I acquired them, I have no idea? They are fun, nothing spectacular, though shirtless, and beer bellied frontman Valient Himself is a riot on stage. He alone makes the band a worthwhile live experience at least once, and they also recorded their most recent album with Jack Endino. So I guess there’s that as well.

The trip was a success, and I won't mention the part about somehow ending up in a gay bar playing Addams Family pinball in a real bad part of town. This is music blog after all, so I won’t bore you with the rest of the trip details. Here is a bunch of footage from the show enjoy it at your leisure.

0 [PHOTOS] New SRG Contributor Matt Koroulis (Photographer)

Photos by Matt Koroulis

I think these photos speak for themselves, but ever since I found Matt's work I've been personally enamored with his gritty take on our local music landscape. Matt works mostly in 35mm black and white film; a true minority in the art form and that is exactly why his work immediately grabbed me. These photos are great, and it's only a sample. I'll go out on a limb and say Matt's keen eye as well as use of a forgotten medium has the very real potential for producing some truely iconic photos, and hopefully we can help the cause by putting Matt in the right place at the right time as well as featuring the result here on SRG. Welcome Matt Koroulis and his excellent rock and roll photography to the SRG fold.

Helms Alee