A Few Thoughts on Bumbershoot Saturday

Plants and Animals

Yesterday was a good way to kick off Bumbershoot: the weather was just warm enough, we got a little sun, and Seattle Center wasn't too crowded. I'm vowing to make this year's fest a laidback experience. I'll catch what I can catch, and I'm not going to stress about it. Besides, it's easy to see a little bit of everything, if you're like me and start to get itchy after twenty minutes of a festival set. (Be sure to follow us @thesunbreak on Twitter, to catch our collective Bumbershoot observations as they occur.)

Saturday I started things out with Montreal's Plants and Animals, who combined their fuzzed-out, prog-leaning surf rock with words of wisdom: "It takes a good friend to tell you you've got your head up your ass." Their sped-up version of La La Land's "Tom Cruz" ended with a drawn-out jam. From there, I caught the tail-end of The Constellations, who played some cowbell from the photo pit, before closing their set with a cover of "I'm Waiting for the Man."

I made some time for one of the comedy stages, for the showcase with Joe Mande, Chelsea Peretti, and Donald Glover (Doug Benson is acting as MC, as well as appearing on Mark Maron and Chris Hardwick's live podcasts during the fest). Joe Mande covered his "hate crime fantasies," Twitter fights with celebrities, and the erotic origins of milk. Chelsea Peretti discussed the self-righteousness of owners of three-legged dogs. And Community's Donald Glover had a polished, easily excitable set that drew on everything from Michael Cera playing Shaft to the Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles as a "homeless man's fever dream." Thankfully, all three made fun of vegans.

The sound at the Mainstage was crisp and clear for the Decemberists (there is nothing worse than a poorly amplified "chimbley sweep"), who focused more on the back catalog ("Billy Liar," "The Engine Driver") than their latest release, though they also played three songs from their newly completed album. Meanwhile, over at the Broad Street stage, Jamie Lidell and his ragtag band, complete with two drum kits, gave a soulful, joyful, and boisterously nerdy blue-eyed soul set. Jamie remains one of the best live performers playing today (yeah, I said it), and he's still rocking the costumes--yesterday's outfit featured a crocheted military vest, a contradiction upon a contradiction. 

Jamie Lidell

Neko Case's big voice filled Memorial Stadium, while Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros turned the Broad Street Lawn into a wall-to-wall pit o' people. Somehow, during the past year, that feel-good troupe has turned into a bona fide phenomenon, with scores of fans eager to drop everything and join their motley desert hippie crew.

Post-Bob Dylan mass exodus

And what can one say about Bob Dylan? His voice can currently best be described as "craggy," but he's still got that unassailable Bobness of being. So his cadence is now such that some of the old songs sound completely different? The audience will still sing 'em like they used to be. Bob Dylan's entire set list, care of my friend (and hardcore Dylanophile) Larry:

1.  Rainy Day Women #12 & 35
2.  Don't Think Twice, It's Alright
3.  Just Like Tom Thumb's Blues
4.  Just Like a Woman
5.  Rollin' and Tumblin'
6.  Desolation Row
7.  Cold Irons Bound
8.  Tangled Up in Blue
9.  Highway 61 Revisited
10. Simple Twist of Fate
11. Thunder on the Mountain
12. Ballad of a Thin ManEncore
13. Jolene
14. Like a Rolling Stone