Tony: I think people are probably experiencing festival overload this summer: We’ve seen scores of festivals over the last two months, and this weekend alone sees CHBP vying with Timber Fest for summer music dollars. Hell, we haven’t even gotten to Doe Bay Fest in two weeks, and the Labor Day Bumbershoot onslaught. What do you guys think?

Capitol Hill Block Party still inspires a guarded optimism in me: Simply put, I’ve got a big soft spot for the neighborhood, despite the recent fetid influx of drunken bros in the ‘hood. I wasn’t at CHBP ’13, so I don’t know if The Invasion of the Bros infected last year’s festivities. Fingers crossed, they’ll all go to a kegger in Bellevue or something and leave the Block Party be.

There’s been some carping about the overall quality of CHBP 2014’s lineup, but from here, it looks just fine to me. Sure, the mainstage headliners this year aren’t as consistent as in years past, but from my vantage point, Block Party’s smaller stages have provided some of the Party’s undisputed highlights over the years. There’ll be a lot of choice acts, and it’s not surprising (to me, at least) that most of them are local, and mostly at the secondary stages.

Chris: I think some of the carping over the lineup (which also hasn’t come from me), is due to the saturation of the summer music festival. Let’s not forget that Girl Talk, a perennial CHBP headliner, was in town two weekends ago for Chive Fest, the bro-iest of the bro fests that ever bro-ed. I also don’t think you can overstate the effect that the second weekend of Sasquatch! had. A lot of touring bands were booked to play the Gorge over July 4 weekend, only to have that fall apart under the hubris of its own ambition. It didn’t help that one of the bands I was most excited for at CHBP, The Julie Ruin, was forced to cancel all their shows when Kathleen Hanna’s Lyme Disease flared up again.

But I think it did force CHBP to focus more on local talent, overall. I think that’s a good thing because there is so much good music being made in our own backyard. As for the bros, I think they’re now a permanent staple of CHBP, especially when bro-approved bands like Spoon are booked. My girlfriend recently coined the term “bro-gy” when a group of bros threw a party that lasted well into the morning in the swimming pool of my apartment building. CHBP is a weekend-long “bro-gy” and I think it’s best to accept it. Bringing a flask may help.

But enough of that, let’s talk about the music.

With the Block Party beginning Friday afternoon, who do you recommend people see on the first day?

Tony: Partygoers owe it to themselves to get an early start on Friday to catch Lemolo’s 4:00pm Vera Stage set. Meagan Grandall remains a master of pop songs that combine catchiness and ethereal magic to perfection. I know you were won over by Lemolo recently, Kelsey.

Tennis Pro (4:30pm, Neumos Stage) come fresh from the huzzahs thrown at their starring movie vehicle Big in Japan. Their ragged and winning power pop trio sounds like the product of Cheap Trick’s and Weezer’s awkward progeny (that’s a big compliment), and they’re always a kick live.

It makes sense that Childbirth (5:00pm, Vera Stage) sounds like a hellacious fusion of Seattle bands Chastity Belt and Tacocat: Childbirth frontwoman Julia Shapiro also sings and bashes guitars in the former, while bassist Bree McKenna plays in the latter. Most of this trio’s concise and catchy punk tunes clock in at under two minutes, and they sport some of the most howlingly, pants-pissingly funny lyrics you’ll hear.

There isn’t a band in town that does a better job of slamming together the crunchy roar of metal with post-punk’s jagged guitar attack than Constant Lovers (7:00pm, Neumos Stage). Bring earplugs, for God’s sake.

Britt Daniel of Spoon (Main Stage, 10:45pm) still sounds like David Bowie’s chain-smoking kid brother fronting the best piano-based indie-pop band ever, and that’s all right by me.

There are plenty of dance music options Friday night (NAVVI and Odesza, to name two, will be pretty damned captivating), but I’ve been over the moon about Shaprece (11:15pm, Neumos Stage) for awhile now. Her killer pipes and forward-thinking grooves (ably abetted by IG88’s whiz-kid production) will provide sultry, spidery accompaniment to the evening’s bacchanal.

Kelsey: It’s a sin that I didn’t know about Meagan Grandall and Lemolo (4:00pm Vera Stage) until I read Tony’s fantastic interview with her. Then I saw her perform at the Zara Seattle store opening in a crop top, and I was hooked.

My trusted Portland music source actually introduced me to the Seattle electro-pop duo NAVVI (5:30pm Barboza Stage) nine months ago when they had only released two tracks. Now they have seven.

There is something about Danielle Sullivan’s voice that keeps me comin’ back to this perfectly pop band (Wild Ones, 6:00pm Vera Stage).

As for Iska Dhaaf (7:00pm Vera Stage), if you couldn’t tell already, I’m obsessed with Nate and Ben’s latest project.

HOLYCHILD (8:15pm Vera Stage) make for catchy tunes perfect for those outdoor summer festival vibes.

To end the night, I’m going to see Robert DeLong (10:45pm Vera Stage). I hope I don’t get burned at the stake for saying this, but I’d rather listen to this guy than Spoon. Sorry.

Chris: Kelsey, I don’t think there will any stake-burning. I know Robert DeLong has a lot of fans, and Spoon will be on the very-crowded main stage. Plus, to get a good place to view Spoon, you’ll have to endure the god-awful (but harmless! but still shitty!) Matt & Kim (9:15pm).

I haven’t seen Lemolo (4:00pm Vera Stage) since they ceased being a duo, and I think former drummer Kendra Cox, brought a really dynamic element to the band that I think will be hard to replace. But I do think Meagan Grandell is a very talented songwriter (and a great interview!), so I’m anxious to see what direction she’s going in with her music in this phase of her career. I think this going to be one of the few unanimous recommendations of the roundtable.

Late in the evening, I suggest finding one of the smaller, indoor stages. Either seeing Crypts in the Barboza (9:30pm), or Sandrider in the Cha Cha (9:45pm). Sandrider is really one of Seattle’s mightiest rock bands with these amazing guitar riffs. Their volume was even contrasted on “Monday Night Football” with how loud the fans of the Super Bowl champions are. I’m the proud owner of a “Louder than Louder than Love” t-shirt. That should be a sweaty, violent affair. But also a lot of fun. Crypts are a really great noise trio that, if you ask the right people, has no real sense of decency. I love them. You can’t go wrong either way. There really is no reason to waste your time with Matt & Kim, unless you want to get a good place to stand for Spoon. In that case, bring a flask.

I’m going to second another of Tony’s recommendations: Shaprece (11:15pm Neumos Stage). I was following her music when she started playing shows around town, curious to hear how her R&B jams would develop as she aged. Then I saw her play a small show in Volterra on Valentine’s Day and was blown away by how unexpected her sound is, and how well the strings and electronic vibe play well with her vocals. The ensuing EP she recorded with Phillip Peterson, electronic producer IG88 and more just came out and it’s fantastic. Get it here free and memorize the songs before her set.

And for Saturday?

Tony: London band Cymbals (2:15pm, Main Stage) party like it’s 1982, and that’s a good thing. Cushiony layers of keyboards have smoothed out their yelping Brit-pop sound, without sacrificing their smarts in the process. If you want to dance without disengaging your brain, this set should be the ticket.

Snot-nosed, lo-fi garage punk bands like Audacity (5:15pm, Neumos Stage) will never die, especially when bands as snot-nosed, sloppy, and hook-laden as this California quartet continue to bash away.

The easy-on-the-ears vocal delivery of Sol (6:00pm, Main Stage) has snared him a devoted following among Seattle hip hop fans, and rightfully so. His summery beats and clever/silly lyrics induced no less than The Seattle Times to speculate about him being the next Macklemore. Expect some major booty-shaking.

Breaks and Swells (6:45pm, Barboza Stage) do retro-soul right, with a warm 1970s vibe that’ll likely translate well to Barboza’s cramped but nuanced environs. And Chromeo‘s (11:00pm, Main Stage) flagrant dips into the vintage disco well still work for me, big-time. Chris, you’re a major pop music hound: Are you a Chromeo fan?

The Budos Band (9:10pm, Main Stage) are a nine-headed dragon that pumps out instrumental funk so potent in its baby-making sensuality it’ll curl your toes. And they are positively fierce in a live setting.

Kelsey: I was really looking forward to seeing Poolside (3:30pm Main Stage) last year at MusicFestNW, but due to “unforeseen circumstances” they had to cancel. Now their nouveau disco music is back.

With Natasha Kmeto (9:00pm Neumos Stage), no explanation needed for this talented woman.

Chromeo (11:00pm Main Stage): Dancedancedance.

Chris: To answer your question, Tony, I am a fan of Chromeo. I’ve been a fan of their neo-nostalgic disco for sometime and I’ve enjoyed watching them blossom into a headlining festival band. They put on a fun show to packed crowds that mix bros and self-aware hipsters. I also think that because they have a sense of humor, they’re considered by many (unfairly) as a “joke band,” but they’re serious musicians who have some great party jams. But as Dave-1 and P-Thugg have taken to calling themselves “the only successful Arab/Jewish partnership since the dawn of human culture,” we kind of need Chromeo now more than ever.

My favorite artist playing CHBP, though, is Erika M. Anderson. She goes by EMA (4:45pm Main Stage) and is a fearless noise rocker who has produced one of 2014’s best albums, The Future’s Void. I was obsessed with her mixture of rock, goth, and country thrown in when she put out Past Life Martyred Saints in 2011, so I’m excited she’s back and playing on the Main Stage Saturday afternoon.

Sunday?

Tony: If Sunday turns out to be warm, and there’s enough cannabis smoke in the vicinity to induce a contact high on a dime, Florida electronic musician xxyyxx‘s weld of vintage analog synth sounds and futuristic ambience will provide the perfect head-bobbing soundtrack (3:45pm, Main Stage).

Kithkin (4:00pm, Vera Stage) have pretty much played every major outdoor festival in the Northwest (including a previous Block Party turn in 2012), but between the band’s tight and fiercely tribal sound and their go-for-broke live shows, they remain a total must-see.

The biggest Sophie’s Choice of the Block Party, from where I’m sitting, happens on Sunday at 9:00pm. Seattle collective Pollens (Neumos Stage) generate mesmerizing dance music that somehow manages to be incredibly sophisticated and wonderfully booty-shaking, all at once. I know you’re as big a fan of Pollens as I am, Chris.

But you’d have to have a tin ear and a heart of calcified stone not to love California’s Dum Dum Girls (Vera Stage). Lead singer/songwriter Dee Dee Penny is Blondie’s Debbie Harry bum-rushing the Crystals–a take-no-shit angel with a wounded but unbowed heart who writes amazing pop songs that’ll still sound amazing (and timeless) fifty years from now. Yeah, I’m crushing hard.

Kelsey: Cataldo’s (3:00pm, Vera Stage) Gilded Oldies is one of my favorite albums of 2014.

Slow Magic (7:30pm, Vera Stage) is pretty similar to ODESZA, and pretty damn good.

Tony and Chris preached about Pollens ( to me for a good portion of happy hour one evening. And you don’t question Tony and Chris. You just don’t. So I’m going.

Chris: Yes, my love of Pollens is sincere and well-documented, though I would never be comfortable with what Kelsey assigned to my critical voice. If I was, I’d see more people I know at Kesha and Taylor Swift shows. But Pollens is full of some of the smartest musicians in town. They make beautiful, catchy pop music that uses their multi-part harmonies as well as anyone.

There’s a band called Wolfgang Fuck playing on the Cha Cha stage at 2:45pm and I will be very disappointed if they turn out to suck, thereby wasting an entirely awesome name. I haven’t been able to find much information or music about them, and no matter how I use quotation marks, Google still thinks I’m searching for “Wolfgang Puck.”

As I’m typing this, Seattle no-wavers Stickers released a new single called “Sacajawea.” I fell in love with this band last year, when they played first on the Vera Stage Friday afternoon. Being indoors at the Cha Cha should be a ton of fun for this fast-rising punk band.

Do you have any learned wisdom or any pro-tips you can impart on festival rookies?

Tony: There’s no such thing as arriving too early for a band that you want to see, especially at the smaller venues like Barboza and the Cha Cha Lounge (they’ll both pack up fast and early). Plan accordingly.

Kelsey:

• Eat. And eat well. At Sasquatch, it’s acceptable to live off of trail mix, Rainier and PB&Js for three days. At Block Party, you don’t have that same excuse. Just outside the 12^th Ave. entrance gates you can grab sushi at Momiji, vegan munchies at Plum Bistro or walk a few blocks to Anthony Bourdain-approved Little Uncle for Thai.
• Find the free booze! Psssst. Jameson is hosting a VIP lounge with complimentary drinks. Grab a friend with a wristband and hold tight.
• If you don’t live in Capitol Hill, make friends with someone who does. The festival’s gracious in-and-out privileges allow for mid-afternoon mimosas and naps. Take advantage of both.
• Call in sick to work Friday & Monday. Both Lemolo and Shy Girls (who just finished a spring tour with Haim) kick off CHBP on Friday at 4pm with guaranteed to be can’t-miss sets. A$AP Rocky (8:15pm, Main Stage) closes the festival, and no one is ever sober at the Red Bull Sound Select Secret Show (people crowd surfed during Dirty Projectors last year guys…crowd surfed). You’ll be worthless Monday anyways, so plan ahead.