Bonnaroo Recap-Thursday

As  pre-festival volunteers, I and fellow attendee Paige Smith had been at the Bonnaroo site since Sunday afternoon, preparing hundreds of RV beds for VIP’s, high level staff members, and celebrities. While this may sound like ludicrously easy work, it’s important to point out that the AC was not on in these RV’s, resulting in inside temperatures around 110 degrees. With six beds in each RV, it was not a fast job, and resulted in some frustration–but overall, I give a big thumbs up to the Bonnaroo volunteer program. Though it’s hard to believe that  Bonnaroo really gets much out of it, the experience itself is a good time, and serves as an excellent orientation to the wild days ahead.

While Thursday brought the beginning of the music and the continued onslaught of 70,000 campers, my first job was to find a way offsite to the local Manchester radio station in order to retrieve my much coveted Media Pass. While in the van off the Bonnaroo grounds, the thunderstorm that had been threatening all morning broke and dumped its contents all over the freshly prepared campsites. Somewhere, a certain tent was being flattened and soaked…but that’s irrelevant for this story.

Paige Smith enjoys some natural cleansing

After waiting out the storm at a hotel, Paige Smith and I made it to the radio station, and began the wait to pick up the credentials. I felt rather out of place in this line of reporters, photographers, and official “press” folk, all tweeting, texting, and emailing away–but a grilled cheese sandwich, sweet tea, and fries with honey mustard put all my fears to rest.

We managed to enter Centeroo not long after it opened, and were able to enjoy the various activities scattered around that are generally over crowded. The “Fuse barn” was offering vinyl records (hey, that’s us!) to turn into spin art, a paint company was offering temporary tattoos, and most importantly: Paige Smith and I both had time to experience and graduate from the Bonnaroo “Scratch DJ Academy”. While all of these activities were a little silly, getting to partake in them without the usual crowd was great fun.

Mixing, spinning, painting...

But what you care about is the music, which began a few hours later. Thursday at Bonnaroo seems to routinely pick out bands on the rise, and this seemed to be the case once again with Hockey, Chairlift, and Passion Pit all playing at This Tent.

Hockey (with their single’s “Learn to Lose” and “Too Fake”) put on a very fun show, with an electro-indie-pop style and a captivating energy to their performance.

Hockey

The lead singer was by far the most fun to watch, though he may may have taken it a little too far when he managed to unplug his own microphone in the midst of “Learn to Lose” (disaster averted, however). Hockey’s full length album “Mind Chaos” is set to be released August 25th, off of Virgin Records, and will receive a full review on Vinyl Press as the release date nears. 

Following Hockey was Chairlift, known best for their song “Bruises” which was featured on an iTunes commercial. Featuring a drummer, guitarist, and the front-woman vocalist, Chairlift

Chairlift

did demonstrate an impressive range in song composition and textures. From songs that sounded like they were straight from the 80′s (synth guitar and wispy female vocals), to traditional “indie-pop” songs such as “Bruises”, to songs with rapped versus which utilized a drum machine rather than the standard drum kit.

Both Chairlift and Hockey broke into rap verses at times, with the each song temporarily derailing in order to encompass a more “hip-hop” percussive quality and offer the each lead singer a beat to rap over. Is this the new direction of indie-rock? The heavy bass and drum machines featured in ultra-indie bands such as Animal Collective (or Hockey and Chairlift) proves the hip-hop influence to some degree, while simultaneously many new hip-hop releases such as Rick Ross’ album feature “synths” that come from the electro world. What does all this mean?

Well, it’s hard to know, but my night ended with a visit to the Dutch DJ’s Kraak and Smaak (who, if we’re really seeking to make cultural connections, made heavy use of the hi-hat rhythm traditionally found in Baltimore Club tracks).

Next up…Friday! With Gomez, Animal Collective, Yeah Yeah Yeah’s, TV On the Radio, Phoenix, Crystal Castles, Girl Talk…

Vinyl Artist Update: Lafcadio w/ free downloads!

Lafcadio arrived on UNC’s campus with the voracity of a lion last September, quickly signed on as one of Vinyl Records’ inaugural artists. With boots made for walking all over anything that came in their way, Lafcadio immediately found themselves as part of the fierce vanguard of up-and-coming Chapel Hill musical talent–twang, vests, sultry vocals, and the kind of alt country that spans the entire gamut from KT Tunstall to Uncle Tupelo, with all the blues, soul, and balladeers you can think of in between.

Most recently, the band that shot back was spotted performing a primetime Thursday night slot at Shakori Hills Grassroots Festival to a wildly entertained audience consisting of members of the Holy Ghost Tent Revival and many a Cheerwine enthusiat.  Soon after, the band graced the stage of music.mync.com’s Studio B for a live webcast available here to check out if you haven’t done so already.  There’s no point in whispering once the Lion has growled.

After a May 9th show at The Cave, summertime will inevitably find Lafcadio going their separate ways only to reunite in August with new songs in preparation for their yet-to-be-titled sophomore Vinyl Records release.  Be on the look out for a sound with more southern-fried fixins than ever before, with maybe even a hint of Jameson and Bailey’s to match as guitarist and one of the band’s songwriters Ryan Dowdy makes his way into the potato-famined lands of Ireland to study folk music during Lafcadio’s summer hiatus.

Don’t forget to check out the final Lafcadio performance for the next couple of months this SATURDAY MAY 9th at THE CAVE, and feel free to snatch up a few free downloads the good folks over at Vinyl Records have been able to muster up for your aural pleasure.  Songs include the second single, “Seven Leagues” off of their debut EP, as well as two live tracks from January’s sold-out album release party at Local 506, titled “Nowhere to Fall” and a cover of “Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair.”  Do download, and do share with friends.

Seven Leagues
Nowhere to Fall (live)
Black is the Color of My True Love’s Hair

Lafcadio at the Cave Tonight

 

Vinyl Zoology!

That band that named themselves after a lion (we love zoology at Vinyl Records) is oping up the late show at the Cave tonight. They should start at 10 o’ pm. You should be there to fawn over them.

Also, for good measure – mongoose.