Pen & Page

Throwing on my Sonic Youth “100% Dirty” shirt had new meaning on day 3 of the Sasquatch music festival, day 4 of camping. I’m tired of “Honey Buckets,” am covered from head to toe in a thin film of dust, and ready for my own bed to crawl into.

A relatively quiet day in comparison to yesterday’s bedlam leading up to NIN and Jane’s Addiction, day 3 proved to be a perfect wind down to the festival. It was also a day of very powerful women to grace the stages, starting with Erika Wennerstrom of the Heartless Bastards.

Wennerstrom was a vision in a bright blue dress; her raspy voice sounded full and robust live. The first main stage act of the day, the Heartless Bastards played to a sparse crowd but the area quickly filled as Japanese noise pop band Deerhoof prepped to play.

Satomi Matsuzaki, the petite and quirky frontwoman and bassist for Deerhoof, sang in Japanese and English; the band was composed of two guitarists and a minimalist drum set with snare, bass drum and cymbal.

“Thank you very much. It’s very hot,” Matsuzaki said as the early afternoon sun beat down. For the band’s last song, Matsuzaki donned a lion’s mask and handed her bass off to close the set with an eccentric dance number.

Santi White, who goes by the stage name Santogold, was another captivating performer, charming audiences with her offbeat humor, including referencing the Burger King she ate before taking the stage.

“Let’s see what happens, see if I throw up,” she said. Projecting her voice, the Brooklyn producer/singer/songwriter was a bit rasta, a bit hip hop and a lot of energy. Touring for the first time with a band, the group was on its fourth show. With relentless energy, White inspired a dance party on the hill during “Unstoppable.”

She also performed a punky rock number from her former Philadelphia-based punk rock band Stiffed. She closed the set by hand-selecting her “best dancers” from the front row to join her onstage.

Erykah Badu , who performed the main stage directly before headlining act Ben Harper and the Relentless 7, was a sultry and calming presence. Dressed in a Public Enemy hooded sweatshirt, fetching shower cap underneath the hood, the soulful hip hop and R&B artist had massive stage presence. Serene and peaceful, she closed the show by stating, “One smile can cause a million.”

Following her concert, Erykah Badu signed albums for her fans. Her style was an apt lead-in to Ben Harper, who headlined the evening. 

 

Harper’s new band is excellent, but it’s like getting into Jets to Brazil when you know Jawbreaker exists: You just wanted to hear some old songs. Instead, Harper played a Zeppelin cover and a Queen/Bowie cover, a slew of songs from his new band, the Relentless 7 (a four-piece). He did perform “Another Lonely Day” during the encore, but it felt odd that he didn’t deliver any more fan favorites.

Other notable bands of the day included the animated Gypsy punk band, Gogol Bordello, a nine-piece band that seemed like they could soundtrack a gypsy wedding during the sailing of the seven seas. The swashbuckling lead singer, Eugene Hütz, is originally from the Ukrainian, and his grizzled growl and energetic transitions paired with the multi-instrumental combinations made the band thoroughly enjoyable.

L.A. indie rock band Silversun Pickups had a sunset slot but a muddy sound (muddier than they already are on studio recordings) as they were projected throughout the venue. During the band’s hit, Lazy Eye, lead singer  Brian Aubert appeared to have some technical difficulties during the song’s climax, and asked his band to improvise, leading them into an elongated jam session.

Greg Gillis, the creative DJ behind Girl Talk, drew the largest crowd on the secondary stage. The mash-up artist drew a spectrum of people, from small children to a crowd surfer dressed as Green Man. It’s nice to seem Gillis on the video monitors, as his shows are typically packed tight and Gillis is hard to see. Because he can’t make a lot of money off selling his music, he’s bound into delivering live and consistently good shows. Propelled into the spotlight for his unusual skirting of copyright laws, Gillis has and is slated to perform at most of the country’s major festivals. 

After three days of music, we’re “tired and wired” and have hundreds of miles to go before we hit our own beds. On the trip home we lament about how special the Gorge is and how stunning it appears each time we see it. As we blast some of the biggest bands of the summer on our iPods, the long haul home feels just a bit shorter. 

It took all night, but when Perry Ferrell belted out “Jane says…” for the final song of the night, I felt like all was right in the universe.

Ferrell must have felt the same way, because he reveled in the fact that his band Jane’s Addiction is back together after so much has passed. Performing with the original Jane’s Addiction lineup, including Dave Navarro, Stephen Perkins and Eric Avery, Ferrell hadn’t shared a stage with his band in nearly 17 years. 

“In this beautiful night of darkness, let us celebrate death,” Ferrell announced. He mentioned that Jane’s Addiction’s first time on stage at the Gorge was 17 years ago, and “It doesn’t seem like we’re going to stop,” he said. 

Ferrell closed the set with “Jane Says,” and though he referenced being enamored with the surrounds, shouted “goodnight Seattle.” 

Nine Inch Nails took the stage before Jane’s Addiction, their set timed with the setting sun. The stage began glowing with late afternoon sun mixed with fog drifting across. Trent Reznor brought the audience to their feet when he began, the only band I’d seen to do so on the main hill.

“This is my favorite place in the world to be,” Reznor said, and given the occasion, he seemed sincere. After an energetic set with Trent running from sound station to sound station, the band closed with what has proved to be their biggest legacy, “Hurt.” Pegged as the last tour for NIN — their “Wave Goodbye” logo for the tour fueling rumors that they’re calling it quits — and the first of many for Jane’s, both bands closed last night with monumental milestones in their careers.

Performing at the same time on the secondary stage was Of Montreal, which I am only vaguely aware of from Volkswagen commercials. I had little idea how popular the band was. Their fans are quite wild, and Of Montreal packed plenty of them onstage for one song, and I swore I saw some dancing pink bunnies. Debauchery at it’s finest.

The highlight of my day — aside from the headliners — was the Airborne Toxic Event, a relatively unknown band this year. Violinist Anna Bullbrook stole the show with her dramatic moves, arching over speakers while stringing her violin.

The band’s hit “Sometime Around Midnight” was recognized, and lead singer Mikel Jollett admitted they were just a “new band with a homegrown record and we have no idea what’s happening in our fucking lives right now.” His humbleness was charming, the bands talents excellent.

They closed their set with a elongated version of “Innocence.” Chanting “Oh my God, oh my God,” Jollett’s enduring vocals soared through the crowd. 

French rocker Anthony Gonzalez, performing with a few others under the M83 moniker were also an amazing live band. Gonzalez performed with a female vocalist/keyboardist and drummer. Their sensual hypnotic pop was trip the light fantastic and kept people dancing, even in the line for the bathroom. 

Monday brings headliner Ben Harper and the Relentless 7. The campground is clearing but thousands are still milling around, prepping for another day of music.

Sweltering temperatures didn’t stop the parades from flocking to the middle of Washington for the first of three days of concerts at The Gorge. Sasquatch, typically the smallest of the summer festivals, has erupted into a full-blown spectacle.

The festival this year seems larger, the sun hotter, and the lines longer. Adding a fourth stage, the dance and comedy tent, has added plenty of diversity to the lineup, and this year the Wookie Stage is larger and has a video monitor suspended above the stage.

The first day featured performances by some excellent musicians leading up to Kings of Leon’s first performance at the Gorge, including Brit gloom pop rockers The Doves, guitarist and musical collaborator M. Ward, “gypsy punk” band Devotchka, and actor/hip hop artist Mos Def.

M. Ward, dressed in all black, must have been roasting onstage, but didn’t display any discomfort. A talented musician that has worked with artists ranging from Conor Oberst to Zooey Deschanel, Ward performed during one of the hottest portions of the day, but rocked his guitar as the sun beat down upon him. He also invited DeVotchKa’s accordionist/violinist Tom Hagerman to strum a tune with him.

The first large act of the day was the highly anticipated band Animal Collective. Blowing trance/electronic pop rock across the Gorge, the band spurred a few impromptu-dance groups, but didn’t appeal to the masses, brushing some concertgoes the wrong way. A hardworking band, their trance noise pop didn’t come without a lot of talent, and I could appreciate the effort the band went to and the surreal aspect of seeing them in such a large venue, though they were probably better suited for a smaller stage.

The Decemberists followed, which I opted out of to catch Mos Def (thankfully missing this). Admittedly, I was star struck, having come to know Mos from his HBO Series, Def Poetry Jam, which he hosted with Russell Simmons. The Ani DiFranco of rap, Mos took the stage in a Mardi Gras-esque mask and launched into an unconventional and socially conscious hip hop set.

Stopping to reflect on the surroundings, Mos asked the audience to turn around and catch the setting sun, putting emphasis on how beautiful the world around us was. Some feedback from the sound system threw him off, but he recovered and wrapped up an engrossing set in time for us to catch the Yeah Yeah Yeahs opening number.

When Karen O sang “Maps,” it was one of those amazing moments at Sasquatch where the sun was just beginning to set, highlighting the river winding through its channel. The wind was blowing slightly, cooling off the skin of 20,000 spectators, and the rosy clouds just below the horizon picked up subtle colors as the night descended.

When the Yeah Yeah Yeahs wrapped their set, we caught the last few songs of Bon Iver. The secondary stage, plagued by sound problems all day, proved problamatic for Justin Vernon, who apologized to the crowd for being unable to performs some of his planned set.

Kings of Leon capped the night, and it was the last show of their current tour. The band rolled into a slew of hits from the latest albums “Because of the Times” and the Grammy-nominated “Only By the Night,” including the fan favorite, “Sex on Fire.” The band’s brawny frontman and rhythm guitarist Caleb Followill, wearing a red flannel and sporting a beard, elicited several squeals from his followers.

Unfortunately, the band was disappointing live. Followill missed some lyrics and the band as a whole stumbled on parts of their songs and had difficulty transitioning from between songs.

Looking out to the audience, Followill expressed his awe with the Gorge, performing for the first time on its stage.

“It’s our first time here and I had no idea how beautiful it was,” he told the crowd. It was satisfying to hear the power of “Cold Desert,” the yelping “Charmer,” and the ambiance of “Knocked Up,” but the band seemed dislocated. Perhaps fame came too quick for the gritty southern charmers.

However disappointing one of the headliners was, today is only Sunday, and the weekend’s apex happens tonight when the original lineup of Jane’s Addiction takes the stage.

I can almost feel the sunburn, smell the grass, and am crawling out of my skin to get on the road, which means Memorial Day weekend is imminent, as is Sasquatch, a three-day music festival at The Gorge.

The amphitheater located along the Columbia river in southern Washington has a 20,000 person capacity and is host to a wicked lineup of bands this year, including the gritty southern rock band Kings of Leon headlining the festival Saturday evening. On Sunday the original lineup of Jane’s Addiction, featuring Perry Farrell, Dave Navarro, Stephen Perkins and Eric Avery performing together for the first time in nearly 17 years. On tour with Nine Inch Nails, the band and their touring partners are recreating their final Lollapalooza tour, circa 1991 (NIN performs directly before Jane’s on Sunday).

Performances by the Yeah Yeah Yeas, TV on the Radio, The Decemberists, Silversun Pickups, Girl Talk, Airborne Toxic Event, Mos Def, Animal Collective, among others, will take place during the three-day festival.

The popularity of this music festival has been unprecedented, perhaps because of the consistently excellent lineup or the gorgeous scenery, so unfortunately, tickets are sold out for both Saturday and Sunday. Tickets for Monday are still available, featuring Ben Harper and the Relentless 7. 

I’m hitting the road with some friends in the morning and plan to drive straight through. Check back this weekend to see updates and photos from the shows.