Sunday

While Friday was mainly a dance rock day and Saturday an all-out rock show, Sunday was a hodgepodge of international bands, eclectic bands and good, old-fashioned Seattle rock 'n' roll. Starting off the day was one of my most anticipated acts of the weekend, Rodrigo y Gabriela. I caught a small bit of their set when they opened for Muse in London and I was dying to see more; finally I had a chance. Fusing Latino elements of Flamenco-style guitar with hard rock, Rodrigo y Gabriela know how to put on a show. Despite the set being them two sitting in chairs, acoustic guitars on their laps and each one taking turns playing a foot pedal bass drum, they managed to engage the crowd by playing a mix of hard rock/heavy metal covers and their own material. Noticeable guitar riffs played were Metallica's "Enter Sandman" and Deep Purple's "Smoke on the Water" and, toward the end of the set, a very moving version of Pink Floyd's "Wish You Were Here," vocals courtesy of the crowd. Rodrigo and Gabriela would take turns speaking with the crowd, with Rodrigo often waving his arms to encourage more audience participation. Toward the end, Rodrigo got a three-part clap started quite effortlessly with the crowd and then the two of the them just rocked out to the beat served up to them. While looking to be an unassuming set, they were probably one of the best shows that could have been the whole weekend.

After Rodrigo y Gabriela, another international star was getting ready to take the headlining stage. I was still doubtful of the show not getting cancelled, and as time wore on and still a no show, I began to think I was right. Soon enough, though, Amy Winehouse did arrive, but I don't think she was all there. And not in a good, entertaining way either. Winehouse started her set off with many of the songs from her new album, Back in Black, but she hardly engaged the crowd or even acknowledged their presence. She stood still onstage, occasionally swaying from side to side; her only real movement was when she kept her skirt from flying up, baring what the Brits would call her knickers for all to see. A large crowd showed up and some were disillusioned to say, post-show, that it was one of the best shows of the weekend. I think they were on drugs. I don't know why I even bothered to stick around to hear her last three songs, "You Know I'm No Good," "Rehab," and "Valerie." Probably the highlight of her set was when she did a small cover of Lauryn Hill's "That Thing." I think I caught Winehouse slurring the words. Yeah, that was a highlight—the only highlight. It was a boring show, and that's unfortunate, because I was actually hoping otherwise. Oh, all the jokes I could insert here about her being no good, but I'm going to resist.

After leaving one debacle, I wander right into another one. What luck. I check out a side stage to see up-and-coming band The Annuals perform. Their album Be He Me is fantastic, and I've been told they are great live. Not today. I will say that they endured a seriously bad sound system that kept resonating bits of the piano the entire set, but at the same time, I think they were suffering from having too many people onstage doing too much of the same thing (two drummers, two keyboardists, three singers). The vocals were good, as were the harmonies, but I don't think anything could have saved this set. I ended up meeting up with some friends and then heading out to check out some other bands.

What's a festival without some good, old-fashioned Southern rock? It's not! And that's how I found myself at the Kings of Leon set. I saw them not too long ago and they really put on a great show. I always wondered if singer Caleb Followill would be able to recreate that raspy, sultry vocal for the span of an entire set, and sure enough, he is. This particular show I decided to park it in the shade (hottest day of all three days, easily) and just enjoy the tunes from afar. Unlike me, loads of people stood in the field and enjoyed the set, and they weren't just camped out to see Pearl Jam, either. These people were singing, rocking, and throwing the devil horns every chance they could. KOL played a varied set, but it was a crowd-pleaser with just enough from both Aha Shake Heartbreak and Because the Times. Those waiting for Pearl Jam and fans of the band alike enjoyed themselves.

Soon after they finished, I headed up to catch another international act, Peter Bjorn and John. I end up missing the first two songs, and when I wander up to the stage, nothing is happening. Midway through the second song, the sound had cut out (a problem all weekend at this stage) and so the band was just mingling with the fans while they tried to get the sound going. While this is unfortunate, it lets me jet off over to catch a nice bit of !!!'s set instead.

Having seen them recently, I was originally going to forgo seeing them so that I could check out PB&J, but next thing you know, I'm dancing to "Must be the Moon." A few more songs of dancing and I get a text saying that PB&J are headed back on soon, so I make my way to catch the restart of PB&J.

So yes, it's Peter Bjorn and John part 2. The sound is working and we're treated to a wonderful version of "Amsterdam." They sound exactly like they do on record, which is cool as you get a bit of the accent mixed in with some awesome harmonies. It was nice to see that most of the crowd stuck around for the rest of the show, and the band also thanked the crowd for it. Of course the crowd is waiting around to hear this summer's hit, "Young Folks." When Peter—or is it Bjorn?—announces a special guest, some are upset that it's not Kanye West; ultimately, most were happy to settle for Nikki from Silversun Pickups and Apostle of Hustle's Dean to assist with the song. A great rendition ensued (I wonder what they do on tour, when there is no girl?), and they finished up their set with what they say were some of their most influential and popular songs in their native Sweden, one of which was a personal favorite, "Objects of My Affection."

After that, I wandered up to catch a decent bit of Seattle's other band, Modest Mouse. Hi, Johnny Marr. To be honest, I thought they were going to kind of suck, mainly because it took a long time before lead singer Isaac Brock's vocals grew on me. So after realizing they don't suck, I enjoyed myself. I liked that they busted out a stand up bass and a banjo. Unfortunately, the crowd around me was more into hearing the hits like "Dashboard" and "Float On" than any of the other songs, which sort of put a damper on the experience—but to be honest, I was leaning toward being part of the "give me the hits and I'll leave" crowd. I felt bad leaving halfway through their set, especially as I wasn't exactly looking forward to seeing Pearl Jam top the night off, but what good would this review be if I skipped out on the headliners? 

So, yeah, Pearl Jam.

Highlights: a new song entitled "Don't Go to BP Amoco"; "Crazy Mary"; "Better Man"; fireworks going off randomly during the set; Eddie Vedder saving the bulk of his political rant for the second encore (as I had already left and couldn't hear much after I crossed Columbus Ave.).

Lowlights: Pearl Jam fans suck, especially the drunk ones; Eddie Vedder not wearing flannel; Eddie Vedder clutching a bottle of wine during "Crazy Mary" (that's so rockstar); Eddie Vedder making a typical Bush comment and his political ranting; Pearl Jam.

Basically, they were on par with last year's headliner, Red Hot Chili Peppers, in that they have a loyal fan base and can sell tickets, but for us the casual fan (and I use that term very loosely here), it's a nostalgia set that if you've seen it once; you don't really need to see again.

Overall, it was a very, very wonderful festival, as the variety of bands that came this year was awesome. This year, they managed to restructure the entire staging areas, which was great for the sound vs. wind fight, but bad for us in the media tent who couldn't see the stages thanks to the cabanas. They learned a lot of the lessons from last year, but this off-season, they'll be stuck trying to figure out why the sound itself was so shitty. Peter, Bjorn and John, Annuals, Muse and the other bands victim to sound bugs should be brought back next year to redeem themselves. Besides that, they really focused on the quality acts that graced the second tier of the schedule and the side stages; I hope that they maintain this focus, because it really will cement this festival and the festival of the summer. | Kiernan Scrima