SHOW OF THE MONTH

Sasquatch! Music Festival

The Gorge Amphitheatre

An interesting and wonderful chaos ensues each year as a teeming city of nomadic concertgoers arrives at the glacier-carved monstrosity that is The Gorge Amphitheatre. What draws these roving music lovers into the eastern Washington wasteland every Memorial Day weekend is an unmatchable variety of national and regional performers, overlapping their talents from three different stages, known as the Sasquatch! Music Festival. Not to follow trend, all three days of the lucky seventh annual event transpired without any disabling hailstorms (see 2006), or set-canceling stage-shaking gales (see 2007).

Dengue Fever’s frenzied Main Stage performance worked as an icebreaker when the masses started to settle into the heart of noise city on Saturday afternoon. Combining flavorful elements of instrumentation and style, the Los Angeles band’s sound balanced between genres, resisting definition while screaming potential international wildfire.

On the Yeti Stage, Throw Me the Statue showcased chirping and blinking electronic beats, warm melodic tones and catchy lyrical deliveries of benevolence.

Churning keys lent the backbone to ballads spiced with the combined talents of a large group of musicians. Originally the solo project of Scott Reitherman, the onstage collaboration revealed a band that understands what it means to work with one another.

Seattle’s Truckasauras shook the first foundations of the festival’s sandwich day. The crowd at the Yeti Stage moved and gyrated to the experimental beats produced by over 100,000,000 wires connecting and whirling inside of and between old-school synthesizers, new ones, drum machines, samplers and circuit-bent mutant instruments. Oozing and droning over the tastefully digi-modified drumbeats were powerfully resonating synth lines decorated with melodic emphasis to keep the hypnotic repetition interesting. Creating this noise was a talented group of individuals standing around a table — some draped in American flags.

Local West Coast action returned to the Main Stage Sunday afternoon with the thumping reverberations of clarity made by Seattle’s Blue Scholars. It’s just two charismatic individuals that somehow captivate and syncopate the waving hands of thousands through intelligent conviction and belief in a cause. Serious and sardonic cultural commentary was projected as concisely delivered lyrics from MC Geologic, while the keenly cooperative work on beats from DJ Sabzi helped emphasize the messages within the sound.

The Presidents of the United States of America reaffirmed their status as a band that refines itself while remaining consistently clever in song construction and improvingly passionate in performance. Guest appearances from the brass talents of Sarah Jerns, Jeremiah Austin and Diana Dizard of Bellingham’s The Love Lights lent new flavor to classics like “Lump,” satisfying the sing-a-long crowd with its multiplied intensity.

Up from Los Angeles, The Little Ones spilled across the Wookie Stage on Monday afternoon, saturating all those entering the compound with addictive pop sequences, especially effective tambourine action and warm tones that cascaded across the already sweating landscape. Their performance indicated that when the distance between the stage and ears is lessened, the number of footloose, independently spiraling dance microcosms increases with great frequency.

A particularly unique performance from the final day of the fest featured the amplified street band intensity of Seattle’s The Cave Singers, who stunned the crowd with twisting bluegrass progressions backed by pleasant tribal dance beats. These danceable teardowns were fueled with head-banging intensity — the perfect compliment to Pete Quirk’s zealous vocal delivery.

With the debut of the Comedy Tent, the only comedy act to grace the Main Stage over the weekend was New Zealand’s comedy/ folk duo, Flight of the Conchords. The sonic quality of laughter on a massive scale bouncing off the slopes of the amphitheatre snowballed contagiously and broke up the day with a refreshing change of flavor. Jemaine Clement claimed, “We met Sasquatch earlier, the guy who organized the concert, and he said [makes Chewbacca noise].”

When layers of simultaneous talent and three days of innovative approaches to sound on display demanded not a conclusion but a finale, one could be thankful for Ghostland Observatory’s concluding performance on the Wookie Stage, as well as The Flaming Lips’ U.F.O. extravaganza on the Main Stage.

-Review by Evan “The Bug” Williamson; photos by Sean Pecknold and Christopher Nelson

Langhorne Slim/ Ferraby Lionheart / Willoughby

The Independent

San Francisco, CA

May 15, 2008

What started as a sedate and warm evening ended with a crowd of rock ‘n’ rollers dancing and clapping on the floor of The Independent to a few of the most exciting performers around.

Opening the night with some mellow rock, reflective of the Southern California beaches from which it hails, was Los Angeles’ Willoughby. The band’s laidback sound matched the unusual San Francisco heat wave and the mood of the sunshine-sedated crowd. The Beach Boys and Elliott Smith influences were apparent in singer/founder Gus Seyffert’s clear vocals and emotional lyrics coupled with his band’s melodic instrumentation. Stating it was their first show on the road, Seyffert let the music do most of the talking from there. The crowd favorite and one of the highlights of the night was Willoughby’s cover of The Nerves’ “When You Find Out,” with the band’s own “I Know What You’re Up To” and “Frankenstein” standing out as well.

Willoughby’s neighbor Ferraby Lionheart took the stage next and turned up the energy level with his folk/country/blues rock. Resembling a combination of Bob Dylan and Woody Guthrie, Lionheart captivated the audience with his guitar playing, strong vocals and beautiful storytelling. Armed with a guitar and a harmonica, he played as loudly and as powerfully as a full band. (He mentioned to the audience that sometimes he does in fact perform with a band — and tap dancers.) Having producer/instrumental genius Jon Brion as a fan proves that Lionheart has what it takes to make a mark on the music scene. Comparisons to musicians like Ron Sexsmith and Rufus Wainwright make sense after hearing his voice, which is the artist’s most powerful and impressive instrument onstage — aside from his whistling, which on one song gave Peter Bjorn and John a run for their money. Lionheart’s guitar accidentally unplugged midway through, however, being the true performer that he is, he recovered smoothly to the crowd’s applause.

Headliner Langhorne Slim turned the night into a rock show that would have made anyone at Woodstock proud. Backed by The War Eagles — Paul Defiglia on standup bass and Malachi DeLorenzo on drums — Slim’s high-pitched, bluesy vocals could be compared to Robert Plant’s and his stage presence could rival any performer, past or present. The singer is the ultimate showman with his charismatic dialogue and boundless energy, and it was clear from the packed venue that he draws a loyal following. DeLorenzo’s fast and powerful drumming also stood out and had even the dark corners of the room dancing and clapping. On “Hummingbird,” Slim delivered the chills-inducing line “I’m dreaming of leaving my demons and the first one I’m leaving is you,” revealing lyrics just as compelling as his music. Anyone who had never seen or heard Langhorne Slim and the War Eagles undoubtedly left The Independent a fan; their set raised the bar and won the entire room over.

-Review by Jackie Miehls; photo by Matt McKnight

Vetiver / Kelley Stoltz / The Mumlers

Great American Music Hall

San Francisco, CA

May 6, 2008

The Great American hosted a local lineup of some of the Bay’s most current and notable indie folk-inspired bands. Kicking off the evening was San Jose’s The Mumlers, playing songs off of their newly released debut full length, Thickets & Stitches. Headed by Will Sprott on lead vocals and guitar, the South Bay seven-piece is fleshed out with a pleasant variety of instruments — drums, marimba, upright bass, French horn, trumpet, keyboards, tambourine and harmonica. This diverse instrumentation not only makes for a musically interesting and multi-faceted sound, but also undoubtedly lends itself to The Mumlers’ stylistic range. Some songs contain elements of old country-western ballads, like the slow, sweet “Hitched to the Sun,” and others more subtle pop sentiments, like “Red River Hustle.” But what is most appealing about the band is that it doesn’t play too much on either side. Though it is hard not to have incredible stage presence with a crew of seven, The Mumlers truly know how to captivate a crowd with a sound that is warm, friendly and inviting.

Taking the stage next was San Francisco’s own prolific home recorder Kelley Stoltz. On his fourth and latest release, Circular Sounds, Stoltz forgoes his usual lo-fi, lone guitarist sound, trading it in for more 1960s pop-rock stylings (a la The Kinks and The Beatles) full of rich, horn-inspired melodies and catchy choruses. So it was only fitting that he was joined by a five-piece band tonight, backing him up and helping him recreate some of the album’s magic onstage. Stoltz comfortably jumped back and forth between lead guitar and electric piano throughout the set, cracking jokes along the way. By far the most striking portion of the set was his performance of “Your Reverie,” if only because Stoltz’s charm and affable personality noticeably extended into the music itself.

When Vetiver took the stage, they were met by a strong welcome emanating from an eager and adequately warmed-up crowd. Sadly, the guys were not joined by sometimes-member Devendra Banhart, as many in the room were probably hoping for. But Vetiver’s set was far from disappointing, if not absolutely beautiful from start to finish. The band played some old favorites, including the heartbreakingly gorgeous “Maureen,” but stuck mostly to songs off its new release, Thing of the Past. This made for an enchanting and captivating performance, though a little slow-paced in comparison to the previous acts. While it might not have been apparent to those unfamiliar with the album, Thing of the Past is actually a collection of obscure covers of some of the band’s favorite songwriters. Seeing Vetiver perform those songs was a very personal, heart-warming experience.

-Review by Nicole Sheikh; photos by Luke Judd

In Waves/ Wait.Think.Fast /Mezzanine Owls/ Minipop

Spaceland

Silver Lake, CA

May 5, 2008

Whether it was a residency, a new album or Cinco de Mayo, everyone at Spaceland had something to celebrate this Monday night.

Los Angeles’ In Waves kicked off the celebration, performing in support of their forthcoming debut full length. The three-piece played a set full of reverb and raspy vocals (likely due to Jimmy Strange’s recovering cold). The simplicity of their sound was made up for by tight and precise musicianship: the tropicalia-influenced tunes included lots of guitar distortion as well as furiously tough bass lines from Ti Gregorio and intense drum beats courtesy of Delano Duran.

In Waves was followed by fellow locals Wait.Think.Fast, performing in support of their new EP on Origami Music. The piano-based set featured powerfully resonating keyboards and hauntingly passionate vocals, reminiscent of Patti Smith. Argentinean vocalist and keyboardist Jacqueline Santillan, who wrote and produced Wait.Think.Fast’s debut EP, highlighted the band’s Spanish language songs in honor of the festivities taking place that night. Despite technical difficulties, the band managed to play an amazingly beautiful and powerful series of electro-pop/rock songs.

Mezzanine Owls followed, kicking off their month-long residency at Spaceland. The Los Angeles quartet, who worked with producer Andy LeMaster on its latest self-titled EP, played a moody and dramatic yet danceable set of shoegaze-influenced rock, with vocals characteristic of Bright Eyes’ Conor Oberst. The Owls’ progressive guitar-based sound is layered with sampling, effects and lots of reverb, and tonight the songs flowed dreamily together, with only the crowd’s sporadic dancing to help distinguish one from the next.

San Francisco favorites Minipop concluded the evening and got the late night crowd up and moving with their eclectic dance pop and invigorating stage presence. Keeping the audience on its toes, vocalist Tricia Kanne, an obvious crowd-pleaser, showcased her powerful set of vocals that led the band’s sound through soft and sweet melodies to more forceful punk rock. The impressive instrumentation featured heavy layering with vocals, keys and drums flawlessly paired with just the right amount of synthesizers to match.

-Review by Audrey Cortes; photos by Jessica Watkins

Day of Lions/ Mike Bloom/ Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s

Doug Fir Lounge

Portland, OR

May 21, 2008

Day of Lions kicked off the night in typical folk fashion, equipped with a beard, a sweater vest, a glockenspiel and that shy but friendly attitude that is impossible not to warm up to. Led by frontwoman Gena Gastaldi, this five-piece Portland outfit showed the Doug Fir that straightforward folk songs are enough to woo a crowd. Portlanders have seen Gastaldi in a few different arrangements, but this time she crooned over soft, brushed drums, classical guitar and electric bass, with pretty harmonies echoing throughout.

Gastaldi and her acoustic guitar went solo for a few songs while her bandmates watched intently and supportively, taking only short breaks to gander at their toes. The performance was charming and clearly well rehearsed. Gastaldi even joked that she wore her gig outfit to band practice so that she could “make sure it would work.” Due to a late start, the set was a short one, but the folksters still managed to fit in no less than two songs about summer.

Next up was singer/songwriter Mike Bloom, best known for his associations with Rilo Kiley and The Elected. With Buckley-esque vocals, he sang each song as if it was a story he was reciting for the very first time, giving his most heartwarming account on “Silent Actress.” His plaid shirt, jeans and nonchalant attitude told the audience that his performance was all about the songs, and Bloom proved that he was an old pro when he endured a chatty audience and poor sound with a smile — or at least a half-smile of sorts. The highlight of the set was when Erik Kang (of Margot ... ) joined in on the electric violin and lap steel to add a cool/creepy vibe to the otherwise simple songs. It’s always tough to be a singer/songwriter when the audience is filling up with folks waiting to see a rock group eight times your size and volume, but Bloom did well in a tough situation.

Finishing off the night was Margot & the Nuclear So and So’s, hailing all the way from Indianapolis. With eight band members and not a second of sloppiness, the So and So’s put on a one-of-a-kind live show. A glowing bass drum and a jam-packed stage made the performance more of a rock/noise/experimental type of shindig, unlike their recordings, which suggest a more easy-going pop/folk group. But either sound seems to work for these guys — they are far from so-so and simply a must see.

-Review by Kali Giaritta; photos by Dan Sloan

Earlimart / Voxhaul Broadcast / Siggy / Light FM

The Echoplex

Echo Park, CA

May 17, 2008

Underneath The Echo in Echo Park, The Echoplex filled up fairly early for Saturday night’s incredible local lineup. With each of the four bands on the bill possessing a unique sonic quality and vibe, Siggy’s CD release added even more promise that the night would be intense.

Light FM kicked off with “16 Below,” a rock-driven jam from the band’s debut album, This is the Beginning of My Golden Age. Utilizing dreamy synthesizers, heavy drumming and a wall of guitars pounding away in perfect unison, the four-piece played a flawless set of tightly-performed songs to its many supporters in the crowd.

Siggy has been polishing its act and did not disappoint at its CD release show, playing the second slot on the bill and performing mostly songs off the new album, The Absinthe Effect. Those like “Coalmine” had a very Dead Kennedys-meets-Sex Pistols sound, while at the same time showcasing Siggy’s own unique take on the genre. Deborah Buckwalter’s solid bass lines and Galen Buckwalter’s haunting, wavering vocals made the set stand out and brilliantly drew the crowd forward from the back of the room.

The third act of the evening, Voxhaul Broadcast brought a bit of a different feel to the venue with tracks like “Why Not,” which introduced a creepy dance vibe, and the aptly-named “The Echo,” with its kicking-back-on-a-lazy-Sunday-afternoon groove, as accentuated by the lyrics “Lazy day afternoons will drive you out of your mind.” In between chunking away on the keys and providing lead guitar licks in every song, Anthony Aguiar made for an entertaining musician acrobat. Voxhaul Broadcast is definitely a band to watch in 2008.

Closing the night, Earlimart took the stage to a full crowd anticipating a rumor that it would be playing material from its upcoming album, Hymn and Her. Not to disappoint, Aaron Espinoza and Ariana Murray opened and closed the set with nothing but the utterly perfect melodies and songwriting that one has come to expect from the savant indie rockers. Earlimart put on a remarkable show and reiterated what an accomplished band it really is.

All four acts benefited from a superb light show that flowed unblemished with each of their sets and brought a visual warmth to a night that was easily one to remember.

-Review and photo by Ryan Murphy

Pink Elephants/ Casey Neill & the Norway Rats/ October Allied

Hemlock Tavern

San Francisco, CA

May 7, 2008

A grateful Scott Quay of closing band October Allied spoke for all the artists on the bill when he told the late night stragglers, “Thanks for coming out on a school night!” The buff, tattooed lead singer and guitarist for the Oakland group saw the cozy performance space of San Francisco’s Hemlock Tavern to a close this Wednesday night, sporting a full, round vocal tone that toughened up the sound of his band’s basic, unadorned, rockabilly-tinged roots rock. In fact, Quay’s voice was wisely very much up front in the mix, and though the drums and bass were never in competition for the spotlight, the guitars tended to take a backseat in the balance of sound. The quick-picking of guitar, walking bass and rockabilly rim hits of “Bad Old Days” were emblematic of the set’s high points, where rhythm and vocals combined with Quay’s old-school greaser looks to complete a distinct sound and image.

While October Allied basically split the difference in sound and style of its support, opening band Pink Elephants shot straight for raw, unpolished punk energy and succeeded in giving the fastest, loudest performance of the evening. Most songs in their set were brief blasts of noise, with feedback-prone guitars amped to the max that obscured the vocals of the three members who took turns singing. Once in a while, a melodic guitar solo would break the monotony and a loud, spirited cover of The Kinks’ “Stop Your Sobbing” indicated a clear link to the original noisemakers of the 1960s. Occasionally botched chords, obscured vocals and a generally unresponsive audience did not deter the young San Francisco punk band from enthusiastically pouring on the speed and volume.

Leaning more towards the country-folk roots end of the spectrum, but not without some energized rock spirit, Casey Neill’s performance was that of a seasoned pro with little to prove and much to enjoy. Backed by The Norway Rats, the Portland musician drew upon the most varied sonic palette of the evening, with The Decemberists’ Jenny Conlee incorporating electric piano, accordion and even a portable glockenspiel into the set. New songs like “The Ramble” benefited from busy, fluid bass lines and tasty keyboard solos. Neill’s guitar presence was most striking on acoustic, but when he occasionally switched to electric, songs like “Memory Against Forgetting” took off on a groove that recalled the early-’70s rootsy jams of The Band. Like an Irish Michael Stipe, Neill’s voice was commanding while his presence was more subtle. With a powerful song like “Dancing on the Ruins,” Neill succeeded in rousing the audience to its only instance of spirited dancing and communal synchronicity that evening, with nearly everyone seemingly in tune with the song’s anti-corporate message. Ironically, Neill and his band gave the most engaging and dynamic performance, despite their lack of in-your-face rock and punk tones.

-Review by Michael Fortes; photos by Julie Bernstein