Sub Popped! 20 Reasons SP20 Ruled

By Sound Staff Tuesday, July 15th, 2008 @ 12:46 PM

It’s over. After scores of jokes, hundreds of songs, gallons of sweat and dozens of shredded vocal chords, SP20, the mid-July music festival celebrating 20 years of Sub Pop, one of Seattle’s greatest music institutions, drew to a close. While the year-long anniversary continues with the resuscitation of the label’s Single’s Club, the two days of music at Marymoor Park will forever live as the birthday party. So, how did it go? Well, Sound’s intrepid reporters put together a list of, you guessed it, 20 points to remember. (Scroll down for full photo coverage of the festivities)

20. The Schedule

What down-time? With five minutes at most between sets–performed on convenient side-by-side “This” and “That” stages–the printed schedule was followed to a T.

19. No Age’s Reception

No Age, playing to the biggest crowd of the afternoon at that point, cranks out a blasting, high-energy set and is rewarded with utter silence from the crowd. Maybe it was the unyielding sun, or maybe most of the concert-goers hadn’t yet recovered from their partying the day before, but either way the result was the same: an attentive but completely energy-devoid crowd that politely clapped after each song for about five seconds, then stood there, zombie-like. It was enough to prompt drummer/vocalist Dean Spunt to jokingly shush the crowd. No one really got it. MC

18. The No-Hassle Entry

Though camera-toters were thwarted on Saturday, the only issue getting in and around Sunday was the possibility of being on camera. Filmmakers were on site, documenting the event. CB

17. Kinski’s Raw-Rock Echo

Kinski’s long reverb jams and hypnotic riffs fit open-air acoustics like a glove. Their spacey tunes sound even more like a dream soundtrack from across the lawn. CB

16. Fleet Foxes

I’m not sure there’s anything left to write about them—particularly not on their home turf—and yet they consistently take the breath out of festival audiences and leave stunned and mumbling crowds babbling and sometimes crying in their wake. Their remarkably vibrant brand of folk is to acoustic music what grunge was to punk/rock: a refreshing breath of fresh air and yet another reminder that Sub Pop is no ordinary label. BM

15. The Food

There weren’t many options, but the few vendors in attendance offered gourmet meals. Nine bucks for an abundance of fried chicken, cornbread, greens and mac and cheese? Yes, please. CB

14. The Help

Everyone in a vest and behind a counter at Marymoor had taken their happy pills Sunday. Vendors smiled as they did their business. Park employees joked about working overtime. Even the garbage-tenders were kind, whistling as they separated trash and recyclables. CB

13. Red Red Meat’s Reunion Secrets

Red Red Meat, on its preparation for the festival: “We rehearsed for the first time in the history of this band for this show. For 15 minutes.” MC

12. The Many Sounds of Blitzen Trapper

Every song from the impressive Portland folk-rock-backwoods-jam band was different from the last, though repetitive bursts of squealing guitar created a theme. Sort of. CB

11. The New Zune “Invisible”

Though a major sponsor of SP20, there wasn’t a Zune booth, rep or branded freebie to be found.

10. Mudhoney’s Foreversound

They helped put Sub Pop on the map, and they’re still keeping it there. Mudhoney rocked the side stage with a set of old classics and new favorites that spanned the label’s entire existence and helped underscore its uniquely long-running knack for stumbling across mind-blowing talent. Both parties haven’t aged a bit. BM

9. Reverse Aging

Speaking of not aging, the shockingly youthful appearance of the Fluid’s John Robinson prompted Kinski’s Chris Martin to question whether the festival’s lead singers were aging in reverse. Like Mudhoney, the Fluid rocked the socks off the crowd and each other. Sub Pop may have an electrifying batch of new artists, but the Fluid (and Green River) hand-delivered a Molotov cocktail’s worth of a reminder that revisiting the label’s early roster will never be mistaken for a quaint stroll down memory lane. BM

8. The Foals’ Instrumental Intro

Before the Oxford band began tossing in very British vocals, they burned through several minutes of winding-up rock, punctuating the intro with a catchy dance beat. CB

7. Les Thugs’ Swaggering Bassist

It wasn’t clear if the Gallic punks sang in English or French, but their bassist, Pierre-Yves Sourice, wielded his axe like an American rock icon. CB

6. The Willie Dixon of Grunge

In the middle of Green River’s set, Mark Arm called out the Melvins. “We recorded a demo of this song in 1984 and gave it to our friends the Melvins, who proceeded to, Led Zeppelin-style, record it and give songwriting credit to themselves. We’re the Willie Dixon of grunge.” He proceeded to warn the band: “Now that we’re back together, we’re going to harness the combined legal power of Sub Pop and Pearl Jam. Watch out.” MC

5. Comets on Fire’s Introduction

The Echoplex-enhanced band—the first to get a real intro (“Have you ever climbed a tree to the moons of Saturn? You’re about to.”)—rocked. When the stage wings fill with other bands’ members (including all of Green River), you know it’s good. CB

4. The Vaselines’ Visit

They’d broken up well before their Sub Pop album hit the shelves, fueled by some hefty praise from folks like Nirvana and Mudhoney. They’d never played the States (er, unless you count a couple warm-up shows on the East Coast…) They were probably the primary reason most of the 40-and-over crowd members made the trek to Marymoor Park, and they were absolutely spell-binding. Backed by members of Belle and Sebastian, Eugene Kelly and Frances McKee held the capacity crowd spellbound. Whether it was because they delivered perfectly golden versions of gentle hits like “Jesus Wants Me for a Sunbeam” and “Molly’s Lips” or because their between-song banter was peppered with adorable profanity could be debatable, but they were absolutely mesmerizing. BM

3. Green River’s Return

The iconic band sounded even better (and looked happier) than they did in 1986. With the wings overflowing with family and friends and Sub Pop founder Bruce Pavitt wandering through the bouncing crowd, Green River ruled the park. Mark Arm swaggered. Stone Gossard and Steve Turner dueled beards and guitars. Jeff Ament and Bruce Fairweather laid down rhythm and background vocals. Alex Shumway pounded skins (and surfed the crowd). For 40 minutes, all was right with the world. CB

2. Wolf Parade’s Impromptu Encore

Wolf Parade came back for an unexpected encore after a drunken Eugene Mirman stumbled onto the stage and grabbed the mic. He had probably 20 VIP passes hanging around his neck. “I think I talked them into it,” he says. “Don’t worry. It’s okay that I’m here. I have a pass.” Despite having been pretty obviously (and sternly) warned that they had one song left by some guy, Wolf Parade, following Mirman’s lead, returned and played an uptempo version of “I’ll Believe in Anything” from its Sub Pop debut Apologies to the Queen Mary to the small crowd that hadn’t yet headed to the parking lot. MC

1. The Reunion

Hands-down the best part of the weekend was the fact that it felt like a best-case scenario version of a high school reunion, where everyone was genuinely excited to see each other. In front of the stage, on it and behind it, the festivities were marked by warm hugs and big smiles, with cameo appearances by old-school employees like Jenny Boddy and Susie Tennant, the original graduating class of grunge, as well as the current crop of young whippersnappers and long-term lingerers. Plus, the soundtrack was pretty awesome. BM