westerly.JPGIt may have been the hottest day of the year for sitting in a field, watching live music, but everything kicked off swimmingly at the Mountain Music Festival Saturday at Marymoor. Local alt-country quartet Westerly swung the showcase into motion at 4pm. The band had been voted into the lineup by Mountain listeners, after singer-songwriter Landon Pigg pulled out of the festival to appear in a movie.

Fronted by guitarists Josh Schramm and Kory Nagler, Westerly played a 40-minute set that delighted the numerous listeners who voted them into the slot. The harmonies were tight, the rhythm section nailed it down hard. The band’s live energy has increased considerably, even since Sound caught them at Folklife back in May. Admitting that playing the Moutain Music Festival was a highlight of their career thus far, Westerly rocked hard enough to ensure it’s only the beginning.

Next up was the only non-local on the bill, San Francisco-based Jackie Greene, with his urban folk-blues. Channeling Dylan ala Blood on the Tracks, he kicked off with “Farewell, So Long, Goodbye.” If the crowd wasn’t awake yet, it was Greene’s set that popped their eyes open. His long blues-rock jams got the crowd on its feet, so enthusiastic they demanded an encore—something generally reserved for festival headliners.

Third up was former Train frontman Pat Monahan. Backed by keys and acoustic guitar, Monahan spent his entire set at full voice. At one point, he bent as far back as possible on his stool, pushing hard for a long, growly run. Sometimes it’s nice to see big-voiced vocalists back off a bit and show their range, but the crowd ate up Monahan’s full-throttle singing. Drawing from Train’s hits and selections from his solo album, Monahan ended his set with a pack of fans dancing hard in front of the stage.

Before addressing headliner Brandi Carlile’s set, the show she played the night before at the Tractor must be noted. The “secret” performance was absolutely explosive, drawing from her always growing catalog and loosening up enough for several improvisational moments. A notable highlight came from a montage of country classics that saw both a duet with her mother for a chorus of “Your Good Girl’s Gonna Go Bad” and a stumbling-but-stunning turn on Tammy Wynett’s “Stand by Your Man.” Carlile and her four-piece proved just how far they’ve come since the days of clawing through the local scene, playing some “not-so-sold-out shows” at the storied Ballard bar.

At Marymoor Park for the Mountain Music Festival, they played a more relaxed set, kicking back comfortably on a much larger stage. They pulled mostly from 2007’s The Story, also adhering finely to several cover songs. Most impressive was John Fogerty’s “Fortunate Son,” which seems tailor-made for Carlile’s cageless growl. The encore saw her and cellist Josh Neumann taking a turn on Elton John’s “We All Fall in Love Sometimes,” and a notable go of Led Zeppelin’s “Going to California,” featuring Pat Monahan.

In addition to the cover tunes, the band shared a handful of selections from their forthcoming third record (due out in early ’09). “Caroline” was a rompy, almost Vaudevillian country-rock tune dedicated to Carlile’s one-year-old niece, who made a brief appearance to kiss the microphone, then ran onstage randomly a few minutes later. “Dreams” is a raw, haunting tune of unrequited love, and “Pride and Joy” aptly brought the heartache late in the set, the dynamism of Carlile’s vocals and ferocity of guitarist Tim Hanseroth’s solos driving the tune home. If these excerpts are any indication, that disc will be more deliciously raw and earnest than even The Story, if that’s possible.

A full moon now looming low and bright off stage right, the Mountain Music Festival drew to its end with a hushed crowd listening to Carlile and her sister Tiffany—backed by a Martin acoustic and Neumann on cello—singing a cover of Jane Siberry and k.d. lang’s “Calling All Angels.” Clearly reminded of what it means to honor the roots of her hometown music scene, the headliner left the stage graciously turning the spotlight back on festival openers Westerly. “They’re playing at the Tractor on September 3,” she announced, “so go see them.”