Is it Wednesday already? Starting the week by spending Monday at Bumbershoot sure can throw you for a loop, especially after a sweaty, sunburned weekend. We’ve finally gotten our bearings back enough to take a look back at the final two days of Bumbershoot. Read on for slide shows and reviews of Sunday and Monday’s performances.

Saturday


Photos by Hayley Young

PWRFL Power
As young fans are heard singing along from the side lines, a peculiar Kazutaka Nomura (PWRFL Power) roams his territorial stage points at the Sky Church of EMP. In a moment between songs, while the sound of applause is still clearing the air, Nomura begins calling out numbers while the fans front stage stand unsure of the significance. It is not until he reaches into his pocket and pulls out a little ball of yarn that his intentions are clarified. “Whoever sends me the funniest text… will get this hand-knit sponge that my grandmother made.” Instantly a wave of desperate recapping of these pivotal numbers rushes through the packed house. Cell phones abound, the sea of digital phone books light up the room as PWRFL Power moves on to his next song of imperfect love and boyish honesty. HAYLEY YOUNG

Band of Horses
Opening up for Beck on the main stage Saturday evening, Band of Horses made a joyful, drunken return to Seattle. Benjamin Bridwell opens with some cheesy stage banter (”A lot of y’all are out there with bare feet. We’re up here with bare heads,” he quipped, while wearing a furry hat with bear ears-get it?), and things only got more ridiculous from there. One audience member (John) proposed to his special lady (Jenny?) in between songs. Band of Horses celebrated the happy union by breaking beer bottles over each others heads throughout the rest of the set. Amazingly, they sounded great. MICHAEL CONNELLY

Thao and The Get Down Stay Down (KEXP Secret Show)
“Thank you so much for braving the maze and coming” Thao Nguyen tells her pocket sized audience as she and the Get down Stay Down prepare their next song. They are recording live on KEXP, and although those listening via radio waves have the same great pleasure of hearing a cozy, sexy, and at-times scruffy vocal-scape from Nguyen, it is a great shame that they haven’t the visuals to pair. Embodying a magician moving a practiced hand through their bag of tricks blindly, Nguyen’s passionate stage presence entrances while Thao’s musical presentation expands and contracts, leaving those in the tiny audience awestruck and silly. HAYLEY YOUNG

New Faces
As this young upstart band rocked the EMP Sky Chapel for the first show of the day. Frontman Nico Bansen began to talk politics in between songs: “We’re between conventions right now.” He obviously wanted to say something specific then paused as he realized he didn’t want to offend anyone. “Politics is interesting,” he chimed. A slight pause, then the band started into a new set. Oh well. RACHEL DOVEY

Nada Surf (KEXP Secret Show)
On a small stage, in a tucked away venue of Bumbershoot, Nada Surf is playing to the select few who have found their way to this live KEXP recording. As the audience of all ages sways with their lighter fared acoustic set, something very interesting happens. Despite the freedom to photograph throughout this stage and presentation, the many Canon lenses penetrating its edge are lowered. In this random instant, all photographs are suspended and the photographers are still. The buzzing of their shutters silenced, they cozy up with their fellow admirers for the rest of the performance, all eyes on the prize. HAYLEY YOUNG

These Arms are Snakes
“I’m gonna need you guys to move out, there’s too many of you and I’m not going to get hurt here,” ushers one of the buildings of a security guard to fellow weakling photographers in the pit at the Exhibition Hall. Perplexed, a small group concedes as Steve Snere takes the stage, only to b-line it straight to the front line, stepping over photographers and bouncers alike to get there. Sailing on the winds of his many fans is clearly where Snere belongs, and is where he spends much of his set. As the sweating vocalist repeatedly dives into the chaos of arms, the many men in blue fruitlessly return him to the stage. The lesson learned? You can take the man out of the sea, but as the bouncers commonly found, you can’t take the sea out of the man. HAYLEY YOUNG

The West Marginals
Literary nerds went to the Stranger’s evening variety show to feel good about their pedigree. The West Marginals’, who based all their tunes on novels, abounded in inside jokes known only to token English majors: “This song is about Rupert Brooke, an early modern poet. He looked like William Butler Yeats, if Yeats were attractive.” (Laughter). “Apparently, he was the heart-throb of the time; he was a lover of Virginia Wolf.” (A pause) “And if that didn’t make him crazy, I don’t know what would.” (Laughter).  Then it was on to a ballad entitled “Zombie Fetus Baby Twin” about an embryo eating his brother. RACHEL DOVEY

!!! (KEXP Secret Show)
“I’m not really sure what’s going on. Are we on the radio right now?” A convincing question posed by a fantastic shaker of the booty. As Chuck Walters winces to the second live F-bomb dropped by !!!’s vocalist Nic Offer, members of the tightly packed KEXP live performance stage fill the side rows to join in the movement. Chair dancing consumes the elevated seating as the energy of !!! infects the atmosphere. As sweat begins to mist off of Offer’s forehead, he moves his dance to the pit of the stage where a frenzy of cameras swarm hoping to capture his intensity. The crowd explodes with laughter as Offer spreads his legs and lets the weight of his pelvis fall, essentially “tea-bagging” an unsuspecting member of the media with his dance. The camera survives as the hysterical sight joins the memory books for this fantastic performance. HAYLEY YOUNG

Beck
After an hour of being jostled, flashed and towered over at Beck, we walked up through the stadium and into the bleachers. It was cold, the sound-quality wasn’t that great, and there was no beer garden. Then, the lights went blue, and the melodies of “Golden Age” floated up to us. Singing along, sitting on that bumpy bleachers, safely out of the throngs, I got what I came for. RACHEL DOVEY

Sunday


Photos by Hayley Young

Forro in the Dark, Orgone
As the day stretched into the afternoon, I found myself at the Fisher Green stage for Forrro In The Dark and Orgone. Forrro In The Dark is an outfit from South America, mainly Brazil, and they brought with them an upbeat rhythm-driven performance, with many of the songs ending in the five members chanting some chorus in Portuguese. The hippies were dancing with their multi-colored tapestries, the sun was out, and all was a mighty fine festival experience. Forrro In The Dark then left the stage, the hippies kept dancing, and Orgone came on in true jam band style, eight members deep. Though Orgone takes their influences from all over, its Latin roots were evident, especially during their second song, where the band members took turns playing lead. The song was about 15 minutes long, and the hippies kept on dancing…ERIN RESSO

The Black Keys
The Black Keys are a force to be reckoned with live. Frontman Dan Auerbach was wiry and electric, his voice gritty and spot-on, and drummer Patrick Carney beat the hell out of his drums throughout the performance, which is why it is too bad that they had to play the mainstage. When it comes to guitars, there is good feedback, and then there is bad feedback. Something tells me that Auerbach knows all about the good kind of feedback, and that the sound design of the main stage is what made the duo sound as if they were 2 miles away, underwater. The man standing next to me, a Rolling Stones era rock and roll relic, didn’t seem to mind, pleading for Akron, OH (the whole city, not just the band, apparently) to show Seattle what a good time is. ERIN RESSO

Final Fantasy
After dealing with the debacle that is getting out of the mainstage, I couldn’t think of a more perfect counter-balance than the quiet little nook of the Wells Fargo stage, a small oasis from the rest of the festival craziness. I also couldn’t imagine a more perfect act to play it than Owen Pallet. The show was perfect; Pallet seemed a little nervous, but the crowd was there to cheer him on. Also performing on stage was a visual artist who used a classroom projector and various cut-outs and transparencies to create some visual poetry. Both artists were very humble, yet clearly masters of their art. It was the only performance of the day was able to transcend the festival experience. ERIN RESSO

Minutes before taking the Wells Fargo stage an anxious Owen Pallett, the one man looping string band of Final Fantasy, paced in and out of his private dressing tent. Pallett’s anxiety soon proved itself to be a direct result of great passion and loyalty to his work as it began to unfold across the blanket of wide-eyed hopefuls before him. Intricately placing each note into the weave of his layered constructions, a devoted audience accepted his offerings with great gratitude. Accompanied by vocals, cheers and breaks of shouting encouragement from his fans, Final Fantasy laid the day to rest with his songs of love and fear in a performance that served all with the tenderness of a melodic lullaby. HAYLEY YOUNG

Howlin’ Rain
A mid-afternoon sun found Bumbershoot-goers collecting thoughts and zzzz before the Rockstar Stage. While a growing group of Howlin’ Rain fans found the front of the stage, a growing number of beer garden fans began their hour of happiness. The scene was reminiscent of a rural family BBQ, hanging out in your dad’s backyard with a cold one while a sound you can both agree on hums from a distant source. Hooray for summer, for beer, and for gigantic patties of beef. HAYLEY YOUNG

Sons and Daughters
Seattle found itself some solid admirers in the musical talents of Sons and Daughters. “Detroit hated us,” Adele Bethel told the audience. Apparently North Carolina was less than hospitable too. While reminiscing about their recent Neumos show, Bethel publicly gave a shout out to Seattle natives Mudhoney. Apparently Sons and Daughters got the opportunity to hang out with the band they deemed as one of their great favorites, and being the gentlemen they are, Mudhoney fed them drinks throughout the evening. “I’m quenching my thirst with a cold beer,” stated the lovely Scottish vocalist during a small break between songs. It was clear that Seattle and Scotland should kick it more often. HAYLEY YOUNG

The Weakerthans
Without a doubt, the Exhibition Hall is the worst place for a good band to play at Bumbershoot. In order to put on a solid show in this venue, the band has to come to terms with the fact that in all reality, they are rocking out in an oversized dungeon, tucked away in the north side of Seattle Center. Canadian flag-bearers the Weakerthans did just that with its late afternoon set. Vocalist/guitarist John K. Samson joked with the crowd, “This song is for the curlers .There’s 1,000,000 curlers in the world, most of them are in Canada. But I think Seattle has a curling team, too.” The three guitarist power fueled the catchy hooks with that much more oompf and it was very obvious the band was having a good time too, playing to the crowd, rocking back to back and striking tongue-in-cheek rock star poses. The crowd loved it. But let’s just hope that next time they won’t be exiled to the dungeon.KEVIN DIERS

Monday


Photos by Hayley Young

John Vanderslice Live on KEXP.
Monday started off quiet and unassuming enough, with John Vanderslice playing a short set live on KEXP. Accompanied by Daniel Hart (from Physics of Meaning and St. Vincent), Vanderslice’s simple guitar stylings were elevated in harmony with Hart’s modest yet masterful violin, and together the instruments proved a dutiful partner in backing Vanderslice’s nature-thick lyrical imagery. Making several mentions of the children’s theater in which this show took place, Vanderslice took it upon himself to get two audience members up on stage to lead in hand-clapping, and for a minute there, the room felt as though it was full not of weary twenty-somethings, but of singing, clapping, and stomping children, sharing their revelry with all in attendance. ERIN RESSO

Langhorne Slim
Festivals are perfect places for the short attention span, all-purpose music fan. Especially at Bumbershoot, where the stages are relatively close together, it’s easy to sit in one place for 10 minutes, then run to the next stage for half a set. Somehow, though, Langhorne Slim managed to keep this reporter in one place for an entire hour, rocking out, completely enthralled. The sing-alongs didn’t quite hold, the beach balls being tossed around didn’t quite catch on. But, Langhorne Slim and the War Eagles played hard against their impressive bass solos and anti-folk verses. They proved just how hard a folksinger can rock. KIM RUEHL

Kristen Ward
Many folks probably headed to the Wells Fargo Stage mid-day to catch Joshua Morrison, only to find that Morrison had canceled and local singer-songwriter Kristen Ward was there in his stead. Since she had performed one of this reporter’s favorite least-attended sets way back at the Capitol Hill Block Party, it was great to see a surprise repeat at Bumbershoot. Her songs are so incredibly sad and quiet, her harmonies so tight and sincere. This was the best, most heartbreaking set you didn’t even know you missed. KIM RUEHL

Blitzen Trapper
Loyal congregation abound, Blitzen Trapper’s casual presence holds hands with their hospitable chord progressions during their afternoon set at the Rockstar Stage. The weekend has taken its toll on the stage floor, as a trail blazed by those before them lay throughout the grounds. Comprising a good amount of the performance are new works by BT. After declaring this years Bumbershoot as the best festival they’ve ever been to, Marty Marquis asks his fellow band mates if they’d be down to try a never-played-live piece. Rather than a response, guitarists Erik Menteer and Michael VanPelt simply set their instruments down, light themselves a smoke and cop a squat right on the stage: a silent indication that the song will be played, no questions asked. HAYLEY YOUNG

Feral Children
“This is the longest sound check we’ve ever gotten!” exclaims a member of Feral Children, the youngest addition to Sarathan Record’s “independent” talent. Introduced by KEXP as “one of the best live performances you’ll see in Seattle,” the boys take the stage occupied by a number of processional instruments, from two drum sets stage-front to a large empty keg just beyond. Without any introduction, it is clear that the energy of the performance will derive from the beating of these toys. Ironically, perfect sound check withstanding, a number of obstacles would taunt the performers throughout. A broken bass string, a dead note on their keyboard, drums that refused to stay in place and a faulty delay pedal would only exult Feral Children as professionals in live performance. As the last song begins, a member of the press leaves the front line only to return with another in tow. Taking advantage of the open space of the pit, the two join the crowded room of fans in dancing their asses off one last time. HAYLEY YOUNG

Black Eyes and Neckties
“This group is bringing danger back to Rock and Roll.” An intimidating welcome as Black Eyes and Neck Ties enter the Sky Church stage. Vocalist Bradley Horror is limping on a foot cast, taking his place in front of a vacant wheelchair center stage. This becomes the first of many reckless exchanges for Horror and his chair on wheels, as the song begins climatically with his free fall backwards into the target. Wheeling around from one mic to the next, utilizing a number of props and momentum, Horror encourages the crowd to fall in line with his rock and roll behavior. With lights flashing, the six members of BENt screaming and all the random shit on the stage flying off of it, an apple hits the front of the pit from behind, spewing bits of the original owner’s saliva into the air. The apple had only been robbed of two bites before it was sacrificed to the task at hand. Perplexed, those in the pit let it slide, focusing again on the crazy group of kids on stage, busy bringing the ruckus back to Seattle old school style. HAYLEY YOUNG

Dan Deacon
It was the show I was waiting for, and Deacon delivered. Having expectations of playing outside, Deacon was sans his ‘green trippy skull’ and other light accoutrements, but was definitely up to the task of using the entire space of the rather large exhibition hall, and did so with his usual crowd fun and games. Deacon opened the show by leading the crowd, hands held in the air, to chant “You gotta keep ‘em separated” (more Offspring jokes to follow), and the largely underage audience ate it up; so did everyone else, for that matter. Deacon is infectious. Positive, funny, and most importantly, self-aware, Deacon compared to himself to repeats of Seinfeld, as in the same jokes over and over again. While his schtick seems to be wearing thin for critical fodder and industry attention (though obviously not so for the kids in the crowd), Deacon plans to up the ante. In my (email) conversation him back in July, Deacon mentioned dropping some of the ‘wacky’ element of his music and putting more focus on live instrumentation. We’re ready, Dan. ERIN RESSO

Battles
Another highly anticipated show, Battles took to the Broad St stage around 7:45PM, and for about an hour, gave us one of the highlight performances of the festival. Having seen them play in a small club in Orlando, I was excited to be able to see the members’ entire bodies, as each of them truly play with their entire being. As front-man Tyondai Braxton and lead guitar Ian Williams cut notes out of thin air with the necks of their guitars, drummer John Stanier played the hell out of his drum kit with better-than-machine-like precision, holding a hi-hat eight-note pattern for what seemed like an hour as the band regrouped around him during ‘Race In’. Battles is a band somewhat out of place in the environ of Bumbershoot - heady, noisy, lyric-less, and relatively inaccessible to the uninitiated, but the crowd in attendance seemed ready for it, even though it did take the band’s most well known single “Atlas” to finally get some feet moving. After the show, I was planning to head over to see Death Cab, but instead decided to call it quits, letting my memories of the festival this year end on a high note. ERIN RESSO