Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Supporting Gloss Drop and Dross Glop, Battles have scheduled a new leg of U.S. tour dates for June. Check out their full schedule below.

Battles 2012 Tour Dates:
06/02 – Chicago, IL @ The Bottom Lounge
06/03 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
06/04 – Millvale, PA @ Mr. Smalls Theatre
06/05 – Columbus, OH @ Outland Live
06/06 – Cincinnati, OH @ Bogarts
06/07 – Detroit, MI @ St. Andrews Hall
06/09 – Manchester, TN @ Bonnaroo Music Festival
06/10 – Carrboro, NC @ Cat’s Cradle
06/11 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat
06/12 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
06/23 – Denver, CO @ Westword Music Showcase
06/28-07/01 – Rothbury, MI @ Electric Forest
07/05 – Porto, PT @ Super Bock Super Rock
07/07 – London, UK @ BLOC Weekend
07/13 – Dour, BE @ Dour Festival
07/14 – Suffolk, UK @ Latitude Festival
08/03 – Lille, FR @ Les Nuits
08/05 – Katowice, PL @ OFF Festival 

The two of us talked about the band beginning work on their latest album and looked over the history of Built to Spill, including the band’s relationship with their label Warner Brothers. We find out if there is anything on the horizon for The Halo Benders, his project with Beat Happening’s Calvin Johnson, and we visit his solo efforts, including a contribution to a Smiths tribute album.

Featured Music:
01. Jack White – “Sixteen Saltines” (excerpt), “On and On and On” (excerpt)
02. Moonface – “Heartbreaking Bravery” (excerpt), “Teary Eyes and Bloody Lips” (excerpt)
03. Battles – “Wall Street (Gui Boratto remix)” (excerpt), “Toddler (Kangding Ray remix)” (excerpt)
04. Bassnectar – “Va Va Voom” (excerpt), “Ugly” (excerpt)
05. Built to Spill – “Conventional Wisdom” (from You In Reverse), “Randy Described Eternity” (from Perfect From Now On
06. The Halo Benders – “Planned Obsolescence” (from Don’t Tell Me Now)
07. Built to Spill – “Time Trap” (from Keep It Like a Secret)
08. Doug Martsch – “Reel Around the Fountain” (from Please, Please, Please – A Tribute to the Smiths)

Audiography Episode 034 – “Doug Martsch (of Built to Spill)”
Written and Produced by Len Comaratta, Alex Young, Michael Roffman, Adam Kivel, Katjusa Cisar, Bryant Kitching, David DiLillo, Nick Freed and Derek Staples.

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Are you enjoying Audiography? Subscribe to the Podcast via iTunes!

All the hands involved in the morphing of Gloss Drop to Dross Glop give the album the disjointed vibe of a collection, not an album. Some of the tracks are downright ugly listening — like the stuttering EYE remix of “Sundome” that wavers like a mirage — but a few gems shine through.

Overall, Dross Glop has a downtipped fedora and steely jaw, a noir remaking of its inspiration. Opening track “Wall Street”, by Brazilian producer Gui Boratto, is the most accessible and enjoyable on the album. The seven-minute dance track has a conspiratorial edge, evoking a cat-and-mouse chase through dark streets or the first streaks of light in the sky at an all-night party. Pushing it forward is a bass beat that comes in with the awesome power of a fleet of synchronized rowers. Patrick Mahoney and Dennis McNany’s “My Machines” also works well. The duo stretches out the melody with reverb in a way that isolates the eerie beauty of Gary Numan’s cold mantra, “Welcome to my machines/Come inside my machines.” It never loses focus or turns tiresome, even after nine minutes.

The nervous pitch of the album reaches a nauseous highpoint with Kangding Ray’s smooth remix of “Toddler”. The slurry of minor chords tinkles with a pristine clarity that manages to soothe and disturb simultaneously. Gang Gang Dance takes “Ice Cream” with a furrowed-brow cacophony of percussion: whips, snaps, clucks, squeals, unidentifiable bonks. It’s a fun remix, but leeched of the sexual exuberance of the original. Still, even when the remixes don’t come up with anything particularly groundbreaking to say, it’s interesting to hear Gloss Drop through new ears.

Essential Tracks: “Wall Street” (Gui Boratto Remix) and “My Machines” (Dennis McNany Remix)

As we all surely know, festival season is right around the corner, which means that bands are starting to put out those big albums that justify their place on the lineup with the songs that will fill up their setlists. This slate of tracks should whet your appetites for outdoor music, with big names including Liars, Dirty Projectors, GOOD Music, and more.

Battles – “Ice Cream” (Gang Gang Dance Remix)

Math-rock madmen Battles are clearly also big fans of dance music, and they’ve got a Record Store Day (April 21) release set for their fourth 12″ full of remixes from their last album. The Dross Glop series twists and flops the tunes just as cleverly as the title flips the Gloss Drop album title, and the Gang Gang Dance take on “Ice Cream” is especially nutty. Guest vocalist Matias Aguayo’s lines get looped and swirled, and the instrumental is almost entirely dropped in favor of tribal drums, spacy synths, and trippy sound effects (as is Gang Gang Dance’s wont). No longer the math rock raveup, this one is better suited to a trip through a neon jungle. -Adam Kivel

Black Moth Super Rainbow – “Spraypaint”

It’s been three years since Black Moth Super Rainbow released a proper LP (the trippy, droning Eating Us), but they certainly weren’t spending that time sitting on their hands doing nothing. Frontman Tobacco released solo material, as did band member The Seven Fields of Aphelion. But now they’re back, with “Spraypaint”, from an un-detailed upcoming fifth disc from the group. The song is undeniably a BMSR track (those sweeping, delay-riddled synths, the vocoded vocals), but it’s also one of their most straightforward efforts. Heck, the thing almost sounds like a pop song, Tobacco’s soft, airy voice drifting along sweetly. This cut is a cool breeze on a hot summer day, a stunningly built tune that points towards big things whenever the album becomes clearer. -Adam Kivel

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Conveyor – “Mane”

Brooklyn-based newcomers Conveyor have yet to drop a full-length album, but whenever they do, be assured we’ll be listening. Some of that has to do with new single “Mane”, a truly beautiful song built mostly around three- and four-note guitar riffs and strategically placed electric blips. Additionally, the vocals are damn pure, harmonizing and stretching out at will. No single part of the song stays around long enough to really grasp, but that’s partly the thrill of it all. Grab “Mane” in seven-inch form beginning May 15 via Gold Robot. -Mike Madden

[soundcloud width="500"]http://soundcloud.com/conveyortheband/sets/mane-single/s-90Iqp[/soundcloud]

Curren$y feat. Wale – “What It Look Like”

Just admit it: Curren$y has an incredible ear for beats. “What It Look Like” rides an instrumental akin to that of Kanye West’s Late Registration cut “We Major”: filled with pristine orchestration, heavenly harp included, it’s just crazy-smooth. Neither Spitta nor Wale is particularly interesting on the mic, but when the background sounds like this, they truly don’t need to be. Curren$y’s The Stoned Immaculate, wherein “What It Look Like” will appear, drops June 5th. Jets (and MMG), fool. -Mike Madden

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Dirty Projectors – “The Gun Has No Trigger”

Dave Longstreth and the rest of the Dirty Projectors (minus the “on hiatus” Angel Deradoorian) are soon to return with Swing Lo Magellan (due July 10th from Domino), their first full-length since 2009′s stellar Bitte Orca. The first taste from the new LP, “Gun Has No Trigger” melds aspects of super-early Dirty Projectors material (Longstreth lithely singing over a slinky rhythm a la The Glad Fact) and their most recent release, the Bjork-collaborative EP Mount Wittenberg Orca (sparse accompaniment and lots of powerful female backing vocals). “The safety’s off, but the gun has no trigger,” Longstreth exclaims, the hint of noir giving the track a real sense of mysterious power. -Adam Kivel

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/41218921" iframe="true" /]

Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros – “That’s What’s Up”

The free-wheeling fun of the retro folk-rock of Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros garnered a lot of attention (a few commercials and festival appearances didn’t hurt either). The L.A. based group provide more of that formula on “That’s What’s Up”, the second track released from their forthcoming sophomore disc, Here (due May 29th, from Community Music/Vagrant). Sung in two-part harmony, Jade Castrinos yowls and crows one half while Alex Ebert provides the sunny, mellow counterpart. The tune wouldn’t feel out of place on 60s AM radio, a comfortable warmth that sounds familiar even on first listen. -Adam Kivel

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/41784660" iframe="true" /]

G.O.O.D. Music (Kanye West, Pusha T, Big Sean & 2 Chainz – “Mercy”

This spot could well have gone to “Theraflu”, the kinetic PETA-provoking solo track West dropped early in the week. However, “Mercy” is in every way more interesting, even if it’s not necessarily a better song. Kicking off the new G.O.O.D. Fridays series, the track begins with a screwed, pitched-down vocal sample and cyclical synth; by the end, it evolves seamlessly into a kind of borderline-trance. Similar to “Monster”, a song first released during the last G.O.O.D. Fridays go-round, each MC here gets his own isolated bars, some of which are wholly satisfying (Yeezy: “Talkin’ like Mary, she gone off that Molly/Now the whole party is meltin’ like Dali”) while others are holistically bland (2 Chainz: “My money tall like Jordan”). No matter, it all lends even more anticipation to the forthcoming G.O.O.D. Music album, from which the track comes. Stream it now at West’s website, or download your own copy via iTunes. -Mike Madden

Japandroids – “Jack the Ripper” (Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds cover)

Between their renditions of Big Black’s “Racer X” and Mclusky’s “To Hell with Good Intentions”, Japandroids have been able to pull off commendable covers in addition to their thrashing originals. And with the release of “Jack the Ripper”, that claim is supported ever further. Originally appearing as something of an electric blues on Nick Cave and the Bad Seeds’ Henry’s Dream, the track here becomes a sprawling blast of fuzz, with the vocals becoming decreasingly submerged as it all moves along. Check it out as the B-side of the “The House That Heaven Built” seven-inch, and don’t forget Japandroids’ Celebration Rock drops May 4 via Polyvinyl. -Mike Madden

Kendrick Lamar feat. Dr. Dre – “The Recipe”

Finally. We’ve been hearing for months about Lamar working with Dr. Dre, and “The Recipe” is the first concrete evidence of the Compton natives’ partnership. The song, produced by Scoop DeVille and actually Lamar’s first official single, is truly a grower, six minutes of nuances and deep cadences that revolve mostly around a female vocal loop and fairly stock drums. As Grantland’s Amos Barshad points out, Dre’s verses were probably ghostwritten by Lamar. But none of it feels contrived. Is six minutes too generous for a rap song? Not with these guys. Lamar’s Aftermath debut, Good Kid in a Mad City, drops later this year. -Mike Madden

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/41809155" iframe="true" /]

Liars – “No. 1 Against the Rush”

The fun-to-try-to-pronounce forthcoming album from Liars, WIXIW, is the noise rock group’s first in two years (due June 5th via Mute.) The disc is supposed to be simultaneously their “most accessible and most challenging release,” and first listen “No. 1 Against the Rush” is a lurching bit of electronic melancholy eeriness, retro synths and frontman Angus Andrew’s smoky vocals fighting for attention. -Adam Kivel

[soundcloud url="http://api.soundcloud.com/tracks/41770005" iframe="true" /]

For Record Store Day (April 21st), Battles will release Dross Glop 4, the last entry in their 12″ remix series. Side A includes remixes of “Ice Cream” by Gang Gang Dance and “Rolls Bayce” by Hudson Mohawke, both of which are streaming below. Side B features a remix of “My Machines” by former LCD Soundystem member Pat Mahoney and Dennis McNany.

A Dross Glop album compiling all 11 remixes from the series will be available on CD and digital download on April 17th.

The 11th annual Bonnaroo Music Festival runs June 7-10th in Manchester, Tennessee. This year’s bill is headlined by Radiohead, Red Hot Chili Peppers, Phish, and the reunited Beach Boys, with Bon Iver, The Shins, Dispatch, Foster the People, The Avett Brothers, Skrillex, Feist, and Aziz Ansari among the other heavyweights.

Other notables include The Roots, Ben Folds Five, Black Star, Alice Cooper, St. Vincent, Mogwai, Major Lazer, Flying Lotus, Alabama Shakes, Dawes, Flogging Molly, Childish Gambino, Ludacris, tUnE-yArDs, SBTRKT, Battles, Black Lips, Kendrick Lamar, Danny Brown, The Joy Formidable, Young the Giant, Kurt Vile and The Violators, EMA, The Antlers, Delta Spirit, Das Racist, The War on Drugs, Laura Marling, Here We Go Magic,  Yelawolf, and Mac Miller.

Also playing are Umphey’s McGee, The Word (featuring Robert Randolph, John Medeski, and North Mississippi Allstars), Bad Brains, Mariachi El Bronx, The Devil Makes Three, Charles Bradley and his Extraordinaires, Gary Clark Jr., Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, Kathleen Edwards, Phantogram, Two Door Cinema Club, Fitz and the Tantrums, The Civil Wars, City and Colour, The Kooks, Big Freedia, K-Flay, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., Grouplove, White Denim, SOJA, Big Gigantic, Fruit Bats, Moon Taxi, The Soul Rebels, The Lonely Forest, ALO, Blind Pilot, Ben Howard, Trampled By Turtles, Mimosa, and Spectrum Road (featuring Santana, John Medeski, Jack Bruce, Cindy Blackman, and Vernon Reid.)

This year also promises another one of Bonnaroo’s trademark superjams; however, the participating artists have yet to be announced.

In all, over 125 bands and 20 comedians will perform across 13 stages during the four-day event. Additional artists and comedians will be revealed in the coming weeks. Below, you can watch the lineup announced by ESPN’s John Anderson.

Tickets go on sale beginning Saturday, February 18th at Noon ET via the festival’s website.

Update: Here’s the poster:

Battles is following up last year’s Gloss Drop with a four-part remix series, aptly entitled Dross Glop. As previously reported, part one features contributions from The Field and Gui Boratto. Today, the lineup for part two was revealed: Side A features remixes of “Futura” by The Alchemist and “White Electric” by Shabazz Palaces, and Side B packs a remix of “Africastle” by Kode9. As an early taste, Shabazz Palace’s track is streaming below.

Both Dross Glop 1 and 2 will be released on 12″ vinyl by Warp Records on Ferbuary 21st. You can also subscribe to the entire series at Bleep.com.

The sucessor to the infamous Rothbury Music Festival, Electric Forest returns for its second-go around from June 28th – July 1st in Rothbury, Michigan. Much like its inaugural year, jam veterans String Cheese Incident will headline the festivities, playing three sets over the course of the weekend. This year, they’ll be joined by Bassnectar, STS9 (who will play two shows), Girl Talk, Thievery Corporation, and Santigold.

Other notable acts include Major Lazer, Ghostland Observatory, Richie Hawtin, Wolfgang Gartner, Das Racist, Zeds Dead, Big Gigantic, Datsik, Steve Aoki, Reggie Watts, Battles, Pictureplane, EOTO, Ivan Neville’s Dumpstaphunk, 12th Planet, Glass Candy, Gramatik, Chromatics, Balkan Beat Box, Paper Diamond, Borgore, and Chali 2na & the House of Vibe, among others. Check out the complete lineup at Festival Outlook.

GA and VIP passes are now available via the festival’s website.

Battles will follow up last year’s Gloss Drop with a four-part remix series, aptly titled Dross Glop. Part one is out February 21st on 12″ vinyl, and packs remixes of “Wall Street” by Gui Boratto and “Swettie & Shag” by  The Field. Stream both tracks below.

Stay tuned for info on the other three installments. You can also subscribe to the entire series at Bleep.com.

“Wall Street” (Gui Boratto remix):

“Swettie & Shag” (The Field remix):

Brooklyn experimental pop outfit Dinosaur Feathers released its debut LP, Fantasy Memorial, in 2009. At the time, the album’s tropical vibe and sunny instrumentation were right at home amongst similar-sounding acts also on the rise. Since then, the group has toured relentlessly and reconfigured their own sensibilities for their latest LP, Whistle Tips, due out April 10th via Ernest Jenning.

According to press for the LP, the band haven’t left the beach-esque sound behind entirely. Rather, they’ve infused it with influences from The Soft Boys, The Olivia Tremor Control, XTC, and Paul McCartney’s Wings. For a signpost as to where they’re headed sonically, the band has shared the album track “Untrue”. The jangly guitar line and saccharine harmonies fit right in with the bubbly cuts off their debut, but there’s a clear maturity to the track, thanks to some slight infusion of noisier elements, and songwriting that’s relatable without being overly mushy. Stream it now over at Paste.com.

The band will be on tour this spring, sharing the stage with the likes of Built to Spill, Battles, of Montreal, Lucero, and more. Peep the full tour schedule just after the album tracklist.

Whistle Tips Tracklist:
01. Young Bucks
02. SURPRISE!
03. Boats
04. Certain Times
05. City Living
06. Beatcha
07. Cure for Silence
08. Untrue
09. Pillars
10. Your Move
11. No Man’s Gospel

Dinosaur Feathers 2012 Tour Dates:
02/28 – Philadelphia, PA @ Johnny Brendas
02/29 – Washington, DC @ Black Cat Backstage *
03/01 – Baltimore, MD @ Metro Gallery *
03/02 – Charlottesville, VA @ Twisted Branch Tea Bazar *
03/03 – Raleigh, NC @ King’s Baracade *
03/04 – Atlanta, GA @ 529 *
03/06 – Athens, GA @ Caledonia Lounge *
03/07 – Savannah, GA @ Savannah Stop Over at Jepson Center ^
03/08 – Baton Rouge, LA @ Spanish Moon %
03/09 – New Orleans, LA @ One Eyed Jack’s %
03/11 – Denton, TX @ Denton 35 Festival %&
03/12 – Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s %#
03/13-18 – Austin, TX @ SXSW
03/20 – Englewood, CO @ Moe’s
03/22 – Boise, ID @ Tree Fort Festival %!
03/23 – Seattle, WA @ Tractor Tavern ~
03/24 – Cottage Grove, OR @ The Axe and Fiddle ~
03/25 – Portland, OR @ Mississippi Studios ~
04/04 – Minneapolis, MN @ 400 Bar
04/05 – Milwaukee, WI @ Cactus Club $
04/06 – Chicago, IL @ Empty Bottle
04/07 – Toledo, OH @ Frankie’s
04/11 – Boston, MA @ Church
04/12 – Portland, ME @ Empire *
04/13 – Hamden, CT @ The Outer Space *
04/14 – Brooklyn, NY @ Glasslands *

* = w/ Grandchildren
^ = w/ Oberhoffer
% = w/ Built To Spill
& = w/ Battles
# = w/ Lucero
! = w/ Of Montreal and Blitzen Trapper
~ = w/ Loch Lomond
$ = w/ Control, Shy Mirrors

I promised the staff I would not go all Masterpiece Theater with this intro, so I’ll be brief. Our Annual Report has reached its halfway point with our Top 50 Songs of the Year. The many flags of our staff are hoisted high — and we couldn’t be happier with what we’re saluting. From Cults’ very first song to Tom Waits’ thousandth song, we put up the tracks that left us with more thoughts, feelings, and impressions than any other. We think we done good.

But just to make sure the world still spins on its axis, let us know what you think we missed from our list and what you liked in the comments. We thrive on that stuff.

Additionally, we’ve got the de rigueur Top 50 Songs of the Year Spotify playlist for you, a quick link to purchase the song on Amazon, and an easy ctrl-c +ctrl-v list for you at the very end immediately following our #1 song of the year.

As always, our profuse thanks for reading, enjoy these tunes, and we’ll see you again next week for the second half of our 2011 Annual Report.

-Jeremy D. Larson
Content Director

50. Ellie Goulding – “Lights”

At age 24, Ellie Goulding’s folktronica turned heads across the world, especially with “Lights”. Remixed from here to high heaven by killer producers, sampled by Lupe Fiasco for his latest mixtape, and dropped by DJs looking to get well-dressed girls on the dance floors from the Bay Area to Eastern Europe, its appeal lies in its honest vocals, minimalistic beats, and stark, raving energy. It’s Goulding’s first charting single in the U.S. and Canada, and judging from the widespread allure (and the thousands who camped near her stage at festivals nationwide), it likely won’t be her last. -Paul de Revere

49. Cults – “Go Outside”

Going from relative obscurity to indie stardom isn’t anything new, but the way Madelline Follin and Brian Oblivion of Cults did it with such New York coolness and style still seemed incredibly refreshing. By the time the mainstream caught wind of Follin’s adorably unique, helium-filled balloon voice, “Go Outside” was already a bona fide song of the summer contender. Its lyrics are like a mantra for anyone in a going-nowhere relationship, delivered in an irresistibly sweet, poppy tone. And how can you not dig that crazy glockenspiel solo? -Gilles LeBlanc

48. Big K.R.I.T. – “Country Shit” (Remix)

The original version of “Country Shit” showed up on last year’s K.R.I.T. Wuz Here, but this remix, featuring all-new bars from Ludacris and Bun B, goes harder in every way. Over a chopped and looped vocal sample and thunderous bass, K.R.I.T. delivers an unusually aggressive verse for “the folk in Texas that’s forever wreckin’ with the Styrofoam cup and the purple fluid.” This is a rave-up, no doubt, and it just might be the greatest Dixie rap get-together this side of “Int’l Players Anthem”. -Mike Madden

47. Mikal Cronin – “Apathy”

So much good came out of the fertile ground of the San Francisco psych/garage scene this year, and Mikal Cronin’s debut LP may be best in show simply because he’s got the hooks. “Apathy” digs in with stopgap verses and a vintage 60’s underground sound. Cronin is wrestling with that all-too-real twentysomething identity crisis; he’s a man who’s sure he doesn’t want apathy or empathy. Or everything. Or anything. His generation struggles with defining themselves, and finding a fine line between slacker and sincere is difficult. This loud and splashy confession pretty much nails that frustration. -Jeremy D. Larson

46. Cold Cave – “The Great Pan Is Dead”

The primal themes and screams of Wesley Eisold on “The Great Pan Is Dead” could have been penned by the Vikings or the Huns or some dodgy Germanic tribe. It’s ostentatious like an arena song with more than enough of Eisold’s hardcore/noise/new wave bent to make it sound like it could have been out on Wax Trax! Records. “Yeah/I will come running/gunning through the years/hunting heart/crushing fears,” except Eisold makes it seem like he’s going to do this while completely on fire. All the while, at its core, it’s just a romantic ode to someone who warrants truly epic imagery — imagery that would fall flat without the high-stakes propulsion of the music below it. If love songs are played in Valhalla, this may be the only thing allowed. -Jeremy D. Larson

45. Das Racist – “Michael Jackson”

“I’m fucking great at rapping!” With those five words, Himanshu “Heems” Suri embraces the new identity that he, Victor “Kool A.D.” Vazquez, and Ashok “Dap” Kondabolu have forged as Das Racist. Where elsewhere they’ll make you wonder whether this whole rap thing is just a lark, here D.R. take the simple to the nth degree. Whether it’s that ultimately basic brag, the “Michael Jackson/a million dollars/you hear me?/holler” chorus, or A.D.’s lithe “You go girl, it’s your world”, this song embraces the brilliance of simplicity. The beat kills, and references to Richie Valens, “Parenthood”, and McGuyver all smashed together somehow just makes sense. -Adam Kivel

44. The Horrors – “Still Life”

To be one of the 50 best songs of the year, at least one element of your introduction has to grab attention. With “Still Life”, The Horrors gave us three options. There’s the wobbly tape loop that gradually fades in, the body-vibrating drumbeat, and the bell curve synth melody. All that before we even get to the vocals! Faris Badwan sounds cautious, almost fragile, in the speak-sing verses. Once the chorus kicks in and the melody lights up, though, he richly belts out line after line, guaranteeing a sing-along from even the most casual fan. -Joe Marvilli

43. Bill Callahan – “Riding for the Feeling”

Bill Callahan is one of America’s most low-profile existentialists. “Riding for the Feeling” is a great example of why. Callahan’s smooth baritone lightly jogs along his own acoustic strumming, impressionistic organ, reverb-soaked electric guitars, and salt-and-pepper drums to craft a statement of beautiful futility. Mr. Callahan is capital letters THE TRUTH, and he spits a lot of it: “With intensity, a drop evaporates by law/In conclusion, leaving is easy when you’ve got some place to be.” How ’bout that for some cold, hard facts? But as the song progresses, it becomes clearer and clearer that the place Callahan has to be doesn’t really exist–that he’s just riding somewhere else, merely riding for the feeling. And so are we. -Drew Litowitz

42. Dum Dum Girls – “Coming Down”

A single of anguish, “Coming Down” is the side of Dum Dum Girls no one has ever seen. During the six-minute ballad, the ladies leave the mystery of their personas to find bliss in the wake of something awful, the death of front woman Dee Dee Penny’s mother. The same fuzz can still be found, but this time there’s more emotion and urgency. Penny wanted fans to feel something, and it’s hard not to at 3:31 with Penny’s declarations of departure. Lo-fi becomes a thing of careful beauty on “Coming Down”. -Lauren Rearick

41. Lykke Li – “I Follow Rivers”

Though it’s called Wounded Rhymes, Lykke Li’s second LP could have easily been titled Wounded Rhythms. For proof, take a listen to “I Follow Rivers”. The melody drunkenly sways alongside her vocals, ranging from subdued verses to triumphant choruses. Clanging, hollow beats don’t just stick to the tempo, but occasionally flair and boost the background up. The woozy synth line remains laid-back but isn’t sloppy. Instead, it loosely drives the song forward without becoming the focal point. That’s saved for Lykke Li’s playful performance. On an album with as many heavy songs as this one has, that’s certainly a breath of fresh air. -Joe Marvilli

40. Wilco – “One Sunday Morning”

Jeff Tweedy warns us that this majestic 12-minute closer to The Whole Love is long in the very first line, but it’s a caution that proves to be moot. Despite the length and refusing to change its basic rhythm or structure, the song never tires, keeping the listener’s attention by sneaking in layer upon layer of instrumentation at strategic moments, then pulling it away. The whispering patter of Mikael Jorgensen’s piano may not drive the melody but blossoms and wilts at the mention of key words like “bells” and “the Bible.” Lyrically, it’s in the same vein as Sky Blue Sky closer “On and On”, a meditation on the relationship between Jeff Tweedy and a past acquaintance that only they understand. But its autumnal feel and confessional tone mean something different to everyone, the perfect tune for looking back on the year in non-linear terms. -Dan Caffrey

39. Liturgy – “Generation”

Brooklyn’s Liturgy have spent the last couple of years working up quite the shitstorm in metal circles for their admittedly ostentatious attempts at re-conceptualizing the genre from the ground up in what they call “transcendental black metal”. Critical response to their latest LP Aesthethica, was pretty much split down the middle largely for that reason. But all talk about the band’s perceived pretension is shot to bits by the initial blast of noise that kick off the album’s best track, the starkly minimal instrumental “Generation”. Seven minutes of blazing guitars and cracking snares, this slab of molten no-wave fury is more akin to early-day Swans than anything remotely “transcendental”, or even “black metal” for that matter. Even so, they’ve catalyzed progress and conversation in a genre that has, for decades now, stagnated in Norse Mythology and church burning scandals. Who says you need corpse paint to rock? -Möhammad Choudhery

38. Washed Out – “Amor Fati”

Washed Out’s Ernest Greene continues to distance himself from chillwave, creating one of the year’s most danceable tracks in “Amor Fati”. Fans have come to expect an inclusion of synths, but it’s the addition of an infectious chorus from Greene that makes for an unexpected moment of pop. The prominent vocals provide a break of warmth from the chillwave lull of its counterparts. Its latin title “amor fati” translates to love of fate. If this is where Greene’s destined, we’re lovestruck, too.   -Lauren Rearick

37. Adele – “Rolling in the Deep”

Each year, there comes a song that is seemingly everywhere, from non-stop radio play to appearances in TV ads and basic cable shows. In 2011, that song was Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”. Musically, it appealed to a plethora of audiences, as if it were assembled from an equal number of dark, bluesy soul tunes and light, airy disco tracks. The vocals are among Adele’s finest, with an undercurrent of immense wisdom driving forward the larger-than-life, emotionally devastated cries of pain and confusion. But it’s the song’s overall sentiment, of having immense romantic regrets and laying every last one of them on your ex, that made this cut such a massively universal experience. Rare is the track that can mend wounds and help sell the iPhone 4S, but “Rolling in the Deep” does all that and more. -Chris Coplan

36. AraabMUZIK – “Streetz Tonight”

Don’t let the trance label deter you. AraabMUZIK’s Electronic Dream is an atmospheric trip from beginning to end. Best experienced as a whole, there are moments that jump out from the rest, perhaps none more than “Streetz Tonight”. Here, AraabMUZIK dials back his trademark drum machine ingenuity in favor of woozy synth grooves and airy, simplistic female vocals for a different, more laid-back type of head rush. -Austin Trunick

35. Tom Waits – “Hell Broke Luce”

Listeners had to be surprised the first time they heard this jarring, psychotic, nightmarish romp through a combat zone. “Hell Broke Luce” takes the form of a deranged boot camp march (“I had a good home, but I left, right, left”), with the time between Waits’ grating barking filled with banging and clanging, in-and-out guitars, sampled machine gun fire, and even a tuba during one brief lull. Lyrics include drill sergeant/grunt vulgarities, embittered questioning of authority, and lines that suggest the soldier protagonist sees himself as forever severed from the person he was before the war. (“What did you do before the war? /I was a chef, I was a chef/And what was your name? It was Jeff, Jeff”). I have no basis to judge whether or not Waits has captured the hellish realities of war on “Hell Broke Luce”, but I can say that if you’re listening to this track while out walking, it’ll keep you in step. Left, right, left. –Matt Melis

34. Kurt Vile – “Jesus Fever”

Ars longa, vita brevis, as the old adage goes: “Art is long, life is short.” On Kurt Vile’s “Jesus Fever”, the heartland rocker deals with this inevitable fate, all over a jangly progression that feels curated by Lindsay Buckingham circa 1975. One biting line: “When I am a ghost, I’ll see no reason to run/When I’m already gone/If it wasn’t taped, you could escape this song/But I’m already gone.” The lesson? Art is forever. In the digital age – especially a booming one like this year’s – that line takes on a whole new meaning. Art is forever… and everywhere. Now, how meta would it be if kids are listening to this in 100 years? Guess we’ll never know. -Michael Roffman

33. The Black Keys – “Lonely Boy”

“These guys just don’t stop. The late-in-the-year arrival of “Lonely Boy” signaled a much anticipated dose of the Akron blues mongers, even though fans were still simmering from 2010’s Brothers. El Camino’s complete rip-roaring genius aside, the stealthy emergence of the lead single’s video of a solitary man dancing his ass off became an instant sensation as “Lonely Boy” could be heard leaking out from city bus riders’ headphones for a good week after its internet landing. And for good reason. The song is an infectious smack in the face of gritty blues riffs and powerful, rockabilly-influenced fury. Dan Auerbach’s muddy guitar rips into the single as Patrick Carney’s attack drums and a smattering of quirky backing keys propel the song into a spaced-out rock stratosphere where Mark Bolan and blues greats serve as ruling deities. As our own Harley Brown attests, the Keys are at the height of their game, and “Lonely Boy” is Exhibit-A of their zenith status. -Liz Lane

32. Battles – “Ice Cream”

When Gloss Drop single “Ice Cream” dropped, it was the test for many of whether Battles would be the same after losing frontman Tyondai Braxton. The verdict? Not exactly the same, but that is no disappointment. The track wades familiar territory for Battles while placing itself among the trio’s more accessible work. Guest vocalist Matias Aguayo shines with a keen impersonation of Braxton’s trademark vocal manipulation over an irresistible, glitchy two-chord jam. Recommended with a scoop of cake batter on a waffle cone, but maybe not in the bathtub. -J. Harry Painter

31. Kate Bush – “Wild Man”

50 Words for Snow is a rare album themed to winter holiday months while not being pigeonholed as a Christmas album. “Wild Man” is a testament to that. It’s a seven-minute journey through the snowy crags of Tibet, name-dropping countless faraway places and romanticizing the fabled Yeti as only Kate Bush could. That said, it’s a very different Bush song in a lot of ways, with guest vocalist Andy Fairweather Low providing the chorus and Bush swapping out her usual vocal stylings with a husky Mark Knopfler-esque dialogue for most of the track. The sweetness of Bush’s words and the song’s misty, musical veil make it easy to mistake “Wild Man” as a love song, but that’s not quite it. It’s a tribute to the mysteries still hidden in the natural world and the figments we chase, rounding the corners of distant hills, just out of reach. -Cap Blackard

30. Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire – “The Last Huzzah” (Remix)

This Mr Muthafuckin’ eXquire remix, paying homage to Craig Mack’s “Flava in Ya Ear remix”, dilutes the year’s cattle call of mixtapes, guest spots, and debut LPs down to the strongest collective showing from any five rappers on a single track. Everyone’s got their fuel, whether its Despot’s “vodka soda,” Danny Brown’s “straight shots of Cuervo,” or El-P’s “straight shots of Sterno.” The track’s an ode to getting lit up, a celebration of skill and saying, “Fuck it all.” If these five guys stumble into 2012 with this much moxy, the same as Biggie, Craig Mack, LL Cool J, and Busta Rhymes did back in 1994, they’ll be the ones coming up big and making great comebacks. -Jeremy D. Larson

“The Last Huzzah” (Remix) (feat. Despot, Das Racist, Danny Brown & El-P)

29. The Strokes – “Under Cover of Darkness”

It is the oft-used “return to form,” right? The yearning Julian Casablancas vocals and the doo-wop exchange between the guitarists and drummer Fab Moretti. Top it off with another great solo courtesy of Nick Valensi, and you have the makings of classic Strokes. We may not be talking about Angles years from now, but I’ll let you know the moment this song finally stops dancing around my head. -Justin Gerber

28. Beirut – “East Harlem”

The way Beirut toys with sense of place is so darn impish and charming. With the title and lyrics of “East Harlem”, you can’t tell whether Zach Condon is crooning about Amsterdam or New Amsterdam (NYC). Yet, at the same time, the details hardly matter. In this song about distance, you don’t know where you are for sure; you’re too lost in the sonic neighborhood or city block Condon has constructed. “Uptown, downtown” can seem like a “thousand miles between us” when you’re intent on studying the gorgeous detail of “East Harlem”, this city-song of blinding lights and gorgeous brass melodies. Go on, dwell in it. Stay awhile. -Paul de Revere

27. The War on Drugs – “Come to the City”

The anthemic centerpiece on one of the year’s most road-ready albums, “Come to the City” is to be played either with the windows down while  drifting along highways or in a stadium/field of a thousand pumping fists. It’s that kind of Arcade Fire-meets-Tom Petty power spun over reverberating organs and snapping drums that makes you want to lean your head out the car window and let the emotion wash over you with the wind. With Kurt Vile off on a solo career, frontman Adam Granduciel’s contemplative lyrics get to shine on their own. “I’ve been drinking up the sweet tea/It was made just for me,” he sings in a Dylan-esque warble. It was made for you, too, so drink up. -Benjamin Kaye

26. Frank Ocean – “Novacane”

If the majority of Odd Future is the id, then R&B crooner Frank Ocean is the ego. His depravity is just as endless, but he exemplifies his more reserved, complicated side on Nostalgia, Ultra standout “Novacane”. The beat is a monstrous amalgamation of hip-hop bass, random, glitchy noises, and, most important of all, a solid groove that sounds stuck between genres and intentions. Establishing a drug-fueled storyline involving porn stars and a trip gone bad, Ocean paints a picture of a stunted youth in search of the next big high to cure what ails him. The diagnosis for Ocean’s soul is grim, but the pursuit of absolution never sounded so intoxicating. -Chris Coplan

25. Girls – “Vomit”

“Vomit” is an anthem of solitude. Like Elliott Smith and Nirvana before him, Christopher Owens struggles with his own opiate addiction. This song is a declaration of an inescapable torment, an unanswered longing, a tender futility. The beginning guitar riff echoes with loneliness like a flickering lightbulb in a dark room. Owens repeats the line “looking for love” as he and Chet White descend into instrumental insanity: A guitar solo wracked with distortion erupts, an organ hums beneath, and melismas sound out through the song’s climax. “Vomit” is its own manifesto, expressing the belief that madness is freedom, that pain is inspiration. -Summer Dunsmore

24. Beastie Boys – “Make Some Noise”

Hip-hop is always boasting how it’s a young person’s game, but “Make Some Noise” proved that the Beastie Boys are dogs who still have some bite left in them. The fortified funk they sic on us at the start of Hot Sauce Committee Part Two is aggressive, witty, and sweeping. It’s classic Beastie Boys… and then some. In light of their recent setbacks – from “MCA” Adam Yauch’s struggle with cancer to the album’s various delays – the Brooklyn legends ferociously returned to the spotlight. This single is a testament to that. While there’s a lot of wax-scratching nostalgia going on, there’s just too much energy at hand to ignore. So, when Yauch says, “The best is yet to come, and yes, believe this,” we most certainly do. -Gilles LeBlanc

23. Real Estate – “It’s Real”

A good-natured single, “It’s Real” by Real Estate defines California surfer rock. It’s a song about puppy love, as singer Martin Courtney croons, “I carved our names into a tree/I walked on decomposing leaves/I skated on a frozen sea/It’s real as far as I can see.” It does what indie music does best: weaves poetic, charming lyrics with a hooky chorus. However, it’s unique to many other love songs, which usually express the pains of heartbreak or the dark side of obsession; this love song is a revelry, an exposition of energy and enthusiasm that comes with the fascination for a loved one. It’s real. -Summer Dunsmore

22. Childish Gambino – “Bonfire”

Donald Glover plays the clueless Troy Barnes on Community. So, why take his nom de rhyme, Childish Gambino, even the slightest bit seriously? Because of “Bonfire”, dummy. The lyrics encapsulate Gambino’s wit (“This Asian dude, I stole his girl, and now he got that Kogi beef”) and even offer up the nastier side of the MC’s rainbow-colored personality (“The shit I’m doin’ this year? Insanity/Made the beat then murdered it, Casey Anthony”). It’s also got one of the LP’s most beloved and recognizable beats, equal parts bouncy club anthem and gritty garage rock jam. But really, it’s Gambino’s impassioned and visceral delivery style, like he’s barking at the listener, that makes this track a true burner. -Chris Coplan

21. Fleet Foxes – “Helplessness Blues”

Fleet Foxes’ titular track off Helplessness Blues is a lovely distillation of their sound, with the spectral doves of musicians like Roy Harper and Van Morrison flitting around for company. It’s such an epic poem that five minutes can hardly contain its beauty or its magnificent scope, which ranges from jangling folk to heavyweight, ethereal rock. By now, everyone knows the group’s sublime harmonies are their namesake, but when entwined with urgent guitar work and despairing language, it only adds deep emphasis to that fact. Feeling helpless has rarely felt so nourishing, building up to what can only be called a dappled sunlit kind of music, “my light in the dawn.” -Siobhan Kane

20. Radiohead – “Lotus Flower”

Anybody who heard Thom Yorke’s live versions of “Lotus Flower” back in ’09 and ’10 never could have imagined what it would morph into when it eventually made its way onto this year’s The King of Limbs, a surprise in and of itself. That finger-picked guitar ballad is now long forgotten thanks to the skittering rhythms, distant hand claps, and other ridiculous noises that now constitute “Lotus Flower”. The song is as dub-dance-y as Radiohead has ever sounded, with a backdrop culled from fractured loops of god knows what. But what makes “Lotus Flower” so noteworthy is how Yorke embodies it: with a healthy dose of croon-swagger. Confidence hasn’t always been Yorke’s vocal forte, but he straddles the line so perfectly between that and melancholy that it opens up a lot of doors for what Radiohead is capable of. That’s a shitload of open doors, by the way. -Drew Litowitz

19. Cut Copy – “Need You Now”

It’s a tough feat to render six minutes of addicting hooks. But that’s what Cut Copy managed to do with “Need You Now”. That explains why it opens the Australian outfit’s latest LP, Zonoscope: Hit ‘em with a punch, snag ‘em with a hook. Vocalist Dan Whitford employs a slick baritone throughout, which certainly pushes this number ahead, but it’s when he lets loose four minutes in that the heat turns up. While not as immediate as tracks like “Take Me Over” or “Where I’m Going”, it’s all about the payoff sometimes, and you won’t find a better one than here. It’s so heavy they need a downer at the end to bring things back to element. Talk about a trip. -J. Harry Painter

18. Neon Indian – “Polish Girl”

Ever wondered if the Super Mario coin-grab effect could be sampled successfully in a song? Welcome to the world of Neon Indian. Alan Palomo’s wistful cadence tells of lost love on Era Extraña standout “Polish Girl”, while spaced-out 8-bit synths evoke the longing, inescapable feelings of shoegaze. Yet, the result is a blissful four and a half minutes itching for a spin on the dance floor. With “Polish Girl”, Neon Indian has traded their signature chillwave stylings in favor of a dreamy spin on dance pop and set the new standard for retro chic. -Frank Mojica

17. Drake – “Take Care”

“Take Care” is one of six or seven tracks that could easily be deemed the best of the batch from Drake’s enigmatic, epic sophomore album of the same name. Set firmly atop impeccable (and unconventional) production by Jamie xx, the track soars with an unstoppable, sensual hook by hip-hop diva Rihanna: “If you let me, here’s what I’ll do/I’ll take care of you.” I defy any heterosexual man to refuse that offer. But what makes this track stand out more than anything is the potency with which Drake raps. As he battles insecurity, brutal honesty, and harsh reality, we see the side of Drake that was promised from the beginning – the talented side. -Winston Robbins

16. Jamie xx – “Far Nearer”

Between his masterful Gil Scott-Heron collab/remix LP We’re New Here, the slew of top-notch remixes he put out (including a HUGE rework of Adele’s “Rolling in the Deep”), and a couple of choice spots on Radiohead’s TKOL RMX compilation, Jamie xx’s huge 2011 quelled any and all doubts that he could succeed out of the shadow of the xx. And all that goes without mentioning “Far Nearer”, his debut solo release and crowning achievement to date. Built around a sun-drenched Caribbean steel drum line and a mangled Janet Jackson vocal, it’s a dance anthem for the ages and one hell of a way to launch one’s solo career. How’s that for setting the bar high? -Möhammad Choudhery

15. The Mountain Goats – “High Hawk Season”

Revolution hung thick in the air this year, and John Darnielle’s prescient salvo seems to be the people’s anthem that never was (meanwhile, 3EB turned this in). Darnielle’s boilerplate solo voice/acoustic guitar is backed by a four-part male a capella chorus that, despite The Mountain Goats’ obscene prolificacy, paves whole new avenues for a guy who’s been doing this for a long, long time. Darnielle’s vocals vary in dynamics and enunciation, causing the words to teem with frustration and resolve, something arena-worthy with just doo-wop harmonies and earnest songwriting. Sadly, Post-Barbershop-Quartet is not a genre I can throw on Pandora…yet. -Jeremy D. Larson

14. The Weeknd – “Wicked Games”

House of Balloons is fraught with tracks that are going to make you wish you lived a different, sexier life, but not one of them is more powerful than “Wicked Games”. As The Weeknd croons in his phenomenal upper register, “Bring your love baby, I can bring my shame/Bring the drugs baby, I can bring my pain,” you might honestly find yourself wishing you were addicted to codeine and emotionless sexual encounters. The track’s appeal to everyone’s dark side is endless. And while most listeners won’t ever pick up a Styrofoam cup full of prescription cough medicine and Jolly Ranchers to get faded, the song provides insight into a twisted life of beauty with a deep layer of abhorrent immorality looming just below the surface. -Winston Robbins

13. The Throne – “Niggas in Paris”

It’s still baffling that one of the hardest-hitting tracks on Watch the Throne contains a Will Ferrell sample from the figure skating parody Blades of Glory. “No one knows what it means, but it’s provocative,” Ferrell explains. “It gets the people going!” The long-anticipated collaborative record between rap’s reigning monarchs is a celebration in excess, but it comes packed with knowing winks like this one. Jay-Z and Kanye West roll in with a slow burn on top of piercing synth loop, gaining momentum as the song unravels, propelling one another into top form on this explosive club-pleaser. It’s Jay-Z’s methodical, fast-firing approach that sets the stage for West’s urgent, free-flowing (if a bit bonkers) rhymes; on an album grounded in the spirit of a healthy competition between the two powerhouse emcees, it’s on “Niggas in Paris” that they come together as a single, unstoppable hip-hop dream team. -Austin Trunick

12. Destroyer – “Kaputt”

In the world of the album’s title track, drugs and women are indiscernible — two intangible forces that are meant to be chased across clubs, kingdoms, and radio airwaves around the globe. Destroyer frontman Dan Bejar never catches either one, but decides to write a song about it and dedicate it to America, a fact that he blatantly states in the final verses. Amidst wind effects, slowed-down disco bass, synthesized bleeps, and foggy trumpet, the band topples the fourth wall, then builds it back up again to continue their quest across time, space, and celebration for a high they may never get, but in turn bestow upon their audience. -Dan Caffrey

11. Wild Flag – “Romance”

“Romance” is the most unabashedly pop song on Wild Flag’s self-titled debut. More Bow Wow Wow than Bikini Kill, it shows a different, deliriously infectious side of this burgeoning supergroup. With a ringing, crunchy guitar punch over pounding surf drums, it’s the killer hook in the chorus that will keep you coming back again and again. (If you’re not tapping your toes by the time it gets to the hand clap-driven “shake, shimmy, shake” breakdown at the song’s climax, you’re probably not a warm-blooded human.) Straight-up rock and roll this irresistibly catchy is a rare treat in this day and age; “Romance” should be finding its way onto feel-good mixtapes for a long, long time. -Austin Trunick

10. Foo Fighters – “Rope”

The glorious possibilities of a three-guitar attack in Foo Fighters is truly felt with this tune from Wasting Light. With Pat Smear having officially returned to the lineup, the band created some of their most aggressive music to date. The echoing intro gives in to a track that bops between pop and alt-rock, before launching into Chris Shiflett’s thrash-metal solo near the song’s conclusion. Of course, it’s Dave Grohl’s constant that ties it all together. That being the tireless Taylor Hawkins, who proves once more why he’s one of the finest drummers in the game today, yesterday, and tomorrow. As the first single, “Rope” announced the return of the Foo, and in hindsight, it’s the cattle call that would go on to cement the band as the biggest rock act on the planet. They’ve had a good year. -Justin Gerber

9. James Blake – “The Wilhelm Scream”

The first thing anybody who listens to James Blake’s true breakout track notices is how undeniably incessant it is. It’s a classic study in repetition.

With Blake’s cyborg croon evaporating into palm-muted guitar masked as a digital processor, interspersed with the sound a black hole makes when you throw the whole genre of dubstep into it, the song slowly explodes into a haze of static, processed synth-organ, and the deepest bass around. It’s like a noised-out tribute to every sub-genre of reggae-inspired dance music, that both mourns its present dilution in the mainstream and celebrates the places it still has yet to go.

What’s most interesting about “The Wilhelm Scream”, though, is what this repetition means to Blake and why he’s created this song in the first place. At its core, the song is Blake re-envisioning something he must have heard incessantly over the past few years: his own father, soft rocker James Litherland’s “Where to Turn”, from his 2006 album, 4th Estate. Under this context, the song becomes a manifestation of Blake’s nostalgia and love for his pops — his memories and emotions aurally orchestrated into an infectious haze of confused sounds that come together perfectly. Cool, right? -Drew Litowitz

8. SBTRKT – “Wildfire”

As SBTRKT, Aaron Jerome has been one of the year’s most buzzed-about breakout artists. On “Wildfire”, the masked producer recruits 2011’s must-have collaborator, Yukimi Nagano (of electro-soulsters Little Dragon), for the year’s essential dance floor jam. Between a bassline that can only be described as downright filthy and the irresistible allure of Nagano’s velvety vocals, “Wilfire” is pure sonic sensuality. Drawing inspiration from South London post-dubstep to house to R&B, “Wildfire” takes everything that ever made someone dance in the past 20 years and spins it into something futuristic. As it deftly defies any single label, SBTRKT’s scorching style on “Wildfire” is a reflection of how the future will one day remember 2011. -Frank Mojica

7. EMA – “California”

Equal parts Psychocandy, Sinead O’Connor, Patti Smith, and Lou Reed, Erika M. Anderson’s (aka EMA) “California” turns heads with its aggressive-yet-vapid delivery and lyrics that spin tales of reckless abandonment. “What’s it like to be small-time and gay?” she crudely asks mid-song. “What does failure taste like? To me it tastes like dirt,” she asks and answers herself towards the end. It’s a slow shuffle that never really leads to an anthemic release as its rusty sprawl suggests, but that’s sort of the point. On paper, it’s just as seclusive and cyclical.

Sort of like madness. Anderson’s a native of South Dakota, so one has to wonder what her perspective is here. Here’s a supposition: It’s the struggle that California – the land of dreams and mystery, as suggested even by the likes of Steinbeck – isn’t what it appears to be. It’s a wasteland. It’s a falsity. But, she’s not alone there. When she says, “Fuck California,” so do we. Because if there’s anything we’ve learned from reality television, MTV, or reading short bios on any musician who’s ever surfaced on the Sunset Strip, California breeds a special sort of crazy. Anderson may never find her small-town roots again (“Schizophrenic rules the brain”), but she’s created one powerful ode to it. One of the best of its kind. -Michael Roffman

6. St. Vincent – “Cruel”

If you’re going to write a rock song around a single riff, it better be a ridiculously good one, something that you’re happy to get stuck in your head. There have been a few that fit the bill in indie rock over the last few years; Modest Mouse’s “Float On” and MGMT’s “Kids” come to mind. Add St. Vincent’s “Cruel” to that exclusive list. Annie Clark writes a completely oddball, vaguely old-timey verse melody, complete with saccharine background strings. But when she sings “oo-eh-oo-eh-oo-llll” on the titular lyric, that distinctive synthesizer riff comes into focus and simply owns you. It’s silly, it’s uplifting, it’s catchy, and it can completely carry the song. Throw in a majorly danceable backing track, a languid distorted guitar solo, and Clark’s wispy but powerful voice, and it’s indie rock gold. -Jake Cohen

5. tUnE-yArDs – “Bizness”

Merrill Garbus’ wonderful first single from her second record, w h o k i l l, reflects her decision to focus some aspects of the live experience into studio recordings, and certainly, the wild energy of “Bizness” is hardly constrained by the medium of a record. Perhaps this is what makes her great: The medium of music is the vehicle through which she has chosen to convey her creativity, but it cannot bind her. “Bizness” begins with the kind of vocal gymnastics that brings to mind David Longstreth dancing in a frying pan — lovely, gloopy, roaming sounds that also act as a warm vocal harpsichord of sorts.

Then there is the percussive aspect. The way Garbus layers sounds and percussion is a joy to hear, the military beats, along with a kind of skeletal, clickety-clack kind of sound that reconnects to her fascination with African rhythms. Her world is one that is anchored by a childlike sense of wonderment, and when the arresting, strident horns step in, you cannot help but smile. This is also because you sense her giddy reverie in taking apart traditional song structures and building them up again in her own image. When she sings “I’ll bleed if you ask me,” you really believe it, because her thoughtful sincerity is clear, amidst the revels. The visual accompaniment to the song (the video directed by Mimi Cave) is a perfect rendering of tUnE-yArDs’ ethos – to reach out to the child in all of us, keeping us young, keeping us strong, keeping us dreaming. -Siobhan Kane

4. Beyoncé – “Countdown”

At this point in her exceptional career, Beyoncé has transcended the traditional confines of pop diva status. Her latest album, 4, is full of the finest cuts of her career, be it for their infectious, poppy nature or for their demonstration of real, relatable emotional displays. And one could easily say “Countdown” is the best song on that album and leave it at that. To do so, however, is to discredit a track that is not only great, but a step above on a record whose primary notion is of stepping further into sonic grace.

From the initial wail of Bey’s voice to the marching band vibe, the track is the heart and soul, the lifeblood of a record that is a dynamo of R&B gold, both new and old. Queen B has built an empire of love songs and tributes to her boo(s), but none, be it on this album or the three before, come off as easily and thoroughly as they do here. We dare anyone to resist falling under the spell of the chorus where, like a Gucci-wearing version of The Count, Beyoncé counts down the ways in which she loves her man. It’s everything we love about Beyoncé: the sing-along-ability, the bombastic nature, and the beat that digs its nails into your hips to make them shimmy all night. Count it any way you want, this number’s a shining gem in Beyoncé’s bangin’ catalog. -Chris Coplan

3. M83 – “Midnight City”

A Parisian M83 fan said to me this year that Anthony Gonzalez is “the best French music producer, more famous in [the] U.S. than France.” So what’s made “Midnight City” and its double album source, Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming, catch fire like it has in the States this year? Well, “Midnight City” is a great single, for one. And it’s in a Victoria’s Secret commercial, which doesn’t hurt its exposure stateside, either. Surely, at this point, M83 has never been more popular than they are right now. And this year, a lot of that gets chalked up to “Midnight City”.

But look deeper. “Midnight City”, like all of M83′s music, touches on feelings valued deep within the American heart: light, innocence, and youth. M83 just shrouds them behind synth sheen and vocal processing on Gonzalez’s voice. When you imagine its abstract, misty mood piece in the classic Americana setting of Lover’s Lane or Makeout Point, it clicks. The narrator and a girl look out over how “the night city grows” a “mutating skyline.” “The city is my church,” Gonzalez sings. “It wraps me in the sparkling twilight.” It’s so gorgeous and wondrous, how can you not weep from its beauty? And how many songs this year have done that? O beautiful, for spacious skies, indeed. -Paul de Revere

2. Tyler, The Creator – “Yonkers”

Cast aside all preconceived notions or any conclusions that you may have drawn about Odd Future for just a second. Try and get back to the moment when you first heard “Yonkers”. Whether you were a longtime fan or you were victim to the viral video that got tossed around for a few weeks, it moved you. It moved some to anger, and it moved others to excitement; regardless of direction, though, it moved you. There are few times in life when a song will force you to stop everything you’re doing because you’re too busy picking your jaw up off the floor. Even fewer are the times when those selfsame songs are written and produced by a 19-year-old. Much criticism has been cast in the direction of this song and at Tyler in general; many found his lyrics involving misogyny, brutal violence, and even rape to be supremely offensive. And ultimately, that’s a decision best made on an individual basis. But you cannot deny that, for better or worse, “Yonkers” is one of the most powerful hip-hop singles in recent memory. Still sends chills down my spine. -Winston Robbins

1. Bon Iver – “Holocene”

For as often as Justin Vernon’s cabin hibernation is parodied, doesn’t it sound just a little enticing? Leaving it all, sequestering yourself away from a world that won’t stop spinning? In some ways, Vernon never left that seclusion. The songs on Bon Iver may sprawl and breathe more, but they’re still born form Vernon’s desire for privacy and escape. They’re rural, surreal, and separate, and “Holocene” captures the essence of Vernon’s world, just as he tries to capture the essence of our current epoch.

The song pivots around the lyric “All at once I knew/I was not magnificent” and the garden of romantic words and loosely related imagery around it. Acoustic crescendos push the plot along, and the band’s woodwind and found sound arrangement provide the scenery. Whole ages of emotions advance and recede throughout its course, yet it manages to stave off melodrama.

Vernon recalls three hazy memories in three verses and gives them context with that pivotal lyric — an ego check. These are the lasting moments that Vernon hangs on to through it all. Can we find meaning outside of ourselves and inside missed connections or little moments we have with friends and family? This truly is what outlasts things. Now, none of this ideology is revolutionary, but Bon Iver renews its vows in the context of 2011 — a year of exponential speed and growth, of revolution and dissatisfaction, of disillusionment and displacement across whole swaths of culture and class. “Holocene” is that moment of reflection on the escape vessel as you float away from the wreckage and towards Bon Iver’s world. If escapism is increasingly how we deal with our problems, that ubiquitous cabin in the woods sounds better and better with each coming year. -Jeremy D. Larson

50. Ellie Goulding – “Lights”
49. Cults – “Go Outside”
48. Big K.R.I.T. – “Country Shit” (Remix)
47. Mikal Cronin – “Apathy”
46. Cold Cave – “The Great Pan is Dead”
45. Das Racist – “Michael Jackson”
44. The Horrors – “Still Life”
43. Bill Callahan – “Riding For the Feeling”
42. Dum Dum Girls – “Coming Down”
41. Lykke Li – “I Follow Rivers”
40. Wilco – “One Sunday Morning (Song for Jane Smiley’s Boyfriend)”
39. Liturgy – “Generation”
38. Washed Out – “Amor Fati”
37. Adele – “Rolling in the Deep”
36. AraabMUZIK – “Streetz Tonight”
35. Tom Waits – “Hell Broke Luce”
34. The Black Keys – “Lonely Boy”
33. Kurt Vile – “Jesus Fever”
32. Battles – “Ice Cream”
31. Kate Bush – “Wild Man”
30. Mr. Muthafuckin’ eXquire – “The Last Huzzah” (Remix)
29. The Strokes – “Under Cover of Darkness”
28. Beirut – “East Harlem”
27. The War on Drugs – “Come to the City”
26. Frank Ocean – “Novacane”
25. Girls – “Vomit”
24. Beastie Boys – “Make Some Noise”
23. Real Estate – “It’s Real”
22. Childish Gambino – “Bonfire”
21. Fleet Foxes – “Helplessness Blues”
20. Radiohead – “Lotus Flower”
19. Cut Copy – “Need You Now”
18. Neon Indian – “Polish Girl”
17. Drake – “Take Care”
16. Jamie xx – “Far Nearer”
15. The Mountain Goats – “High Hawk Season”
14. The Weeknd – “Wicked Games”
13. The Throne – “Niggas in Paris”
12. Destroyer – “Kaputt”
11. Wild Flag – “Romance”
10. Foo Fighters – “Rope”
09. James Blake – “The Wilhelm Scream”
08. SBTRKT – “Wildfire”
07. EMA – “California”
06. St. Vincent – “Cruel”
05. tUnE-yArDs – “Bizness”
04. Beyoncé – “Countdown”
03. M83 – “Midnight City”
02. Tyler, the Creator – “Yonkers”
01. Bon Iver – “Holocene”

Music videos accomplish what has never been done before in the history of media: They make experimentation a commercial enterprise. They afford musicians, filmmakers, and multimedia artists the chance to have their craziest ideas not only produced, but shown to a large audience. What’s more, in the age of Internet video, indie productions are now on equal footing with million-dollar productions. There’s no visual medium more diverse or creative than music videos. Thirty years after the launch of MTV, the format is not only alive and well, but it’s matured, expanded, and become a part of our global culture. When The Beatles, and later Mike Nesmith, laid the foundation for what we’d come to know as a music video, could they possibly have known how big this concept would become?

The prevalence of online video has changed the way we watch movies, television… everything really. It’s not just the revolution that’s televised, but cute animals, skate tricks, accidents, celebrations, millions of memes in the making, and amidst all this chaos, brilliant, fun, and mind-altering visual art. On 1/11/11, we unveiled Cluster 1, a sister site to Consequence of Sound dedicated to filtering out the schlock and giving you only the best short films, animation, docs, and since we’re CoS, a ton of amazing music videos. In just under a year, we’ve posted over 1,000 of them, all handpicked.

Now, it comes to the task of choosing 25 of the best videos we’ve seen all year. These aren’t just the ones that moved us, blew our minds, or made us lol, but a selection embodying the year in videos. Fancy dancin’ Thom Yorke memed his way across the internet, Beyoncé changed outfits like a kerjillion times, Gaga became a man and a fish and then checked into a fashionable mental institution, and while those mega-stars shook the world at large, countless others were wowing the small screen, trending through Tumblr, and becoming secret sensations. We’ve got indie sci-fi from Russia, the most awe-inspiring NSFW video you’ve ever seen, demonic puppets, ’90s sitcom parodies, and so, so, so much more. This was a good year.

Each and every one of these videos is incredible. We hope you’re prepared. Just click forward. An audiovisual onslaught awaits you.

-Cap Blackard
Art Director/Executive Producer, Cluster 1

25. Gentlemen Drivers – “Valdor”

Catchy songs aren’t a problem for French electropop collective Gentlemen Drivers; party-thumping single “Valdor” certainly fits into that category. Its video, however, is a different breed beast. Think Peter Gabriel’s “Sledgehammer”, only set within a fake sitcom and featuring a Thanksgiving turkey that mutilates humans. Over the years, the Internet has stripped “bizarre” of its power. But sometimes, and this is rare, its true meaning bleeds through – literally and metaphorically, come to think of it. Here’s one such example. -Ted Maider

Director: Allen Cordell

24. Battles feat. Gary Numan - ”My Machines”

The Creators Project is a high-concept art initiative that’s been turning heads in the industry. So, when they decided to take on the music video for Battles’ “My Machines” and include guest vocalist Gary Numan, it was guaranteed to be an event. They didn’t disappoint. The video takes a thoughtless everyday activity (a man heads up an escalator with groceries) and combines it with an all-too-human fear of machines. Just what happens when an on/off switch doesn’t work? Who or what are we at the mercy of? As the horrific eye candy proceeds, the electronically driven rock of Battles adds to the impact and drama. With its slick look and clinical, high-contrast shooting style, “My Machines” leaves the viewer with a sense of unease and one incorrigible thought: Perhaps machines have more of an upper hand than we’d like to give them credit for. Creepy. -Karina Halle

Director: Daniels

23. Skrillex – “First of the Year (Equinox)”

There’s a skill in building up and destroying atmospheres. For Skrillex, it’s commonplace. In the Tony Truand-directed video for “First of the Year (Equinox)”, a similar feat is accomplished. What starts out as a creepy snapshot of pedophilia ends with something else entirely. As the dubstep artist shakes up the track, the music video does the same, reversing everything you thought might happen in seconds. In a word: sinister. In two words: very fitting. -Joe Marvilli

Director: Tony Truand

22. Com Truise – “Brokendate”

Will Joines directs this Blade Runner-esque film for Com Truise’s “Brokendate”, setting Seth Haley’s relentless, pulsating analog synths into Joines’s dystopian futurescape. This clip is dripping in nostalgia. In five minutes, Joines references a number of cinematic legacies from decades past—80s trench coat heroes, TRON-like retro-futurism, and VHS aesthetics—in his own neon-soaked noir, which casts the New Jersey producer as a shades-wearing, cigar-smoking, villainous mastermind. Cyber babes in dark lipstick wielding (quasi) threatening laser guns, glowing, wireframe pyramids on massive mainframes, dead bodies left to rot on the sidewalk—seems like the perfect visual corollary to Com Truise’s hazy synth odyssey. -Lainna Fader

Director: Will Joines

21. Rammstein – “Mein Land”

Industrial metal isn’t exactly a genre known for its sense of humor. Rammstein is the rare exception. For the release of their greatest hits LP, Made in Germany 1995-2011, the band members shuffled their cards once again, showing their playful side in “Mein Land”. The party kicks off in 1964 with the group engaging in a hilarious Beach Boys parody. There’s surfing, dancing, and even a Baywatch moment for singer Till Lindemann. Hands down the best juxtaposition of the year.  -Joe Marvilli

Director: Jonas Åkerlund

20. Biting Elbows – “The Stampede”

Music videos don’t always have to be rich with meaning (or girls with large posteriors). Sometimes, they can be silly and meaningless and still make an impact. Biting Elbows’ clip for “The Stampede”, simply titled “Insane Office Escape”, gained global attention for its minimalistic, yet genius, plot: Dude steals something from work, kicks heaps of ass to get out of said office, and finally makes his escape by, drumroll, magic. It’s stocked with over-the-top action, bad karate, and tongue-in-cheek humor galore. It’s the kind of fun, goofball clip that undoubtedly got some of us into music videos in the first place. Plus, who wouldn’t want to dropkick their boss in the neck some day? -Chris Coplan

Director: Ilya Naishuller

19. Polinski feat. Big Black Delta - “Stitches”

65daysofstatic’s Paul Wolinski knows how to make a splash with a solo record. As Polinski, his first solo record, Labyrinths, was preempted by one hell of a video for “Stitches”. Directed by Caspar and Josiah Newbolt with pixel art by John DeLucca, “Stitches” is an homage to the text-based video game adventures of yore… with a little bit of David Lynch thrown in, maybe even some Cronenberg. It’s a sci-fi detective story told in moody pixelated images and scrolling text. But “Stitches” doesn’t just take you into an old-school computer game; it takes you into the living room with Polinski. The entire video is framed in a television set, and the entire time, oh so very subtly, you can see Polinski playing the game in the reflection of the screen. It doesn’t get much cooler than this; it was our pleasure to unleash this video on the world. -Cap Blackard

Directors: Caspar Newbolt and Josiah Newbolt

18. Kate Bush – “Deeper Understanding”

At first glance, Kate Bush’s video for “Deeper Understanding” is rather off-putting. Why would someone with her profound wit shoot a near-literal interpretation of the track’s lyrics? Simple, to ease the viewer in. Bush directs this intimate, voyeuristic affair, working with sly camera work and quasi-realistic tones that offer this artificial, detached aesthetic. Themes of loneliness and connectivity run rampant here, focusing directly on the crossroads of technology and social interaction. Perhaps this video is so affecting because there’s so much to empathize with here. Pretty timely stuff. -Chris Coplan

Director: Kate Bush

17. Radiohead – “Lotus Flower”

People expect any new Radiohead album to be a game changer. We are to listen and contemplate Radiohead; we must understand the music. Yet, in the video for “Lotus Flower”, Thom Yorke reminds us that rock music is Dionysian rather than Apollonian, that he wants us to dance to his music. No longer the introverted auteur, Yorke shows a different side in a wild, unbridled, completely un-self-conscious celebration of the body. To all the young and hip kids who stand at a rock club leg-locked, take Yorke’s advice: It’s OK to dance. “Lotus Flower” also reinforces a frequent criticism of The King of Limbs: It sounds too much like a Yorke solo album. There is no band in this video. But Yorke has clearly amassed enough cultural capital to make a black-and-white video of him dancing in a warehouse, and it’s one of the year’s best. -Jake Cohen

Director: Garth Jennings

16. Miles Fisher – “New Romance”

If you grew up in the early ’90s, the first few seconds of Miles Fishers’ “New Romance” will be a delight. Its sublime parody of Saved by the Bell almost warrants a spot on this list by itself. But the fun doesn’t end there. While the fashion and styles may be retro, there’s a sick sense of dark humor underneath the bright colors. Directed by Dave Green, the whole thing feels like the next Final Destination entry, only seen through the eyes of John Waters (Pink Flamingos, Hairspray). Not exactly your average afternoon special, but who doesn’t love chaos? Plenty here. -Joe Marvilli

Director: Dave Green

15. Is Tropical – “The Greeks”

Kids say the darndest things. These days they also do the darndest things. Is Tropical’s video for “The Greeks” takes this idea to another level. In this Tarantino-esque clip, a neighborhood game of cops and robbers goes awry. Drug trafficking, torture, and terrorism follow, and it becomes apparent that the video is posing an important question for us to answer: What is the world preparing our youth for? “You only get what you give away,” as the song’s mantra goes. So true. While altogether a darkly comical video on the corruption of youth, it’s also a brilliant display of the power of imagination. Yikes. What does that say about us? -Summer Dunsmore

Director: Megaforce

14. Evelyn Evelyn – “Have You Seen My Sister Evelyn”

Despite a 100-year-long history of differing techniques, animation is still one of the most innovative fields in film today. The latest example is director Hoku Uchiyama’s groundbreaking video for Evelyn Evelyn. A cartoon image is drawn by the duo into a fogged-up glass window. From there, the visuals come alive and move through the panes, creating the story provided by the song’s lyrics. While it looks like the work could have been done on a laptop, the condensation is real. It took a few trials to get the lighting right, but the result is well worth any trouble. Innovative, outside the box, and just a little bit weird? Sounds like Evelyn Evelyn to us. -Joe Marvilli

Director: Hoku Uchiyama

13. Manchester Orchestra – “Simple Math”

They say life flashes before your eyes when you’re about to die, and this autumn car accident depicted here may be the best representation of that. A tumultuous past spinning in and out of reality with just enough time to recollect moments that matter. These loopy camera shots and mumble-core (tumble-core?) lip-synching add a unique and memorable flair to this heartfelt trip through Andy Hull’s past. -Jeremy D. Larson

Director: Daniels

12. UNKLE feat. Nick Cave -  “Money and Run”

Rich men behave badly in UNKLE’s “Money and Run” video. Director Tom Haines mixes scenes of humor with horror in this short study of upper-class umbrage, from a tennis game gone wrong to vicious beatings in the street. Of all the violent vignettes, none is more strangely terrifying than the scene where a bare-assed man torments a cowering girl while wearing a Margaret Thatcher mask. Unsettling as they may be, they’re  disturbingly perfect visuals for Nick Cave’s urgent guest vocals. -Austin Trunick

Director: Tom Haines

11. Lady Gaga – “Marry the Night”

For the past two years, the music industry has dropped their jaws at Lady Gaga’s Alexander McQueen-shaped decadence, and that fascination has hardly subsided. With her 13-minute directorial effort, “Marry the Night”, Gaga assembled one of the most pretentious and over-sensationalized videos in recent memory. But, it wasn’t like she didn’t warn everyone. Prior to its release, Gaga told MTV, “This will be the longest video I’ve released to date… the beginning of the story I never told you.” In her mind, this untold story would be that of rejection, at least that’s what she told Alan Carr. It’s never that easy for pop stars, though. Instead, the video ended up being a metafictional parody of herself. Between the narration, the obvious aping of Madonna’s Desperately Seeking Susan, and the dolled-up dreams of a fashionista, Gaga assumes the role of the headline-grabbing drama queen. Here’s the question, though: Was this all intentional? Is this sensationalism intuitive? If so, it’s a pretty smart move on her part. It sort of harkens back to the early days of Eminem’s career, where he was so self-deprecating and self-aware that nobody could touch him. What’s there to even say? Checkmate, we guess. -Michael Roffman

Director: Lady Gaga

10. Fleet Foxes – “The Shrine/An Argument”

If you’re after a literal exposition of “The Shrine/An Argument”, you won’t find it in this video. Rather it’s a story in itself set to music that picks up on some of the song’s lyrical content but echoes more of its rhythms and cadences. The transitions in the song are expertly accentuated by rises and falls in the video narrative. The stop-motion animation technique used by director and co-animator Sean Pecknold (singer Robyn’s brother) lends a curious motion to the central stag-like character on his life-to-death journey. Think a slowed-down Mario in a video game. The film manages to be simultaneously heartwarming and unnerving, rich colors and surreal sunlight offering comfort bridged by a fear of global meltdown. It balances the beauty of nature with its raw bestiality alongside oddly homely, yet nightmarish, monsters. Form and content have rarely been better bedfellows in a music video. -Tony Hardy

Director: Sean Pecknold

9. Warm Ghost – “Open the Wormhole in Your Heart”

The directing team of Brandon LaGanke and John Carlucci at Holy Cow Films, along with Warm Ghost, present the human body as you’ve never seen it before. Think about this: Throughout art history, there is perhaps nothing that’s been so constant as observation of the human form. Despite all that time and all possible mediums, “Open the Worm Hole in Your Heart” offers something profoundly unique. It’s explicit, it’s chic, it’s powerful. Nude male and female bodies crawl, slide, and writhe over glass, distorting their shapes and textures. Oftentimes, you won’t be sure what body part you’re even looking at. Mix in some bubbling, black-lit neon liquids and the images meld together into a sensual human kaleidoscope. This year, Warm Ghost not only made a splash as an up-and-coming electronic act (e.g. their first full-length, Narrows, and performing at Moogfest) but also served as the progenitors of one of 2011′s first landmark videos. -Cap Blackard

Directors: Brandon LaGanke and John Carlucci

8. Beastie Boys – “Make Some Noise”

It may not be to music videos what The Godfather Part II is to film, but “Make Some Noise” is about as clever as it gets for a 25-years-after-the-fact sequel. In case you’ve been cruising through time in your Back to the Future-immortalized DeLorean, it’s the continuation of the Beastie Boys’ apartment party-crashing MTV classic “Fight for Your Right”. But what makes it immediately stand out as one of the top videos of 2011 are all the cameo appearances, none of whom are manufactured reality stars looking to extend their 15 minutes of fame. “Make Some Noise” is a nonstop parade of A-listers who you genuinely wanted to be part of a humorous tribute to three formerly raucous and immature MC’s who are now the latest Rock and Roll Hall of Fame inductees. That or director Nathanial Hörnblowér must have a lot of incriminating photos. -Gilles LeBlanc

Director: MCA

7. OK Go – “All Is Not Lost”

Ever since running onto the scene on a bunch of treadmills back in 2006 (and winning a Grammy), OK Go have become renowned for their consistently quirky, inventive, and downright cool music videos. As well as the continuous shot and time-lapse, they’ve mastered the art of the Internet, using sites like YouTube to their fullest advantage. The clip for “All Is Not Lost” takes things to the next level by inviting user input to add a personal touch. The impeccably choreographed homemade kaleidoscope effect is impressive, but when viewed on Google Chrome, your own message can be added to the final scenes. What’s more, you can watch the messages of other viewers around the world for a truly international video experience. This one is also up for a Grammy, and should it win, it could give a whole new level of credence to the digital age. -Benjamin Kaye

Director: Trish Sie

6. Childish Gambino – “Bonfire”

Though his lyrics may be littered with witty obscenities and outlandish “too-soon” jokes (case in point: “Made the beat and murdered it, Casey Anthony”), Childish Gambino’s stellar new record, Camp, also grapples with the seriousness of racial identity in modern society. The “Bonfire” video, through its dark mise-en-scene, frenetic editing, and nightmarish plot, provides an art house glimpse into the warped current state of racial affairs, while offering a visceral commentary on America’s tumultuous past concerning these issues. Director Dan Eckman tastefully does so without being preachy, and Glover’s performance is strikingly convincing. At the end of the day, the video is a thought-provoking counterpart to a sometimes-ridiculous song, an emphatic aesthetic success, and yet another demonstration of Donald Glover’s unfaltering creative genius. -Caitlin Meyer

Director: Dan Eckman

5. Destroyer – “Kaputt”

Unlike past Destroyer releases, Dan Bejar’s Kaputt revved up everyone’s libidos and amplified our subconscious desire for seductive disco-jazz. Fittingly, the surreal ’80s-like visuals for the title track leave you feeling like you’re “chasing cocaine through the backrooms of the world all night.” Such images as a geeky computer nerd, an inexplicable flying whale, steamy Jazzercise dancers, and the cheesy choreography of desert dancers are key elements that lend a self-aware sense of humor to the fantastical world conveyed by director Dawn Garcia. And, just like the music videos of the ’80s, there’s no real, deep, hidden meaning to all of this. Indeed, “It all sounds like a dream to me.” -Brittany Flynn

Director: Dawn Garcia

4. Beyoncé – “Countdown”

With the video for “Countdown”, Beyoncé proves once again that even though she’s beyond successful in life, love, and career, it’s impossible to hate her. The flawless makeup and choreography coupled (yes, that was intentional) with calculatedly goofy facial expressions and dancing maintain the tenuous balance between idol Sasha Fierce and Bey, the girl next door. It proves to her audience that even though Beyoncé is rapidly ascending the celebrity ladder to an almost untouchable height, she’s just like any other girl who secretly wants to be Audrey Hepburn in Funny Face. Furthermore, “Countdown”’s brightly colored American Apparel wardrobe and hip warehouse space—which are constantly advertised on our televisions, billboards, and Internet windows—along with the recently released Live at Roseland DVD package Beyoncé as an affordable lifestyle choice. And it works because you’re too busy trying to peep Bey’s baby bump to pay attention to the video’s subliminal advertising. -Harley Brown

Director: Adria Petty

3. St. Vincent – “Cruel”

Throughout her career as St. Vincent, Annie Clark has played with concepts of control and chaos, whether that means erupting into feedback-y guitar solos in the middle of a sharply orchestrated tune or, as in this video, playing such a solo while bound and gagged in the trunk of a sedan. Another familiar Clark topic is the flimsiness of gender roles, seen here as being kidnapped into suburban housewife-dom and eventually being buried alive. Throughout all the highbrow conceptualizing and dirt pileup, Clark remains cool, confident, stylishly dressed, and always ready to rock. The murderous, bespectacled, besweatered family seems like something out of a Wes Anderson nightmare, and Clark’s frazzled looks into the camera scream well-intentioned. The repeated, spinning camera shots of her backyard burial spliced with all of the should-be-wholesome weirdness makes this claustrophobic analysis of “normal” family life a perfect fit with Strange Mercy‘s combination of wit, austere beauty, and intricate simplicity. -Adam Kivel

Director: Terri Timely

2. Foo Fighters – “Walk”

No strangers to penning uplifting rock tunes, Foo Fighters buttoned up their latest LP, Wasting Light, with high hopes on sentimental closing track “Walk”. True to the Foo’s style, the group issued a silly pop video that’s become trademark for them (see: “Big Me”, “Learn to Fly”, this year’s “White Limo”). But, the video for “Walk” came off rather cinematic. Director Sam Jones parodies Joel Schumacher’s 90′s relic Falling Down, with Dave Grohl subbing for Michael Douglas’s iconic role. Anyone familiar with Grohl knows he’s hardly the serious type, and this video only adds to his comedic resume. As the Douglas character, Grohl struggles with an engulfing city — everything from messy traffic jams to pedantic employees. So, he goes nuts. Throughout, Grohl pummels people, he throws tantrums, and he even runs someone over with a golf cart. Blame it on the track, but there’s something oddly cathartic about it. It’s a hilarious escape. “Rock ‘n’ roll is a lifestyle and a way of thinking,” Jason Lee’s character says in Almost Famous. “But it’s a voice that says, ‘Here I am… and fuck you if you can’t understand me.’” That’s fully exemplified here. - David Buchanan

Director: Sam Jones

1. Tyler, The Creator – “Yonkers”

As Tyler, The Creator raps, “Yonkers dropped and left them craniums mind-fucked.” Why? For some time now, rap videos haven’t been a representation of an artist, but more or less the products that sponsor them. Until 2011, the year OFWGKTA’s ruthless leader became prince of hip-hop, notorious rap videos flaunted the latest from Gucci and Cristal. They served not as an extension of an artist’s personality, but an obnoxious commercial. Then Tyler, The Creator informed us, “Fuck money, diamonds, and bitches/Don’t need them” in what became the most intriguing music video of 2011. Rather than popping champagne, Tyler exposed the true Odd Future swag that is pure, unadulterated evil. But no longer was rap about the rich man; this video was self-made and posted on Tyler’s YouTube account. It launched the group into success and proved something millions of people tend to believe: The Internet can make you a star. View Count: 31,811,321. Just an FYI. -Ted Maider

Director: Tyler, the Creator

One second. Sometimes that’s all a photographer gets – and hardly in ideal conditions. At worst (and most likely), a photographer may be squeezed between 15 others in the pit, mere feet away from pyrotechnics, finding support from stress-rattled knees, while focusing on a spastic frontman and sheltering oneself from a downpour, which may or may not involve a hailstorm. Truth: A great photographer handles the unenviable task of capturing that one moment everyone goes home thinking about. Half-truth: There’s probably a statistic somewhere that discusses what the job does to the heart. If not, there should be a study. Double-truth: It’s just a sweaty, life-threatening task.

Hi, I’m Michael Roffman, President and Editor-in-Chief of Consequence of Sound. You may know me from such stories as “Look Out! The Gaslight Anthem is Coming!” or “Scratch that… Brian Wilson is not returning to The Beach Boys.” This year, I sent out dozens of writers and photographers to hundreds of shows and just about every major music festival this side of the Atlantic (some even overseas). Without a doubt, our eyes were everywhere.

More specifically, our photographers’ multiple weighty lenses. In the past 12 months, we’ve published countless, fully-stocked galleries, featuring some of the most awe-inspiring shots on the ‘net, all thanks to our brave and inordinately talented photographers. Actually, that’s an understatement. These artists bleed talent – to get somewhat histrionic. Look, we value words, but as Fred R. Barnard so famously wrote, “a picture is worth a thousand words.” Cliche, but you spend over four years putting these live and festival reviews together. You’ll quickly see how true that statement is. To date, I still feel like I’ve attended Bonnaroo.*

For our annual report, we put together our 100 favorite photos of the year. Lots of colors, lots of locales, and plenty of popular mugs to savor. So, throw on some tunes, grab a bag of chips, and enjoy the trip. You’ll go places, kiddo.

-Michael Roffman
President/Editor-in-Chief

* Would never happen. This guy in mud? Nah.

Weezer

Event: Weezer at Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom
Date: 1/7/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

The Walkmen

Event: The Walkmen at Atlanta’s Variety Playhouse
Date: 1/13/2011
Photographer: Max Blau

Girl Talk

Event: Girl Talk at Atlanta’s Tabernacle
Date: 1/21/2011
Photographer: Max Blau

Sad Brad Smith

Event: Sad Brad Smith at Chicago’s Schubas Tavern
Date: 1/23/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

The Church

Event: The Church at Chicago’s Park West
Date: 2/11/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Robyn

Event: Robyn at Chicago’s The Riviera Theatre
Date: 2/14/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

The Dismemberment Plan

Event: The Dismemberment Plan at Chicago’s Metro
Date: 2/19/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Ben Kweller

Event: Ben Kweller at Chicago’s Vic Theatre
Date: 2/23/2011
Photographer: Joshua Mellin

Bright Eyes

Event: Bright Eyes at Miami’s The Fillmore
Date: 3/2/2011
Photographer: Lauren Guagno

Raphael Saadiq

Event: Raphael Saadiq at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Baby Headphones

Event: SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Owen Pallett

Event: Owen Pallett at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

The Strokes

Event: The Strokes at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

The Kills

Event: The Kills at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

TV on the Radio w/ Yo Gabba Gabba!

Event: TV on the Radio w/ Yo Gabba Gabba! at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Matt & Kim

Event: Matt & Kim at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Odd Future

Event: Odd Future at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Odd Future

Event: Odd Future at SXSW 2011
Date: 3/16-20/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Hollerado

Event: Hollerado at Axis of Audio Showcase: SXSW 2011
Date: 3/19/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Astronautalis

Event: Astronautalis (& Four Fists) at Axis of Audio Showcase: SXSW 2011
Date: 3/19/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

P.O.S.

Event: P.O.S. at Paid Dues Festival 2011
Date: 4/2/2011
Photographer: Winston Robbins

The Mountain Goats

Event: The Mountain Goats at Chicago’s Vic Theatre
Date: 4/5/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Queens of the Stone Age

Event: Queens of the Stone Age at Oakland’s Fox Theatre
Date: 4/11/2011
Photographer: Karina Halle

The Strokes

Event: The Strokes at Coachella 2011
Date: 4/15-17/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

Kanye West

Event: Kanye West at Coachella 2011
Date: 4/15-17/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

The National

Event: The National, Arcade Fire at Chicago’s UIC Pavillion
Date: 4/24/2011
Photographer: Lauren Guagno

Arcade Fire

Event: The National, Arcade Fire at Chicago’s UIC Pavillion
Date: 4/24/2011
Photographer: Lauren Guagno

Battles

Event: Battles at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall
Date: 4/30/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

tUnE-yArDs

Event: tUnE-yArDs at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall
Date: 5/10/2011
Photographer: Wallo Villacorta

Lykke Li

Event: Lykke Li at Chicago’s Metro
Date: 5/23/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

The Gorge

Event: Sasquatch! 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Death From Above 1979

Event: Death From Above 1979 at Sasquatch! 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Robyn

Event: Robyn at Sasquatch 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Fitz and the Tantrums

Event: Fitz and the Tantrums at Sasquatch! 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

The Flaming Lips

Event: The Flaming Lips at Sasquatch! 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

The Decemberists

Event: Sasquatch! 2011
Date: 5/27-30/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Melvins

Event: Melvins at Chicago’s Double Door
Date: 5/31/2011
Photographer: Katie Schuering

Bonnaroo Fan

Event: Bonnaroo 2011
Date: 6/9-12/2011
Photographer: Ben Kaye

Buffalo Springfield

Event: Buffalo Springfield at Bonnaroo 2011
Date: 6/9-12/2011
Photographer: Max Blau

Eminem

Event: Eminem at Bonnaroo 2011
Date: 6/9-12/2011
Photographer: Max Blau

Future Islands

Event: Future Islands at Chicago’s Subterranean
Date: 6/15/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Florence + the Machine

Event: Florence + the Machine at Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom
Date: 6/18/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Glastonbury

Event: Glastonbury 2011
Date: 6/22-26/2011
Photographer: Laura Page

Eddie Vedder w/ Glen Hansard

Event: Eddie Vedder at The Chicago Theatre
Date: 6/28/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Phish Heads

Event: Phish Super Ball IX
Date: 7/1-3/2011
Photographer: Jake Cohen

Fucked Up

Event: Fucked Up at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall
Date: 7/2/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

Cold Cave

Event: Cold Cave at Pitchfork 2011
Date: 7/15-17/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

OFF!

Event: OFF! at Pitchfork 2011
Date: 7/15-17/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti

Event: Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti at Pitchfork 2011
Date: 7/15-17/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

tUnE-yArDs

Event: tUnE-yArDs at Pitchfork 2011
Date: 7/15-17/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Fleet Foxes

Event: Fleet Foxes at Pitchfork 2011
Date: 7/15-17/2011
Photographer: Meghan Brosnan

Soundgarden

Event: Soundgarden, Queens of the Stone Age, Mastodon at Washington’s Gorge Amphitheater
Date: 7/30/2011
Photographer: Karina Halle

Paul McCartney

Event: Paul McCartney at Chicago’s Wrigley Field
Date: 7/31/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Lolla Chicago

Event: Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Le Butcherettes

Event: Le Butcherettes at Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Crystal Castles

Event: Crystal Castles at Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Coldplay

Event: Coldplay at Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

The Chain Gang of 1974

Event: The Chain Gang of 1974 at Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Ellie Goulding

Event: Ellie Goulding at Lollapalooza 2011
Date: 8/5-7/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Foo Fighters

Event: Foo Fighters at Chicago’s Metro
Date: 8/6/2011
Photographer: Heather Kaplan

Foster the People

Event: Foster the People at Outside Lands 2011
Date: 8/12-14/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

Muse

Event: Muse at Outside Lands 2011
Date: 8/12-14/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

Arcade Fire

Event: Arcade Fire at Outside Lands 2011
Date: 8/12-14/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

Bush

Event: Bush at Chicago’s Congress Theatre
Date: 8/18/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Rubblebucket

Event: Rubblebucket at North Coast 2011
Date: 9/2-4/2011
Photographer: Lillian Cai

Pearl Jam

Event: Pearl Jam at PJ20 at Alpine Valley
Date: 9/3-4/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

Erykah Badu

Event: Erykah Badu at New York’s Rock the Bells 2011
Date: 9/3/2011
Photographer: Jake Cohen

Lauryn Hill

Event: Lauryn Hill at New York’s Rock the Bells 2011
Date: 9/3/2011
Photographer: Jake Cohen

The Kills

Event: The Kills at Vancouver’s Commodore Ballroom
Date: 9/5/2011
Photographer: Karina Halle

James Vincent McMorrow

Event: James Vincent McMorrow at Chicago’s Hideout
Date: 9/15/2011
Photographer: Matt Hyland

Delta Spirit

Event: Delta Spirit at Austin City Limits 2011
Date: 9/16-18/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

My Morning Jacket

Event: My Morning Jacket at Austin City Limits 2011
Date: 9/16-18/2011
Photographer: Nate Slevin

Kanye West

Event: Kanye West at Austin City Limits 2011
Date: 9/16-18/2011
Photographer: Nate Slevin

Randy Newman

Event: Randy Newman at Austin City Limits 2011
Date: 9/16-18/2011
Photographer: Nate Slevin

Incubus

Event: Incubus at Miami’s Bayfront Park
Date: 9/20/2011
Photographer: Lauren Guagno

Blink-182

Event: Blink-182 at West Palm Beach’s Cruzan Amphitheatre
Date: 9/23/2011
Photographer: Lauren Guagno

Deerhoof

Event: Deerhoof at Chicago’s Bottom Lounge
Date: 9/25/2011
Photographer: Katie Schuering

Radiohead

Event: Radiohead at New York City’s Roseland Ballroom
Date: 9/28/2011
Photographer: Nate Slevin

St. Vincent

Event: St. Vincent at Chicago’s Metro
Date: 10/5/2011
Photographer: Katie Schuering

Portishead

Event: Portishead at Chicago’s Aragon Theater
Date: 10/12/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

Sims

Event: Doomtree at Minneapolis’ Fine Line Music Cafe
Date: 10/15/2011
Photographer: Harley Brown

The Stepkids

Event: The Stepkids at CMJ 2011
Date: 10/18-22/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

Duran Duran

Event: Duran Duran at The Chicago Theatre
Date: 10/21/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Deadmau5

Event: deadmau5 at Chicago’s Aragon Ballroom
Date: 10/22/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

Moby

Event: Moby at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Moby

Event: Moby at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Childish Gambino

Event: Childish Gambino at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Catherine Watkins

Suicide

Event: Suicide at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

The Flaming Lips

Event: The Flaming Lips at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Catherine Watkins

Mayer Hawthorne & County

Event: Mayer Hawthorne & County at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

M83

Event: M83 at Moogfest 2011
Date: 10/28-30/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Zola Jesus

Event: Zola Jesus at San Francisco’s The Independent
Date: 11/1/2011
Photographer: Summer Dunsmore

Feist

Event: Feist at Chicago’s The Riviera Theatre
Date: 11/4/2011
Photographer: Brad Bretz

The Raconteurs

Event: The Raconteurs at Orlando Calling 2011
Date: 11/12-13/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

Pixies

Event: Pixies at Orlando Calling 2011
Date: 11/12-13/2011
Photographer: Cap Blackard

YACHT

Event: YACHT at San Francisco’s The Independent
Date: 11/17/2011
Photographer: Summer Dunsmore

M83

Event: M83 at Chicago’s Lincoln Hall
Date: 11/17/2011
Photographer: Jeremy D. Larson

The Cure

Event: The Cure at Los Angeles’ Pantages Theatre
Date: 11/23/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

Tinariwen

Event: Tinariwen at Minneapolis’ Cedar Cultural Center
Date: 11/26/2011
Photographer: Harley Brown

Iggy Pop and the Stooges

Event: Iggy Pop and the Stooges at Hollywood’s Palladium
Date: 12/1/2011
Photographer: Debi Del Grande

But food bonds us. It’s the one thing that anyone can agree upon (anorexics, religious fanatics excluded): We gotta eat. And with a weekend party like Moogfest, which essentially strangles the town for three long nights, the overall community of food is an integral facet of the experience. Thousands of festivalgoers wander from bar to club, pub to grill, food truck to kiosk, all with hungry hearts and a myriad of stories.

Similar to SXSW, Moogfest is a community experience. You’re not trapped in one area; you’re wandering around at free will. However, unlike the Austin clusterfuck of entertainment, Moogfest hardly gets chaotic. The walks between the Asheville Civic Center and the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium slightly mirror scenes in Titanic, but you never feel like a flood’s coming. It’s so lax. For a festival awash in electronica, the crowd is sensibly tame. “Do you know where my friend Lucy is?” sounds far less jarring than  ”Yo, you got any blow?”

People are good here. That’s never the case. Anywhere. Through cultural elements like food and music, Moogfest continues to champion the finer things of Asheville, while cultivating this sense that creation can still be possible through strictly the mind. Even if you’re running your fingers over dozens of plastic nobs that make woo woo noises.

-Michael Roffman
President/Editor-in-Chief

Thursday, October 27th

Prior to the weekend’s festivities, Tobacco played host to hundreds of festivalgoers at the newly minted Asheville Music Hall – which remained at capacity throughout the festival. As part of Consequence of Sound‘s 2nd Annual Moogfest Pre-Party, those in attendance made it no secret that they were primed for a weekend heavy in electronic music. Starved were the fans of the delightful east coast town.

Gallery by Cap Blackard

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Friday, October 28th

Matthew Dear – Animoog Playground – 5:15 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Due to some hotel snafus, I arrived at Moogfest’s first show of the weekend when Matthew Dear and his band were already in full swing – leather pants and all. With a bassist, a drummer, and a trumpet player for support, Dear was repeatedly belting out, “I don’t care ‘bout you anymore” – from his song “Tide” – and it was the kind of line that sucks you in even if you’ve never heard the song before. “Slowdance” was next, bringing down the mood from the fast-paced techno of the song before, but then the heavy beats picked right back up with “You Put a Smell on Me”. Dear & his gang did everything they could to get the crowd moving on a cold and rainy afternoon, an impossible task for some, but in spite of it all, there was dancing abound. Closing out the set with “Little People (Black City)”, I walked away from the set thinking that even under less than ideal conditions, this was the perfect kickoff to a fantastic weekend. -Carson O’Shoney

Beak> – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 6:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

There’s a moment in college, sometime after you first drop your shit off in your dorm, when you meet “the cool music guys.” Usually there are like two or three of ‘em, holed up in the corner room of the hall, typically fucking around with some guitar, keyboard, four-track players, etc. One of ‘em passionately aches to be experimental; you lick it up. UK trio Beak> echoes this to a tee. During their early set at the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, Geoff Barrow (yes, the Geoff Barrow), Billy Fuller, and Matt Williams acted less like professional musicians and more like casual music scholars. They sat, they strummed, they fiddled, and they kept to themselves. At one point in the set, Barrow tripped on the beat for the paranoid walker “Pill”, to which he tossed his drumsticks behind him and shrugged it off. So nonchalant, so chill. At that moment, one had to think, Damn, I wonder if they wanna get drinks after this. -Michael Roffman

Mayer Hawthorne & County – Animoog Playground – 6:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

How adorbs is Mayer Hawthorne? Hawthorne champions his underdog hometown of Detroit seemingly every chance he gets, paying tribute to its classic soul sound with his band The County, kicking out the Motown jams (a dash of Stax in there too) with ease and poise. He can even get a party going in a rainy, cold parking lot, which is what the Animoog Playground was reduced to early Friday evening. “Don’t laugh if any one of us falls onstage, man,” he said. “Shit is treacherous.” Mayer also made sure to specifically mention, again, that he was from Detroit and rainy parking lots were kind of the norm for him. Fair enough. But by the time he directed the audience to make raindrop hand motions on “I Wish It Would Rain”, it felt kind of magical. How can you not love this guy? -Paul de Revere

The Antlers - Asheville Civic Center Arena – 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Somebody only familiar with Hospice may have thought The Antlers to be a bit out of place at Moogfest, but the expansive sound of sophomore follow-up Burst Apart and the even more elaborate live show certainly converted any skeptics. Somber “Atrophy” from Hospice snuck its way into the set list, but the rest of their time was spent creating completely mesmerizing renditions of Burst Apart‘s highlights – including a stunning version of “Rolled Together” and the one-two punch of closers “Coriscana” and “Putting the Dog to Sleep”. Peter Silberman’s soaring falsetto was pitch-perfect, complimented phenomenally by a tight performance from the rest of the band, a surprising vocal triumph by their touring keyboardist, and a dazzling light show, all adding up to an incredible way to pull down the night. -Caitlin Meyer

Atlas Sound – Orange Peel – 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

“Welcome to Moogfest! I mean… Mougefest,” Atlas Sound‘s Bradford Cox exclaimed while taking the stage at the Orange Peel. Apparently everyone gets confused with the name of the festival. However, there was no confusion about how humbled Cox was to be there. Claiming Bob Moog as a personal hero, the Deerhunter frontman spared no time crafting a series of loops that lead straight to an adhesive wall of sound. From there, he transitioned from one cut to the next, with most of the material stripped from Atlas Sound’s forthcoming LP, Parallax.

Amidst the set, Cox performed his more acoustic material, sometimes at risk of the crowd’s interest, who were only interested in the louder material, at least judging from all the chatter over slower songs like “Terra Incognito” and “Amplifiers”. Despite this, Cox mastered Parallax’s lush sound live – especially during highlights like “Te Amo” and “Parallax”. That same ethos held up even when he played tracks off Logos. “Walkabout” became an acoustic song complete with harmonica. All in all, a solid performance that proved Cox doesn’t need the rest of his Deerhunter bandmates to enthrall a live audience. -Carson O’Shoney

Tangerine Dream – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 8:00 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

It’s probably a good start (to the weekend, the year, your brand, what have you) when legendary electronic music pioneer Edgar Froese calls your weekend getaway “one of the best prog fests on the planet right now.” Sort of a big deal. But, then again, so was an appearance by Tangerine Dream. One of a few exclusives at Moogfest this year, the German electronic outfit were allotted a whopping two hours, which they bled dry with an endless stream of synth puzzles. Their stage setup shared many qualities with the flight deck of the USS Enterprise; Froese and Thorsten Quaeschning fiddled about at their stations, while guitarist Bernhard Beibl spun an intricate web of guitar nearby, supported by multi-instrumentalist Linda Spa and drummer Iris Camaa.

Given that the electronic prodigies have 116 studio and live albums to date, it’s a little more than difficult to pinpoint any specific tracks. However, a few did come to mind: the dueling synths of “Carmel Calif”, the running ambiance of “Serpent Magique”, and the blushing fretwork on “Hunter Shot by a Yellow Rabbit”. Precise is too loose a term to ascribe to the band, though it’s accurate. Not once in the two hours did they falter, quake, or shuffle. Slumped over their work, Froese and Quaeschning unplugged from reality and escaped into, hell, who knows where. Adjacent to them, Beibl successfully culled all the right sounds out of the guitar, always with a smile, while Spa switched between a mellotron, tenor sax, alto sax, and more. Not be left out, Camaa beat the hell out of the drums… and with neon drumsticks to boot. Very cool.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Yet also classy. In addition to his support for the festival, Froese also reminded the audience to never forget Bob Moog, a man who “wasn’t just a technician, but a philosopher and visionary.” Admittedly, not everyone made it ’til the end of their exhausting journey to hear that, but those who stuck around applauded soundly. Now, Tangerine Dream didn’t necessarily set a high watermark performance-wise, but what they did do was further underline the unique ideology behind Moogfest. That’s just priceless. -Michael Roffman

Chromeo – Animoog Playground – 9:30 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

If there’s one thing that Chromeo is better at than creating baby-making, electro-funk bliss, it’s performing it live. Despite the stage being outside, with heavy rain and temperatures in the 40′s, Dave 1 and P-Thugg were on their A-game. From the onset of “Fancy Footwork” to the banging rendition of “When the Night Falls” and everybody’s favorite, “Needy Girl”, the set flew by in flashes of strobe lights and grooving bass lines. Fighting numb fingers and wet equipment, Dave 1′s vocal and guitar performances were spot-on, and he made sure to keep a positive attitude, with corny jokes (“If today were Halloween, I’d be Business Casual“) and outbursts such as “Dancing will keep you warm!” in the middle of “Momma’s Boy”. The crowd more than heeded his advice – leading to a myriad of demonstrations of fancy footwork and, more likely than not, some “Bonafied Lovin’”. -Caitlin Meyer

The Field – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 10:30 p.m.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

Anyone who didn’t sneak a nap in during The Field‘s set at the cozy Thomas Wolfe Auditorium is crazy. Those seats are so comfortable! And The Field is so lulling and repetitive, even with its human touches on drum kit and bass guitar with the Swedish, Kompakt-endorsed producer Axel Willner. Willner and company mined grooves for essentially as long as humanly possible, upwards of 10 or 12 minutes, before doling out a serious payoff groove for anyone who stuck with them. And for real, those killer grooves will wake you up. Sure, The Field is best as background music, but Willner and company’s massaging bass and light show (one of the best of the weekend, btw) should keep you interested. If not, stick with it. It’s worth it. -Paul de Revere

Moby – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 10:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

“She is really good,” a cute, Teletubby-dressed festivalgoer remarked, while singer Inyang Bassey belted out the main vocals on a reworked, stripped-down version of Moby‘s “In This World”. She’s right: Bassey is really good; in fact, she’s downright invigorating. Stomping about the stage with police-like authority, Bassey doesn’t just sing on Moby’s tracks, she owns them. Whether it’s the soulful surf on “In My Heart” or the corner blues crooning on “Flower”, Bassey has ingrained herself into the eclectic vegan’s work.

But, Moby’s no slouch, either. Having performed as a DJ for the past year and having convinced everyone on record that he was Destroyed, the descendant of Herman Melville let the costumed souls in Asheville know one thing: He’s a headliner, goddammit. From the start, he breathlessly knocked out hit after hit – excusing himself of any recent material, save for a remix of the always-depressing-yet-hey-it’s-also-hard-hitting “Shot in the Back of the Head” – cutting his fingers (he’s a pretty sweet guitarist, folks) on favorites like “Natural Blues”, “We Are All Made of Stars”, “Bodyrock”, and “Southside”. Thousands of spectators responded with delight when he dedicated “Porcelain” to the city, while others went all Matt Damon during “Extreme Ways”.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Towards the end, following a dance-friendly cut of “Raining Again” into club-ready anthem “Feeling So Real”, Moby took off his shirt, stood on an amplifier, and ran through an early performance piece of his he hadn’t done in the U.S. for over 12 years (“Thousand”). For a moment, it felt like he was going to dive right into the crowd. He could have. He drew one of the most dedicated and powerful audiences of the night. But, much like the performance itself, he surprised us and stepped down, offering an ample thanks. Always modest, he probably didn’t realize he just finished one of the most-talked-about sets of the weekend. -Michael Roffman

Zomby - Orange Peel – 11:00 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

Taking the stage a few minutes late to a capable crowd at the Orange Peel, Zomby accomplished the impossible: making dancing to Soulja Boy fun.The crowd who started the night nearly hypothermic from the pouring rain outside quickly warmed up to the entrancing beats and visuals. It’s a shame the man behind the mask wasn’t as enjoyable as his music. The producer, in the course of his set, threw a miniature tantrum at the light crew for not blacking out the stage, blatantly walked away from his computer to smoke, and never uttered a word to the audience. But, hey, at least unlike the ATP show, he actually showed up this time. The music nearly redeemed the attitude, fortunately, as his genre-bending tunes created a solid, hour-long set that included some brief, dirty dubstep, highlights from Where Were U in ’92?, and a particularly well-received version of Dedication’s “Natalia’s Song”. -Caitlin Meyer

Flying Lotus – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 12:00 a.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

After Moby, everybody had the same idea: Let’s run to Flying Lotus. Unfortunately, the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium had already hit capacity to the dismay of hundreds of costumed fans, but for those who did make it in, Steven Ellison, aka Flying Lotus, made a solid case for show of the weekend… and it was only Friday. Seamlessly intertwining everything from Tyler, The Creator’s “Yonkers” to Erykah Badu to a comprehensive sampling of his discography, Ellison’s 75-minute set went by with a blink of an eye. The music paired alongside an impeccable light show and frequent, friendly crowd interaction left even the harshest critic with no option but to love the show – and a show it was, definitively proving that a DJ set does not have to, and should not, be limited to a guy standing behind a computer. -Caitlin Meyer

TV on the Radio – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 12:30 a.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

It’s always hard to pin down exactly what makes a band like TV on the Radio a) a future timeless act, a crown jewel of the Williamsburg-era indie scene that spawned it and b) able to fit in at Pitchfork Festival, Virgin Mobile Free Fest, and at Moogfest without seeming at all out of place. You’re only left with the conclusion that TVotR is a band for all seasons and pretty much all crowds. The band is on a major label but made of serious artists with side projects (even a minor acting career, with regards to Tunde Adebimpe). It’s a fairly large band with more than a few members, but they sound like a lean unit together.

Photo by Cap Blackard

It’s why roaring set opener “Halfway Home” seems grand (it’s ostensibly about longing and distance) but sounds precise and fierce like a charging dragon. It’s why TV on the Radio can rock it with horns and guitar/bass arrangements on “Red Dress” and then get down, dirty, and friendly with EDM heads with squats and squirts of bassy noise on “New Cannonball Blues”. Adebimpe can croon, Kyp Malone can wail, and Dave Sitek can make noise, and it all just blends into a perfect song, but you’re still missing something: the band’s X factor. Let’s venture to say the band has a humanity and an adaptive dynamism, switching gears and pumping out tunes like no one’s business, churning out one of the best sets of the weekend. -Paul de Revere

Araabmuzik – Asheville Music Hall – 01:30 a.m.

Here’s a bit of irony that mostly gear nerds will chuckle at: Araabmuzik is known (rightfully so) as a giant on the Music Production Center sample and drum pads. “The MVP of the MPC,” if you will. But the MPC is made by AKAI and not Moog. Oh, that’s rich! Go on! It’s all love, though, because the talents of Araab (one Abraham Orellana) cannot be denied and were among the finest of the Moogfest weekend. To gawk at the diminutive, blinged-out Orellana play live (that watch, those earrings!), it’s dubious that a guy stuck behind an EQ board for Dipset for years could have a successful niche solo career pressing buttons really fast. That’s reductive, but it’s kind of Moogfest in a nutshell. It’s about craft and sheer talent at this festival.

So, maybe that’s why Orellana’s set late Friday/early Saturday only brushed up against his killer “Electronic Dream” material, his vamping on subtle sounds of dubstep wobble and dark witch house rumble, all played on the MPC manually. It looked like the machine was going to explode. Unfortunately, the crowd lined up almost around the block from Asheville Music Hall trying to get a look at Araab’s fast fingers had no such consolation, just rainy, wet streets that night. But they could at least take consolation that Araab provided them a perfect soundtrack for wet, dark city streets, like a Burial for American rap: distant, echoed, and just a little melancholy. But bangin’, dude. Just bangin’. -Paul de Revere

Saturday, October 29th

Brian Eno – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 2:00 p.m.

Even with all the dancing, partying, and debauchery, Moogfest remains a more intellectually minded festival. Case in point: For two hours, Brian Eno took us to school. The Thomas Wolfe Auditorium hosted Eno’s “Illustrated Talk”, a separately ticketed event within Moogfest, in which the renaissance artist delivered a lecture the equivalent of seven or so TED Talks smashed into one another. Or, as he put it, “a circuitous look” at things he’d been thinking about over the years as told by “Rambling Jack Eno” – everything from Copernicus, to cybernetics, to how choosing a haircut is the equivalent of choosing a point in a multidimensional space.

With an uncanny itinerary of points to touch on, Eno started at the most approachable point possible: music. He discussed the beginnings of his fascination with experimental music, starting with fellow Moogfest ’11 alum Terry Riley and Steve Reich. Though the subject matter often turned lofty, Eno kept things consistently light with self-aware anecdotes and hilarious asides, including his shamefully ugly debut image of 77 Million Paintings in Sidney and how adult online image galleries are a window into human creativity. Ultimately, Eno’s talk was a message on how art and music have changed culture and how human culture hinges on the dichotomy between control and surrender. Eno’s latest piece, 77 Million Paintings (now actually 100 million³ paintings), is an ever-changing audio-visual installation all about surrendering – both surrendering control as an artist and the viewer surrendering to the experience. To say that there’s a lot on the man’s mind would be an understatement.

Everyone left the auditorium heads buzzing with new ideas, new information, and hopefully some inspiration. One thing’s for sure. If every college seminar was this engrossing, we’d have never missed a class.

77 Million Paintings is open to the public at the YMI Cultural Center in Asheville, NC, November 2nd-30th. -Cap Blackard

Photo by Joseph F. Carney III // Courtesy of Moogfest

Hans-Joachim Roedelius - Diana Wortham Theatre – 5:00 p.m.

“Brian Eno is celebrating his 77 Million Paintings… but today, I’m celebrating my 77th birthday,” Hans-Joachim Roedelius stated prior to performing. The crowd, who were already giving him a big applause for walking onstage, cheered louder at the news. After all, it’s not every day that you get to see a legendary 77-year-old German experimentalist.

He didn’t blow out any candles; instead, he flicked on the sounds of a radio blaring Jimi Hendrix’s “Star Spangled Banner”, followed by a couple minutes of classical music. When the radio dimmed down, all that was left was Roedelius and his ambient music. Falling somewhere between Eno and Basinski, his music was so quiet and subtle that you could hear any and every noise being made in the audience – from camera shutters to simply movement in one’s seat.

Thankfully, the audience was cordial – especially for a festival – and no one spoke a word. The air in the Diana Wortham Theatre remained still and silent. With the opening composition lasting around 45 minutes, it finally ended with the radio once again blaring – this time with Beethoven’s “Ode to Joy”. As soon as everything stopped, Roedelius shouted, “It was my birthday gift to you!” He received a standing ovation for which he seemed genuinely humbled and delighted. As he sat down to play his last song,“One more, a lullaby”, the crowd sang happy birthday to him. It was as cute a moment as you’ll ever see at a festival, and Roedelius looked overjoyed. And so, he played his final lullaby, a gorgeous piano piece, and got another standing O as he walked offstage. It was one of the most respectful and grateful crowds a festival could ever get, and the set was that much better for it. -Carson O’Shoney

Photo by Catherine Watkins.

Dan Deacon – Animoog Playground – 5:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

It’s hard to watch a Dan Deacon gig, but it’s easy to experience. Does that make sense? In other words, you’re not really paying much attention to the music. You’re not. Watching the electronic guru – or, at least trying to (he moves around a bunch) – recalls the hyper intensive Saturday mornings spent absorbing cartoons and commercials. You’re frantically moving about, you’re looking around wildly, and you’re flailing your hands in the air. (Okay, so maybe your Saturday mornings were different. Whatever.) For his second performance at Moogfest – he performed last year at the Asheville Civic Center Arena – Deacon brought his comedic antics outside to the Animoog Playground. It was pretty chilly outdoors, an irritating condition Deacon humorously blamed on the government. He offered plenty of cuts from his back catalogue, including those off 2009′s Bromst, all of which sound-tracked a variety of activities, including a chaotic dance-off which took place within a giant circle amongst the crowd (orchestrated by Deacon, no less). What we learned: Deacon knows no limits. Someone should hug him for that – again and again. -Michael Roffman

SBTRKT – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 6:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

SBTRKT didn’t deliver the day’s most devastating bass in the Asheville Civic Center (that would belong to Amon Tobin’s intense ISAM experience later on), but damn if it didn’t shake a few dozen folks’ guts in front. The British duo had the responsibility of kicking off Saturday at the Civic Center Arena after YACHT’s cancellation hours before. So SBTRKT responded with sleek beats and, well, awesome-looking tribal masks. It’s a cool but inconsequential look, hardly the craziest one on a stage that weekend, not mattering much to the danceable melancholy of “Hold On”, featuring vocalist Sampha, who’s paired with SBTRKT for his current tour. “You’re giving me the coldest stare,” he sang. “Like you don’t even know I’m there.” Things got more upbeat quickly, with the commercial-licensing-in-waiting instrumental “Ready Set Loop”, with an enchanting, constant winding of trebled-out synth, with a tone not out of place in a Basement Jaxx banger. Only SBTRKT uses it in an almost down-tempo format. Oh, you wanted a hit? Well, SBTRKT kind of really does hits: “Wildfire”. It bears out its lean groove in a live setting as well as it does on record. It’s a strong contender for one of the best songs of the year and one of the best drops/crowd reactions of the weekend. Like its bass, SBTRKT’s music was strong throughout but not imposing. It was just right to start off the evening. -Paul de Revere

Crystal Castles - Animoog Playground – 7:00 p.m.

Following the spectacle that is Dan Deacon is no easy task, but Toronto’s Crystal Castles were more than up to it. Storming the stage to an onslaught of strobes and red lights, vocalist Alice Glass proved to be the real show of the evening – with an ever-present handle of Jack Daniels inspiring ridiculous things like spitting whiskey on the crowd and frequent stage diving. Though the stage presence was unparalleled, the mixing fully washed out Glass’s vocals by the middle of the almost uncomfortably loud set. “Not in Love” and “Crimewave” were still discernible in the messy mix of synth and bass, to great crowd reception of continued violent dancing. At the end of the day, with the mix of lights, throbbing bass, and Glass’s ridiculous antics, it didn’t really end up mattering if the sound wasn’t perfect because both the band and the audience were on a completely different plane. -Caitlin Meyer

Adrian Belew Power Trio – Diana Wortham Theatre – 8:00 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Here’s how forward-thinking Moogfest is: A progressive rock hero like Adrian Belew had among the most conventional performances at the festival, all things considered. Keep in mind that Belew used loop pedals, processed his guitar through a MacBook to make it sound like a percussively clipped baby grand piano, and soloed using his whammy bar more than ever thought possible (especially on the King Crimson selection he unsheathed, “Neurotica”). His rotating cast of trio members (cumulatively, it was more of a quin- or sextet) kept things fresh, providing some much-needed fresh arms (wrists, fingers) in the midst of what can only be described as stamina-testing, spastic rock. But, man, it was funky! Even if it was long-winded. Belew has still got it, and as backlit stage lights projected his drummers’ movements onto the Diana Wortham Theater wall, he casts a large shadow. -Paul de Revere

The Flaming Lips – Animoog Playground – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

By now, you know what you’re getting with a Flaming Lips show. Even if you’ve never seen them, Wayne Coyne goes ahead and tells you before the show that he’s going to “get in the space bubble.” He shoots off a precautionary blast of streamers and confetti. They start pumping the balloons side stage. The video screens start flashing. When they finally take the stage, you’re fully aware of being bombarded with an overload of confetti, giant balloons, lights, lasers, dancers and smoke. And yet, it’s easy to get swept up in the spectacle as soon as you see Coyne walking over the crowd in his space bubble. Moogfest was the latest stop on their quest to play every festival ever known to man, and Coyne was acutely aware of his surroundings. “This is the coolest festival we’ve ever played,” he observed, and having seen them at multiple festivals, I can attest to the fact that he doesn’t just say that wherever he is. He seemed genuinely gleeful about playing Moogfest – he said that if this was someone’s first festival they might as well not bother with any others because nothing could top this.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

Where the Flaming Lips used make an entrance out of a spaceship, they now enter the stage through a door in the video screens. Of course, they set the video up so that they’re walking out of a glowing vagina – about par for the course when it comes to the Lips. The entirety of the first two or three songs was supplemented by videos of various naked women prancing about – a treat for the dozens of people watching from their windows in the hotel behind the stage I’m sure. On the cusp of releasing a 24-hour long song, the Lips played a mostly standard set, filled with mainstays like “She Don’t Use Jelly” & “The Yeah Yeah Yeah Song”. The giant hands that Coyne has been busting out for years now have lasers in them, which made for an extraordinary display when he shone them on the giant disco ball above the stage. Perhaps inspired by the spirit of Robert Moog (which Coyne said they were trying to conjure during their set), Steven Drozd broke out his iPad for a solo played on Moog’s new app. All in all, the Lips’ set at Moogfest wasn’t much different than any other, and that’s perfectly fine with them. They always say their shows are for people who have never seen them before – and for them, surely there wasn’t a more delightful and joyous set all weekend. -Carson O’Shoney

Toro y Moi – Orange Peel – 9:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

With an hour and some change to work with, Toro y Moi‘s Chazwick Bundick evolved the energy left behind by Twin Shadow an hour earlier and kept Saturday night alive. Maybe it’s just the songs off his latest LP, Underneath the Pine, or possibly his taut, fiesta-ready EP, Freaking Out, but Bundick feels more assured these days. Gone is the quiet electrician who stood alone tweaking the “chillwave” anthems that hipsters pined for everywhere in early 2010. Instead, there’s a courageous auteur of electronic pop, surrounded by an engaging live band. It’s made all the difference, too. Tracks like the disco fusion clambake “New Beat” or the playful and decadent “All Alone” served as inviting ringers that attracted more and more fans at the Orange Peel. It took awhile for the crowd to really start dancing – then again, it doesn’t help when there’s someone checking your wristband every five minutes – but a third of the way through, you’d be remiss to call it anything but a swingin’ party. Boys got drunk, girls got flirty, and one scandalous couple treated the wooden dance floor like their bedroom. It’s okay, though: Bundick’s from South Carolina. He’s quite familiar with his northern neighbors. Nothing but love, baby. -Michael Roffman

Amon Tobin – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 10:15 p.m.

As I walked into the Asheville Civic Center a few minutes before Amon Tobin was to go on, I was expecting to see his big setup already there and waiting. Yet the stage was empty, and the curtains in the back were deep into the stage. They eventually opened to reveal Tobin’s crazy ISAM setup, but it was so far back in the stage that it felt disconnected from the audience. Regardless, the setup was impressive, and there’s no way words can do justice to its visuals.

Obviously, word had leaked of this insane ISAM experience, and people arrived in droves. The spectacle packed more attendees than any other show of the weekend. The visuals were perfectly in tune to the music, sometimes adding a whole different layer to the beats; at times it seemed like the visuals came first and he made the music to match what was happening. Whether it was metal pistons firing or a spaceship seemingly being constructed, it made for a delicious visual treat. Astral memories aside, no festivalgoer will listen to the album the same ever again – and that’s the mark of a great performance. -Carson O’Shoney

Photo by Catherine Watkins

St. Vincent - Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 10:45 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

The last time I saw Annie Clark, aka St. Vincent, was an accident – when she opened at a small club show in 2007. The set consisted of her juggling about four instruments, coyly singing, and shyly disappearing after the set. Needless to say, as she skipped to the front of the huge stage with a full band, seeing the progression was magical. The set blasted through Strange Mercy with “Cheerleader”, “Cruel”, and “Chloe in the Afternoon” and made sure not to forget favorites from Actor like “Save Me From What I Want” and “Actor Out of Work”. Clark’s guitar work and vocals were pitch-perfect, and her personality was just as mesmerizing as her musical talent. She doled out funny pop culture lessons (requiring a viewing of Chloe in the Afternoon), detailed her new music video, and responded graciously to all of the “Annie! Marry me!” yells, making for a truly memorable show. -Caitlin Meyer

Suicide – Orange Peel – 11:30 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

A rare opportunity. Pretty much all the convincing one needed to catch New York City’s cult No Wave outfit Suicide. Performing their landmark 1977 self-titled debut, vocalist Alan Vega and Martin Rev had only seven tracks to deliver. Seven tracks! Granted, one of those said tracks oozes past the 10-minute mark (“Frankie Teardrop”), but still…

At first glance, Vega and Rev offer plenty of fodder for cynics and futurists or those who feel the past belongs in the past. For one, Vega is 72 years old, and he looks it. Despite the black hat and thick shades, he couldn’t hide what time’s done to him physically – or vocally, for that matter. While Rev assembled the warbled fuzz behind tracks like “Ghost Rider” and “Johnny” (and to perfection, no less), Vega barked and squealed in a manner not quite akin to that of the classic LP. Sure, the group’s work has always been an erratic landscape, but gone was the haunting finesse. Instead, it felt like musical Tourette’s.

Photo by Cap Blackard

There’s a fitting passage in Simon Reynold’s exceptional book Retromania: Pop Culture’s Addiction to Its Own Past where reunions are discussed at great length. He cites Blast First label head Paul Smith, writing, “For Smith, reunions are valid both in terms of doing justice to a band’s importance in the history of music, and as a reward for an artist who most likely laboured hard for minimal financial payback. He feels that reformations can be done well or done badly.” Well, given that Smith had a hand in bringing back Suicide to the spotlight, he’d probably argue the reunion was done well. He’d be right – sort of. There’s no denying that hearing “Frankie Teardrop” in all its paranoid glory will stick in many a festivalgoer’s head for years and years to come. However, there are a slew of images now associated with the music that were never there before. A slumped over Rev, for one. In addition to a restless, bitter-looking Vega, who at one point shouted, “For Christ’s sake, what the fuck is happening…?” Good question, though not quite sure on the answer yet. -Michael Roffman

STS9 - Asheville Civic Center Arena – 12:00 a.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

After a demanding day spent in the cold outside, the idea of intense dancing for two hours was less than appealing. Fortunately for what was one of the biggest crowds of the weekend, quintet STS9 was a second burst of life. Focusing the majority of the time on newer material, namely the When the Dust Settles EP, extended versions of “Scheme” and “When the Dust Settles” were early highlights. As the light boxes shifted from wild patterns to swirling green smoke and lights (not to mention the scandalous silhouettes of the ribbon dancers in the upper deck), even if somebody didn’t want to dance, the multi-sensory experience was completely captivating. Though the middle of the show got a little repetitive for the casual fan, STS9′s time onstage felt prematurely truncated at two and cries for extended playing were left unanswered. -Caitlin Meyer

Battles – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 12:45 a.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

Despite a lukewarm start and an entertaining lack of people skills, Battles grew into one of the weekend’s undeniably best sets. As the trio settled in, the songs so meticulously recorded came to life and a previously unseen depth. Pair the incessant flashes of orange and yellow light with the hour-plus long onslaught of the best hybrid of experimental and math rock imaginable, artfully filmed videos of the featured vocalists singing their parts incorporated accordingly and a set list full to the brim of crowd favorites (namely, “Ice Cream”, “Atlas”, “Futura”) and that maybe adds up to about half of the unbelievable energy in the room. The experience was unparalleled, their live show as tight, dance-inducing and hypnotic as some of the weekend’s best DJs. -Caitlin Meyer

Kode9  - Orange Peel – 1:00 a.m.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

These days, most people become aware of Kode9 through Burial. While he doesn’t ever appear in public, he’s arguably the most prominent figure on Hyperdub, the UK label run by Kode9 himself. So, after Suicide performed at the Orange Peel, it wasn’t surprising that plenty of people who stuck around were asking: “So, who’s this next guy?” It didn’t matter, though. Minutes into the performance, the entire crowd was dancing. With ease, Kode9 made Hyperdub’s presence known at Moogfest, wearing a shirt with the label’s distinctive “HD” logo on it and having surrounding visuals revolve around the same logo. Whether it was the spectacle or the music, he did what a good DJ does best: He disappeared. Everyone was too busy dancing their asses off, and if they needed something to look at, Kode9 provided some hilarious, mostly trippy visuals, where everything from That 70′s Show to Chuck Norris shared some screen time. Anywhere else, a show at one in the morning could be a drag, but at Moogfest, the energy stays high till the wee hours of the morning, and Kode9’s set was a perfect example of just how crazy the crowds can get in Asheville. -Carson O’Shoney

Sunday, October 30th

Active Child – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 5:30 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

How many people were onstage with Active Child’s Pat Grossi? Grossi is, and seems to serenely pride himself on being, a one-man band. And maybe there were two others on stage with him. Can’t be sure. (There were.) It seemed like most everyone getting into the music in the Asheville Civic Center Arena had their eyes closed to the serene, womb-like calm that Grossi and company emitted sonically, pulling heavily from this year’s wonderful You Are All I See with “Playing House” (Grossi took on How to Dress Well’s record verse) and the finisher, “Johnny Belinda”, which started easy and then came down like an avalanche, leveling everything.. On Twitter, Grossi said before he went onstage that his Moogfest performance was in the biggest venue he’s ever played. He may have seen a lot in front of him, but all most saw was the back of their eyelids, lost in the music. In other words, he is all we see. -Paul de Revere

M83 – Asheville Civic Center Arena – 6:30 p.m.

Have you ever experienced a concert with your entire body, thrashing around to pulsing bass and synthesizers, as if conducting live music via some sloppy form of judo? That’s what being possessed by M83 live is like: You will cry, you will be sore, and your soul might lift out of your fucking body. If the opening arpeggiations and whispers of “Intro” (“We didn’t need a story, we didn’t need a real world…”) aren’t enough to get you worked up into a spiritual ecstasy (or at least get a few chills up and down your neck), try a quick onstage appearance by the gentle, furry creature on the cover of Hurry Up, We’re Dreaming. This is the kind of theatrical adrenaline rush that M83 offers. You are not ready. Surrender yourself.

Photo by Cap Blackard

Anthony Gonzalez and company (which included the lovely vocalist Morgan Kibby, who takes lead on more songs live than M83’s studio work might suggest) followed with the first three tracks of Dreaming: “Intro” (where Kibby did an eerily accurate mimicry of Zola Jesus), the maybe-single-of-the-year “Midnight City”, and the Rush-circa-“Subdivisions” rocker “Wait”. A greatest hits set list followed: “Teen Angst”, “We Own the Sky”, and Dreaming’s stellar “Steve McQueen”. It was one helluva first half of the set. Seriously, can anybody fuck with M83 when it comes to pure sonic majesty live? Maybe Sigur Ros, but it’d be foolish to pretend that Gonzalez and Jonsi Birgsson aren’t passively in a pretty-as-fuck music contest right now. And since Sigur Ros isn’t touring right now, M83 is winning. No joke, though, if you don’t see this band when they come through your city, you’re a goddamn fool. -Paul de Revere

Childish Gambino – Animoog Playground – 7:15 p.m.

For better or for worse, depending on your taste, rap was barely represented at Moogfest 2011. Sure, shades of the genre’s aggressive bass sound were everywhere, even being played as pre-show PA music at times. But only two acts that could be comfortably grouped as “rap” performed at Moogfest weekend: Araabmuzik, who had a hypeman, and the festival’s only actual rapper, Childish Gambino, who didn’t have one. Hell, he didn’t need one. #Swag was Gambino’s wingman, and he was the closest thing Moogfest got to an honest-to-goodness rap show.

There’s an indigence that must come with that: being American top 40’s most sonically progressive genre but having minimal representation at one of the world’s most progressive music festivals. If anyone was beset with that indigence on Moogfest weekend, it was Childish Gambino, actor Donald Glover’s rapper alter ego. And Gambino couldn’t have handled that swag better. The nerdy-voiced rapper smacked ‘em down (“‘em” being haters, white people, girls who broke his heart, and the nameless “you”) and was, needless to say, funny. Righteously funny.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

But mostly, Glover was swaggerific, presenting new material from the forthcoming Camp (“Bonfire,” “Do Ya Like”) with confidence and heart. “Why does everyone have a problem with talking stupid shit?/Or is it real shit?/‘Cause sometimes that stupid shit is real shit,” Glover rapped on “All the Shine”. As meta-conscious, self-examining, and self-deprecating as Gambino can be, his swag is unflappable. Dude’s got all the shine, and he killed the Animoog Playground’s penultimate set of the weekend. -Paul de Revere

Neon Indian – Thomas Wolfe Auditorium – 8:00 p.m.

Photo by Cap Blackard

After Sunday’s set in the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, anybody who characterizes Neon Indian as “chillwave” is just plain wrong, as Alan Palomo and company’s live show is anything but. Watching Era Extrana come to life with the full band was phenomenal, made even better by Palomo’s extremely dynamic performance. Even on the more laid-back tunes, all eyes were on him. From the starting tune “Terminally Chill” through old favorite “Deadbeat Summer” and new staple “Polish Girl”, Neon Indian, although having the unfortunate task of following M83, played with an energy and fervor that took me completely by surprise. Throwing in a surprise encore of “Should Have Taken Acid With You” that sparked huge enthusiasm from the crowd was the perfect way to end what ended up being a raging dance party. -Caitlin Meyer

Special Disco Version - Asheville Civic Center Arena – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Catherine Watkins

Last year, LCD Soundsystem was #1 on many a wish list for Moogfest. It didn’t end up coming to fruition, and now that LCD has played their last show ever, it never will. However, this year Moogfest did bring in two of its members – frontman James Murphy and drummer Pat Mahoney – for a set as their DJ sideshow Special Disco Version. The crowd wasn’t huge – then again, nothing was on Sunday – but the LCD faithful showed up to dance. Firing up the disco ball from the beginning, Mahoney & Murphy spun plenty of old, deep, and groovy disco cuts. Their set was an actual DJ set – no computer, just two turntables, not even a microphone. Murphy, being the anal performer that he is, left the stage for about five minutes to attend to some issues at the sound booth in the middle of the arena floor. Once everything got straightened out, Murphy and Mahoney looked like they were having fun onstage, even if it wasn’t much to look at. Mostly one would be on the decks while the other just stood and watched. But what they lacked in stage presence was made up for with visuals and eventually ribbon dancers hanging from the ceiling. The mood was light and fun, and the crowd danced the whole time. Sometimes that’s all you need after a long weekend of dynamite shows. -Carson O’Shoney

Passion Pit – Animoog Playground – 9:00 p.m.

It’s been two-and-a-half years since Passion Pit released its debut album, Manners. But, it’s still a) one of the best LPs for use at the gym, b) very addicting, and c) pretty relevant. In a year that’s seen new releases by just about every face worthy of a glance within the synthpop genre, it makes sense that Moogfest would book the Cambridge heart-charmers. And not just for some bullshit DJ appearance, either. No, the real deal.

This includes the always self-deprecating Michael Angelakos, who came out in full force Sunday night. Unlike too many frontman today, Angelakos isn’t afraid to be a human being onstage. At the outdoor Animoog Playground, he couldn’t thank the audience enough for braving the chilly weather or Moogfest for booking them. (Does he realize his band draws favorably well? Probably not.) About two songs in, he paid attention to the photographers below, asking them if they were going to make him look fat, to which he quickly added, “I gained a few pounds.” In an oddball moment, he even put on some cat ears, stating, “I like this headband shit. I’m gonna try and make this official Passion Pit merchandise.” Just a funny guy.

Sonically, Passion Pit continues to exceed its peers. They’re just solid songwriters – from the beginning until now. Older tracks like Chunk of Change favorite “Smile Upon Me” dazzles just as much as radio/commercial/Hype Machine/Skins/BBC Sounds scorcher “Sleepyhead” does. This music affects the fans. During a rousing rendition of “The Reeling”, almost every shoe visited the air, as hundreds of fans jumped up and down in unison for a solid four minutes. That’s powerful. It doesn’t look like they’ll lose that flair anytime soon, either. While plenty will eye their sophomore LP with trepidation, the group knocked out two new cuts to ease the tension: a syrupy “American Blood” and another yet-to-be-titled affair that sounds slightly like M83. Both worked. When they strolled back out for their encore, Angelakos remarked with a boyish grin, “I think we were having too much fun to leave.” So were we. That’s why you gotta get that LP out and hit the road again, bro. -Michael Roffman

Ghostland Observatory – Asheville Civic Center  - 10:30 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

Ghostland Observatory‘s Aaron Behrens and Thomas Turner were on an entirely other level for their time at the Civic Center. Between what was arguably the most intense (and difficult to photograph) light show of the weekend, the nearly schizophrenic onstage presence, and the impeccable technical performance, they were hard to beat. The audience almost had trouble keeping up with the demanding set list, touting “Piano Man”, “Miracle”, and a slamming rendition of “Sad, Sad City”, all of which added together to Bonnaroo-worthy amounts of sweat, the sweetest cathartic release, and guaranteed attendance at their next show in town. -Caitlin Meyer

Gold Panda – The Orange Peel – 11:30 p.m.

Photo by Caitlin Meyer

The Orange Peel hit capacity right before Gold Panda took the stage, the room abuzz with excitement for the last set of Moogfest. Nonchalantly taking his place at the center of the stage, he launched straight into an hour of eclectic dance bliss. Working in runaway crowd favorite “You” as the second song of the set raised the energy even more, complimented by appropriately mesmerizing visuals. Although at times it was hard to get into a groove, as the beats and tempos changed so erratically, extended versions of “Quitter’s Raga” and “Vanilla Minus” easily redeemed any shortcomings. The evening ended with a heavily British sincere thanks and the sad, sad realization that it was time for the drive home back to the real world – even more upsetting, coming down from such an enjoyable set. -Caitlin Meyer

The Culture of Moogfest 2011

Gallery by Cap Blackard, Caitlin Meyer, and Catherine Watkins

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Saturday was a time for raucous play and shameless dance parties. Dizzee Rascal, Cut Copy, and Empire of the Sun led the way, attracting the weekend’s highest volume of festival-goers. Chromeo‘s performance was a scene in itself, with outbursts of lust erupting from all directions. No longer reign the days where people care about “sex, drugs, and rock & roll” — our generation instead heralds “sex, drugs, and electronica.” I wonder what the implications of this will be for us as listeners and for the future of the music scene, as Saturday was definitely the day of synths, strobes, and smoke machines. Its lineup consisted mostly of electronic bands, and their popularity — but perhaps not talent — is indisputable.

Sunday was a clear transition from the day before. When the smoke had dissipated and the San Franciscan fog had instead rolled in, the day began with mellow acts like The Antlers and Warpaint. All around, people simply lied on the grass and just listened. St. Vincent was the highlight of the entire weekend, playing a set that still sends chills up my spine. Annie Clark’s talent and imagination, as well as her presence onstage as an artist, went altogether unmatched by any other performer. Beach House followed closely, musing back and forth with the crowd, and the sound of Victoria Legrand’s voice coupled with the setting sun creates a feeling one can only possess in a dream. By evening, the lights of Treasure Island haunted the night like spectres of the moon, and eventually I had to bid farewell to this magical weekend.

- Summer Dunsmore
Contributing Writer

Saturday, October 15th

Geographer – Bridge Stage – 12:00 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Regaled as one of the most anticipated acts of the weekend, Geographer’s performance was a strong beginning for the festival. Highlights included “Verona” and “Kites”, each decorated with building synths and the band’s characteristic drum kicks. “Kites” carried all of the sweeping, melodic vocals of the recorded track, while “Original Sin” was a mellow, electronic interpretation. One of the best songs of the set was a preview from their new album, and it featured a background of aural, haunting vocals speckled with strong bass drum beats. It was a tantalizing treat, making me look forward to their as-of-yet untitled forthcoming LP. With the sight of San Francisco’s crystalline bay to the west, I sat entranced during Geographer’s entire performance, anticipating what the rest of the day would bring.

Aloe Blacc – Tunnel Stage – 12:45 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Dressed in an emerald green button-down shirt, a black cravat, and a tweed newsboy cap, Aloe Blacc looked all the gentlemen. Radiating energy during the entirety of his set, Blacc served as a heady dose of soul, singing his modern brand of blues. During “Good Times”, Blacc instigated a saxophone solo from Regis Molina, which culminated into a back-and-forth session between himself and the audience. “Regis…sing something to them”, Blacc mused; Molina proceeded to play saxophone bits, which the entire audience would then sing back. Moves like this during his performance create an unshakable bond between performer and listener, an action that artists like Dizzee Rascal and Buraka Som Sistema would perfect later that day. “Femme Fatale” was the best song of the set, a classic in itself, and positively hypnotizing when performed live. Aloe Blacc and his six-piece band were a rarity of the weekend, and even of the music scene itself; they represent a true band, constructing the sound as they go, forgoing any reliance on electronics or pre-recorded mixes. It was fun and interactive, and Blacc’s natural propensity for performance was a much-valued treat.

Shabazz Palaces – Bridge Stage – 1:30 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

I truly anticipated seeing Shabazz Palaces perform; I am a fan of their recorded work, and expected that they would deliver the same standard live. However, at the end of the set, all I could wonder was: Were they drunk? From the first track, their performance was out of tune, proceeding a step too late. It could be argued that this is the Shabazz way, especially with tracks like “Blastit…” and “Swerve…The Reaping of All That is Worthwhile”, but performed live, these just didn’t click. I felt that they were trying to do too much at once, incorporating strange features like a voice modifier that made the singer sound as if he were underwater, as well as lending an overall psychedelic vibe to the tracks. Shabazz Palaces tried to give San Francisco what they thought we wanted. Instead, we were there to see what makes them a unique component of the modern music scene. Something got lost in translation.

YACHT – Tunnel Stage – 2:15 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

How does one explain the vivacity, the dynamism of YACHT’s Claire Evans? A mix of Patti Smith and Bowie, with a pixie cut and all the appropriate androgyny, her and Jona Bechtolt’s performance on Saturday was easily one of the weekend’s best. Their second song of the set, “Summer Song”, was a resplendent hybrid of funk, new wave, and electronica. This song evidences the way that YACHT uses their physical performance — waving their hands, stomping, and actively engaging with the audience — to articulate the crazed fervor of their music. They have the ability to contextualize a song, removing it from its bound, black and white position on a page, and translate it into a live presentation. They take the concepts they explore in their music, such as nihilism, nature, and love, and make them real. This is why YACHT is revolutionary, functioning as a truly integral band in today’s alternative scene. At one point, Evans asked, “Do you guys believe in extraterrestrials?” And doesn’t this describe YACHT perfectly? Their sound is strange, expansive, and fueled by their curiosity.

The Naked & Famous – Bridge Stage – 3:00 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Auckland rockers The Naked & Famous were a stable transition from YACHT’s enigmatic, and still resonant, performance. Their song “Spank” mixed the duplicity of strong percussion and loud electric guitar wails with a soothing blend of vocals from lead signer Alisa Xayalith. Just like many of the tracks from The Naked & Famous, this song builds delicately, focusing on electronics, before exploding in synth and distortion during the chorus. The only unfortunate aspect of the band’s performance was that their reliance on distortion and their shoegaze style often drowned out Xayalith’s voice; overall, the group’s sound is very masculine, what with its reliance on electric guitar and synth, and it tries to integrate femininity as a needed contrast. On their recorded work, they pull it off — but while performing live, her voice gets lost in the midst of fuzzy speakers wracked by distortion.

Battles – Tunnel Stage – 3:45 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Battles produces an aggrandized notion of music. Transitioning from one crash of the kick drum to the next, with cartoonish, Dan Deacon-esque keyboard intermissions, the sound was a complement to the afternoon mood. Beers in hand, people wanted to be dazed and confused by the sun and the music. Their sound while performing live is messy, but essentially that is where their lure lies — they tempt you to turn your brain off, to let your senses simply react in response to the music. Their performance of “Africastle” was decorated in its imperfections, as the band produced a version more momentous than on Glass Drop. This song served as the set’s climax, as all around one could tell the evening was truly about to begin. People were beginning to flow in from all directions, with flasks in tow and flowers in their hair — though none of us could even remotely expect what Dizzee Rascal had in store.

Dizzee “fuckin” Rascal – Bridge Stage – 4:35 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

He started with a remix of “Bubbles”. He ended with “Bonkers”. He is infamous.

Once Dizzee pranced on stage and “let the first drop kick”, Treasure Island immediately erupted into a mass dance party. Imported from the U.K., his unique brand of indie hip hop and electronica is defying previous conceptions about the union between these genres. Integrating dubstep into his renditions of “Road Rage” and “Bounce”, festival-goers dressed like pirates, indians, and aliens danced and thrashed to Dizzee’s mixes. The highlights of the set were definitely “Dance Wiv Me” and “Holiday”, each exhibiting amazing live beats and ensuring Dizzee’s spot as one of the best performers of the weekend.

Buraka Som Sistema – Tunnel Stage – 5:25 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

The dancing mood continued with Buraka Som Sistema’s lively performance. During their cut of “Restless”, they lured women on stage, commanding them to “shake their asses”. Rest assured, a somewhat disturbing mix of crotch grabbing and grinding commenced. BSS’ performance of “Sound of Kuduro” exhibited an interesting range of tribal, Caribbean, and electronic beats. I was disappointed that their performance featured already-recorded beats, with the singers simply interjecting at times to rap and hassle the crowd. Despite this, the hassling was effective — after already six hours of festival-going, BSS infused the crowd with energy in time for Chromeo.

Chromeo – Bridge Stage – 6:15 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Perhaps one of the most hyper-sexualized bands in the scene today, Chromeo’s performance on Saturday was the nearest I’ve come to experiencing an orgy firsthand. With women’s legs stemming from their keyboards, Dave-1 and P-Thugg gave an inspiring performance, using a simple mix of synthesizers and electric guitar to create their “porn” pop.

Starting their set with “Fancy Footwork”, they launched into their music’s main theme of exploration: sexuality. Doused in red light and his own narcissism, Dave 1 painted the spirit of Sodom & Gomorrah on stage, much to the thrill and prevail of the crowd. Chromeo proved themselves to be a talented duo, devoted to their music, and they delivered exceptional percussion and keyboard beats live. “Bonafied Lovin’”, “Needy Girl”, and “Mama’s Boy” were essentials, featuring some noticeable improvisation and ending with a combination of drums, keyboard, and guitar. “Night by Night” delivered an epic end to an epic set.

Flying Lotus – Tunnel Stage – 7:05 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Flying Lotus’ set was a spiritual one, tempting the crowd to simply sit back and vibe. He started with “I Feel Like Dying”, a remix of Lil Wayne’s single. Lotus was just rollin’ beats to the chorus of a thousand voices — to the crowd’s own human chorus. He produced an entrancing murmur of synths and bass, simulating nature, while the lights of San Francisco’s ethereal night framed the background to the Tunnel Stage. I felt like I missed some secret during Flying Lotus; like the crowd, in their inebriated state, knew something I didn’t. There was a calm, and then a buzzing, to the audience, as if Flying Lotus was tending to the beehive — but they didn’t want to be calmed. He played “Yonkers” by Tyler, the Creator, which served as a definite highlight to the set, and he ended strongly with “Massage Situation”.

Cut Copy – Bridge Stage – 7:55 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

I’ve been looking forward to seeing Cut Copy since they released Zonoscope earlier this year. The album was a game changer, bringing to light Cut Copy’s accessibility, as well as its devotion to a novel range of New Wave sound. The band has been on tour for the past year, with Treasure Island being one of their last stops; however, all this touring has not slowed them down. Starting their set with “Take Me Over” and “Feel the Love”, Cut Copy’s performance was better — and different — than I expected. During their charged performance of “Lights and Music”, frontman Whitford sang that there were “lights and music on my mind” — and at this moment, it was on my mind too. When I closed my eyes, the kaleidoscope of stage lights remained behind, confounding my sight, leaving me dancing blindly. The lights during a Cut Copy show are just as much a feature of the music, making any performance by them a sensory experience. “Saturdays” on Saturday was only befitting, and was one of the best songs of the entire weekend.

Death from Above 1979 – Tunnel Stage – 8:45 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Treasure Island has a band, and a sound, for everyone. DFA 1979 was opposite to bands like Cut Copy before it, forgoing sugary hooks and synths for scissoring, grating electric guitar and a dirty grunge sound. I believe they were higher on the bill Saturday because of their vivid, energetic style of performance, but other than this energy, I wasn’t charmed by their performance. In contrast to their recorded work, they sounded out of tune, like a blend of several different loud noises deemed as “music”. Their performance of “Black History Month”, which held potential to revive grunge in its truest form, simply fell short.

Empire of the Sun – Bridge Stage – 9:35 p.m.

Empire of the Sun was Saturday’s strongest performance, and after St. Vincent, was the best of the weekend. Lending a vivid visual element to their set, including choreographed goblin/alien creatures and a narrated video that simulated traveling through space, EOTS is truly more than just a band. They are one of the most creative, imaginative acts performing today, and are unafraid to push boundaries. Their second song, “Breakdown”, exhibited such a hooky tune that I couldn’t help but dance ecstatically. The next song, “Half Mast”, showed  that EOTS doesn’t want to just perform — they want to tell a story with their music, to play along with the visual elements depicted all around them. Even their name, “Empire of the Sun”, indicates the fantasy world that they have constructed aurally.

This artistic endeavor to be more than just a band, but to also be a concept, brings back the glam rock of the past, refined by artists like David Bowie. This was when music was about presentation, constructing a story, becoming a character. While they played incredible tracks like “We Are the People”, you realize that the best part is that you want to indulge in the facade they have created. Luke Steele’s voice is just too tempting, too alien, to not be intrigued. Ending with “Swordfish Hotkiss Nigh” and “Walking on a Dream”, EOTS concluded a truly incredible day at Treasure Island, one filled with fantasy monsters, creatures, and dreamscapes.

Sunday, October 16th

Weekend – Tunnel Stage – 12:40 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

With no holds barred on this chilly Sunday afternoon, Weekend launched into their heavy style of music. Native to the Bay Area, Weekend was formed by Shaun Durkan, Kevin Johnson, and Abe Pedroza, and has been rising to prominence in the San Francisco scene since 2009. They’re a hybrid of New Wave mavens like The Smiths and Aha, but with a grinding, alternative edge that favors electric guitar distortion, rolling kick drums, and ambient, wailing vocal calls. They are shoegaze-New Wave for the modern generation. At Treasure Island, their songs seamlessly flowed together during their set, with live instrumentalization and improvisation being their strongpoints. “Coma Summer” bookmarked the set, serving as an example of why fans are coveting Weekend’s garage band sound.

The Antlers – Bridge Stage – 1:25 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

The Antlers have the unique ability to conduct well-orchestrated symphonies with their music. During their performance of “Putting the Dog to Sleep”, singer Peter Silberman’s voice travelled along the tops of the bay’s wind-capped peaks, setting a tone and mood that fit Sunday afternoon. Compared to Saturday, everything from the colors of the crowd had changed, with people more inclined today to wear their grays and browns, to burrow in their scarves to protect themselves against the bay wind, and to just collect for a picnic and listen to the music. Overall, The Antlers show was a rare jewel, and they played some of the most beautifully crafted music heard all weekend.

Warpaint – Tunnel Stage – 2:05 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Fresh off the release of their 2010 debut album, The Fool, and their follow-up EP, Exquisite Corpse, Warpaint already draws thousands of people to its shows, sharing the stage with acts like Death Cab for Cutie. Right as The Antlers ended their set and Warpaint started theirs, the sun decided to shed its light on the Island, embracing this band that could be considered a bit of an underdog. Do not underestimate them or their live performance, however. Playing tracks like “Warpaint” and “Undertow”, their set was strong, reminding one of bands like Mazzy Star before them. And just like St. Vincent, the next band to play on Sunday, Warpaint has the ability to craft feminine anecdotes with their music, appealing to the complexity and the delicacy of the feminine psyche.

St. Vincent – Bridge Stage – 2:50 p.m.

The moment Annie Clark stepped onstage, I was immediately smitten. Hair dark and tousled, dressed like an indie goddess, few artists today exude such radiance and charisma without having to say a word. Opening with a breathtaking version of “Surgeon”, Clark achieved onstage what her music has perfected: expressing the duplicitous nature of a woman’s vulnerability and her strength, of the very nature of femininity. Clark had a visible integration with the music, and you could see from her expression how much she personally pours into her sound and her content. She takes care to write music that expresses exactly what she wants, while also, quite brilliantly, leaving it up for interpretation. Her music is poetry, a maze of metaphors to interpret, deconstruct, and revel in.

Photo by Ted Maider

The second song of the set, “Cheerleader”, is my favorite off the new album, Strange Mercy. This song speaks about competing desires, a need to be taken more seriously in a society that degrades your individuality. Clark integrated and portrayed her subtleties, her reservations, with radiance. The next song, “Save Me From What I Want”, expresses a similar theme, the essence of this feminine vulnerability which is altogether charming. Each song exhibited a sense of disintegration towards its conclusion, getting lost in electric guitar distortion, representing the physical sound of a person breaking down. And yet, with “Actor Out of Work”, Clark debunks these preconceptions of her vulnerability, of her intangibility. Singing “you’re a boxer in the ring, with brass knuckles underneath”, she shows she isn’t as malleable as one would think. This is especially evident given her meteoric rise through the music world, her fearlessness, her history of experimentation; these are proof that Clark is more than willing to take risks and is, in the end, more tough than expected.

Wild Beasts – Tunnel Stage – 3:35 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Originally from England, this foursome are currently on tour in the United States. Expressing that “this is definitely one of the better things we’ve done this tour”, Wild Beasts continued the mellow mood set by bands like Weekend and Warpaint before them. Their rendition of “All the King’s Men” started with tribalistic beats at its offset, supplemented by simple bass guitar and electric guitar. Though their sound was stable and definitely unique, they did not stand out as a distinctly notable band for the weekend.

Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks – Bridge Stage -4:20 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

“It’s like when your brain is in a steeple chase…on acid. When there was acid. There wasn’t any at Burning Man. Are we at Burning Man?” And so went Stephen Malkmus’ gesticulations at the beginning of “Brain Gallop”. You can tell that Malkmus has been in the music scene long enough to just have fun with it, to play the role of the “bad boy” of rock and roll. Before “Forever 28″, Malkmus-style banter went as follows: “Anyone 28 and lovin’ it? Single and lovin’ it? Married and kinda lovin’ it?” Lastly, their performance of “Long Hard Book” was the best of the set, a more folk-influenced track which fit the Sunday mood perfectly.

The Head and the Heart – Tunnel Stage – 5:10 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Sounding like 60′s folk pioneers before them, The Head and the Heart delivered their own brand of retro pop-folk on Sunday. Their musical influences, which range from Bob Dylan to Iron & Wine, give them a truly accessible sound, enjoyable for anyone who is not familiar with their music. The best song of their set, “Down in the Valley”, was executed by The Head and the Heart’s six-person band, which is comprised of two singers, one violinist, one guitarist, one keyboard player, and a drum player. Even given this large range of orchestration and reliance on live instruments, which would confound many other bands, their set was executed well.

Beach House – Bridge Stage – 6:00 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

When I saw Beach House’s Victoria Legrand backstage prior to their performance, she seemed visibly perplexed. And though it seemed that something was still bothering her during the set, she and Alex Scally seamlessly delivered the dream pop that their albums promise. This is what makes them the creators of their dark sound — they have a truly innate connection to their music. The way they transcribe their moods, their resentments, their happiness, and their aspirations are woven in the fabric of their music.

Early set inclusions “Gila” and “Walk in the Park” evidenced how the complexity of Beach House’s sound is actually crafted with simplicity — from only a modest mix of keyboard, tambourine, drums, and electric guitar. Set highlight “Norway” showcased Legrand’s voice, retaining all of its haunting melancholy. And later on, during “Used to Be”, Legrand was doused in red stage lights from overhead, while the audience was touched by the rays of the dying sun — the moment was dusty romanticism, magic, and more.

Friendly Fires – Tunnel Stage – 6:50 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

With every detail of the San Francisco skyline arched behind the Tunnel Stage, Friendly Fires gladly welcomed the night. One of the first songs of the set, “Skeleton Boy”, was an invigorating mix of New Wave vocals, synth, and electric guitar. Friendly Fires produced an exhilarating live performance, while at this time yesterday, Flying Lotus was dazing the crowd, luring us into a hazed stupor. Instead, Friendly Fires tempted you to dance during tracks like “Hawaiian Air”, off Fires’ new album Pala. Lead singer Ed Macfarlane delivered a passionate, energetic series of vocals, while dancing wildly to the tune of the music. Their enthusiasm and spirit onstage made Fires’ set one of Sunday’s best.

Explosions in the Sky – Bridge Stage – 7:40 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Explosions in the Sky’s set on Sunday was about standing in reverent awe of the transitions of sound and space culminating onstage. Composed of three electric guitars and a drum kit, the band is capable of weaving symphonies with their instruments, of forming narratives and creating emotions with the complexity of their delivery. Their performance Sunday featured all ranges of sound, erupting at times in a scathing series of electric guitar wails, and then transitioning back to the tender delicacy of fingerpicking. At their live shows, they are capable of using instruments to simulate the sounds of nature, of a leaf dropping, a wave crashing — making any performance by them an unforgettably transcendent one.

The Hold Steady – Tunnel Stage – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Ted Maider

Like Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks before them, The Hold Steady lent a more alternative sound to the festival’s lineup. “Magazines” cracked open the set, and then came bar rocker “Sequestered in Memphis”. Lyrically, The Hold Steady have trademarked tracks about moody girls and one-night stands. Some might consider that a one-way ticket to becoming obsolete. But, judging from the sea of fans gathered in front, it’s clear these Brooklyn-Minneapolis rockers have little to fret about for the future.

Death Cab for Cutie – Bridge Stage – 9:20 p.m.

A fan of past albums such as 2003′s  Transatlanticism and 2005′s Plans, I had high expectations for the Seattle foursome. However, their live performance lacked the punch of Saturday headliners Empire of the Sun, making it an altogether disappointing set.

Starting with “I Will Possess Your Heart”, the extended jogger off their 2008 effort Narrow Stairs, I remember thinking, “This is okay.” I wanted to be blown away immediately, to feel the same effect I did from other bands that weekend. Perhaps my expectations were too high? I kept waiting for a punch, a rigor, a passion, an energy that never came.

Playing “Crooked Teeth” next, I found myself more mesmerized by the San Franscisco skyline than by Ben Gibbard & Co. The sad part is that this band does not lack talent — far from it. They have produced some of the most poignant and innovative indie rock of the past decade. However, their concert performance was indeed lacking. Even when playing more hits, such as “The New Year” and “Grapevine Fires”, I found myself unconvinced. It was an unfortunate end to the festival, but many of the other artists, as well as the series of California sunsets and the people-watching, made it a spectacular and memorable weekend for music.

The Culture of Treasure Island

Gallery by Ted Maider

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Hey, who said festival season was over? A certain All Tomorrow’s Parties event, the inaugural U.S. I’ll Be Your Mirror, just took Asbury Park, New Jersey by storm (sort of literally, but that’s okay because it was inside!) and it surely qualifies as a festival. That’s right, while every other festival is in its 10th year and booking the same 250 acts as the festival preceding it, ATP just swoops in with an unglamorous but effective idea and declares itself a contender for U.S. festival of the year!

At least as far as the music goes. What other American festival in 2011 booked two rare acts to play two shows each? Jeff Mangum performing what amounted to an intimate Neutral Milk Hotel greatest hits set and Portishead playing its first U.S. shows since Coachella 2008. What other American festival provided a platform for pioneers from the golden age of hip-hop like Ultramagnetic MC’s and Public Enemy, as well as underground heroes like Company Flow? With apologies to Best Coast, what other American festival was willing to forgo flooding its bill with indie hype in favor of superb avant-garde acts like The Album Leaf and Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra?

And it’s not just the music; it’s the little things. Where else can headliner and co-curator Adrian Utley walk unnoticed amongst the commoners to check out a band? At what other festival can Utley’s bandmate Geoff Barrow greet fans in a crowded bowling alley without being ambushed for autographs and photos? At what other festival are you surrounded by people who are there for the music, not just to be seen? Where else are you not limited to $8 Heinekens or trapped inside the grounds all day?

I’m not making the argument that I’ll Be Your Mirror was the best festival this year; I’m just saying it’s a contender. Pound for pound, anyway. I mean, if Herman Cain…well, you get the point.

-Harry Painter
Senior Staff Writer

Feature photo by Joe Parker.

Friday, September 30th

The Album Leaf – Paramount Theater – 5:30 p.m.

Friday opened after business hours, and if early band The Album Leaf was a sign of things to come, people were in for a treat. Jimmy LaValle’s group kicked off the weekend with a flurry of driving drums, electronics, and avant-garde rock.

The Christmas lights that were the backdrop for the Paramount during the whole weekend fit The Album Leaf’s aura quite nicely; and thank goodness this was an indoor fest, because seeing The Album Leaf outside in the sun is unimaginable. Um, even though they played songs called “Rising Sun” and “Falling from the Sun”. Just go with it.

Chavez – Convention Hall – 6:30 p.m.

In contrast with The Album Leaf, Chavez‘ light show was decidedly modest. Chavez, fronted by a baseball capped Matt Sweeney, played a screeching brand of fuzzy ’90s rock. The sound was off for these guys, and it’s not the sort of band for which one wants to deal with bad sound.

A Hawk and a Hacksaw – Paramount Theater – 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Former Neutral Milk Hotel drummer Jeremy Barnes also plays accordion and has traveled to exotic locales like Hungary and Romania. His band A Hawk and a Hacksaw plays music meant to sound like it’s from these places. As Barnes announced the next song was a tribute to his memory of the sound of “country music from western Romania”, he put on a poncho, fake white beard, and carrot nose and danced around, and ran up and down the aisles. It was about as fun and as pointless as it sounds.

Shellac – Convention Hall – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

It’s always enjoyable seeing a hard rock band at a festival and watching people not know what to do. It took seven songs for people to realize it was okay to mosh to Shellac, the trio led by engineer and guitarist Steve Albini.

Shellac somehow finds it possible and fully tenable to get metalheads amped up while playing songs like “Wingwalker” and making airplane arm motions, or “End of Radio”, in which Albini delivers a monologue about his snare drum directed at an imaginary alien civilization. Shellac’s crunching, 17/8-time head-banger could be about anything and it would hit just as hard. It happens to be about squirrels.

The band took extended time outs to take questions from the audience. Unsurprisingly, each member had a witty response to any question asked; subject matter ranged from the band’s favorite Republican Presidential candidate (“Sarah Palin; she’s hilarious”) to the band’s favorite instrument (i.e. sex toy, of course).

Reggie Watts – The Berkeley – 9:30 p.m.

Comedian/beatboxer Reggie Watts had a tough act to follow in Shellac, but he got the job done. He came out with a shy persona, stumbling into a microphone drumming session and twiddling knobs awkwardly. The bulk of his set consisted of a looped a cappella song over which he spouted gibberish and non sequiturs. Watts gave a nod to the nerds by line dancing, gauging the “energy frequency response” on either side of the room, and later showing off his suspenders as he laid down a flow. It can’t be overstated Watts has tremendous musical talent alone, and the funny is a bonus.

Saturday, October 1st

Beak> – Convention Hall – 2:30 p.m.

Geoff Barrow’s other band aired some new tracks at ATP, and by all accounts the new album will be worth a listen. Like many of the bands picked for ATP, Beak> was focused primarily on rhythm; in particular, the band displayed elements of krautrock, and sprinkled in plenty of knob mastery and sound effects. The show ended with some delightful post-rock fuzz.

Marc Ribot’s Ceramic Dog – Paramount Theater – 3:00 p.m.

Here’s what the world needs more of: experimental rock bands that emphasize the rock side of the equation. Not that there’s anything wrong with the other side, but how about some balance?

While Newark native Marc Ribot and his Ceramic Dog shouldn’t be pigeonholed as a rock band, they were sure heavy on the extended noise jams at ATP. The trio was marked by a riotous rhythm section and Ribot’s spoken-word vocals, a phenomenon that was strangely commonplace at the festival.

Silver-Qluster – Paramount Theater – 4:30 p.m.

Silver-Qluster, the collaboration between Simeon of Silver Apples and Hans-Joachim Roedelius of Cluster, played one song for an hour. Whether that’s a positive is up to personal taste, but those who got it loved it. Those who didn’t get it will be forgiven for thinking they walked into the most fucked up planetarium of all time.

The set began with entrancing ambient synth sounds, swirly lights, and smoke, which lasted 10 minutes before a minimalist MacBook beat kicked in. For the next 50 minutes, Roedelius turned his knobs ever so slightly while Simeon threw in creepy samples, dancing now and then in his goofy hat, which earned applause. Those who weren’t fast asleep gave a standing ovation.

The Horrors – Convention Hall – 5:00 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

While the heart of ATP lies in the ’90s, The Horrors are a lot closer to being an ’80s throwback. Playing dressed in black leather amidst even more smoke than Silver-Qluster, The Horrors delivered a helping of passable post-punk; nothing memorable.

Battles – Convention Hall – 6:45 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Without Tyondai Braxton, Battles aren’t quite the same band; there’s just a certain aesthetic missing from their performance that was so enjoyable before. It’s either the afro or the vocal loops.

Both were missing for Mirrored tracks “Atlas”, which featured samples of schoolchildren singing the munchkin lines, and “Tonto”, which was something of a disaster. The new stuff (“Africastle”, “Ice Cream”, “Sweetie & Shag”) was the focus anyway, and it shined. Battles work their asses off — clench-faced drummer John Stanier was dripping wet from head to toe by the end — and have never been about a singer anyway.

Side note, it’s criminal to give your audience tinnitus when half of it is on its way to catch Swans immediately afterwards.

Ultramagnetic MC’s – Convention Hall – 8:15 p.m.

Kool Keith is clearly the star of Ultramagnetic MC’s, and they know it. That’s why TR Love and Ced Gee, accompanied by KutMasta Kurt, came out and performed two songs on either side of Keith’s unused mic, before Keith finally showed up, and not quietly. Black Elvis was adorned in a sweater inside a military jacket, accompanied by shades, a keffiyeh, and blue jeans.

People were just confused for those first two songs, but Ultramagnetic MC’s quickly won the crowd over performing the catchiest songs from the early part of their catalog, including “Two Brothers with Checks (San Francisco, Harvey)”, “Ease Back”, “Make it Happen”, and of course “Poppa Large”. Keith is always obligated to play his Dr. Octagon hit “Blue Flowers”, and he did, but it felt out of place here, taking the place of what could have been another track from their classic Critical Beatdown.

TR Love (“Portishead is my peoples!”) and Kool Keith (“Hopefully we all tour together”) both proclaimed their respect for Portishead  as they closed the set and left the crowd satiated for the 45-minute wait.

Portishead – Convention Hall – 10:00 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Portishead‘s first of two performances was the first time Convention Hall looked anywhere close to full. If there were any justice in this world, there wouldn’t have been an empty seat in the house, and the room would have been bursting at the seams with kids trying to sneak in. Then again, the security checked wristbands Sunday night, so perhaps the kids were in full force.

Regardless, Portishead met its call of duty, and then some, to front the bill the band handpicked itself. Beginning with opener “Silence”, also the opener of Portishead’s three-and-a-half year old most recent album Third, the Bristol troupe demonstrated itself to be able to command a crowd with sheer presence, a presence that permeated the building at least until the fleeting display of mortality that colored a botched attempt at late 2009′s Amnesty International single “Chase the Tear”.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Radiohead’s new touring drummer was on hand for the weekend, and while Clive Deamer (who has contributed to Portishead’s studio efforts) was superb, a little miscommunication between Deamer and Geoff Barrow led the band to skip “Chase the Tear” and move on to “Cowboys”.

The rest of the set was much the same as the last time Barrow, Beth Gibbons, and Adrian Utley graced the states, all the way back in April 2008. Portishead concentrated heavily on Third material but indulged the fans in hits like “Mysterons”, “The Rip”, and “Over”, which prompted a surprisingly widespread singalong. Utley appeared to be winging it much of the time, but there could be no faulting his precision on “Glory Box” and the stripped-down “Wandering Star”, which comprised a bass-wielding Barrow sitting opposite Gibbons, whose work here was tearjerkingly heartfelt. If you have a chance to witness that vibrato closer to Halloween, take it.

“We Carry On” ended the night with a bang, and the bright-smiling, relatively tiny Gibbons uncharacteristically diving off the stage. She showed tremendous class and shook nearly every hand in the front row before rejoining her equally cheery bandmates for good byes.

Sunday, October 2nd

Anika – Paramount Theater – 2:15 p.m.

Beak> collaborator Anika‘s speak-sing is a little reminiscent of Kim Gordon, until her keyboardist starts scaling some gothic rock organ lines that won’t be found in the most melancholy Portishead tracks. A fine opener, the singer/songwriter closed on a high note with a less-than-inspiring but unique, robot-voiced “Once in a Lifetime” cover.

DD/MM/YYYY – Convention Hall – 2:45 p.m.

Photo by Joe Parker

One’s first thought when he happens upon a band with awful hair playing in front of a Halloweenish skull backdrop under a blue-purple light is not to stick around. The lack of a real name doesn’t help much either. But then one notices the drummer has a NEU! t-shirt, and something about the dueling synths accompanied by atmospheric guitar noises and deceptively impressive vocals makes DD/MM/YYYY worth the time. The band loathes the boring concept of genre, as it does assigning permanent instrument duties. The Canadians also apparently loathe each other, because this was “the last show in the U.S. ever,” and they are calling it quits. What a shame.

Jeff Mangum – Paramount Theater – 3:30 p.m.

It’s hard to come to terms with the reality that the highlight of Sunday happened at 3:30 in the afternoon. Jeff Mangum was originally scheduled for 4:00 p.m., but like much of Sunday, he was switched around at the last minute. This may explain some of the empty seats, but many seats were left unfilled throughout. Still, being that most people only had tickets to one of Mangum’s two performances for the weekend, the energy was impeccable.

As was the unofficial and impromptu theme of the weekend, Mangum invited audience participation and question and answer sessions. Indeed, the Neutral Milk Hotel frontman acted a bit uncomfortable, perhaps out of his element, in the formal environment. He went out of his way three or four times to make sure the crowd knew it was allowed to sing along and even “shout at me if you want” — song requests and declarations of love ensued. The back-and-forths continued for most of the afternoon, giving the place an extra air of intimacy, as if the guy with a guitar in a sweater sitting on a stool under a spotlight wasn’t intimate enough.

Mangum played everything a Neutral Milk Hotel fan could hope for out of a Mangum show, and in the right order. Opening with “Two-Headed Boy Pt. Two” into “In the Aeroplane Over the Sea”, Mangum established early on that the set would be heavy in material from the album which shares the latter’s title. Surrounded by four acoustic guitars, he continued with a couple of On Avery Island selections before delving into “Oh Comely”. Mangum worked particularly hard on that one, spitting a wad after a difficult high note.

The show included a couple of rarities in the non-album song “Engine” and a cover of Roky Erickson’s “I Love the Living You”. Mangum ended the show where he began, requesting that people “fucking sing the song” if they knew the words to “Two-Headed Boy”. The standing ovation was implied, but the room gave him one anyway.

Deerhoof – Convention Hall – 4:15 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

San Francisco’s Deerhoof followed DD/MM/YYYY in Convention Hall and continued the pattern of frantic instrument swapping, not to mention outright weirdness. It’s confusing that this band has been around for so long, however, and had such a decorated career, and not become much more of a big deal (DD/MM/YYYY, for one, praised them earlier). Sure, it’s a little strange — and hilarious — for a band that rocks so hard on “Milk Man” to later close with a song like “Gore in Rut”, wherein singer Satomi Matsuzaki jumps around with two fingers above her head and sings “bunny bunny bunny bunny”, but that’s kind of the appeal. These guys need fame and money, like soon.

Earth – Paramount Theater – 5:15 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Mogwai’s cancellation left Sunday with a minimal helping of instrumental post-rock, but Earth was hardly an unacceptable option. Still, Earth played a set full of subtle yet lush, meandering songs that maybe didn’t mesh with the extra comfortable chairs — or maybe it was the cello. Selections included new songs “Father Midnight” and “Old Black”, as well as “Blackwaterside” and “The Bees Made Honey in the Lion’s Skull”.

Company Flow – Convention Hall – 5:45 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

The Convention Hall wasn’t ideal for hip hop, nor for anything else, really, as far as acoustics are concerned. But Company Flow made the best of the situation, aptly commanding a modest crowd, much of whom seemed unaware of who the group was. Still, El-P thanked the crowd for still “giving  a shit” about Co. Flow “after all these years.” Rapping their lungs out on tracks like “The Fire In Which You Burn” and “Patriotism”, both El-P and Big Juss demonstrated skills deserving of whatever love was reciprocated.

J.G. Thirlwell’s Manorexia – Paramount Theater – 6:45 p.m.

Composer J.G. Thirlwell came out with an unconventional collection of folks, including a string section, a pianist, and a percussionist. Thirlwell himself contributed a sampler to the mix, which comprised experiments in dynamics that would make the Pixies blush. It was a bizarre phenomenon, sandwiching Manorexia between Company Flow and Public Enemy, but Manorexia proved to be the must-see of late Sunday afternoon.

Public Enemy – Convention Hall – 7:15 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

The decorated hip hop group featuring reality TV sideshow Flavor Flav and afterthought Chuck D was originally scheduled for an hour like everyone else, but then Mogwai postponed its tour, and ATP decided to give Public Enemy a full two hours to perform their 1990 landmark LP Fear of a Black Planet and whatever else Flav and Chuck deemed worthy of the audience’s time.

Chuck D began by assuring fans they’d get their money’s worth, but already had some ground to make up after letting DJ Lord and some dancers occupy the first 10 minutes before Flav and Chuck came out. When they did, they knew how to entertain but too often appeared to be killing time — it’s only an hour-long album, y’all.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Flavor Flav offered an autographed clock to the best tweet of the night, thanked everyone for watching his various VH1 programs, and introduced his grown daughter to New Jersey. Chuck D waxed political over Occupy Wall Street and Troy Davis. But amongst all the fluff Public Enemy delivered most of what fans wanted, albeit not at an ideal pace.

Chuck D asked more than a few times how low the bass could go as they delivered hits from Black Planet like “911 Is a Joke” and “Welcome to the Terrordome”, as well as throwing in outliers like “Bring the Noise”, “He Got Game”, and “Don’t Believe the Hype”, for which they invited a fan (who AV Club points out was rock critic Christopher R. Weingarten) onstage.

And who knew Flavor Flav could play bass and drums?

Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra – Paramount Theater – 9:00 p.m.

Photo by Sohrab Nafici

Godspeed You! Black Emperor was unfortunately not booked for America’s version of ATP, but the festival was able to land Efrim Menuck’s other band Thee Silver Mt. Zion Memorial Orchestra. The five-piece was four parts orchestral post-rock, and one part punk. Fans wandering into the Paramount were just as likely to walk into a beautiful violin arrangement as a heavily distorted jam in 9/4 time accompanied by Menuck’s nasal vocals. Or a tirade about Canadian Prime Minister Stephen Harper, whose portrait was on upside-down display, and who Menuck so fondly described as “our Nixon”.

Portishead – Convention Hall – 10:00 p.m

The energy was still there for Portishead’s second night and most attendees’ final show for the weekend. The band didn’t change the setlist or even the set order much, the only exceptions being replacing “Hunter” with “Nylon Smile” and adding “Chase the Tear”, making it the band’s first performance of the song on this side of the pond.

However, where the song variation lacked, Portishead made up for it in a host of goodies. Beyond the gift of “Chase the Tear”, a few friends came on board to drop some exclamation points here and there. Chuck D jumped back on stage during the breakdown of “Machine Gun” and laid down a verse from “Black Steel in the Hour of Chaos” — the same song Portishead’s contemporary Tricky covered for Maxinquaye track “Black Steel”. It felt like a cheap little wink, but it made for a much-needed distinction between night one and night two. Simeon of Silver Apples fame, who performed the day before with Silver-Qluster, later came on stage for some spooky electronics on “We Carry On”, after being introduced as a “new friend” of the band’s.

Gibbons, apparently having had enough Saturday, opted not to crowd surf this time around but again offered her hand to everyone in the front row. Simeon joined the other six on stage in waving their farewells before calling it a weekend.

Thought Forms – Asbury Lanes – 11:30 p.m.

Elsewhere on Thought Forms‘ tour, the English trio signed to Geoff Barrow’s Invada Records will serve as opener for Barrow’s Portishead. At ATP New Jersey, however, the band was the post-headliner bonus, appearing on a tiny stage in the bowling alley down the street. The line to get in extended to the end of the block for the intimate helping of piercing noise rock, led by a two-guitar attack and one of the hardest working drummers at the festival, who looked ready to pass out by night’s end.

The Culture of ATP: I’ll Be Your Mirror

Gallery by Joe Parker and Sohrab Nafici

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The 21st annual Big Day Out music festival hits cities throughout Australia and New Zealand during late January and early February of 2012  – which of course is summer over there. So if you’re looking for a winter getaway, this is it.

Today, the festival unveiled the first 20 acts set to appear and Kanye West, Soundgarden, and Kasabian lead the way. Other early notables include Girl Talk, My Chemical Romance, Odd Future, Battles, Best Coast, Röyksopp, Architecture in Helsinki, Boy & Bear, and Mariachi El Bronx. In all, some 60 acts will fill out this year’s bill, so stay tuned to our Big Day Out page on Festival Outlook for updates.

Specific ticket information and on-sale dates can be found on the festival’s website.

Big Day Out 2012 Dates:
01/20 – Auckland, NZ @ Mt Smart Stadium
01/22 – Gold Coast, AU @ Gold Coast Parklands
01/26 – Sydney, AU @ Sydney Showground
01/29 – Melbourne, AU @ Flemington Racecourse
02/03 – Adelaide, AU @ Showground
02/05 – Perth, AU @ Claremont Showground

This year, Hogan brings ATP’s latest installment to the US. A non-holiday camp ATP spinoff festival, aptly titled “I’ll Be Your Mirror”, will take place in Asbury Park, NJ, from September 30th to October 2nd. And, this time, Hogan has really outdone himself. Prayers of seeing one of music’s most deified, and easily most reclusive, songwriters in concert will be answered. Along with live-circuit rarity Portishead curating and playing at the shindig, Neutral Milk Hotel’s Jeff Mangum will perform two separate sets at the festival. Some will call it a miracle, but Hogan is no god, just a guy with great taste bent on creating great events for those who care as much as he does. This year is proof of that.

We caught up with Hogan to discuss his powers, how it all works, his aversion to Blur, what it took to drag Mangum out of his annex, why Liam Gallagher’s Beady Eye would be out of place at ATP, and why his ATP festivals tend to never suck. His gentle tone and delightfully unpretentious answers helped shed light on the true spirit of Hogan’s ATP vision. In a 30-minute phone conversation, it was easy to figure out what ATP is and always has been about: taking great care of the folks who will do anything in the name of their record collections, including the artists.

As always, you guys have a lot of stuff going on this year: Jeff Mangum, Portishead, Animal Collective, Battles. All of the lineups are just amazing this year. How do you decide which artists you get to curate, and what does that process usually entail?

It’s generally just everybody who has ever done anything for us is an extension of my record collection. So, it’s just me picking out records and saying, “Hey, why don’t we get someone like Jeff Mangum to perform something new from Neutral Milk Hotel.” Or, we’ve had film directors as well, like Jim Jarmusch, and we love his films. And Matt Groening from The Simpsons. Sure, like everyone else, we love The Simpsons. Saying that, though, they are all people that I read somewhere that they sort of have good taste in music. I mean, we do have to kind of ask people in advance sometimes if they can get an idea of what they are thinking of. But, so far, along the way, we’ve been fortunate with the people we’ve picked. We haven’t had any terrible lineups. Some better than others, but, you know, on the whole, they all fit within the same aesthetic of what we are trying to do.

Yeah, they are always so amazing whenever I see them listed, and, unfortunately, I never have been able to go. It always seems like somebody behind it, the curator, really put a lot of thought into it, and there are always these left-field artists that I am really interested in figuring out how you got them.

Yeah, well, I guess we are very persuasive. The one thing is, you know, when you get the kind of artist, say Jeff Mangum, or Slint, that kind of thing, or My Bloody Valentine… all these bands kind of reformed specifically to do shows with us, or reformed specifically for ATP. And it needs to be presented to them in a way so that it’s not just performing for money, and it’s not just about who is doing a show. It’s about presenting it to them in a way where they’re kind of selecting lineups of bands that they endorse, that may have influenced them, or things that they are supportive of. It’s good. Some of them get more excited than others, but we’ve kind of reformed everybody we’ve wanted to see, really. I mean, there’s a handful of bands we haven’t got yet, but I think there’s not as many as there were about five years ago, because we’ve kind of done them all [laughs].

Have there ever been any artists that you have just been dying to get, but you couldn’t get them to commit to it?

Well, we’d always love to have Kraftwerk play. We’ve never had them. We’re massive fans of Kraftwerk. We’ve never asked them to curate. I don’t know if that would be something that they would be into, but maybe that’s the way we should approach it, but yeah. Or Neil Young would be great. We could get him to do something — as long as he plays with Crazy Horse, though. That’s the best band. I saw him once; it was okay. But, it was just like… I just think when he’s with Crazy Horse, that’s the natural shape for him.

And you never approached either of them about it, right?

We have asked him about doing stuff in the past, but it’s always bad timing, or budget, or something. There are always some restrictions. It’s just a bit frustrating, but I’m sure one day we’ll get them. I said to Deborah, my wife, she runs ATP with me, if we ever got Kraftwerk or Neil Young, then we would retire.

So, my big question, being a huge Neutral Milk Hotel Fan, is what did it take to get Jeff Mangnum onboard? What was the process like? I imagine you kind of dragged him out of some attic crawl space or something?

You know, we have been talking to him for years, and it’s no secret that we love Aeroplane. It’s one of our favorite records and stuff, and I like all those previous records as well. But, I always thought that he would be the perfect kind of curator and stuff. From when we started the festival, I just thought he’s the sort of thing I would like to present at it. And I guess, as time went on, we just kept asking every year. Kind of like Pavement, we kept asking them every year. And Jeff came to the one we did, the first one we did in Upstate New York, which is where My Bloody Valentine played, and he had a really great time. And I think, again, he’s someone that wanted to not just come back and do some gigs for money but to do it in an environment he felt comfortable with. And no better way, I think, than doing it around really great bands that he selected and stuff. So, yeah, I guess gentle persuasion and persistence is what really paid off. And I’m so glad that we got to do it, ’cause he’s such a great guy. And also, his curation in England, the stuff that he’s kind of… the ideas, they flow so much and so well. He’s got enough ideas to kind of stage three or four ATP’s. It’s good. We’re really excited about seeing it. And, you know, I’m just pleased for him that he’s able to get out there and do shows again.

Were you aware that he was kind of building up to this? How influential were you in his decision to kind of do this comeback thing, because it seemed like you guys announced this, that he was doing this show for his first public, large-scale appearance in a long time, and it seems after that, he started announcing all these tour dates. Do you think you guys were kind of instrumental in that?

Well, yeah, I mean, we’d been talking to him since last year about doing stuff, and you know it was kind of like we were still going over the final details. I didn’t know if it was still going to go ahead or not, just ’cause of the schedule permitting, of course. And then, I heard he was about to play that show he did at The Bell House. He did that. And shortly after, I mean, we were already kind of negotiating at that point, that he was going to go ahead, and then the show was kind of spur of the moment. And now I’m glad that he got to do that, and it worked out. It will hopefully turn into a good cycle for him, to play some shows, and write some new songs, and perform them as well.

Yeah, I mean, you guys could have reinvigorated his whole career, which would be incredible.

Oh, yeah, I hope so. I just think he’s quite an amazing artist, and it would be great for everyone to experience it. I’m just happy we’re able to present him in both England and, obviously, in Asbury Park. He’s definitely… the thing I’m most looking forward to seeing this year, by far, is Jeff Mangum.

I’m really hoping to get to that. You’ve described ATP as an excellent mixtape made by the event’s curators. Each year, the lineups always read just like you present them. It’s one of the few festivals that I kind of look at the lineup, and I don’t see any glaring business ploys. Like, “Oh, there’s this band, because they are trying to get these people to come.”  So, how true to the concept do you think that arrangement stays, and how much freedom are the curators given? Do you just kind of say, like, “Make a list for us, and we will see who we can get.”  How does it work?

Well, we basically say to the curators, “Give us a wish list.” And then, it’s kind of like, if you treat the wish list just as if you were directors of a film, and the wish list was the script, and the curator was an actor, what we’re doing is directing them, and we’re giving them guidance, on, like, how to make the best mix tape, which I guess would turn into the best film. You always get people, like some curators have unrealistic notions. Like they’ll put down, “Hey, why don’t we get AC/DC, Leonard Cohen, and Radiohead, and Ennio Morricone, and all these other people?” And then we’re like, “I love all of those acts, and I would love to see them play, especially on the same weekend. That would be a sick bill.”  But, because of the size of the festival, it’s very intimate; it’s impossible to do that. So, what we need to do is kind of scale it down, and say, “Well, you need to have, well, this many kind of biggish names to sustain ticket sales. But also, balance it out with mid-range stuff.”

I guess I try to give the curators as much freedom as possible. I always pray that they never pick Blur, because I just have a severe aversion to those guys, and I’d never want to see them play ATP. I think the day that they play is the time to give up. But what I was going to say to you is that we try to give them as much freedom as possible. And a lot of the time, because we’ve picked people we respect and we think they’re great, they do deliver, and they’ve been something that fits the ethos of what ATP is about.

And is it ever… like, you mentioned Blur… is there ever a list where there are a few bands on there where you just cringe, and you kind of… steer them away from those acts? Or do you just go with them?

[Laughs] Well, yeah, there are some times, but then I’ll just be straight with them. I would say, “Do you think this is the right thing for ATP?” Because there is no point in trying to pick… For example, if somebody picked Beady Eye, that new band that  Liam Gallagher is fronting. If somebody picked them for ATP, the audience there wouldn’t be very receptive to them. Their music’s a pile of shit. They’re not going to pick up on it and say, “Oh this is great. It’s great having you!” It wouldn’t be worth it for a band like that to play the festival… and that’s why we are about championing great music… if there is a great band on, then the audience will be receptive to it. But if it’s a band that’s only suitable to big corporate festivals, like ones that Beady Eye or Oasis would play at, then it’s not going to work for us, for our event.

It might sound snotty or snobby, but it’s not. It’s just the audience that comes each year are discerning music fans, and they won’t accept weak lineups. The lineup has to be great to them, otherwise they won’t buy tickets or come. And that’s the way our audience works. None of our events ever sell out in a heartbeat, and it never sells out just because it’s ATP. It sells out on the strength of who’s playing. So, we have to kind of… every time we do this, it’s a challenge where we have to make sure we have, you know, a strong lineup that attracts people. Some sell better than others, you know. On the whole, it’s been successful, and it does do well, and it’s kept going for 11 years. But, you kind of have to have the right bands to make it work.

So, it’s kind of like a negotiation between this wish list and what you think will work?

Yeah, exactly.

I’ve been to festivals like Primavera, where you notice that the lineup is just far superior to anything else. Like, I’ve been to Bonnaroo a lot, and it just doesn’t feel the same. With ATP, there’s just this lineup where every band on there is worth your time, and I can’t really explain it.

That’s because the people at Primavera… We are very close to them. We do an ATP stage, and I also help book some of the main acts on there. But everyone that’s involved at the booking, Fra [Soler], who’s the main booking there, and Gabi [Ruiz], she runs the festival, they are real passionate music fans, and I would say that everything they book on there is a band that means something to them. There’s no, “Hey, what’s happening, and what’s not?” Not, like, “What’s hip on this Magazine?” or “MTV thinks this band is great.” None of that comes into the equation. And I think that’s the future of music. That’s the way it should be. It should be booking stuff because it’s good stuff, not because some, I don’t know, form of media dictates it’s trendy and it’s on again.

So, we’ve kind of gone over this a bit already, but what would you say was the overall mission when you started ATP, back in ’99, and do you think it has changed at all?  Do you feel you have achieved any sort of goal that you started out with?

The original thing was just to try. There was no festivals at that time apart from — in England, that is — we had the Reading Festival, Glastonbury, and Phoenix. There was a festival called The Phoenix that doesn’t exist anymore, which was owned by the people who ran Reading, and Phoenix festival started out that year. There weren’t any small, boutique things, and if you really wanted to see cool bands like Low or Royal Trux, you had to go to Reading, and you had to sit through 100 shit bands to see two good ones. The goal was to try and design something to make you go, “I want to go to this.”

So, if there were 20 bands that you wanted to see, but with like-minded people in a kind of vintage environment… I wondered if it would ever work. We’ve been fortunate that we were in the right place at the right time. I think we got to work with some of the greatest artists ever, from The Stooges to Ennio Morricone. So, we are really proud of all those types of things. I guess, maybe, we have reached our goal, but I only want to continue ATP if it’s always gonna be fresh. If it starts becoming too stale and repetitive, then I think that’s the time to probably call it a day. But when that is is anybody’s guess. But, at the moment, we are still firing on all cylinders.

I think you’ll keep going for a while, hopefully.

It’s hard to say. I mean, there are days where I want to jack it in and just say, “forget it.” But, I guess that’s like the nature of any job. It’s good. For example, this year [I have]the fact that we were able to work with Jeff Mangum, and we’re doing the event with Portishead, and we’ve done stuff in Japan. That’s the sort of thing that kind of inspires me to keep going. And I would kind of like to explore different countries as well. I think that’s the kind of thing that excites me the most at the moment.

It seems pretty obvious, but I’m going to ask anyways: Where did the idea for the first ATP at Butlins, like having it at that resort, come from, and was it difficult to settle on Kutsher’s when you tried to bring that to the US? Are the cultures different enough to affect that decision?

Well, the concept of doing it at a holiday camp, because… I don’t know if you know, but ATP started out in’99, but it was originally an event called Bowlie Weekender, and it was basically curated by Belle and Sebastian. We promoted Belle and Sebastian’s shows, and they approached us to host this event in a holiday camp, because Stuart, the singer, he used to work in a holiday camp, and he basically said he wanted to do an event where he got all of his friends and these bands that he liked and put it together. I helped him develop it and put it together, and it was supposed to be like every year, and then they, after that one event, they decided to keep it as a unique thing. So, with their blessing, I said, “Look, even though you helped me develop it and put it together, I would like to continue it, but I’m going to rename it.” And I’ve obviously called it All Tomorrow’s Parties. The thing about Belle and Sebastian is that they never really focused on the fact that there was a curator. They were just saying, “Belle and Sebastian are playing,” and they kind of picked the bands. But, I saw that that was one of the most important aspects of the event. So, I focused on the fact that every time we did it, we had a new curator. That’s kind of where doing it in the holiday camp came from.

And what was that called? That festival?

It was called Bowlie Weekender. It was spelled like b-o-w-l-i-e, as in eating a bowl of soup, a bowlie. It’s named after a haircut in Scotland, a stupid name. I then was approached by Brian Schwartz, who manages Dinosaur Jr, and he came to ATP with J. Mascis and Dinosaur, and he said to me, “Look, there’s this place in upstate New York called Kutsher’s, an old Jewish family resort, and I used to go as a kid. I think you should come check it out, because you would probably be into using the space for ATP New York.” So, we went to look at it, and I think there are great differences between Butlins and Pontins, that we use in the UK,  but it still had the beaten up charm, and that was one of the appealing things in it. And we did three events there, and they were really great, and I think everyone looks back on those events and has fond memories.

I have actually been to Kutsher’s, for like a decade with my family, and I have been dying to go to those ATP shows—cause it was like a childhood memory to me. Like the concerts were in the synagogue where we would go for high holidays, and just to see my favorite bands playing where I just sat, that would be incredible. But, I could just never go, and it was so sad. Do you think you will ever do those again at Kutsher’s?

Uh, the thing is that it never made economical sense for us to do it there, because the capacity against the expenses… it just didn’t work. To be honest, the ticket prices needed to be like about $500 to make it work, and then you had to buy accommodations as well. And that was just too expensive. So, we decided to develop this new series called I’ll Be Your Mirror. To one of our underground All Tomorrow’s Parties, the flip side was I’ll Be Your Mirror. So, we thought this is kind of the reverse. It’s basically ATP but without the holiday resort. And it’s the focus on the curator, and the bill, and that type of thing. We’re doing a new one in Asbury Park. And Asbury Park, the convention center at Paramount Hall, that was where I originally wanted to do ATP New York, on the East Coast. But Kutsher’s was great, you know. And I think it definitely set up what we wanted to do. Would we go back to Kutsher’s? Yeah, maybe. They need to kind of renovate it, because every year it seems to be just falling apart, worse. The people who run it have been in good nature, and Bella, the manager out there, she is fantastic, we love her. But, for ATP to continue doing an event in America, we have to move on, sadly, because it financially wasn’t making sense for us. We lost money every year.

We’ve kind of touched on this, but, from what I’ve heard, the festival is very communal, and attendees are all hanging out with the musicians. It’s just this kind of collective feel, like Bradford Cox and Jim Jarmusch playing piano in the Kutsher’s lobby. Is this something that you envisioned, or did it just kind of happen that way? Did you want it to be this communal thing, or did it kind of just morph into that by way of it being at these holiday resorts? Also, are there any good stories you can think of?

Let me think… To answer your first question, yeah, we did subconsciously want that to happen. Because, at ATP, we don’t have a VIP area, so it’s not like all these dickheads from cell phone companies and drink sponsors all saying, “Hey, come into my private area, and hang out, and be special, and be more special than the people out there, even though they paid money and you didn’t.” Like, L.A. celebrity bullshit. We kind of kiboshed all that and said, “All of the bands are equal like the fans, and everyone gets to hang out.” And you get artists, like, of really high caliber, like Nick Cave, and he is able to watch bands like Suicide and stuff and not be harassed by people in his face. People might stop and say, “Hey, Nick, it’s good to see you. Thanks for coming to play. Can I have your autograph?” That sort of thing. But no one really getting in his face, and he was able to maneuver around the site.

But, you can go bowling with Sonic Youth, or with Raekwon, or show up eating burgers with the Deal sisters. And, I think it’s great that if you’re into that type of music, and you’re able to talk with bands, not necessarily idolize, but someone that blows your mind that you love, and be in that environment where you’re made to feel equal. I think the whole thing about ATP is that it’s all about democracy, and it’s not about egos. We try to tell people, you know, that if you have an ego, why don’t you leave it at the door, because we’re not about that.

So, the stories, I’m trying to think.  I’ll have to get back to you on that.

That’s alright. So, we have been over that it’s not happening at Kutsher’s this year, but we will be getting a world-class I’ll Be Your Mirror, which is going to be incredible, curated by Portishead with Jeff Mangum. Do you have any updates on anybody else who might be joining on that lineup? Or any hints at what to get excited for? New features that you will be introducing to the festival?

Well, there’s going to be other things. We are going to make use of Asbury Lanes, which is a bowling alley. It has a venue there, and it holds like 250, and that’s going to be, like, a space we are going to use every day. We are also looking into doing an art exhibition with a pretty well-known artist. I can’t say this now, but next week, we will be revealing the artist and also some more artists and DJs, all of that sort of thing that’s going on. Yeah, it’s going really well, the I’ll Be Your Mirror thing. And I think it will be like a festival. Some people might say, “Oh, it’s not like Kutsher’s.” But, it’s kind of developing on from Kutsher’s. Kutsher’s is great, but the problem is that its charm of, like, how beaten up it was, wears thin after a while, you know what I mean? But I think we just wanted to find a location that made it more viable for us, and it’s really close to, like, Brooklyn and Manhattan, and it’s easy to get to Jersey, and people could come for the day or could come for the whole weekend. It’s easy to get accommodations. I think it’s good, a lot of history in that town, and the people there are so supportive, and I think it’s kind of a getaway from other places. So, it will be an event people will be into. We’re giving it a shot.

I mean, it sold out almost immediately, didn’t it? The three-day passes?

The three-day passes sold out, but there are still single-day tickets. No, that’s the one thing that everyone says: This happened before. The three-day passes sold out, and then everybody thinks the whole thing is sold-out. I don’t understand how anyone thinks that. I mean, there are still single-day tickets, but they are going fast. But, it’s not quite sold-out.

Okay. That’s good to clarify. I think it was the confusion with the Jeff Mangum performance that got everybody kind of—confused.

Yeah, I mean, what it was was that there were the three-day passes that guaranteed you getting into the Jeff Mangum show, and that sold out, but then there were single-day tickets if you wanted to see Portishead still available.

Note since this interview took place, another set of three-day Passes which include an additional show from Jeff Mangum have gone on sale.

I guess the final question would be, you have this record label, you’ve got festivals in Japan, Australia, UK, US… What do you hope to do next? Do you have any ideas for upcoming curators or where you would like to take ATP in the future?

Well, we have some stuff in Japan, and we did an amazing event there, and we would like to kind of expand on that. Other countries? I mean, I have always wanted to do something in, like, Paris. We love Paris. That would be good. Maybe more stuff in Australia or even maybe the West Coast of America. There’s only so many places to go. One person I think we would love to ask to curate is someone like Wes Anderson. We are huge fans of his movies, and all the music in his films are fantastic. So, I think that is someone that I think would make for a great curator. Whether he’s available or interested is anyone’s guess. But, I’d think he would be cool.

Any ideas for expanding the idea of ATP?

Yeah, we have always talked about maybe trying to get an ATP venue, not necessarily to host a whole festival but to do shows and stuff, because too many venues are run by corporate fools and their sponsorship deals and stuff like that. And I think it would be good to sort of, like, do something that bears the ethos of ATP, which is about the music, and treating fans with respect. I think that would be good. Maybe have a café attached to it to get some good healthy food in them and to see some cool music. I think that’s something to work towards. It’s getting harder and harder in the music business now, because everybody is losing money from selling records, so they’re now trying to play live to boost their income. And the market is kind of flooded, so I think maybe that will affect us in the long term. But I think there is always room for music venues. I think that would be good. I would like to do that, but it’s just finding the time to do it, because we are so busy with what we have going on.

Feature photo courtesy of Shorefire.com.

With help from The Creators Project and directoral duo Daniels, hard-hitting NYC outfit Battles turn one of life’s greatest fears — tripping down an escalator — into a four-minute music video for the Gloss Drop song “My Machines”. Featuring an appearance from the song’s guest vocalist, Gary Numan, check out the brilliant clip below. Also, props to the actor who willingly got his ass kicked by an escalator for four minutes.

“My Machines”, the latest single from Gloss Drop, is now available on 12″ colored vinyl via Warp Records. See them perform it live:

Battles 2011 Tour Dates:
10/01 – Asbury Park, NJ @ ATP’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror”
10/02 – Boston, MA @ Royale
10/03 – Montreal, QC @ Le National
10/04 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theater
10/05 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
10/06 – Pittsburgh, PA @ VIA Pittsburgh
10/07 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
10/08 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Line Music Cafe
10/10 – Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room
10/12 – Seattle, WA @ Neptune
10/13 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
10/15 – San Francisco, CA @ Treasure Island Music Festival
10/16 – Pomona, CA @ The Glass House
10/17 – Los Angeles, CA @ Mayan Theater
10/18 – Scottsdale, AZ @ The Venue
10/20 – Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
10/21 – Austin, TX @ Emos
10/22 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
10/24 – Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
10/25 – Birmingham, AL @ Work/Play
10/26 – Tampa, FL @ Crowbar
10/27 – Maimi, FL @ Grand Central
10/28 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
10/29 – Asheville, NC @ MoogFest
10/30 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/31 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
11/01 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
11/11 – Osaka, JP @ Akaso
11/12 – Nagoya, JP @ Club Quattro
11/13 – Tokyo, JP @ Shibuya Ax
11/15 – Paris, FR @ La Machine
11/16 – Sheffield, UK @ Plug
11/17 – Newcastle, UK @ Gateshead Town Hall
11/18 – Liverpool, UK @ Kazimier
11/19 – Dublin, IE @ Button Factory
11/21 – London, UK @ Forum
11/30 – Barcelona, ES @ Apollo
12/01 – Madrid, ES @ Joy Eslava
12/02 – Bibao, ES @ Cafe Antzokia
12/03 – Porto, PT @ TBA
12/05 – Trezzo, IT @ Live Music Club
12/06 – Frankfurt, DE @ Das Bett
12/07 – Berlin, DE @ TBA
12/08 – Kortrijk, BE @ TBA
12/10 – Minehead, UK @ ATP’s Nightmare Before Christmas

“Ice Cream” is the new single from Battles, and it seems like almost-too-perfect title. It is overall a very catchy song, much like that of the ice cream truck that drives down your block every summer. However, the visuals suggest some more unusual stuff than catchy tunes and delicious treats. There is a lot of karate (note the brown and white uniforms, chocolate and vanilla?), a fantastic color scheme behind the band, images of summertime enjoyment (yay! pools!) and for the finale, everybody gets soaked in white paint. This is one treat you will certainly enjoy.

Directed and Produced by: CANADA with PARTIZAN London.
CANADA Executive Producer: Oscar Romagosa
PARTIZAN Executive Producers: Sasha Nixon
Production Manager: Alba Barneda
Photography: Marc Gómez del Moral and Pau Castejon
Art: Roger Bell
Costumes: Xènia Gasull
Makeup: Gina Ros

Well, folks… back from the field and here again at Cluster 1. Outside Lands was quite a weekend, and we have some radical exclusive content coming your way in the form of interviews, live footage, and some more festival goodies. So, stay tuned, but for now, enjoy the past few day’s posts.

Interviews:

Cluster 1 Interview with Chris Frantz (of the Talking Heads and Tom Tom Club) – Our very own Cap Blackard sat down with Chris Frantz to talk a darker sound, more EPs, and a tour with the Psychedelic Furs.

Series:

f e e d b a c k Episode 6 – “Battles” – One minute they have the strangest single of the year, the next they’re working with Gary Numan. Clearly, Battles are doing something right.

Documentaries:

Shaking Light (Vol. 2 Ep. 7): “Sweet Lights” – Sweet Lights, aka multi-instrumentalist Shai Halperin, records a thickly layered track over the course of 24 hours.

Shorts:

The Birth – Birthed from boxes? Not so far from the real thing.

Bad Things that Could Happen – The keyword in this title is “could.”

Animation:

Yowie and the Magpie – A dedicated hunter chases down a legendary creature that seems to be very dangerous.

Storytime – Terry Gilliam made this in 1968, and it certainly looks like it. Not to mention, it is totally creepy.

The Bone Orchard – Another 3D animation film done on the program Movie Storm; this film shows a conversation between two cowboys in a saloon.

Music Videos:

Amanda Palmer – “Oasis” – A dark-natured story is told over the most happy song and colorful music video.

Yawn – “Acid” – Psychedelic and totally spacey… Syd Barrett would be so proud.

The Wombats – “Techno Fan” – Apparently, the band developed software to make their creative vision come true.  While the band starts out as well-done illustrations, they slowly become full humans.

Marissa Nadler – “Alabaster Queen” – An enchanting dancer puts on a display deep in the forest.

Mandala – “Blue Darkening” – A tale of life and death in a beautiful forest.

Pujol – “Too Safe” – Daniel Pujol certainly doesn’t play it safe hanging out with all these freaks of the Renaissance Fair.

Don’t Forget…

– Want a constant stream of musical goodness? Check out our Channel, featuring over 30 music videos, several short films, and other nifty clips, all crammed together in one non-stop barrage of visual and aural stimulation.

- Social networking is a way of life, so follow us at @cluster1tv and on Facebook

Side B is an independent production company that stays committed to promoting and exploring today’s most innovative artists. As a branch of the andPOP network, a small independent company that reaches over one million viewers across North America every month, Side B has already turned some heads – and rightfully so. With their ongoing series, Feedback, they’ve captured a slew of exciting and unique acts on film, including Dodos, Foals, Miami Horror, PVT, and Yellow Ostrich.  We recently partnered up with Feedback to share with you their outstanding quality video interviews.

This time around, we speak with Battles about their new album Gloss Drop, and how they found themselves collaborating with Gary Numan.

This was my first time ever in the Pacific Northwest, much less Seattle, and based on my experience, I can safely say that everyone in Seattle lies about the rain because it was 75 degrees and sunny all weekend long. Don’t believe them when they tell you it always rains – they’re dirty fibbers fibbing the fibbiest of fibs.

Weather: perfect. Mix of local acts and national acts: just right. Seattle hot dogs: intimidating at first, delicious after several beers. I snapped some pictures and jotted some notes at various points during the day concerning bands, people, and experiences. I was welcomed into Seattle’s hood like an old friend, and it felt like I was a part of something special in Capitol Hill, and not just a tourist taking in the scenery and local fare. Thanks for the hug, Seattle.

-Jeremy Larson
Content Director

Friday, July 22nd

1:14 p.m.– I walked around Capitol Hill, and a homeless guy pointed toward the barricade where the fest is being set up and asked, “Are you going to the parade?” I didn’t correct him because he’s probably more right than wrong about festivals being parades.

2:45 p.m. – Zion’s Gate Records is a great little dive of a vinyl store. There are tons of rare 7”s on the wall and really good hip-hop 10”s, as well. Got a Los Crudos 7”. Chicago represent.

4:05 p.m.  – The first official act of the fest kicks off with Fresh Espresso, a Seattle party-rap crew who inaugurated things nicely. Before going into another “get yr hands up” jam, they rhetorically asked, “What’s the best thing about Michigan? Girls and fast cars.” I didn’t correct them because he was probably more right than wrong, again.

4:35 p.m. – Capitol Hill Block Party has four stages:  A main outdoor stage, a smaller outdoor stage (Vera stage), and two indoor venues, Cha Cha’s and Neumos. The Neumos lineup on Friday was stacked, so I spent most of my time in and out of there. Unknown Mortal Orchestra started the bill at Neumos, and, for the second time in a row that I’ve seen them, they asked for there to be no lights on the stage. I’m still not quite sure of the reason for that (other than opening themselves up for really easy jokes about their name), but it’s frustrating.

Being shrouded in dull darkness notwithstanding, UMO bleed talent, and with only one album under their belt, they play those songs to the bone. Singer/guitarist Ruban Neilson is a guitar virtuoso. It’s not often you get to say that about a young indie band, but Neilson shreds. He pulls at the strings without a pick, and his solos call back classic garage rock stuff from the 60′s, like if Eddie Van Halen were drunk. I mean, there was an older guy with a Sleep hoodie playing air guitar in the back of the house. UMO aren’t afraid to improvise and jam like on the highlight of the set, “Boy Witch”. During the middle of a solo, Neilson went back to his Fender amp and just cranked up the volume and continued shredding. I can’t verify this, but I’m pretty sure it went to 11.

5:10 p.m. – I stood outside long enough to catch some of Kurt Vile’s set/hair. “Jesus Fever” may be one of my favorite songs of late, and I got miffed that the crowd wasn’t screaming those lyrics. Back inside Neumos, The Fresh & Onlys kicked off their set with that hale and hearty psych-garage stuff that I trip and fall in love with all over the place. Maybe it’s that the mean age of The Fresh & Onlys is far older than most bands here, or maybe it’s their confidence onstage, but I trust that every song they play is one of the best songs ever written. It sure seems like it at their show. If nothing else, boat hats should really make a comeback.

5:45 p.m. – Fucked Up played in a coffee shop. That’s a real thing that happened.

6:47 p.m. – What makes Woods so enjoyable to listen to? Why do I sit around and listen to their entire set? They’re a band that has a great arc to their performance–sequenced meticulously and yet it feels elastic and free. The brevity of their warm, short songs (“Be All Be Easy”) is interpolated with focused improvisation that rolls steadily like a water just before it boils. In lieu of noodling solos and self-absorbed jams, Woods work with tension, letting minutes of psych play out with tape effects and folksy textures. They captured a big outdoor festival crowd at Pitchfork, and most of Neumos were wrapped in their arms. Any jam-heads (or anyone for that matter) who hasn’t heard Woods live should really check them out, but if that’s not an option, NYCTaper has a recent set from their June show at Northside Festival. Cop that.

8:35 p.m.– I read somewhere that Cults front lady Madeline Follin sounds terrible, “like The Shaggs terrible.” That’s a fierce aspersion to cast, and it stuck with me up until the first note Follin sang. Nah, Cults are on the real. There was an older couple next to me just knockin’ boots during “You Know What I Mean”, and Follin received an unexpected ovation mid-song for her climactic turn on the chorus. Extended to a five-piece, Cults’ retro ditties were filled in with vibrant indie rock colors. “Go Outside” didn’t just sound like a jangly summer anthem, but a punchy head-nodder, as well.

8:45 p.m.– Ra Ra Riot were just finishing their set, the crowd’s hands were in the air, and everyone seemed to really be picking up what they were putting down.

9:50 p.m.– Another riotous Fucked Up show in the books. I overheard someone say Seattle was notorious for not moving at shows, but leave it to Damien Abraham to transform Nuemos into a stage-diving, crowd-surfing clusterfuck. Every dude that made their way onstage fumbled into a mic stand or slipped into a band member. It was hardcore chaos. Two firsts for this show: Madeline Follin from Cults singing Veronica’s part on “Queen of Hearts” (with lyric sheet in hand) and bassist Sandy Miranda diving into the crowd. Neumos was razed.

Also, Ben Cook is probably the only dude in a hardcore band that can pull off shorts.

10:40 p.m. Over on the Vera stage, I laxed to local hip-hop group Brothers From Another/Kung Foo Grip. The Seattle hip-hop scene seems notoriously insular and self-affirming; is that a bad thing? I’m still trying to get a beat on what Seattle hip-hop stands for or sounds like, but “kickin it in the 206” seems to be these guys’ M.O.

11:15 p.m. After seeing them perform as guests in Shabazz Palaces set at SXSW, I was anxious to see how Seattle’s female hip-hop duo THEESatisfaction would fare as a pas de deux. They take cues from femmes of the past, giving nods to KP & Envyi and Rhianna in a matter of songs, and they give it that confidence that I’ve come to expect from 206 hip-hop. The two ladies would trade verses and work with each other across songs that had them alternating from the fronts to the backs of their heels. The bass and the lyrics made my heart pump. It was a welcome sign that empowerment is both wide-reaching and catchy. One song about how fellas are trying to knock down their doors sent a hard message to the male-heavy crowd. “No dickie, dickie/I’m a lezzie,” they hooked.

11:40 p.m. – Back at Ghostland Observatory, and look at all those lasers. There’s one for every color of the rainbow! And, oh shit, that strobe light is syncing up with that egregiously long build before the cheap drop hits! All this ado is a fine distraction from whatever nonsense is happening onstage. The duo brings an energetic show, they have a great time, and the crowd loves it, but it’s truly nonsense music bereft of form, substance, influence, and it’s just a visual and sonic rotten carrot dangling in front of false synesthetes and entry-level electroheads and–whoa. That last laser array was dope!

Saturday, July 23rd

2:15 p.m. – I ask people where to take a good picture of The Space Needle, and they tell me, and I realize that I don’t want a picture of The Space Needle because everyone, including myself, couldn’t care less about The Space Needle. They’re just The Watts towers or the towers in Flushing Meadows for The Worlds Fair, and unless it’s a secret alien spaceship, don’t care.

2:32 p.m. – Another dose of Seattle hip hop with Champagne Champagne has me warming up to some of these local crews, but I still don’t know what they stand for. Champagne^2 have a Das Racist vibe with several portions of levity removed from their flow, or a Jurassic 5 vibe with no trace of jazz in the production. Weed, girls, Seattle: all delivered under semi-swirling beats made less avant by the propensity for getting the party started. The two MCs worked well as a duo bolstering each other and trading spotlights when necessary and had enough energy to shotgun the first set of the day.

3:17 p.m. – The spectral songs of Austra drew me in to the coffee shop to witness some of their KEXP set. Her voice is a ghost, aided by her two other ghosts/female back up singers. Austra benefits from playing cloaked in the darkness of a club, as opposed to surrounded by burlap sacks of coffee beans, so their brooding ethos was kind of tampered by the venue. None of this affected Katie Stelmanis’ power as a vocalist, especially during “Lose It” – a quivering and painful song, the Arabica beans notwithstanding. Maybe it’s not as Poe as all that, but the blank expressions on Austra’s faces don’t exactly make me think Leslie Gore or anything.

3:47 p.m. – Fences: I’ve seen this Seattle band a few times now, and each time inked-out Chris Mansfield becomes more confident, and less trembling. His trials seem cemented and reflective as opposed to maudlin heart-on-sleeve bellyaching. Guitarist Jonathan Warman could really take the band to another tier with some of the volume swells and elastic jams he includes live, and would separate them from the rest of the saturated pop-folk scene. Carry the emotion of the lyrics into the music and find a connection there so that each everyone matches Mansfield’s mood. Promise?

4:10 p.m. – Getting from stage to stage can be a bit of a maneuver here, as Nuemos is a 21+ joint so you have to walk through a checkpoint to get there. If you want to leave Nuemos and go back to the Mainstage, you can’t exit where you entered, you have to walk up a block and come back around. I’m sure there’s a good infrastructural reason, but the contained spirit of each stage/venue wasn’t optimal for the old “wander around and see what grabs me” trick.

4:35 p.m. – Eleanor Friedberger stood on a bare stage. The whole setup looked very intimidating, and she appeared nervous performing her prolix-folk set to a restless crowd, much like I would expect a young Patti Smith/Joni Mitchell would have done pre-fame. Friedberger’s songs weren’t met with the attention they deserved, which is too bad because that particular style of distaff beat folk was in oddly short supply over the weekend. Even though her set was marred by some tech issues, Friedberger pleased this fan, who thinks she has a lengthy solo career and prefers the earnestness of her voice and an acoustic guitar as unencumbered by the often thoughtless instrumentation of The Fiery Furnaces.

5:10 p.m. – I’m full up on less-than-Superchunk power pop, Telekinesis. You sound great, but I have no desire to learn your songs so I can sing along to them in my car, which seems like the only boon to repackaging college power pop these days and the thing is I don’t even own a car because I live in Chicago and take the train.

6:10p.m. – Whatever misgivings I had about Handsome Furs‘ latest synth-driven album were washed clean by their set. I miss Wolf Parade, I’m coping, but Dan Boeckner looks so much happier playing up there with his wife Alexei Perry rocketing through his own material. Or, I guess as happy as a veritable shadow of a dude who asked the crowd right-out for shrooms can be. Boeckner’s synths hit harder than his guitar, the four-to-the-floor beats got the crowd bouncing, and was a great precursor to TV on the Radio’s forthcoming set. “All We Want, Baby, Is Everything” raised my fist and voice in hedonistic delight, something I’m sure Boeckner and Perry champion as a lifestyle and not to be macabre or portentous or anything but really they look like Sid and Nancy up there. Or at least their unleashed stage presence makes me think that.

6:50 p.m. – So usually when a band has the technical prowess thing going on, there’s a lot of stasis on stage. Stationary crowd watches stationary band watches their fingers dancing on fret-boards. Not so with Ravenna Woods, who sounded like Kaki King meets The Dodos with everything — including the lead singer’s dance moves — having a percussive quality. Like UMO, Ravenna Woods birth these rare sounds from their guitars with exuberance and celebrate with high-test energy. The burst picking and tapping at times sounded like a synth loop it was so clean and on time. I look forward to seeing these guys again in any capacity.

7:45 p.m. – I honestly thought Seattle would be the last place you’d see Nirvana t-shirts, but they’re everywhere at CHBP. I had drinks at a bar where Kurt Cobain was last seen alive, and even a bar felt reverent to me, but it seems like people have either moved on to indifference or pride in Nirvana’s legacy. And yes, I’ll watch Hype as soon as I can.

8:15 p.m. – I’m up in the clouds at Teen Daze’s set. Dude’s wearing a cardigan, dropping some 4/4 grooves with chillwave synths and I’m feeling it all around. It’s sad that the Vera Stage feels auxiliary and disconnected from the rest of the fest, and Teen Daze’s music needs to spread out as opposed to filter down a small street. I only stay for a few songs, long enough to overhear a guy in the crowd say, “Man that bass is really killer.”  I never want him to hear a dub step track ever and he’ll die, for several reasons, a happy man.

8:47 p.m. – I’m waiting in Neumos for Cold Cave to go on, which I know I won’t stay for the whole thing because Les Savy Fav is playing opposite and I should get pictures of Les Savy Fav cause Tim Harrington does wacky shit and they make for good pictures.

8:50 p.m. –But Cold Cave are superlative live, and if I can just see a couple minutes of Dominick Fernow’s dance moves and hear some high Hz noise mush for like a couple more minutes I’ll be satiated. Plus they make for great pictures, too. Everything’s coming up Jeremy! Get ready for this sick coverage, conflicts be damned.

9:45 p.m. – Goddammit.

9:47 p.m. – So, Cold Cave lit their show with predictably minimal light for their first song — the extricating “Icons Of Summer” — none of which was on Fernow and his fly-ass dance moves so strike one. I wanted desperately to stay for the rest of their set, but I knew I could run out and get into the pit for Les Savy Fav and watch the rest of their set and just deal. For reasons I won’t go into here, I was not allowed in the pit for Les Savy Fav. So instead of capturing with photos, I’ll ashamedly recapture the events with the pitiful 1:1000 ratio of words. Harrington: left the stage and ran into an adjacent apartment building, dipped his head out of the window, ran back downstairs, grabbed a potted plant from the foyer of the building, brought the plant on stage, hurled it into the audience effectively destroying it. Then, Harrington put on a blond wig and aviators, stripped down and put on corduroy cutoffs, posed like an ingenue actress, grabbed a camera from the in-house film crew and filmed the crowd, threw a tarp in the crowd and stage dove on it, danced with a man in a bald eagle costume, put on the head of the bald eagle costume, pushed the man eagle into the crowd perhaps injuring the man he’s not sure, eased tension by singing the “higher than an eagle” line from “Wind Beneath My Wings”, grinded on the stage, posed like an ingenue actress again, threw confetti all over himself, put on a crudely fashioned head dress cape thing with streamers, jumped off stage, ran through crowd with microphone in hand, pushed through to the back, jumped the security fence, threw a bucket of water on the crowd, and disappeared into the night. Incidentally, they played some peppy post-punk songs, too.

10:15 p.m. – Akimbo saved the whole day for me. Entering the Cha Cha venue is like stepping into a basement jam, and for all intents and purposes, this was a legit basement jam. Akimbo were set up on the floor, no stage, and just ripped into the sweaty walls of the place with sludge punk of the highest pedigree. Beer sprayed everywhere, two big dudes were preventing the mosh pit from overtaking the three piece and the 100 or so people in the venue clawed were fully into Akimbo’s ballsy shitshow, ending with what I’m pretty sure was Black Flag’s “Thirsty and Miserable”, inciting a punk scrum just the way it should be.

10:50 p.m. — In the long corridor of Pike St., sound is can ricochet off the walls of the apartment buildings and storefronts causing for some sound difficulties. I had trouble hearing some of TV On The Radio’s vocals – but other than that, they delivered a similar performance as we reported on last week, only this time welcoming “DLZ” to the setlist. Check out the video of deftly wrangling Fugazi’s “Waiting Room” (and please try not to cringe when the lady sings during the rest at the beginning).

Sunday, July 24th

Sidebar concerning that Pacific NW Folk-pop sound – (The Head and the Heart, The Lumineers, Campfire OK, Loch Lomond, The Cave Singers)

These bands don’t obfuscate their aesthetic at all, which is almost punk in and of itself these days. It’s the importance of being earnest, right? I don’t think that’s a shallow choice, but I think it’s an easy one to make, and not one that offers many rewards in the long-run. I’ve heard and read harsh words regarding the easy-listening jimmy-jangling sentimental strains of bands of this particular ilk, and I agree – to a point.

It’s unfair of me to lump these talented bands into one group because they are truly unique from one another, but someone who’s more aligned with their ethos would be able to describe their emotional effect better. I just don’t jive with they they’re throwing out there. Blame it on me being an outsider, or blame it on the bands’ nationalistic pastoral tendencies, I just can’t connect. However, each band had a few kernels that made me tune in.

The Cave Singers at least know there’s more rain than sunshine in Seattle, and when they incorporated a more southern-blues tinge to their sound and allowed for vocalist Pete Quirk to detach from his folk yolk, I listened. The Head and the Heart pleased a huge crowd on the Mainstage, but at the cost of mawkish mugging and if they’d simply show me their hearts and not tell me ad nauseum about their hearts, I’d be listening. Ritchie Young’s voice of Loch Lomond was hidden behind sleepy instrumentation, and when I could hear the timbre and versatility of his sound, I listened. Campfire OK brought like five people on stage to dance around and play tambourine to their songs which seemed like an insular celebration of themselves and when they briefly forewent the antics of a hempy hootenanny, I listened. The Lumineers actually were a stately, confident young band from Denver, but never really grabbed me with any of their songs, which may bode well for some deeper listening to their studio recordings. I’ll be listening to them.

3:55 p.m. Do you have to be 15 years removed from your prime to ‘rock” on stage? The Posies could give fellow aging 90’s act Guided By Voices a run for their money in terms of old hat rock moves. I expected a polite trip down power-pop lane, but the Seattle natives ripped into their seven-album career like they were playing them for the first time. As previously stated, I’m doing just fine with my power-pop reserves, but it wasn’t really about the songs but how much fun they had playing them. It was hard to look away or stop listening, especially when they nailed their singles of yore “Dream All Day” and the finale with “Solar Sister”. Tingly feelings from 1993 – another good use for power pop other than car-jamming.

4:22 p.m. I eat a Seattle hot dog with cream cheese, grilled onions, hickory BBQ sauce, sriacha sauce, on a toasted bun and it’s five stars, 100%, and most assuredly BNHD.

5:15 p.m. – You want math rock? Cacophonous noise noodling + taught instrumental prog + watching Ian Williams and Dave Knopoka subtly conduct each other like classical musicians + John Stanier’s crash rigged 1,000 ft in the air + projections of delicious Ice Cream during “Ice Cream” + faithful tension wrought from two tweaky synths played simultaneously by Williams + including “Atlas” on the setlist + a flawless, seamless, nonstop show = Battles and Battles are tantamount to none.

5:42 p.m. – The wall of low-drive guitars that Papercuts pushed out didn’t really mesh with the crowd at Neumos. Jason Quever’s hushed, reverb-caked songs have a Galaxie 500 by way of The Shins vibe which may be a tough sell to a crowd after a long weekend. But they strode through their set, playing ambling, lush indie pop. “Do What You Will” sounded particularly pristine as Quever just nailed that chorus.

6:30 p.m. – Some final thoughts about Capitol Hill Block Party: Sucks that I didn’t see Federation X, a touted band by many locals. All the security crew on the grounds were local bouncers and were the most genial, helpful people I’ve ever encountered at a festival. The fact that you can see shows at a club and outdoors is the festival’s greatest boon. For all the Fauxlk running rampant in Seattle, it was pleasing to hear a defined sound reach so many people, and if that’s Seattle’s current identity it’s something to take pride in. On the other side of the coin, a lot of Seattle hip-hop in its current iteration came across as amateurish and near-sighted party bangers, and perhaps afraid to follow the path of Shabazz Palaces has forged. I spoke with several Seattleites about their take on the town’s identity with regards to music, but I was only there for three days and would love more insight. I would wager the fest was ballpark 75% local, 25% visiting, and it did a fantastic job of catering to that percentage, especially with the selection of headliners. Finally, logistically speaking, the fest ran with nary a hitch. Save for some odd 21+ ordinances and no real place to sit down in the grounds, it’s a model for any large-scale block party, you know, if you can get Best Coast and TV on the Radio to show up like they did.

8:35 p.m. –The sun was setting behind the stage with the perfect light hitting everyone’s faces. With a weather anomaly of clear skies and 80 degree heat, I couldn’t imagine the harsh noise of Mogwai of the brooding intensity of Godspeed You! Black Emperor capturing the mood of this weekend of quite like Explosions in the Sky did. Even though every song is unabashedly hyperbolic, Explosions aren’t just “< >”. Their use of space and silence, notable in the opener “The Only Moment We Were Alone”, shows that their keen ear for compositions don’t simply adhere to the primal human need for simple build ups and come downs.

The purified, triple reverse osmosis guitar tones paid dues to The Edge by extending major mode riffs to the end of the block and skipping off to infinity. You could close your eyes and feel transported to the end credits of the weekend (or whatever time-frame you choose, really) and reflect and transcend. Or, you could nod your head and sync up with the band’s exuberance rollicked through their songs matching their intense stage presence. Or, you could hop off the epic wave of sound at any moment, grab a beer, and hop right back in. Music is rarely this inviting for all ears. The grand finale, “Let Me Back In”, swelled to such an ultimate emotional intensity that the fest had no other choice but to come to a close or it surely would have skipped off the space-time continuum. It ended on a good note, stacked upon thousands of other good notes.

The Culture of Capitol Hill Block Party

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San Francisco’s Treasure Island Music Festival returns for its fifth go-around from October 15th to 16th at the breath-taking Treasure Island. As has been the case throughout the festival’s history, the bill mixes the best of indie rock and electronic, with Death Cab for Cutie, Empire of the Sun, Cut Copy, Chromeo, and Death From Above 1979 heading the bill.

The festival’s first day leans toward the electronic side. Joining Empire of the Sun, Cut Copy, Chromeo, and DFA 1979 are Battles, Flying Lotus, Buraka Som Sistema, YACHT, The Naked and Famous, Dizzee Rascal, Shabazz Palaces, Aloe Blacc, and Geographer.

The indie-rific day two features Death Cab For Cutie along with Explosions in the Sky, Beach House, The Hold Steady, Stephen Malkmus & the Jicks, St. Vincent, Friendly Fires, The Head and the Heart, Warpaint, Wild Beasts, The Antlers, Thee Oh Sees, and Weekend.

A limited number of early bird two-day passes will go on sale for $99.00 on Wednesday, July 27 at 1:00 pm EST. When that quantity sells out, two-day advance tickets will be available for $115.00, followed by two-day regular tickets for $125.00. Single day ($69.50) and VIP packages will also be available. You can find complete ticketing information at the festival website.

At the beginning of this month, we asked you — the ever-enchanting reader — to tell us your favorite album and song of 2011. Well, we listened. We also collated all the results into a tight, easy-to-read list for your leisure. Why are we so good to you? Who knows!

Despite such an eclectic readership — c’mon, we have fans of 311, Skrillex, and Eleanor Friedberger co-existing together — you collectively assembled quite a knock out of a list. If there’s one thing we learned, however, it’s that Bon Iver wins in any party. Justin Vernon’s latest LP took off with this list, quickly claiming the throne with many votes to spare. And despite all the complaints over Radiohead’s latest effort, it still managed to squeeze in the top three, and also reign over the top songs with, of all tracks, the very Thom Yorke-heavy “Lotus Flower”.

Not too many surprises, either. In fact, most of the entries in the top 10 albums were all CoS Top Star winners, with the exception of Radiohead, TV on the Radio, and Arctic Monkeys. What does that tell us? Nothing really, but something intriguing to note. We were a little surprised to see Panda Bear so low and The Strokes so high — how did that happen? Perhaps those comments on the reviews aren’t always telling. Hmm.

Anyways, it’s a pretty nifty list. Hard to argue too considering, well, you put it together. Ah, it feels good to take the proverbial “weight” off our back. Enjoy.

Best Albums:

01. Bon Iver – Bon Iver
02. Fleet Foxes – Helplessness Blues
03. Radiohead – The King of Limbs
04. Foo Fighters – Wasting Light
05. James Blake – James Blake
06. Arctic Monkeys – Suck It and See
07. TV on the Radio – Nine Types of Light
08. PJ Harvey - Let England Shake
09. The Antlers – Burst Apart
10. Cut Copy – Zonoscope
11. Yuck – Yuck
12. Cults – Cults
13. The Strokes – Angles
14. The Decemberists – The King is Dead
15. Panda Bear – Tomboy
16. Tyler the Creator – Goblin
17. Destroyer – Kaputt
18. Beastie Boys – Hot Sauce Committee Pt 2
19. Wild Beasts – Smother
20. Shabazz Palaces – Black Up

Best Songs:

01. Radiohead – “Lotus Flower”
02. Fleet Foxes – “Helplessness Blues”
03. Tyler the Creator – “Yonkers”
04. Bon Iver – “Holocene”
05. Foo Fighters – “Walk”
06. Foster the People – “Pumped Up Kicks”
07. Battles – “Ice Cream”
08. Panda Bear – “Last Night at the Jetty”
09. Radiohead – “Separator”
10. The Strokes – “Under Cover of Darkness”
11. Adele – “Rolling in the Deep”
12. Fleet Foxes – “The Shrine/An Argument”
13. My Morning Jacket – “Circuital”
14. Bon Iver – “Towers”
15. My Morning Jacket – “Holdin’ on to Black Metal”
16. Toro Y Moi – “Still Sound”
17. TV on the Radio – “Will Do”
18. Beirut – “East Harlem”
19. Cults – “Abducted”
20. Bon Iver – “Perth”

It’s a testament to the spirit of discovery that Pitchfork champions. Their passion for unearthing, promoting, and booking remarkable bands for Pitchfork Music Festival is always exciting, as many bands are new to the festival scene and aren’t used to thousands of people staring back at them. And during Fleet Foxes’ set especially, it became clear that one website’s passion for music has been transferred to the masses. Now that’s a feat.

Save for the controversy surrounding Odd Future’s performance (and the performance itself), this year turned out to be a very polite festival, and that’s not necessarily a good thing. Not to say there’s nothing to blog home about, but the bands that are still with myself, Adam Kivel, and Paul De Revere in the days after the festival are but Fleet Foxes, HEALTH, Deerhunter, TV on the Radio, Cold Cave, Woods who all seemed to be playing at their peak with definition, confidence, and clarity. They delivered some of the best sets of the weekend and, in hindsight, I wish there were more bands that were taking the next step up in the ambiguously tangible music ladder. Many of the bands on the bill were making nostalgia candy for all, in flux trying to carve out a new sound, or cutting their teeth much like the Fleet Foxes did three years ago.

There were plenty of acts we loved and very, very few we didn’t (see below), but there was an overall imbalance that lingers with me. Maybe last year’s lineup was too perfect, too timely to compare to this one. Maybe the music of 2011 is too unsettled to have found its vanguard. Maybe the PR fracas and the anarcho-punk of Odd Future’s set was the most relevant, most indelible memory of the weekend which can make for a hard pill to swallow. But the best thing about Pitchfork Music Festival is that there’s a needle for every groove — vegans get vegan gyros, record hounds get a bountiful record fair, interior decorators get 20 or so different graphic designers selling band posters at Flatstock, and everyone got three days of sun, weed, beer, friends, and over 30 of the best bands around.

-Jeremy D. Larson
Content Director

Feature photo by Meghan Brosnan.

Friday, July 15th

Gatekeeper – Blue Stage – 3:20 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Do you think that if Gatekeeper had named themselves Headliners, they’d be closing the night instead of keeping an eye on the gates as the huge line trickled in? Either way, most of the reasonably large crowd at the side stage seemed enthusiastic, dancing along to the dark, pulsing beats of the Brooklyn/Chicago duo of Matthew Arkell and Aaron David Ross. Some of the dancing looked ironic, but considering the unfortunate fact that the arcade game/bad horror soundtrack aping set was happening out in open air in the middle of a bright afternoon, it might have just been uncertainty. Either way, the beats won out, as they typically do, and the duo wound up with a big reaction. -Adam Kivel

EMA – Red Stage – 3:30 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

Erika M. Anderson’s first album under her acronymous band EMA can be an uncomfortable listen, with lyrics of butterfly knife kisses, disenfranchisement in California, and many more touchy subjects. It’s a delicate album that might ought to be handled delicately live, but EMA don’t wanna wallow. It’s always good for a band to kick things up in real life, and EMA does exactly that. The thinning production on Past Life Martyred Saints became lush drone backed by the precision-in-the-pocket drumming of Nicole Anderson, Erika’s younger sister. Introverted songs turned extroverted, like “Butterfly Knife” and even the heart-wringing ballad “Breakfast”.

At her show at The Empty Bottle on the Thursday before the festival, EMA crammed the venue with power, and played a much looser set than they did opening up Pitchfork on Friday. I was really blown away at her show in a club, and even though it didn’t have the spark it did on Thursday, their festival sound weaved through enough of the crowd to pique intersest while maintaining the personal nature of the songs themselves. -Jeremy D. Larson

tUnE-yArDs – Blue Stage – 4:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The Merrill Garbus faithfuls stood in the hot Chicago summer with Björk-meets-Bushmen war paint melting down their faces. You’ll forgive me if I call tUnE-yArDs a movement. When Garbus starts the funky, locomotive-like chug of her amazing pipes, loop pedals and ukelele; when she holds up her “fight the power” fist on “Gangsta”, one of the sets rollicking opening songs, clenching a drum stick, it feels more like a small rally than a concert. “You’re a very moving site to see out there,” she said. Garbus’ talent for arrangement, improvisation, and, most of all, groove (through the use of her loop pedals, which inspired gawks and giddiness among the crowd) is among the best of the new class of indie artists of the last few years. Definitely one of the strongest sets of the festival’s first day. -Paul de Revere

Battles – Green Stage – 4:35 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Sure, there’s a bit of novelty to the way that Battles drummer John Stanier hangs his crash cymbal five feet in the air, but, as the roar of the crowd attested on his first swipe at it, there’s something invigorating about it as well. In their new, singer-less incarnation, one had to wonder how the guest vocalist songs from Gloss Drop would translate, and the answer was a bit of a surprise. Pre-recorded videos of Blonde Redhead vocalist Kazu Makino and Gary Numan sang along to the insane math-jazz-rock drumming of Stanier, Ian Williams’ double-synth, guitar tapping, and foot kicking, and Dave Konopka’s complexly looped and effected bass lines. The biggest surprise of the set may have been the faithful rendition of “Atlas” (though without a video of departed vocalist Tyondai Braxton), but the biggest response came for the brain-scraping “Ice Cream”, with video of piles of ice cream flashing in between shots of vocalist Matias Aguayo bobbing along to the beat. -Adam Kivel

Curren$y – Blue Stage – 5:30 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

The wave of pot fumes wafting through the crowd during Curren$y’s performance was simply overwhelming. And the chronic stench started promptly within the first few seconds of the Young Money Entertainment rapper’s first song. Without a doubt, Curren$y and the crowd were wasting no time getting the party going. But as intensely a weed rapper Curren$y is, it’s important to point out the dude’s not unengaged either, which is a refreshing change of pace in the niche stoner rap subgenre. He also has lyrical skills. But he hardly needed the constant adulation of the crowd. “You ain’t gotta clap for me,” he said. “Just light something.” -Paul De Revere

Thurston Moore – Red Stage – 5:30 p.m.

“You guys wanna hear some songs about rape, murder, and carnage?” a darkly sun-glassed Thurston Moore smirked out at the audience. Ever the imp, Moore continued to dumbfound some expectations, shooting down shouted requests for “Kool Thing” and its noise-rock brethren, instead going “on noise strike”, and performing acoustic with a violinist, harpist, second guitarist, and drummer. Playing most of Demolished Thoughts,  Moore quietly strummed through gems like “Benediction” and “Illuminine”. Hush Arbors guitarist Keith Wood, and one of so many possible Sunburned Hand of the Man drummers laid down a soft groove, Mary Lattimore’s harp and Samara Lubelski’s violin added accents, and Moore stood front and center, being undeniably himself. His cooed lyrics on Trees Outside the Academy’s “Never Did” and his vows to “stay in ecumenical gangster mode” were playful and cool, which is Moore on auto-pilot. A little more noise and intensity may have been more exciting, but this set won on its relaxed, calming breeze. – Adam Kivel

Guided By Voices – Green Stage – 6:25 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

If you ain’t in the know, you’d be hard pressed to tell the difference between Guided By Voices (GBV) and roadies these days. As GBV loaded in, Robert Pollard asked the crowd if we were ready for some “real profession rock & roll,” and, in retrospect, I think it was a sincere, unironic question. With a cigarette in one hand mouth bottle of Jose Cuervo Gold in the other which for him must be is own personal Fountain of Youth, Pollard led the aging indie godfathers to a fun and chunky set playing about 20 songs from their careers, culling mainly from their “seminal lo-fi album” Bee Thousand (now that quip was dripping with irony). While those classic standbys sounded great, it was their even more garagey/lo-fi tunes that got the best kind of bump like ”Expecting Brainchild” or “Cut-Out Witch”, showing that seminal is not just one album, it’s a whole career (or at least “early” career, not much stuff was played form their 21st century albums). With GBV on their final reunion lap, they still got plenty of gas left in the truck. Just look at those pictures of guitarist Mitch Mitchell. Any guitarist not aspiring to be like Mitch Mitchell needs to break their whole situation down for retooling. -Jeremy D. Larson

Das Racist – Blue Stage – 6:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Long before Das Racist took the stage, the huge crowd rolled joints, shouted “Combination Pizza Hut and Taco Bell” lyrics, and squeezed as close to the front as they could. The anticipation for that one song was so large that they had to do it, right? Instead, the trio burst through some other great songs (opener “Who’s That? Brooown!”‘s boasts about being the brown Elvis or Larry Bird got some big laughs, while the White Castle critique in “Rainbow in the Dark” may have got more), and even gave time to Detroit MC Danny Brown. The off the cuff request to “get some more Adderall in this microphone, some orange juice in this monitor” may have been the single best line of the day. But, in the end, the song didn’t make the cut. Maybe for the better, as it didn’t seem like too many people were complaining, instead wrapped up in all the fun. -Adam Kivel

James Blake – Blue Stage – 7:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Nearly everyone coming to the festival seemed to be talking about getting to see James Blake. Despite the massive anticipation, the quiet, mixed set seemed blurry and difficult to piece together. Perhaps it was the fact that Blake regularly went for the quiet, mellow, and polite (his many cooly British-accented “thank you”s between songs seemed super sincere), but the large, expectant crowd seemed to suggest something more powerful. His smooth, electronic pieces were largely employed to background his strong voice, a sort of mix between Antony and Dave Longstreth, equal parts operatic croon and acrobatic warble. His jazzy piano intro to “I Never Learnt to Share” was impressive, as was his ability to loop and harmonize with himself so beautifully. One loop caught a big holler from the front of the crowd, effectively giving himself a rolling applause with every added harmony. But, in the end, the set lacked a dramatic punch, instead lingering in the quietly darkening evening. -Adam Kivel

Animal Collective – Green Stage – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Despite their sort of new-found massive popularity (they really packed in that headlining spot!), Animal Collective have a pretty fair reputation for putting on a challenging live show. So many recent setlists seemed to have totally or nearly totally ignored any song they’d already recorded, instead pumping out new jam after new jam. While this can be exciting, there are bound to be contingencies of fans there to hear the hits. So, Avey Tare, Panda Bear, Geologist, and Deakin mixed in a little more familiar stuff, but still relied on showcasing material that will likely make up their next record. The opening new track played out that challenge to the extreme, with Deakin taking the lead vocals. After another new cut of exciting electronic, jungle beats, an amped up, electrified rendition of Feels standout “Did You See the Words?” finally got to a large portion of the crowd, howls ripping through the waves of people.

Sitting behind a technicolor bat mobile and glowing paper crystals, Tare asked if everyone was “feeling pretty sweet,” which, it seemed, they were. The octave glitching, almost Yeasayer-y sounds of a track bootleggers have been calling “Knock You Down” magically melded into Merriweather Post Pavilion favorite “Brother Sport”, which received the biggest applause of the night. A slowed down version of “Taste” followed, and an electric version of Sung Tongs gem “We Tigers” didn’t get as much recognition as the other old songs. “Summertime Clothes” and its cries of “When the sun goes down we’ll go out again” played perfectly for the howlers at the front of the stage who couldn’t get enough. With 10 minutes to park curfew, the quartet called it a night, waving goodbye to day one of the festival. -Adam Kivel

Saturday, July 16th

Julianna Barwick  - Green Stage – 1:00 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

After a short respite, day two fell upon Union Park, and the combination of hangovers and increased heat was keeping a good portion of people down…that is, until Julianna Barwick‘s lithe, angelic vocal harmonies flew out over the field, taking some of the edge off. The droopy, unready audience caught onto her moaning and cooing, finding solace as much in the occasional cool breeze as they did in Barwick’s lush looped compositions. As time passed, more people poured through the gates and into the thronged congregation, the mass of vocals weaving overhead like a glowing tapestry. The spotty early afternoon attendance was appreciative, if un-enthusiastic, and Barwick seemed plenty glad to be there. – Adam Kivel

Woods – Red Stage – 1:45 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

One of the highlights of the whole festival. Their sky-gazing pysch-folk were focused testaments to the longevity of jam bands. Though, labeling Woods as a jam band would be a disservice to jam fans and detractors as they live in a genre all to their own. The delicate tenor voice and treble guitar of Jeremy Earl take focus on their shorter songs, like opener “Pushing Onlys” or “Be All Be Easy”, but between those delightful pop numbers were extended kraut-jams that focused on repetition as opposed to crunchy solos. Ambient textures were interlaced by their pedal-monger and these seven-10 minute sessions hit my heart like rays of sun. It was a perfect choice for a relaxing afternoon set with just enough punch at the end to eke some movement out of the tranced-out crowd. -Jeremy D. Larson

Sun Airway – Blue Stage – 1:55 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The airy, synth-laden electro-pop pushed out by Sun Airway came across ultimately relaxed, almost to a fault. The twinkling effects backing vocalist Jon Barthmus were difficult to differentiate from song to song, as if the group had found a nice, dreamy sound that worked on one song, and then continued it in as many different permutations of the same pieces that they could find. Barthmus’ lyrics were consistently evocative, though a bit overly sentimental. “I’ll be there to lasso you the moonshine,” he promised on “Oh Naoko”, sounding very much like he realizes how sweet that is. The synth drums also proved to be a bit much, and the band continued on, digging at the same spot for the entire set. – Adam Kivel

Cold Cave – Green Stage – 2:30 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

The hard-synth trio pumped some heretofore absent adrenaline across the grounds of Union Park, and they did so with oppressively black overtones tantamount to their all black attire. With the heat of Saturday afternoon already clamping down on the crowd, Wesley Eisold wasted no time in exorcising his demons over synths that could have easily doubled for distorted guitars, which synced up nice with his former past as a vanguard of the Boston hardcore scene. On their latest album Cherish The Light Years, Cold Cave sneak past the new-wave revival label by adding generous globs of industrial waste to their album to great effect. Live, this becomes the focus of their set, aided in large part to Dominick Fernow of the NYC noise-rock band Prurient. Eisold and Fernow attacked their synths with fury leaving behind any trace of politeness, and made the effort to leave it all on stage. I longed for Fernow to have a mic so we could have heard his screams in unison to Eisold’s baritone. While the crowd danced along to “Icons Of Summer”, Eisold made evident his inner demons, even saying after the song “Escapism will never work, You have to embrace it.” He could be referring to any number of tangible or intangible things, but as the closing number “Villians of the Moon” played and hands were lifted up in the air, it was evident that Cold Cave’s noir came second to the power of a truly great song. – Jeremy D. Larson

G-Side – Blue Stage – 2:50 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Furthering its rap music focus onto Southern rappers, the Pitchfork Music Festival’s Blue Stage hosted Huntsville, Ala.’s G-Side, a pair of thoughtful rappers with bluesy wisdom and a friendly swagger. (One lyrical sample, “Do what you do, boy/Just know what you do it for.”) Near the end of its set, preparing to perform the Beach House-sampling “How Far”, the duo asked, “Anybody here fuck with Beach House?” Yes, G-Side. Yes, we do. -Paul de Revere

No Age – Red Stage – 3:20 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The Red Stage seemed to be haunted this year, as almost every band had some tech issues there. After some delay in the beginning, No Age‘s drummer/vocalist Dean Sprunt yelled “Fuck this!” and they dove into the second real heavy set of the day, delivering some much needed force into the pillowy afternoon. It’s an odd balancing act with these guys, as noise-punk doesn’t seem to have a wide radius at a festival. Sprunt’s sloppy vocal execution is all-too clear and specific — two words you don’t really want associated with lo-fi cacophonous rock. With raucus older stuff like “Boy Void” and a choice covers like Misfits’ “Hybrid Moments” and Black Flag’s “Six Pack”, the rapid-fire set effected those closest to the band — like about the size of a club. No Age really isn’t a festival band, and their set lacked the cohesiveness and form of their smaller shows, but one good thing about fests is that the circle pit can get as large as it wants. By the end of their set as Sprunt got out from behind the drums and screamed to the audience from the photo pit, it was about 50 ft. in diameter. Can’t get that at a club. -Jeremy D. Larson

Wild Nothing – Blue Stage – 3:45 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

You want pretty? You want dreamy? You want Nothing. Wild Nothing, that is. Although in-studio the whole thing rests on the shoulders of one Jack Tatum, on-stage Wild Nothing expands into a quartet, with Tatum leading the way. This arrangement seems obvious live, as there’s little chatter amongst the group – even between songs. Instead, at least in Union Park, Tatum let the guitar pedals do the talking. Lead effects guitars danced alongside slow six-string melodies while a meaty bass sound provided the main driving melody that altogether bred a classic post-punk/shoegaze sound. Wild Nothing provided lush grooves that paired well with a much-needed cool breeze. Nice. -Paul de Revere

Gang Gang Dance – Green Stage – 4:15 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

Was there a more funky and joyous band at Pitchfork Music Festival than Gang Gang Dance? The sound throbbing out of the Green Stage’s speakers was confounding: disparate worldbeat influences from Latin American clave, African polyrhythmic drumming, Balinese gamelan… it goes on. It was all combined with a dancing, sage-burning assistant I took to calling a hype-shaman. Lizzie Bougatsos, Brian DeGraw, and their band of freaky, art-school avant-gardists are charismatic practitioners of syncopated, unrestrained joy and put on one of the best sets of the festival, bar none. Believe it. -Paul de Revere

Off! – Blue Stage – 4:45 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

It’s always sad when this happens. Old men who insist on still being “punk” and finding something to be aggressive about and finding nothing broadly good to embrace about the world or music. Punk will always be young, not old because young people are not satisfied with anything, nor should they be. Keith Morris and the other members of OFF! have plenty to be happy about, like decent, even long, careers in music. At best, the band’s set was a perfectly fine genre piece. But at worst, obnoxious and super annoying. Pass. -Paul de Revere

Destroyer – Red Stage – 5:15 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

When Dan Bejar, aka Destroyer, leapt into his new disco territory on this year’s Kaputt, it seemed necessary that his live show would have to change pretty drastically to keep up. Could he play anything from old fan favorites like Streethawk: A Seduction, or Your Blues, or would the necessary shift in instrumentation also mean he’d rely solely on new material. And, moreover, how would that smooth electro-chamber sound convey over a huge field in the middle of a bright, sunny afternoon? Turns out, not super well. Portions of the large crowd around Bejar’s stage spoke among itself, carrying almost as well as Bejar’s band. An abundance of noodling from the ever-present trumpet and tenor sax demanded as much attention as Bejar did, kneeling at the front of the stage. Not even a light, lilting version of Destroyer’s Rubies favorite “Painter in Your Pocket” could change the underwhelming atmosphere of the set. – Adam Kivel

The Dismemberment Plan – Green Stage – 6:15 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

“My guitar’s real hot,” Jason Caddell smirked as The Dismemberment Plan loped on stage, huge grins looking out at the mass of waiting fans. The “at least for now” reunited D.C. art-punkers filled their set to the brim with smart-alecky jokes, banter, full speed ahead songs, and plenty of smiles. From the start, vocalist/guitarist Travis Morrison was ready to give the fans what they wanted, which was equal parts cracking wise and rolling out the hits. The straight-ahead rockers like “What Do You Want Me To Say?” and “The Ice of Boston” killed, bassist Eric Axelson punching out contagious line after contagious line. Even the overly goofy, unfocused, vaguely dance-y sections (including a keyboard solo from Morrison’s forehead) won plenty of chuckles and dancing feet. Even the softer side got some focus, as on the charming “You Are Invited”, which brought a nearby attendee to tears. This is the kind of band that people make lifetime connections to, and this reunion brought a lot of sincere joy to those same. – Adam Kivel

Twin Shadow – Blue Stage – 6:45 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

An eccentric bit of soul music has always been deep down in the whiny, maudlin musings of Morrissey and Robert Smith of The Cure. And maybe instead of trying to be sexy, soulful, and showing off his pipes, maybe there’s a bit of deep sadness and longing for an emotional connection when Prince yowls and yelps like James Brown. Twin Shadow knows these gray areas well and his performance at the perfectly suited Blue Stage hit the sweet spot between the sounds of those three. Who knows, more killer performances like this one and George Lewis, Jr. could become the Dominican Morrissey. -Paul de Revere

DJ Shadow – Red Stage – 7:25 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

In a quintessential This Is Spinal Tap moment, which you, dear reader, have likely heard about, DJ Shadow could not get his orb/techno-boulder to operate correctly, leaving him unable to get to his turntables. It was a brief snafu and all went fine for Shadow but the Derek Smalls-trapped-in-a-pod jabs and “Hello Chicago!” jokes just kept coming from my swaying/dancing section. Shadow’s live sound of drum and bass, instrumental rap, and soul music is immaculate and his bass, which puts James Blake’s to shame, drowned out any haters, teasers, detractor or skeezers, of which I was all four. -Paul de Revere

Zola Jesus – Blue Stage – 7:45 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Nika Rosa Danilova seemed surprised that she had the penultimate performance at Pitchfork. “Wow…What are you all doing here?” she beamed, looking out over the masses not interested in setting up camp for Fleet Foxes. In the end, Zola Jesus proved to deserve the attention, Danilova’s throaty, rich vocals powering over churning, choppy electro-pulses. Skipping back and forth across the stage, swinging her arms wildly and trying to keep control of the wild dress composed of metallic gray ribbons, it seemed as if Zola Jesus were pushing away from their occasionally abrasive, regularly goth-y persona, and into some new indie pop world. And, to both hear their new, less foreboding sound and see the serious dancing in front of the stage, it’s clear that this journey is working. “There is a fire that burns on my tongue,” she howled on “Manifest Destiny”, and that fire was catching on in a big way. – Adam Kivel

Fleet Foxes – Green Stage – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The lush instrumentation the present day Fleet Foxes embrace seems to reach back years and years to the earliest American folk musicians. Every string that was struck sounded timeless, as if the roots of music still survived solely on the water from drops of Fleet Foxes’ songs. As opposed to the scatter-shot sonics of Animal Collective’s headlining set that required a focused ear, Fleet Foxes aligned their spectrum which allowed for the broadest range of pleasure across a sold out crowd who stood, swayed, smiled, and sang along to their entire set. With Helplessness Blues raised as their new standard, Pecknold and his band, armed with a variety of stringed instruments and even a bass clarinet, touched on their entire catalog, from “Mykonos” to the multi-part 8-min “The Shrine/Argument”, the latter of which swelled and receded with vast dynamic contrasts and those halcyon harmonies that the band is known for. Their voices, carried by Pecknold’s iconic pinched tenor, reverberated throughout the fest. Just three years after the band sat on chairs and waylaid Pitchfork onlookers with their music, they had people rapt from note one, onto their rapturous “Helplessness Blues” finale. A canonical performance. -Jeremy D. Larson

Sunday, July 17th

The Fresh & Onlys – Green Stage – 1:00 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The Fresh and Onlys are from the same laid back, hazy San Fran scene that bred other psych-garage-poppers Thee Oh Sees, Sic Alps, and Sonny & The Sunsets. So, it’s no surprise that the tough job of having one of two opening spots on the broilingly hot third day of the festival seemed not to faze them all that much: the heat isn’t all that unusual in California, and Haight-Ashbury isn’t known for its temperance. Vocalist/guitarist Tim Cohen’s floppy hat, dark sunglasses, and tie-dyed Grateful Dead shirt seemed to say it all, as he and the rest of the band rolled through a solid, if heat-stricken set of garage-ready jams. -Adam Kivel

How To Dress Well – Blue Stage – 1:55 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

I give big ups to How To Dress Well (or the name behind the name Tom Krell) for this show, as it was really unlike anything else at the fest, and that seems to be more of what the Blue Stage is going for this year (Oh, how soon it will become the Altered Zones stage just you wait). With a synth, and a sparse drum kit, a mothafuckin string quartet, Krell serenaded the audience with heart-rending songs in falsetto. Unlike some of the other bass-heavy bangers played throughout the day, Krell’s R&B-tinged ambiance was ethereal, but it didn’t quite hush the crowd like it may have done in a smaller setting. Still, for those with a sharp ear, Krells’ sparser tracks like “Suicide Dream” mixed nicely with his newer, more aggresive material. Oh, and the whole set was bookended by R. Kelly’s “Waking Up To Life Sometimes Seems Worse” and Janet Jackson’s “Again” which was just thug and beautiful. -Jeremy D. Larson

Kurt Vile & the Violators – Green Stage – 2:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

It was a surprise to see Kurt Vile‘s name on the Pitchfork lineup two years in a row, but his set last year was a solid success, and the dude didn’t name an album Childish Prodigy for nothing. Vile’s back catalog is long enough to fill two festival slots, and his rip-roaring, classic rock tinged jams pumped up the portion of the crowd not already waiting in front of the opposite stage and chanting “Swag!” at the drop of a hat. The rollicking “Freak Train” and a killer turn on “Runner Ups” energized a crowd in need of a serious energy boost, and Vile’s sly smile seemed just as greatful. “You guys hot?” he asked, before adding a quiet “I’m sorry…” But “Society is My Friend” may have been the strongest of the set, Vile’s long mane of curls floating in the breeze, his lazy range providing some of the best straight-ahead rock of the weekend. -Adam Kivel

Twin Sister – Blue Stage – 2:50 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

In their relatively short career, Twin Sister has managed to carve out a nice cozy corner of music that is all their own — somewhere amid Beach House, Cocteau Twins, and The Talking Heads bubbles their music with as much room to dream as there is to dance. I found myself lost between the two options at her set for the first half as the leaned on their more serene and reserved tracks, but when they kicked into “Bad Street” of their forthcoming LP, things coalesced for the band and the crowd and people started to feel it. Well executed, but kind of waffled between moods which, incidentally, doesn’t work well for the lay listener trying to get a bead on the sound. -Jeremy D. Larson

OFWGKTA – Red Stage – 3:20 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

“I can’t hear what you’re saying….That’s cause I’m talking over you” a smiling, leg-casted Tyler, the Creator answered to a shout from the audience, quite nicely summing up the role that he and his Wolf Gang brethren inhabit. Every time he’s challenged for his homophobic, misogynist, violence-endorsing music, his response is whatever will get the most attention. That’s why group members delivered cupcakes to the anti-violence groups and other non-profit booths. That’s why Tyler gave a “big shoutout to the domestic violence groups,” adding that he hoped they could hear him moments before diving into “I Got a Gun”. Tyler, on crutches, wound up diving into the crowd, sucked in for a while, admiring the adulation. But, the high school button pushing (shouts of “Kill people! Burn shit! Fuck School!”), the irony (coming out to “One Love” and “Where is the Love”)…it was all a little too much to bear. But, then again, the set was one of the most widely attended, the rowdiest, and most talked about, so Tyler and Co. got exactly what they wanted: More attention.

Do I believe that Tyler actually goes about ready to “smack a bitch,” rape, or murder? No. Do I believe that hearing this music will breed intolerace, hate, and violence? Entirely possible. Do these kids have some serious talent? Yes, definitely (their eccentric, minimal production, and quick flow were exciting). Are they wasting that talent on antagonistic, offensive stupidity? Yes, definitely. -Adam Kivel

Shabazz Palaces – Blue Stage – 3:45 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

While the Odd Future show was clamoring on, Shabazz Palaces performed with understated confidence of the highest nature and displayed superior flow, lyrics, production, and message. That’s that truth. Now, I really really like Shabazz Palaces’ new album Black Up, so I’m gonna play both sides of the coin on this. For those unversed in Palaceer Lazero’s ways with words, it could be a tough sell to fall into the nooks and crannies of his songs. The multi-part, futurist hip hop that Shabazz tossed up to the crowd, again, didn’t quite fit into a tidy package. The Blue Stage seems to suffer this plight, but it also can be looked at as an advantage. Come over to the shade and really listen to some music and you can be greatly rewarded. For me, I spaced out and bopped hard the whole set. -Jeremy D. Larson

Ariel Pink’s Haunted Graffiti – Green Stage – 4:15 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The reality of following Odd Future is that everything must become a response to Odd Future. So, it’s no surprise that Ariel Pink suggests that Tyler, The Creator ought to be on stage with his band, later jumps around with middle fingers flying, shouting fuck you, and even later adds that “chillwave isn’t about hate…that’s hatewave.” But, ignoring the forced reactionary attitude, Pink’s brand of 80s psych-pop suffered from some serious microphone problems. The vocalist’s Garth Brooks’-styled headphone mic sounded like a walkie talkie coming in and out of range, crackling and humming with a cool distorted effect at times, the distortion overbearing or the vocals fading out entirely at others. The music was tight, freewheeling, and disturbingly cute after Odd Future, but the mic issues likely forced an end to their short set. -Adam Kivel

Baths – Blue Stage – 4:45 p.m.

Photo by Jeremy D. Larson

If there was one unexpected smash success on the Blue Stage of the Pitchfork Music Festival’s final day, it was Baths. His jittery, spastic IDM made sprightly enough rhythms to get a large crowd, some of whom seemed down for a little nu-rave action, moving. Maybe they were there for shade, maybe they just came out of curiosity, but most of them ended up dancing. If Richard D. James (better known as Aphex Twin) had a side project that specialized in club bangers and smooth slow jams, and alternated between them at a sometimes-frenetic space, I’m tempted to say it would sound exactly like Baths. -Paul de Revere

Superchunk – Red Stage – 5:15 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Superchunk, along with The Dismemberment Plan on Saturday and Thurston Moore and Guided by Voices on Friday, proved that age can actually increase one’s ability to rock, not inescapably stifle it. In fact, even in his 40′s, lead singer Mac McCaughan’s voice still contains the same boyish wail that so thoroughly defined the ‘90s indie sound for vocalists. Combine that with his continued ability to pump out killer riff after killer melodic riff and that he and Superchunk bassist Laura Ballance co-founded Merge Records, one of the best labels in indie history, and you’ve got one helluva legacy band. McCaughan’s signature work ethic and no-nonsense rock ‘n’ roll is so well-known and revered in indie rock circles, it’s a wonder he hasn’t been more widely considered for Bruce Springsteen-like sainthood in the genre. On Sunday afternoon, dad rockers with future-hipster babies everywhere swayed with content that, in their minds, McCaughan, already had been. -Paul de Revere

Kylesa – Blue Stage – 5:45 p.m.

The almost entirely frill-less stoner metal put out by Savannah, GA’s Kylesa bum-rushed the side stage, a breath of fresh air, as the rare heavy rock act popped up in the midst of a lot of electronic and indie rock. The metal contingency supporting the band may have been smaller than that for other acts, but they were certainly no less enthusiastic. A real mosh pit erupted, and the head-banging spread far and wide. Drummers Tyler Newberry and Carl McGinley’s technical prowess may have set the whole beast in motion, but guitarist Laura Pleasants’ chainsaw riffs, bassist Corey Barhorst’s chugging rhythms, and guitarist/vocalist Phillip Cope’s barks and howls all locked together in a triumphant march step. The impressive musicianship, memorable hooks, and serious depth all combined for a well respected, much needed cathartic moment. -Adam Kivel

Deerhunter – Green Stage – 6:15 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

The field surrounding Deerhunter‘s triumphant return to the Pitchfork stage were packed with casual listeners and diehard fans alike, dripping with sweat and hungering for the band’s cool, summery melodies. Relying heavily on last year’s excellent Halcyon Digest, Bradford Cox, Lockett Pundt, Moses Archuleta, and Josh Fauver swayed slowly through some seriously entrancing grooves, letting pop gems fall where they may. “Desire Lines” pulsed its way out of a long noisy wind to open the set, while later the cooing “Little Kids” off of Microcastle caught the attention of the long time fans, earning a big response. After proudly describing the band’s return from Europe, Cox stated that you could “fuck anybody that tells you this isn’t the best country…fucking crypto-fascists.” After that brief bit of strange patriotism, the band twinkled through the gorgeous, Jay Reatard tribute, “He would Have Laughed”, before finishing on another long, dreamy jam. -Adam Kivel

Toro y Moi- Blue Stage – 6:45 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Toro y Moi‘s Chaz Bundick seems to be running away from that chillwave misnomer with a fury. Or at least he’s been listening to a lot more Headhunters or 80′s disco and imposing that we chill out to that. His voice can coo anyone to sleep, but the music underneath begged us to get up or get down or however you chose to boogie. There were some new songs with flippy synths in the set from his forthcoming EP out sometime later in the year that added a welcome aggression to his sound. Bundick, at 23, is an explorer of the highest mark and his set was evident of that. The displacement of detractors and fans caused for a some dance pods to sprout during “Still Sound”, one of the best songs he’s written so far, and the highlight of the set. -Jeremy D. Larson

Cut Copy – Red Stage – 7:25 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

…And now we enter the epic dance party. Melbourne, Australia’s sharply dressed Cut Copy was armed to the teeth with sequencers, drum machines and synths with one mission in mind: get booties moving. The trio looked as good as its light show, one that got progressively more pronounced and colorful as the sun went down behind it.

Its brand of New Order-like, slick synth-pop was full of sheen and gorgeous, tight harmonies akin to The Beach Boys, especially notable on its performance of “Where I’m Going”, the first single off the band’s latest LP, Zonoscope. To see the giant mass of people jumping and grinding on each other as one organism at, say, the chorus of “Lights and Music” when people lost their shit, it was obvious that the band played one of the festival’s most danceable sets. -Paul de Revere

HEALTH – Blue Stage – 7:40 p.m.

It’s almost hard to believe that the HEALTH that completely crushed their set as the penultimate act of the weekend this year was the same act that played the very same stage three years prior. While their set in 2008 was masterfully chaotic, heart-racingly cluttered, and electrically charged, this year upped the ante by showing their matured sense of theatrics and somewhat more traditional songwriting. Opening with “Girl Attorney” style feedback bursts and the haunting falsetto of “Nice Girls”, the crowd erupted into a sort of dancing mosh pit. The noise-rock perfected “Zoothorns” followed, proving that no matter how grimy, hot, and overtired any festival goer can get, there’s enough gas at the bottom of the tank to freak the fuck out. BJ Miller’s drumming acted as the rollicking beast, exploding with furious energy, while Jupiter Keyes, John Famiglietti, and Jake Duszik all hooted and screamed through their heavily affected microphones, bouncing about the stage. Their cover of Pictureplane’s “Goth Star” seethed with dark dancefloor energy, and the rambunctious, squared off screaming of “Tabloid Sores” ended with Famiglietti looking up, long black hair covering his face, as he shredded out a last incredibly distorted/altered bass note. The new stuff was welcomed as much as the old, and the dancing caught on as much as the moshing. HEALTH brought the best of both worlds, and their infectious, radioactive set was easily the best of the weekend. -Adam Kivel

TV on the Radio – Green Stage – 8:30 p.m.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

TV on the Radio (TVOTR) has reached a plateau rarely seen among major label bands: The Flaming Lips has, so did Radiohead. They retained the artistic integrity of an indie artist while gathering the resources they needed from a major. So with a nearly perfect batting average amongst rock critics and the final slot to close the weekend out at Pitchfork, what did TVOTR do with this newfound power?

First, they celebrated themselves, in a sense. Kicking off with “Halfway Home”, the dramatic lead track from its critically acclaimed 2008 full length Dear Science, TVOTR scooped up Union Park in one fell swoop, delivering a tough, clock-shattering punch to the crowd, resulting in a temporary case of amnesia. Cut Copy, what?

Second, they took advantage of the new, promising young talent around. Seattle rap duo Shabazz Palaces’ set couldn’t help but get a bit ignored being scheduled against Odd Future’s, so it was good that TVOTR decided to bring the two, an equally progressive-thinking group of black musicians, up on stage.

Photo by Meghan Brosnan

Third, they paid tribute to the shoulders of those musical giants the band continues to stand on. Easily a weekend highlight, TVOTR assembled a faithful cover of Fugazi’s “Waiting Room”, an anthemic, punk classic that’ll stick with us for decades to come. Surprisingly, the band didn’t retrofit the song with surges of electronic noise or guitar washes; instead, they kept things minimal. There was just the nimble, picked bass guitar and its signature vocal delivery, with more than a touch of urgent humanism, which was well captured in lead singer Tunde Adebimpe’s voice.

After all, if there’s any one obvious trait that TVOTR and Fugazi share, it’s that. But more than that, it was about music: an affirmation of past and present independent music and, with Shabazz Palaces, perhaps a nod to the future. That’s what a band, possibly one of the greatest this generation of indie rock will have to offer music history when all is said and done, does: forge a path and remind folks of the ones we’ve taken so far. Oh, and showing younger bands who’s still boss. -Paul de Revere

The Culture of Pitchfork

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Without the vocals of Tyondai Braxton sitting atop their methodical melodies, Battles now have more room to develop “their “tiny musical eccentricities,” something which was fully on display during the trio’s appearance on Fallon last night. Performing “Futura” from their recently released sophomore LP Gloss Drop, Battles tantalized late night viewers (and ?uestlove) with drone-y guitars, outstanding keyboard arrangements, and, of course, the insane abilities of drummer John Stanier. In case you missed it, check out the video above (via The Audio Perv).

Photo by Brad Bretz

With their sophomore LP, Gloss Drop, now in stores, Battles have mapped out additional North American tour dates for this fall. Following an extensive summer tour of Europe, as well as a quick hitter across the U.S. plains and Pacific Northwest in July, the New York City-based outfit will launch their autumn leg at ATP’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror” festival in Asbury Park, NJ on October 1st. From there, Battles will head north, hitting Boston and then Canada. They’ll then play Midwest cities like Chicago and Minneapolis as they make their way back to the Pacific Northwest. Finally, after playing two shows in California, three in Texas, and one-offs in Scottsdale, AZ, Nashville, TN, and Miami, FL, the band will wrap up their travels with a run of shows up the East coast, ending November 1st in New York City.

Check out the entire touring itinerary below. Tickets go on sale beginning Friday, June 10th.

For a preview of what to expect, be sure to check out our review of the band’s recent gig in Chicago.

Battles 2011 Tour Dates:
06/08 – London, UK @ Heaven
06/09 – Amsterdam, NL @ Melkweg
06/10 – Dortmund, DE @ FZW
06/11 – Munich, DE @ Feierwerk
06/12 – Hamburg, DE @ Uebel & Gefährlich
06/23 – Rome, IT @ Villa Ada
06/24 – Bologna, IT @ Link
06/25 – Pilton, UK @ Glastonbury Music Festival
06/26 – Cardiff, UK @ Solus
06/27 – Birmingham, UK @ HMV Institute
06/28 – Bristol, UK @ The Trinity Centre
06/30 – Paris, FR @ Cabaret Sauvage
07/01 – Belfort, FR @ Les Eurockeennes
07/02 – London, UK @ Wireless Festival
07/03 – Roskilde, DK @ Roskilde Festival
07/05 – Leipzig, DE @ Conne Island
07/06 – Vienna, AT @ Arena
07/07 – Ljubljana, CR @ Kino Siska
07/08 – Trencin, SL @ Pohoda Festival
07/10 – Naples, IT @ Neapolis Festival
07/15 – Chicago, IL @ Pitchfork Music Festival
07/16 – Madison, WI @ UW Madison Memorial Terrace
07/17 – Iowa City, IA @ Blue Moose Tap House
07/18 – Lincoln, NE @ Bourbon Theater
07/19 – Denver, CO @ Bluebird Theater
07/20 – Salt Lake City, UT @ Urban Lounge
07/22 – Victoria, BC @ Sugar Nightclub
07/23 – Vancouver, BC @ Rickshaw Theater
07/24 – Seattle, WA @ Capitol Hill Block Party
07/29-31 – Niigata Prefecture, JP @ Fuji Rock Festival
08/10 – Cannes, FR @ Festival Pantiero
08/12 – Hertfordshire, UK @ Standon Calling
08/13 – Saint-Malo, FR @ Festival la Route du Rock
08/18 – Hasselt, BE @ Pukkelpop
08/28 – Katowice, PL @ Festiwal Nowa Muzyka
10/01 – Asbury Park, NJ @ ATP’s “I’ll Be Your Mirror”
10/02 – Boston, MA @ Royale
10/03 – Montreal, QC @ Le National
10/04 – Toronto, ON @ Phoenix Concert Theater
10/05 – Cleveland, OH @ Grog Shop
10/06 – Pittsburgh, PA @ VIA Festival
10/07 – Chicago, IL @ Vic Theatre
10/08 – Minneapolis, MN @ First Line Music Cafe
10/10 – Edmonton, AB @ Starlite Room
10/13 – Portland, OR @ Wonder Ballroom
10/16 – Pomona, CA @ The Glass House
10/17 – Los Angeles, CA @ Mayan Theater
10/18 – Scottsdale, AZ @ The Venue
10/20 – Houston, TX @ Fitzgerald’s
10/21 – Austin, TX @ Emos
10/22 – Dallas, TX @ Granada Theater
10/24 – Nashville, TN @ Exit/In
10/25 – Birmingham, AL @ Work/Play
10/27 – Maimi, FL @ Grand Central
10/28 – Atlanta, GA @ The Masquerade
10/29 – Asheville, NC @ MoogFest
10/30 – Washington, DC @ 9:30 Club
10/31 – Philadelphia, PA @ Theatre of Living Arts
11/01 – New York, NY @ Webster Hall
12/10 – Minehead, UK @ ATP’s Nightmare Before Christmas

All that seemed threatened, though, when Braxton announced that he was leaving the band to focus on his solo material. While the band’s previous output relied heavily on intricately layered and inter-meshed loops and instrumental pieces (to the point where it would be damn near impossible to qualify what portion of the music Braxton or any other non-Stanier member was responsible for), Braxton’s loopy, pitch-shifted vocals cast a big shadow on Mirrored. Then came the reports that the remaining three band members would invite guest vocalists to add some vocals to a handful of tracks, which seemed like a great idea, especially when it was revealed that Boredoms noisemaster Yamantaka Eye and icy Blonde Redhead singer Kazu Makino would be among them.

But the real story here is the large chunk of the album that sounds like so much of Mirrored. After a lengthy, metallic cloud intro, “Africastle” kicks the album into a familiar gear, mind-numbingly fast guitar lines chattering around the mix, some octaved up into chipmunk territory, others down to provide some bass. The base of the track is composed of chugging chords and sharp-as-nails kitwork. The looser, less cluttered outro plinks and plunks like an out-of-tune piano.

That said, they did leave room for change, both negative and positive. Lead single “Ice Cream” (which features Argentinean DJ Matias Aguayo) finds itself far too close to “normal” for someone who enjoyed the stranger aspects of Mirrored. The chiming, upper octave guitar loop and tonal grunting that comprise the beginning of the song promise something entirely different from what is delivered. The reggae-esque song that follows clicks the loop into a rapid backing track, burying it underneath Ayago’s unadorned lead vocals and relatively conventional rhythms and progressions.

Next, “Futura” sounds like the soundtrack to a math-rock version of Phantom of the Opera, bassy, affected guitar chords clanging out like a distant, submerged organ. A steel-drum/calliope treatment overtakes “Inchworm” immediately after, while the guitars on “Wall Street” sound as coked up as ’80s-era stock traders. And speaking of the ’80s, Gary Numan makes a cameo on “My Machines”, an unnecessarily dramatic tune full of more stampeding drumwork from Stanier. The brief interlude “Dominican Fade” features some Tortoise-esque clap-along polyrhythms, with the summery, Caribbean steel drum sounds roping together. Clocking in at just under two minutes, it’s fun and bright, but it wouldn’t have any impact stretched longer.

Makino’s turn on vocals takes an otherwise affectless upbeat, dance-friendly track and adds an oozing, smoky luster to it. Her rough-edged lead vocals fade and skim across the top of the song like a stone on a pond, her backing vocal cooing a perfect accompaniment. Altogether, the composition sounds un-Battles-y, the mathematically precise guitar pieces less in-your-face. That isn’t to say that the song is drastically different; it just lacks the punch that the songs on Mirrored seemed to intrinsically have. The abrasive edges and samples of “Rolls Bayce” are an interesting turn, the band far more willing here to push edges and go for the jugular.

That follows through on the one-two punch of “White Electric” and “Sundome”. The former keys in on Stanier yet again, his off-kilter, manic drumming speeding the song to a triumphant, video-game-end-credits-style joy. The latter features Eye, incorporating some of the weirdo tribal aesthetic of his regular band, Boredoms. There’s also what sounds to be an out-of-tune french horn, for whatever that’s worth. After a bit of fantastic, warped, noise band noodling, things get groovy. Eye’s voice gets some of the same treatments in which Braxton covered his performances: There are multi-layers, distortion, pitch-shifting. The dual guitars could get a little more play up front in the mix, but it’s tough to get compared to Eye’s singular, powerful style.

As a whole, the album has a lot of impressive musicianship, outstanding atmosphere, and interesting composition. That said, it lacks a lot of the pure, frenetic energy with which its predecessor pushed and pummeled (to be sure, there is no “Atlas” moment here). This may have a lot to do with Braxton’s departure, but we’ll never know for sure. What is certain, though, is that Gloss Drop is an interesting sophomore release from a band that left itself room for plenty of future growth. Now if only they could find a way to sign Eye on for a full record…

Leading the festival this year are The Flaming Lips, Passion Pit, STS9, and a rare US appearance from synth-punk pioneers Suicide, performing their lauded first album in its entirety. Other big highlights from vanguards of avant electronic and pop music include Ghostland Observatory, Crystal Castles, Chromeo, Battles, Umphrey’s McGee, Mayer Hawthorne & The Country, M83, Tim Hecker, Toro Y Moi, Austra, Matthew Dear, Gold Panda, Hans-Joachim Roedelius, and an exclusive performance from German electronic/spacerock explorers Tangerine Dream.

Still going strong, Holy Fuck, Twin Shadow, The Naked and Famous, Causing A Tiger, Anika, Cant, and many more round out this intial lineup, with more bands to be announced in the coming months leading up to the festival.

The visionary fest will take place Oct. 28-30th at various locations around Asheville, including the Asheville Civic Center Area, the Thomas Wolfe Auditorium, and the Orange Peel Social & Pleasure Club. Between the music, you can also catch various workshops, talks, interactive experiences, art exhibitions and installations, and a chance to fiddle around with a variety of Moog instruments during the fest. It’s the equivalent of sitting down at a guitar shop and playing “Stairway To Heaven”, only you have to play “Autobahn”.

Weekend passes for Moogfest 2011 will go on sale on Saturday, June 4, at 12:00 PM EST only at Moogfest.com. Check out the website for a complete list of bands and more information about the festival.

Absolutely we’ll see you there.