AD's Bonnaroo Preview
There is a lot to look forward to at this year's Bonnaroo, which runs
from June 11 to 14 in Manchester, Tennessee. Here is a brief rundown
of some of the events to get excited about (through AD's lens anyways).
General Bonnaroo tips:
When taking the I75 route south, look to the east (driver's left) near exit 29 just south of Dayton.
The Solid Rock Church is quite something.....
If you're stuck in traffic, tune in to Radio Bonnaroo, 101.5 FM.
If you have a lot of gear to haul, keep an eye out for the golf-cart taxi service.
Tent-only camping is the best-kept secret going! Shhhhhhhh!
Whatever you do, do not get directed to the extreme southeast corner of the site for campsites.
It's a brutal walk to get back and forth - turn your car around if you
suspect you are heading in this direction. Other than that, obey all
traffic attendants and be courteous!
Get shade as soon as possible! Water, sunscreen and ice are absolutely essential.
Be mindful of poison ivy around the trees in Centeroo - last year we discovered that the Bonnaroo staff
were late putting up fences around the affected trees and it would have
been very easy to ruin the weekend with a nasty rash.
If you want to get up front at the What Stage, there is a barrier system that empties the 'pit'
between each band's set - simply show up before the band you want to
see up close and get in line, hopefully it will be better organised
than last year. Scope it out beforehand to avoid disappointment. Obviously,
the bigger the band the earlier you'll have to be in the line for the
pit. Check the program for details on the pit.
Thursday June 11:
Centeroo opens at noon - there is plenty of shade and air conditioning
to be found in the various tents and attractions. Cinema Tent, Comedy
Tent, Solar Stage, Troo Music Lounge, The Awesome Silent Disco, The
Arcade Discotheque, as well as the larger This Tent, That Tent, and
The Other Tent open on Thursday. There are plenty of bands to check
out - I'd recommend new-ish indie stars Passion Pit at This Tent at
11:15 and legendary hip-hoppers People Under The Stairs at The Other
Tent at 10:15.
Get some sleep Thursday night!!
Friday June 12:
Where to start - Friday is jam-packed with talent!
Gomez, 12:30 at Which Stage (and 3:15 at Sonic Stage). Gomez
has always been a great live act, and while their newest album 'A New
Tide' is nothing special, a 'greatest hits' show would be a great start
to the festivities.
Animal Collective, 2:45 at Which Stage. I'm not sure how their
electro-psych-ish music will go down with some of the more 'organic'
in the audience, but 'Merriweather Post Pavilion' is an amazingly dense
and melodic record which I'm very excited to experience live. Although
it would have been nice to see this set with a light show, as the musicians
don't do much on stage while attending to their samplers and sequencers.
Grizzly Bear, 5:00 at This Tent. Radiohead's Jonny Greenwood
called Grizzly Bear his favourite band at a tour stop in Toronto last
summer, and Grizzly Bear's new album 'Veckatimest' has been heavily
praised. I'm indifferent to their albums, but I really like their live
show. This will also be a great chance to get out of the sun at the
hottest point of the day.
Santigold, 4:45 at That Tent. I've seen Santigold (formerly Santogold)
once and it was super fun. This should be a good afternoon party, in
the shade ta boot. This show is part of Bonnaroo's first ever artist
curated stage - AC Entertainment asked David Byrne to put together a
lineup for a stage for Friday, and along with Santigold, Byrne has tapped
Katzenjammer, Ani DiFranco, St. Vincent, and The Dirty Projectors for
That Tent. A great idea - I'd like to see this continue next year -
Can I suggest that Tom Waits curate, as long as he's also performing?
There are so many good bands on Friday that it seems like I'm just listing
them. But I'm also excited for Amadou & Mariam (I'm convinced
Amadou Bagayoko is one of the best guitarists I've ever seen live),
TV On The Radio, Al Green (although he's at Ottawa Jazzfest
a couple weeks later), and of course David Byrne. The Beastie
Boys are a pretty good warm up for Phish's first Bonnaroo
performance. This will be the big one - I hope they are rehearsed! It's
a shame that Phish's monster 3-hour set completely envelopes Public
Enemy's slot over at This Tent. Although perhaps it won't be quite
as busy there - I want to get close enough to see the time on Flav's
clock.
Saturday June 13:
Get hydrated! Get the sunscreen going early!
There are some interesting non-music goings-on today. Jimmy Fallon,
Wayne Federman, Triumph the Insult Comic Dog, and the Daily Show Stars
(John Oliver, Rory Albanese, Wyatt Cenac, Kristen Schaal, and Kurt Braunohler)
are making multiple appearances in the (air conditioned) comedy tent.
Be sure to line up early before the show you want to see to avoid getting
shut out. There is a Lebowski-fest gathering in the (air conditioned)
Cinema Tent, followed by a troika of Roman Polanski films (dubbed 'Polanskied').
Musically, Saturday is a day of legends and heavyweights.
Alejandro Escovedo, 12:15 at That Tent. Legend.
Allen Toussaint, 1:45 at That Tent and 4:00 at Sonic Stage. Legend
- If you've ever heard 'Working In the Coal Mine,' old Lee Dorsey tracks,
the horns on The Band's 'The Last Waltz,' 'Pain in My Heart,' 'Fortune
Teller,' classic funk tracks from The Meters, Dr. John etc, then you've
heard Allen Toussaint's work. He is a huge influence on music today.
It's a safe bet that he'll at least make an appearance with Elvis Costello
later in the day. Three years ago I talked to Toussaint and he said
he liked my name. So I've got that going for me.
Tony Rice Unit, 3:00 at The Other Tent. Rice is one of the best
acoustic guitar players around. He was a collaborator with Chris Hillman,
Garcia, Grisman, Clarence White, Ry Cooder and on and on. Yet another
living legend on stage at Bonnaroo 2009. The Del McCoury Band and David
Grisman Quintet follow Rice on the schedule, so here's hoping for some
cross-pollination.
Bon Iver, 3:30 at This Tent. Bon Iver is not yet a legend, unless
you pay close enough attention to 'the bloggers.' I think 'For Emma,
Forever Ago' is a fine album, and am very curious to see how it translates
to the stage. Can Justin Vernon live up to the hype?
Now I have absolutely no idea what I am going to do. I want to see everyone
who is playing between 5pm and midnight. This includes my all time hero
Elvis Costello (either solo or with The Sugarcanes, his new band
featuring Jerry Douglas, Dennis Crouch and other acoustic heavyweights),
The Decemberists (whose newest album 'The Hazards of Love' is an
insane storyboard album, definitely in my top 3 for 2009), of Montreal
with their awesome live show, Wilco (supporting the bland 'Wilco
(The Album)' but great live nonetheless), The Mars Volta (various
lessons in guitar, drums, tight pants and time signatures) and finally
BRUUUUUUUUCE! I can't wait to be in a crowd of 70 thousand singing
along to Born to Run. Does anyone have any suggestions on how to get
through the evening? A little bit of everyone? Hmmm.
If I can make it to late-night, Nine Inch Nails and MGMT?
Yes please!
Sunday June 14:
Sunday is going to be a take-it-as-it-comes day for me. There are only
a few artists that I am going to specifically target, I think the rest
of the time will be spent wandering, perhaps in the New Orleans club
if it is back at Bonnaroo, perhaps in the Comedy Tent for some funny
business... It's pretty open.
Of course The Dillinger Escape Plan and Ted Leo and the Pharmacists
are scheduled at the same time, in the two tents that are furthest from
each other in Centeroo. Come on Bonnaroo. I guess I'll settle for half
and half.
Erykah Badu, 3:30 at What Stage. Badu's 2008 album 'New Amerykah
Part One (4th World War)' is incredible and her live shows are always
tight. I wonder if Jim James (from Bonnaroo stalwarts My Morning Jacket)
will make an appearance during Badu's song 'Tyrone.' My Morning Jacket
regularly cover this song; last fall Badu joined them at least once
to sing along.
Andrew Bird, 4:15 at Which Stage. I'm not all that familiar with
Bird's work, but I am going to get up to date before Bonnaroo, as many
friends tell me Bird is an outstanding musician and the live show is
fantastic. I'm not convinced yet (he plays violin!), but perhaps it
will translate to a huge stage in the middle of the afternoon at a loud
festival? To hear Bird live, there are at least 2 full-length live shows
available on NPR's 'All Songs Considered' live concert podcast. These
will be my study guides. (He is also an excellent whistler).
Okkervil River, 4:30 at The Other Tent. I really like last year's
album 'The Stand Ins.' Although this will be a good chance to see Okkervil,
if something else catches my ear I will follow that, as Okkvervil are
also playing Ottawa Bluesfest in July.
Band of Horses, 6:30 at Which Stage. After missing Band of Horses
at Sasquatch in 2007, this show will be a long time coming. Band of
Horses is not a band where every song is a winner, but their good songs
are excellent and make waiting through the snoozers worth it. It's going
to be tough to miss Coheed & Cambria but someone's gotta do it.
Neko Case, 6:45 at This Tent. There is a ton of overlap with
Band of Horses, so the Horses better bring their A game or I'll go visit
Neko and see if she's worked out the kinks of her live show since her
April gigs at Trinity St. Paul's in Toronto. I thought the show I saw
there was incredibly flat and boring. Perhaps she had a bad night -
I can only hope so. Bonnaroo is a good place for her to belt it out.
Phish, Sunday headliner on What Stage. Well, this will be the
first Bonnaroo since 2003 where I haven't left early, so I hope Phish
leaves some gas in the tank after Friday night to close out the 'Roo
with a bang. I have no idea what to expect from these Phish shows, but
it will be my first time seeing them since 2004 at SPAC, so I hope we
still get along!
The final words of advice: Don't drive tired! Get plenty of sleep before
setting out for home. Gather all your garbage and recyclables and return
to the Clean Vibes stations in the campgrounds. And go see Elvis Costello!!
(If you can spare the time, he's playing at the Ryman in Nashville on
Tuesday the 16th!)
