Live at Squamish. Day one, part two. -- 09/04/10

Yes, it is even more of day one of the Live at Squamish festival! When last we left off, I had just seen We Are The City on the Serf stage, and the day was just about half over. One thing I will point out is how great it was to see the festival supporting the local and/or smaller artists. And I am always going off on how neat it is that Vancouver musicians support each other... well, there were more than a few of them in the crowd. Adaline, David Vertesi and Zach Gray were all among the people who were there, not playing, but to see their friends. And even the ones that were there would be at each others sets. But I digress, back to the music!

At this point I was torn about going to see The Dudes or Hollerado. Both bands I had heard they were fantastic live, and neither I had really heard all that much of. But I liked what little I had heard from Hollerado more than what little from The Dudes (and I was too lazy to change stages) so I stuck around the Serf stage. And I am glad I did, because man, did they put on a hell of a show. I don't think anyone would call the band "groundbreaking", but they have a fantastic energy about them, and made their set just pure fun. Aside from their assortment of songs -- I actually recognized more that I thought I would -- they threw in a couple covers. The first was "Surfin' Bird", which saw the lead singer jump down into the corwd, then get hoisted back on stage. The other was a pretty damn good cover of "Rockin' in the Free World". They definitely won me over for their set, and I can see why they won the Big Money Shot Competition put on by Ottowa radio station Live 88.5.

After them, it was time to haul ass to the main stage. In the first post I mentioned that I knew I had to come when they added my favourite musician. Well, that man is Matthew Good.
The set started with the familiar cheer of "K-I-C-K-A-S-S, that's the way we spell success", and the band coming out to open with "Giant". It had been a while since I saw a show open with this, so that was awesome. It was followed by a couple more from Beautiful Midnight; "The Future is X-Rated", which is a song I'm not sure I've ever seen him play, and the song that really set the crowd off, "Hello, Time Bomb". Actually, the crowd seemed to be kind of rowdy during the set, moshing and crowd surfing to songs that you really can't do those to... I guess it was the usual somewhat liquored up festival crowd type, though. After a few others, mostly from the newest album, Vancouver, and a great version of "Apparitions" which features a lap steel, he ended the night with "Champions of Nothing", dedicated to Geoff Lloyd, founding member of the Matthew Good Band who passed away in February.
There was also an odd energy from Good. He wasn't nearly as talkative as he usually is; even stating that he had nothing, really, to say. I know in the past, festival-like shows haven't been kind to Good, but there was nothing thrown on stage this time, so I am just going to assume he was having an off day. But even with all that, he was still pretty damn great when playing, and it was, as usual, a treat to see him live. The show didn't quite match up to the last few times I saw him, but I guess it's hard to compare a festival set to a proper show.

At this point I could have left happy, but there was still one more... Devo! I never thought I would ever actually see Devo play live, so this was pretty damn nifty. Even though they were looking their age, they sure didn't sound like it. Though they did sound very much like the 80s still; they do have a very distinctive sound. A sound which maybe... should not have gone on for as long as it did. Some bands can play an hour and a half (or longer) set no problem. Some... not so much. Devo was in the latter. But don't get me wrong, the show was still incredible fun to watch, with multiple costume changes, and some funny/appropriate/great videos up on the screen behind them. There were the obvious hits, like "Whip It", "Beautiful World" and "Jocko Homo", which saw the lead singer go into the crowd for the call & response "Are we not men? We are Devo!" Aside from the length (which, I admit, could have just been fatigue and/or hunger setting in), it was still really cool experience.

And luckily, the rain more or less held off for the day, just sprinkling a little as the night came to an end. And so, that was day one. Some incredible acts -- many I have, would, or will pay to see live on their own. I also got to meet some great people.

Again, since there was so much to see and do, I have decided to split the weekend into four parts. Coming up: Day two, part one: You Say Party, Civil Twilight & Mother Mother. And I have posted the weekends pics on my flickr, check them out! Will day two live up to day one? Stay tuned to find out!

Live at Squamish. Day one, part one. -- 09/04/10

Wow. Just wow. Having never been to a music festival before, I really had no idea what to expect, but those three (two?) words sum up my reaction pretty well.
When Live at Squamish was first announced, I was impressed by the lineup. Then when they added my favourite musician, I knew I had to go. I was fortunate enough to win tickets (they seemed to be giving them away like hotcakes... I guess to spread the word, since it was the first year?) and gathered up a posse of pals to help make the weekend unforgettable.

The first day was incredibly nice, weather-wise, and the backdrop for the festival was just gorgeous. It started a bit slow, as the first few acts we saw were... mediocre. First up was Step Twelve, a drums & bass duo. Musically, they were quite good, and at times you even forgot he was playing the bass. And an electric mandolin is a plus to any set. But the guys vocals left a little to be desired; it was especially noticeable when they covered "Baba O'Reilly" to middling success -- it was a decent cover, especially considering there were just the two of them, but again, the vocals is where it came apart.

The next band was Kostaman on the main stage, a reggae band from Whistler. Now, there is nothing wrong with a band from anywhere wanting to play reggae. But there is something wrong when they go out of their was to appear Jamaican. With an abundance of red, yellow & green and the lead singer putting on a fake accent (which he kept slipping in and out of) the whole thing just seemed way too forced. Which made the medley of cover songs at the end seem less of a tribute and more of adding to the overcompensation.

But soon after, the fest kicked in to high gear with Said The Whale. Playing a mix of their older and newer songs, they brought people flocking to the main stage with their usual energy and upbeat stage presence. I am not too sure why I was surprised to hear "Love is Art/Sleep Through Fire", but was certainly glad since it is one of my favourites. A new one, which I am going to randomly call "Information Age" was slipped in the set, and they ended with "Camilo (The Magician)" and "Goodnight Moon", which I don't think I will ever tire of hearing live. It was pretty awesome seeing them play a festival like this, and they certainly delivered. And seemed to be as excited to be there as the crowd was.

From there it was a mad dash over to the Serf stage to catch Michael Bernard Fitzgerald. I hadn't seen him live before, and had only heard a couple songs off The Peak & R3, and while I had liked those, I had no idea what he would be like live. He turned out to be amazing. His set began just as Said The Whale ended, so we arrived just as he -- up on stage alone with just an acoustic guitar -- was solving his looping problems. Which he immediately put to good use on "Movie Life", doing a multi-part harmony with... himself; looping the line, then singing on top of it over and over and over. It was a really cool effect. The song then led into an amazing cover song medley that included: "Thong Song", "I Like Big Butts", "Waterfalls", "My Humps", "Get Low" & capping it off with Justin Bieber. It was as hilariously awesome as it sounds. To wrap up the set, he was joined by Zach Gray (The Zolas) and David Vertesi (Hey Ocean!) for them to stomp-stomp-clap along to "Brand New Spaces". His set was probably one of my favourites of the fest. Definitely the biggest surprise, and I am absolutely going to go see him live again next time he swings through Vancouver.

After him, also on the Serf stage was We Are The City. It seems like I've seen them live about once a month this year, but every time they play, then just keep getting better. It is always cool to see a young band grow. The set was, as usual, great, and they threw in all three new songs they've been playing live of late. I've always marvelled at the intensity of Andy's drumming, and this time was no different; he even broke a stick at one point, with the tip flying off into the crowd! Another great moment was when a group of annoying girls were talking loudly during a quiet part of a song, and Cayne (who was pretty much right in front of them) just looked over, paused and gave them a look until they embarrassedly stop talking. Though it was kind of bittersweet, as with David leaving, there is a chance this was the last time I'll see the three of them playing together.

Since there was so much to see and do, I have decided to split the weekend into four parts. Coming up: Day one, part two: Hollerado, Matt Good & Devo. And I have posted the weekends pics on my flickr, check them out!