The third and final day was upon us. For this day, I'm going to skip all the details on every band and focus on three bands that rocked my world in particular on the last day. Not that every band wasn't great, but these three were particularly awesome.
Kirk Huffman from Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground
Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground
I think I mentioned a few times I was really excited about seeing Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground. Sprung from the ashes of my favorite band Gatsby's American Dream, this band that is fronted by Gatsby's bassist Kirk Huffman makes gloriously dense music for the hippie in all of us. It's truly exceptional music, and I'd say they were the band I was most looking forward to besides the Flaming Lips.
I absolutely loved their performance. This is a band who knows how to do a production on a shoestring budget. They had dancers, beautiful singalongs, fresh flowers/plants on stage, andbunches of cool little decorations (hanging spinny things, scarves on mics, etc.) which led to probably the best looking set on the Yeti stage. Besides that, they played a stellar set reaching throughout their debut self-titled LP, including personal favorites "Birds (on a day like today)" and "Simon Courage Flees the Coop."
The beautiful thing about their set was that they provided a live performance that sounded very close and good in comparison to the LP, but felt confident enough in their abilities to jam and improvise within songs to provide something new to their fans. That's the sign of a good band, and I really can't wait for these guys to hit it big so everyone in the world can share in the glory that is Kay Kay.
The Mars Volta
Cedric from the Mars Volta preparing to jump!
The Mars Volta shredding
The band that had the primo (or terrifying, depending on your point of view I suppose) slot of opening for the Flaming Lips was the Mars Volta. This is a band that I respect, but have never been too into because frankly, their music is too intense for me. It's chock full of brilliant components, but it's just too dense for my pop sensibilities.
Live though, this band absolutely kills it. I've never seen a band bring as much energy as they did - at one point, I legitimately thought the set was going to be cancelled because the lead singer was going absolutely insane throwing things into the audience, attempting to destroy video cameras, and generally freaking out. Thankfully he calmed down, and they played for at least an hour straight at the most frenetic pace I've ever seen a band play at.
I always thought their sound would be hard to recreate live, but strangely it ended up working out as it gave them more room to breathe - opening up the floor for jam offs, freakouts, and interludes that didn't exist. As my buddy Erik said, one of their songs was supposed to be five minutes long and it ended up being around 12 minutes long. Not exactly normal, but certainly spectacular. I guess that clearly defines their set fairly well.
The Flaming Lips
Wayne Coyne rocking it
Maraca + Gong = good idea
Wayne Coyne looks like he's in a lava pit!
Confetti everywhere at the Flaming Lips showUp last, and by far the best show at Sasquatch and the best show I've ever seen was the Flaming Lips UFO show. Why was it so spectacular? Singalongs, amazing energy, dancing teletubbies, confetti, naked women, everything. It was incredible. Nothing could ever compete against it. I don't think I'll ever enjoy something as much as I enjoyed singing along to "Yoshimi Battles the Pink Robots Pt. 1" at Sasquatch. It was a fantastic experience that had to be witnessed to be believed.
This band went from being a well liked but criminally under listened band to an all time favorite in one show. Their live performance was so stellar that they cannot be denied. After the show, everyone agreed that they were abuzz with positive energy from the show. You can't ask for much better than what they provided, and if you say otherwise I'm unsure if you're telling the truth. A stellar finish to a great day.
Band of the day
The Flaming Lips were far and away the best band I've ever seen live. It has to be them here.
Surprise of the day
The Mars Volta being as incredible as they were. Also, Siberian coming out of nowhere and putting on a very good set.
Disappointment of the day
The Flaming Lips only playing 2 hours. I expected at least 2 and a half out of them. Also, missing out on Jamie Lidell and Ghostland Observatory, whom I heard were great and wanted to see badly.
Day 3 grade: A+
Bands seen: Dyme Def, the Choir Practice, Yeasayer, Whalebones, Matt Costa, the Hives, Built to Spill, Siberian, Kay Kay and His Weathered Underground, Battles, Flight of the Conchords, the Mars Volta, the Flaming Lips.
Festival Grade: A
Day 3 was the best day for sure, although the festival as a whole was incredible. Even better than my Bumbershoot experience, which was stellar but did not feature such incredible performances. Day 3 singlehandedly featured 3 of my likely top 5 all time performances that I've ever seen. The best way imaginable to close out the festival, and something I'll remember forever.
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