Pitchfork Music Festival 2006 - Day 1

The bands I saw/heard at Pitchfork Fest Day 1 were:

Chin Up Chin Up
Man Man
Band of Horses
Destroyer
Ted Leo & the Pharmacists

Now it’s time to tackle the monster of a writing project that is the Pitchfork Music Festival (although when compared to Lollapalooza it’s a piece of cake). To clarify in advance, I have no intention of covering the entire festival. That would be dumb. I plan to cover my personal experience at the festival. I will only talk about bands that I saw (or at least listened to), and only display pictures that I took. I had no press pass, no backstage VIP pass…no notepad, no professional camera. I was just a soul wandering in the crowd, taking it all in. That said, let’s get started.

Sometime around May I ordered my 2 day pass for the Pitchfork Music Festival at a measly $30. I knew there would be at least 40 bands there, but really Yo La Tengo was enough for me to buy the ticket. After attending the Intonation Festival, I had high hopes for Pitchfork. I knew the bands would be better, and I figured the crowd would be better too. I had no idea that both days would completely sell out (according to their website, the number present was around 36,000). The forecast for sunny skies and temperatures in the mid-90’s was intimidating, but I wasn’t going to pass up this opportunity. I rode my bike to the Red Line, purchased two 1-liter water bottles, and got on the train. After a quick transfer to the Green Line, I was at Union Park.

It was odd to see a line at the entrance at noon on Saturday, until I realized that I was among the first to enter the park. After a quick circle of the park I decided to sit in the shade, where I would still sweat my balls off. Luckily I could see both stages well enough. The first band to catch my interest was Chicago group Chin Up Chin Up. Their sound carries traces of vintage groups like the Cure, but also current northwestern rockers Modest Mouse. The dual guitar and restrained synth and keyboards are ever pleasant. Next was Man Man, who are a batch of circus freaks with white outfits and face paint. The first thing they reminded me of, with their childlike exploration of percussion and yelling, was Primus.

Finally Band of Horses took the stage, and managed to live up to the hype surrounding them. I had been trying to figure out what I like about this group, despite their relatively unoriginal songwriting. I think it’s the richness and depth of sound. The lead singer often employed a slide guitar, which inevitably adds warmth and texture. Their songs have a tricky way of growing on you the more you listen to them, especially with soaring vocals that bring to mind My Morning Jacket. Look for this group to either make a big Pacific-style splash over the next few years, or drown into complete obscurity.

Now comes the most difficult section, where I talk about Destroyer. For those who don’t already know, I am obsessed with their 2006 album Destroyer’s Rubies. But what I realized during this set is that Destroyer is not an incredible live act. The best explanation I could come up with for this fault is the fragility of their music. Their albums have a sense of magic that doesn’t come just from the instruments or vocals or lyrics. It’s like a crazy science experiment that could go terribly wrong, but always seems to create the desired product. I think mostly it reminds me of Cat Stevens (a childhood favorite) and Van Morrison, even though I always hear about Dan Bejar's dedication to early-70’s David Bowie. (note - I took the following video on my digital camera. The quality isn't excellent, but you get the basic idea)

The last group I paid attention to on Saturday was Ted Leo & the Pharmacists. Their song “Where Have All the Rude Boys Gone” was one of my all time favorites from MSU’s Impact 89 FM. Basically, their the most straightforward, dependable indie rock group around today. They provide catchy guitar chops and lyrics that make me think of Elvis Costello, even though I am relatively unfamiliar with that artist’s work.

Unfortunately due to the extreme heat, I was completely exhausted by 6:30 pm on day 1 and had to head home (actually it was fortunate because I didn’t have to watch the Walkmen that way). What really stuck out about this day was the fluidity of the crowd and the overwhelmingly friendly atmosphere. Of course, the entire neighborhood of Wicker Park had emptied all its hipster children on Union Park. But the result was not objectionable. I kept thinking, “Why was there never anything like this at parks back home?” I pictured in my mind a rectangular fenced-off area at Boulan Park (that’s Troy, if you don’t know) with two stages and an exciting line-up of bands. Anyways, look out for day 2 soon. I have to move on to more important things, like LOLLAPALOOZA!!!