review & photos: Outside Lands: Day 1

14 August 2010 (Saturday)
San Francisco, CA
(day 2 reviewed HERE)


The Whigs
The Athens threesome kicked the festival to a start with their relentless drive and unparalleled Southern fire. During the periods of vocal free instrumentation, the band conjured up King Crimson like layering and hi-fi distortion that made people forget that this was, chronologically speaking, the least important band of the weekend.





Dawes
The LA band’s set on Saturday was a monumental improvement from when they opened for Delta Spirit, and that show was actually really solid. The band was louder, more confident, and feeding off the good vibes from the crowd, who, to lead singer Taylor Goldsmith’s apparent surprise, were singing along to most of the songs.




Langhorne Slim
It’s amazing that the Pennsylvania native even has functioning vocal chords with all of the screaming that he did. The juxtaposition of his soft strumming and booming vocals created a spectacular effect. Slim asked the crowd to sing along a few times, but his eagerness for their participation waned once they failed to deliver to his standards, as he feigned a yawn of boredom. He sat down oh so un-dejectedly when he broke a string (inevitable, with the ferocity of his playing), determined to keep the energy high. Indeed, his whole set was riddled with his gawky dancing and plain as day need for attention. Slim didn’t sing “Say Yes” or “Diamonds and Gold” but dug deeper into his older catalogue instead (although he broke this pattern when he debuted a new song). The combination of banjos and enthusiastically slapped keys really heightened the barnyard wedding effect, and I mean that in the most endearing sense. “This is the first time we’ve been cold at a music festival,” Slim observed. “But better to be a bit chilly than to fry your nuts off. That’s what my mom always used to say, anyway.”








The Levon Helm Band
Levon really blew me away. Although I frequently listen to The Band, I had never heard his collaborations with daughter Amy and co. But Levon was a spectacle to behold, pounding away at his drums, contributing lead vocals to some songs and doing it with a grin that would give the AARP a run for their money. Retire? Hell no. Let’s go play us some music fests instead. This is the stuff that legends are made of. As for the band itself, it delivered admirably with alternating singers, a marching horn section and familial bonds that looked past blood relations.












Tokyo Police Club
The Canadian band is really finding their ground musically, coming off an excellent sophomore effort, Champ. Their songwriting keeps exploring new territory, as displayed in their new, synth driven shoe-gaze-on-speed number, “Top 5”. They used the crowd extensively for accompanying hand claps and their youthful enthusiasm really transcribed well to a live setting (as opposed, to, say, The Soft Pack, whose very allure comes from their jadedness).










Cat Power
The poor thing knew that most of the crowd wanted her gone, and her melancholy crooning didn’t help one bit. Neither did her attempt to get closer to the audience by hesitantly getting off the high stage—double taking about six times and finally getting a security guard to help her down. I mean, COME ON, if you’re gonna do it, you might as well jump. As she headed off the stage, she whispered “sorry guys” repeatedly. It’s ok, Cat, The Strokes redeem all sinners.



THE STROKES










catch day two tomorrow!