Outsidelands, SF: Sights and Sounds (day three)

Jack White on the Main Stage

And then it was Sunday...With the rough agenda and total sensory overload of the first two days of Outsidelands, Sunday was, (on paper), the respite-the day to totally kick back and do sweet F.A. until the evening's closer/bucket list entry: Mr. Stevie Wonder.  Of course, things never adhere to plan, and this day, in the most delightful of ways, was no exception.

In keeping with the casual approach, I drifted through the grounds, exploring the nooks and crannies that I'd previously ignored in the race between stages.  People watching in San Francisco is always pure entertainment, but with people trying extra hard at a festival, it was just that much more...

Cool discoveries early on were Infantree, and the precociously talented Birdy, who seemed very comfortable onstage for a 16 year old.
Settled in for a quick bite before heading over to see Franz Ferdinand, always a reliable festival band, when things got interesting.  The band before Franz wasn't clicking for me, and I strayed off in search of cupcakes, and happened to stumble on a crowd gathering around the Third Man Records Rolling Record Store.  So we gathered...and the payoff turned out to be a very intimate secret show from Jack White, in a forest clearing in Golden Gate Park.
Pow!
As if that weren't enough, he made way for an a few songs by Tom Morello, who was then joined by Boots Riley.  Many thanks to Third Man Records for facilitating that special moment.
For the complete story, check out The Owl Magazine.  In the middle of the gang's full day wrap-up is my breakdown specifically on the secret show. 



It was interesting to contrast with his later appearance on the main stage to, i would guess, 30-40,000 people.  In between, I snuck in some good times with Santigold, who shared the stage with a nice portion of the audience in a very party friendly set.  The genre-hopping of her records seems so natural in a festival setting, almost like seeing multiple acts at once.

We'll conclude the Outsidelands adventures in the next post, as Stevie Wonder definitely deserves his own space...

Infantree

Infantree

Birdy

Birdy

you've been warned...

Birdy

 It's all about the moment...Pictured above, Santigold, (striped dress), egging on fans to invade her stage, bemused backup dancers, and the arm of a crowd surfer holding up an inflatable shark...

Santigold (and friends)

Santigold

 Teaser: The burbling of synthesizer registered for a brief few seconds, before the almighty roar of the crowd kicked in as one's attention was drawn to the wings of the stage...

Beck: Ready For His Close-Up

BECK

DEVENDRA BANHART

SANTA BARBARA BOWL

24 MAY, 2012

After a few quiet years, with more time seemingly spent behind the boards than in front of them, 2012 appears to be the year Beck returns to the spotlight.  Having just wrapped up recording a new LP in Nashville that will hopefully see the light of day later in the year, Beck's appearance at the Santa Barbara Bowl was something of a mystery timing-wise.

Upon entry to the Bowl, all became clear with seeing the posted signs noting that filming would be taking place, as well as the huge boom camera over the pit, and stage camera placements.  Apparently Giovanni Ribisi is helming the project-it will be interesting to see what final form it takes.  During the set, a camera equipped helicopter made the rounds, much to the chagrin of the neighbors.

 The night certainly played out as an event; Beck set off mass delirium in the pit by opening with "Loser", and it was off to the races from there.  After charging through "Black Tambourine", he revealed the reason for this gathering, noting it as having the band from Sea Change back with him for the first time in many years.  They proceeded to essay luminous takes on songs from that LP, the bittersweetness of which fit the spring night at the Bowl perfectly.  Smokey Hormel was present on guitar, and served as a welcome fulcrum for the evening.  Also, Roger Manning and Justin Meldal-Johnsen (pictured above) were on hand, on keyboards and bass, respectively.

As the show progressed, Beck moved throughout his songbook, touching on his most recent, Modern Guilt, and getting a rapturous response for a trio of tracks from Odelay!, "Devil's Haircut", "Where It's At", and "New Pollution".
Capping off the night was "E-Pro", from Guero, that featured his son Cosimo coming out to bust some moves.  The night underscored Beck up to this point, and as always, it will be fascinating to see where he heads next.

(video courtesy of Justin Wagner, who hit the YouTube lottery with Pitchfork picking up this clip, currently over 42K views!)

Opening the evening at the appointed hour, Devendra Banhart strolled onto the stage, plopped down into a chair, and proceeded to weave his spells.  He was joined after one song by his band, and their 'South American meets Laurel Canyon' vibe was the perfect tone setter for the evening, as the Bowl slowly filled up.  He was unfazed by the talkers, and closed the set strongly.  It will be nice to catch him on his own turf at some point.

 Looking forward, Beck also has a new 45 out this week on Jack White's Third Man Records, "I Just Started Hating Some People Today" b/w "Blue Randy".

Thinking Inside The Box...

The devaluation of music has recently reached a new low, what with Amazon pimping the entire new Lady Gaga LP for just .99 in a recent two day release special...And one can say it worked, shifting 1.2M 'units' in its first week, 600K of which were digital, & who knows how many of those were the .99 variety, because, along with paying taxes, Amazon is not fond of releasing sales numbers. Looks like the 'Opening Weekend' box office mind set is taking over what's left of the music biz...



But we come here today to dwell on the opposite, to celebrate 'value per dollar', and examine the last vestige of quality in the industry, the Deluxe Box Set! (or, the insane money grab from suckers like me, but fill in your own...)

So far this year, I've fallen for four ventures that fall into the DeeLux category...Here's the breakdown for the morbidly curious in order received, not, (ahem Radiohead), order ordered:




Decemberists: The King Is Dead comes in a lavish cloth box, (Bogart came separately), and includes: one LP on white vinyl no less, a hardcover book with session polaroids done by Autumn De Wilde as well as the CD and the bonus Pendarvia short film on DVD, a print by Carson Ellis, (wife of Colin Meloy), as well as one of the actual polaroids done by Ms. De Wilde.




That they did this under the eye of Capitol Records might be the craziest thing of all. The album itself, featuring guest spots from Peter Buck (R.E.M.) and Gillian Welch, asserts itself as one of their most musically cohesive collections, and if rumors having it to be their last are correct, the beauty and work that went into this box set are an impressive monument to leave behind.






Los Campesinos! have taken an entirely different turn with the first issue of Heat Rash. Their latest endeavor is a quarterly 'zine to fill in the gaps between records, and provide a more literary experience than blogs & files.

On the left is a 7" single of two new songs that will stand alone from the new album, recorded last month and being mixed as we speak. On the right is Heat Rash #1, (the Romance issue), full of lyrics, band poetry, essays, recipes, and closing words from Neil Gaiman!

Okkervil River went all the way with their newest effort, I Am So Very Far in every sense. Their box set, (which came before the CD street date-yay Jagjaguwar), lives up to the name, arriving in a wooden box!

Said wooden box contains: CD, bonus songs/demos on 7'' single, bound hardcover chapbook of lyrics, poster, laser cut cover art from William Schaff, (longtime affiliate of the band), and a signed letter from Will Sheff...



The main event, I Am Very Far, is stretched over three sides of vinyl, the fourth given over to a laser etching of Schaff's artwork. Very cool.













Worth the wait, Radiohead's King Of Limbs (newspaper LP edition) finally arrived after much weeping, wailing, and gnashing of teeth. Heeding to their In Rainbows random announcement here it is strategy, they notified the world, released the download a week later, then we who ordered the physical package settled in for The Wait. Like the music itself, it's no so much understated as distilled.
Not overflowing with a million goodies, but it does contain the newspaper, the cd, the traditional out of control artwork, and the LP done as two ten inch clear vinyls, mastered at 45rpm, and it sure does sound swell.









What i haven't fallen for yet, although truth be told I had one in a cart and backed off at the last minute, is what might be the piece de resistance of all of the above...Only the Flaming Lips would conjure up the idea of a gummy life size skull enclosing a USB drive with new music. If you wondered exactly how Wayne Coyne would top last years tour posters done in part with his own blood, well, let this be your answer...



And we can't close without mentioning the continued good works of Mr. Jack White, whose latest endeavor is the Third Man Records Rolling Record Store, a mobile truck equipped equally to sell records, merch, and whose custom sound system allows it to do gigs on the go! Someday i'll run into this wonder on wheels, and I will be taking pictures.

Even with the industry in a state of flux, it's nice to know that there's folks out there doing things a little differently...