Governor's Ball: the experience, part 2
I arrived at the island at 10 for my 10:30 shift, and immediately noticed there were many more young (as in, my age) volunteers for that day than there had been for the day previous. Based on the lineup, I had supposed that the crowd today would be older, as most of it was traditional rock acts that have been around for a while, so Sunday was, logically, the volunteer day for all the dance and hip-hop kids from Saturday who couldnât/didnât want to pay for a ticket.
My shift was listed as âVIPâ on the card, and I thought that would mean I was waiting on folks under the VIP tent. However, what âVIPâ meant was directing traffic; specifically, directing the VIP shuttles from Williamsburg and Philadelphia into a certain lot and making sure no one else came in. We had a few disgruntled public officials/taxi drivers who refused to move; see earlier entry on people who donât listen. Luckily, my supervisor was a nice guy a few years older than me who also knew what it was like to deal with grumpy drivers.
My job: to give directions to people who didnât know where to park, and to move the gate aside whenever I saw anything which looked like a charter bus coming down the road. This I did five times over the course of two and a half hours; four for shuttles, and one when I saw a bus coming down the road which turned out to be a band bus -- it drove right past and gave me a faceful of dust. (The trailer had a Texas plate, so thanks a lot, Explosions in the Sky...I think.)
Nick sent me off at 1 when he heard there would be no more shuttles till after my shiftâs official end, so I went on my merry way to get my card signed and called my friend Declan, who had been on the island the previous day. Another mutual friend of ours, Luisa, had come too for Sunday. So met up, the long day of music started...
The Jezabels: Iâd never heard even the name of this band of Aussies prior to the festival, but now I want to hear everything of theirs that they can. When the set started as my shift ended, the crowd was about five deep, but when their set ended, it was much bigger. Hayley Maryâs voice was sirenesque, even though slightly nervous, and the music beckoned lunch-eaters and nappers to their feet and out of the protective shade. Sheâs not as visually synced with her music yet as, say, Sarah from Phantogram, but with a few years the Jezabels should be moving up the festival list. These are one to watch.
I did not know any Jezabels tracks prior to the show and have yet to procure a setlist, but Iâll be sure to find out what my favorite tracks from the set were later. 8/10
The Jezabels -- Endless Summer
Freelance Whales: Lead singer wished everyone a happy Pride and asked if everyone was wearing sunscreen as the dayâs rainbow balloon string soared into the air over the island. They veer dangerously into twee territory at times on their recordings (the phrase "player hater" comes to mind) but Freelance Whalesâs loud festival performances of usually quiet tracks like âHannahâ boosted the power, which in turn kept the twee to a minimum. The songs lost nothing except a bit of lyrical clarity. Again, I didnât know many tracks by them by name, but Iâll be listening to a lot more of them in the future. 7/10
Freelance Whales -- Hannah
I left a bit early so I could snag a second row spot for...
Phantogram: Second row, standing with Matthew, who Iâd met the day before on the extremely long check-in line. The only song of theirs I knew by name at the time of performance was âWhen Iâm Small,â but the day was lining up to make me a fan of pretty much everyone I heard. Sarah Barthel, looking like an updated, R-rated version of Mad Menâs Megan Calvet, delivered a solid performance of belts and moans. Josh Carter kept the guitar line as leanly muscular as a Greenpointerâs arm for the most part, save for a few moments of confusion. Knowing their audience, they didnât neglect crowd pleasers âWhen Iâm Small,â which began with some not-so-subtle sighs from Barthel, and âFuturistic Casket,â an extended version of which ended the set. They debuted a new song at the beginning of the set, title unknown, and Iâm looking forward to hearing that, and them, again. 8/10
Phantogram -- Mouthful of Diamonds
Cults: One of the only vans in the huge lot of tour buses, New Yorkâs own Cults took the stage at 3 PM. Madeline proudly announced that her parents were backstage before riding the wall of sound all the way to the finish, with no vocal hiccups along the way. For the festival setting, she traded her breathy, girlish voice for more of a proto-rock nâroll belt, which we only see on the album in the higher notes of âYou Know What I Meanâ and similar; the Dixie Cups turned into the Shangri-Las for a day. Being such a young band, the set was a perfect length for them to showcase favorites such as âAbductedâ and âGo Outsideâ as well as debut a more dance-like track from their upcoming project. Iâm a member of the cult. Bonus authenticity points for actually using a glockenspiel on âGo Outside;â synth glocks are cheating. 7/10
I skipped Devendra Barnhart to get food, and Luisa and Declan went to see Built To Spill but I couldnât break the crowd to get to them. I passively listened to about half the set from the side; theyâre definitely one to check out later. Halfway through the set, I decided to get us spots for...
Cage the Elephant: The most pop-esque band on the lineup, it also attracted the most sometimes-obnoxious but always entertaining crowd. Singer Matt Shultz proudly informed the crowd that he had lost his voice, he couldnât sing for shit (accurate), and the manager advised them to cancel but they were going to play anyway. Though the vocals would have been clearly the low point otherwise, the energy of the crowd was high enough that it didnât matter at all. Iâm not a huge fan of theirs, but it was definitely worth seeing just for the experience. 5/10
Cage the Elephant -- Rubber Ball
Matt stage-dived three times during the course of the show, and the motion of the crowd carried me forward so I was standing in the front row by the end, in a prime spot for...
Explosions in the Sky: My favorite forever and always. The only way these guys wouldnât get a 10 is if an amp caught fire and they had to end the show, and that would probably get a 10 anyway because -- amp on fire.
But the actual show. Declan, Luisa and I were in the very front for an hour before the band actually started, and we chatted with our neighbors and watched Explosions soundcheck. (I have a huge amount of respect reserved for any band that makes the sunset slot at Gov Ball and still tunes their own instruments.)
Declan said to me, "You know the only better thing than watching Explosions live? Not watching them live." I'd never noticed it before, but I was extra conscious during the performance of how much my eyes were closed. (It was a lot.) I was also hanging onto the railing for dear life -- why? I don't know. One hour, six songs all the way through, no stops, no talking, so much beauty. I can only aspire to one day create a fraction of the beauty those five people create on stage on a daily basis.
Sometimes I wonder whether the amount they seem to care about the people who love their music is all a front, but from my brief interaction with them in Michigan last year, I don't think it's fake at all. 10/10
Explosions in the Sky -- Postcard from 1952
After Explosions, Declan and Luisa had to leave so Luisa could catch her train. Two thoughts came into my mind: 1. I want to meet Explosions again! and 2. I have to pee.
So off I went to the Porta Potties by the entrance of the artist compound, I did my business, checked my face to make sure I was presentable enough to charm the guard, and shuffled towards the entrance, trying to be inconspicuous. However, when I got there, a very drunk girl who REALLY wanted to meet Explosions (one member in particular) was arguing with the guard. I obviously wasnât going to get anywhere, so I went off to get a waffle and ate it while watching Modest Mouse.
Beck: I heard him, and I danced to him, but I didnât SEE him. I met up with my friend Emma from Oberlin for this one, and we were all the way at the back. Being a short girl, I couldnât see a thing unless I went up on my very tip toes, and even then I could only see the top of Beckâs hat. The set opened with a bang with rock nâ roll hits like âBlack Tambourineâ and âGirl,â which had the crowd dancing, but he soon slid into the more acoustic, slower material of Sea Changes, and I started getting sleepy (logical, considering I had barely sat down for the last 12 hours.) I had to leave at 10:30, and I was hoping I would hear âE-Proâ live, but I didnât get to. A setlist check later revealed E-Pro was the last song played. Curses! 7/10
A lovely weekend on Randallâs Island overall. Iâve got some listening to do now.