The 2010 Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival is now in the history books!
Enjoy our reverse chronological run-down of this past weekend below, or skip directly
to a day by using these handy links:
Thursday,
6/10 ::
Friday,
6/11 ::
Saturday,
6/12 ::
Sunday,
6/13
Words by Wesley Hodges,
Photos by Dave Vann
Sunday, June 13 – Day Four
“We had the best time at your party” -Ween
John Butler Trio by Dave Vann
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The final day at Bonnaroo was all about survival as temperatures neared 100 degrees by
midday and produced a fairly subdued Sunday crowd just trying to stay vertical and manage
to catch many of the can’t-miss acts closing down the fest (and, as per usual, conflicting
with one another). Bonnaroo veterans John Butler Trio
opened a technically flawless set on the What Stage with “Used to Get High,” and the
Aussie frontman graciously thanked the early crowd for braving the oppressive heat to
check out his set.
Next, it was off to The Other Tent for Blues Traveler,
where a crowd member challenged John Popper to a harmonica duel with a handmade
sign after “Run-Around,” to which Popper replied that they would need to take it outside
after the set. This was the band’s second appearance at Bonnaroo (first since 2003) and
the set was both well received and well attended in the smaller Other Tent. After an
interesting, dubbed-out reading of Radiohead’s “Creep,” it was time to head on back over
to What Stage, where John Fogerty was making his Bonnaroo debut.
John Fogerty by Dave Vann
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The 65-year old still has the same vocal talents that accented Creedence Clearwater
Revival’s signature swamp rock sound in the early ’70s. The legend showed off his often
overlooked chops on “Green River” and ran through a mix of the CCR catalogue as well as a
number of tunes from his most recent solo record, The Blue Ridge Rangers Rides
Again, which I strongly recommend.
Listening to the bare bones, stripped down Kris
Kristofferson performance while laying in the grass in front of the tent was a
fairly transcendent way to spend a lazy Sunday. After seeing John Prine on Saturday, it’d
be hard to pick a favorite between the two monster talents of the songwriting universe.
There was something very raw and exceptionally soothing about listening to one man slowly
play his guitar and sing into the mic after seeing so many varied musical displays
throughout the weekend. Sometimes less is truly more.
Ween by Dave Vann
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Next, things heated up over at Ween, who highlighted the final day of this year’s ‘Roo, while
deservedly playing in front of a large Which Stage midday crowd after a few previous
Bonnaroo appearances in the smaller tents. We arrived just in time after a short stop at
the aggressive Dropkick Murphys set to catch “Roses Are Free,” “Voodoo Lady,”
“Your Party,” a bangin’ “Buckingham Green,” and an excellent cover of David Bowie’s “Let’s
Dance.” You could tell the band recognized the opportunity to win over hordes of fans in
the crowd unfamiliar with their music, and they didn’t hold back on busting out the big
guns while playing a set with added gusto.
Medeski Martin &
Wood had a fun little sit-in by Bonnaroo scenester and unofficial mascot Beatle Bob, who was
goofily gettin’ down and playing one of Billy Martin‘s many percussion toys during
a dark, heavy improv exercise. Travel arrangements caused for an early departure, but not
before catching Phoenix‘s set in front of an enormous crowd comparable to Weezer’s
the previous day. It was a cool early evening scene with a colorful, picturesque sunset
and numerous red and black balloons floating around at the front of the audience. The
band’s most intricate arrangement from the Grammy-winning album Wolfgang Amadeus
Phoenix, “Love Like a Sunset,” was appropriately placed in the set just as dusk was
beginning to sweep across the Manchester skies and was a beautiful way to cap off the
weekend.
The cultural phenomenon that is Bonnaroo once again produced an amazing four days of
diverse artistic offerings, and for the fifth or sixth year in a row, the weather wasn’t
too much of an issue (once you get over the heat part). Here’s looking forward to the
10th Annual Bonnaroo festival in 2011!
Top 5 Shows of the Weekend
1. Jay-Z
2. LCD Soundsystem
3. The Flaming Lips with Stardeath and White Dwarfs performing Dark Side of the
Moon
4. Dr. Dog
5. The Melvins
Favorite Random Artist of the Weekend
Nortec Collective presents: Bostich and Fussible
Best Day
Saturday. Getting to see Stevie Wonder, Jay-Z, John Prine, Steve Martin, Thievery
Corporation, Jeff Beck, The Melvins, Jimmy Cliff, and Conan O’Brien in the same day was
exceptional, even for Bonnaroo.
What This Year’s Bonnaroo Will Be Remembered For
1. 80,000 hands moving along with Jay-Z
2. The diversity of talent on display, balancing Bonnaroo’s free spirited neo-hippie vibe
with sounds of the present
3. Excellent weather
4. Conan O’Brien MC’ing What Stage throughout the weekend
5. A legendary Saturday
6. The addition of the annoying Lunar Stage
7. The absence of a Panic, Phish or a Dead-related headliner
8. Stevie Wonder’s long overdue debut appearance at the festival.
Who would YOU like to see headline in 2011 at Bonnaroo’s 10th Anniversary? Share your
thoughts in our comments section. Never know what happens when you dream aloud!
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Bonnaroo Music Festival
(Manchester, TN) – 6/13/10 View
Photos
Saturday, June 12 – Day Three
Conan O’Brien by Dave Vann
|
In a word, Bonnaroo Saturday was legendary. With appearances by Jimmy Cliff,
The
Melvins, John Prine, Jeff Beck, Stevie Wonder, and
Jay-Z on
the docket for the day, there wasn’t much time for any of the numerous non-musical
activities in Centeroo, or downtime in general. Despite only a few hours of sleep on
Friday, we managed to check out 16 different artists on Saturday, ranging from small
gatherings in the Latin-themed Other Tent to the 75,000 strong love fest at Jay-Z. As was
the case on Friday, scorching temperatures baked the farm in the early afternoon before
overcast skies brought a cool air of relief to lobster-red-sunburned patrons. All in all,
it should be noted that the weather this weekend was abnormally excellent, if you don’t
mind a little heat.
Nortec
Collective presents: Bostich and Fussible was one of the more unique bands I’ve come across
anywhere. The group consists of a tuba, accordion, guitar, an iPad, and a NASA-looking
control center with various electronic capabilities. The songs had a campy Latino/polka
feel with dance floor undertones and the 300 or so gathered to check it out all seemed to
be perplexed and ultimately impressed. Plus, in a three-minute span, I got to see the
best accordion, tuba and iPad solo I’ve ever seen.
Next, it was over to Dave Rawlings Machine to hear “This Land Is Your Land,” “Ruby” and
“To Be Young (Is To Be Sad, Is To Be High)” before a quick jaunt over to see one of Isis‘ final shows
of their farewell tour. As very threatening skies loomed overhead, Jimmy Cliff
sang his seminal hit “I Can See Clearly Now,” and he must’ve had some kind of
meteorologist insight because the almost sure thing electrical storm narrowly skirted by
the farm without causing any problems. A good many people seemed to be hiding out until
the late afternoon, as notably small crowds at many of the daytime tent sets allowed for
ample space and some great vantage points, even for artists like John Prine and The
Melvins. After Cliff, it was over to The Avett
Brothers for a bit to check out “January Wedding” and a host of other new tunes
off last year’s breakthrough I And Love And You.
Jack White by Dave Vann
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The surprising show of the weekend for me was undoubtedly over at The Melvins, who
zoned us in, causing a cancellation of our Mumford & Sons
plans. Largely unfamiliar with their music (although aware of the band’s huge influence
on bands like Nirvana), it was a wholly epic display of guitar heavy, hard rock, grunge-
tinged badassery. These old men still got it. Don’t miss your chance to see them if you
haven’t before it’s too late.
The Dead
Weather was a bit of a disappointment at What Stage and provoked a little more
‘Prine Time’ then planned, which was a treat to see the master songsmith at work. Jeff
Beck wowed a decent-sized crowd, but more impressive was Beck’s bass player, a
diminutive in stature, but larger-than-life female bass player with some serious
talent on the slap bass and some shockingly bluesy vocals. It was reported to me after we
left that Beck blew through an amazing array of cover tunes including “A Day In The Life”
and “Somewhere Over the Rainbow.”
Weezer by Dave Vann
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Weezer
played to a MASSIVE crowd at Which Stage, and gave the masses what they wanted, busting
out the big guns with a Blue Album heavy set and a bust-out cover of “Kids (MGMT) >
Poker Face (Lady Gaga).” Frontman Rivers Cuomo could not be contained, singing
from backstage, on speakers, jumping on trampolines, and finding every conceivable reason
to animate the performance and rile the enormous crowd. Weezer wrapped in time for us to
head over to What Stage to take in my first Stevie Wonder concert. As he had done
throughout the weekend, Conan O’Brien played main stage MC and introduced Stevie, saying
that he was genuinely thrilled to be within 500-feet of the man. Wonder came out, keytar
in hand, and busted the funk early and often. The crowd showed Stevie a great deal of
love and provided some booming backing vocals on a few call-and-response verses. Wonder
was an excellent choice for a Saturday night headliner, but what occurred next ultimately
overshadowed all other performances before and after on this third day of Bonnaroo.
Stevie Wonder by Dave Vann
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As in 2006, there was a bit of a skepticism expressed after it was revealed that Jay-
Z would headline the Roo, especially in light of the 2008 Kanye West
debacle (unfit to print spray paint tags still dominate the Bonnaroo walls devoted to the
much-maligned – in these parts at least – rapper). Nevertheless, HOVA picked up the
festival and put it on his back, taking a crowd as far as the eye could see on a two-hour
feel good journey through his catalogue, sampling and performing just about every
conceivable hit song from the rapper’s storied career (eleven #1 albums, surpassing even
Elvis Presley for top honors). Standing on the hill stage and peering out over the
audience with 80,000 hands moving together was an image that will forever remain
emblazoned in my memory bank – what a sight!
On Saturday, Mr. Carter was all about fostering a vibe of positivity and love and is
perhaps the only artist I’ve seen on such a big stage with the ability to make his
performance feel profoundly personal to each and every fan out there. One of the neatest
elements of the performance occurred when Jay-Z hollered at about 50 different audience
members (“I see you in the Bob Marley shirt,” followed by a verse from “Three Little
Birds;” then, “I see you in the Charles Oakley jersey,” “I see you with the Brooklyn
flag,” etc.) and then made a gal named Maggie the happiest girl on earth by pulling her
onstage and getting the crowd to serenade her with “Happy Birthday.” The vibe created by
Jay-Z was exactly the kind that Bonnaroo organizers have always strived for, and they hit
the nail on the head with the choice of Jay-Z to take over the festival. Carter was
nearly moved to tears at one point as he thanked each and every audience member for the
support, not only on this night but throughout his career. He shouted out to Jack
White, mentioned that he couldn’t wait to tell his mama that Stevie Wonder was taking
in his set, and gave love to the fallen rappers that influenced his music, shouting out
Tupac, Biggie Smalls, Pimp-C and many more.
Jay-Z by Dave Vann
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After being crowned the king of Coachella by most critics, I’ll gladly give him the title
for this weekend as the rapper didn’t slip up at any point throughout the peerless
performance and his beaming, genuine personality was a nice change from the Friday
night headliners. It was arguably the most important and best headlining performance I’ve
seen in 8 years (the toss-up being Radiohead at the ‘Roo) and one of the best anywhere.
Bonnaroo was the center of the musical universe on Saturday night – it felt like possibly
the world at the time – and if you could’ve bottled and sold the youthful energy flowing
across the field you’d be a rich man. This perhaps marked another sea change in the
Bonnaroo landscape, and if Jay-Z’s performance is any indication of what’s to come in the
future of Bonnaroo, things are looking better than ever for the 2011 10th Anniversary
edition of the festival.
As was the case last year after Phish‘s Friday late night headlining performance last year, everything
after Jay-Z seemed secondary and hard to zone into. The show had been stolen, the
spotlight remained on Jay-Z, and even The Disco Biscuits‘ Marc Brownstein noted at the beginning of
their show just how amazing the night had been, saying, “This is so fucking sick,”
referring to the opportunity to see Stevie, Jay-Z and Thievery
Corporation in the same night. Barber said he wanted to see some sun by
the time they were through.
GWAR put on
a hilarious show that fit right into to the zany atmosphere that usually emanates on
Bonnaroo Saturday, as patrons try to soak in one last big night at the farm. All in all,
one of the best days on the whole I’ve had at the festival. Bonnaroo has outdone
themselves again by programming one of the more diverse and star-studded lineups yet. On
Sunday, we’ll check out John Fogerty, Ween, Dropkick Murphys,
Phoenix, and at long last, my first Medeski, Martin, & Wood show. Please
don’t ask how that’s possible that a JamBase writer hasn’t seen them (it’s embarrassing, I
know).
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Bonnaroo Music Festival (Manchester, TN) – 6/13/10 View
Photos
Continue reading for more coverage from Friday’s Bonnaroo and check back later today
for words & photos from Sunday…
Friday, June 11th—Day Two
Bonnaroo by Dave Vann
|
Overwhelming heat was the modus operandi of the festival’s first full day of music as
temperatures hit an apex near the triple digit mark by mid-day. A beautiful day of music
and comedy awaited those ready and able to brave the sun’s wrath and thousands made it out
early to watch Conan O’Brien’s first career festival stand-up appearance in the small
Comedy Tent, which luckily (for us), was being simulcast on the new Lunar Stage. Walking
to join Team Coco, we got a chance to check out New Orleans youngest star
Trombone Shorty & Orleans Avenue running through a “When the Saints Go Marching In
> Fire on the Bayou > When the Saints Go Marching In” medley on Which Stage. It was great
to see Conan’s familiar face again after several months in obscurity.
Conan (whose birth name is apparently Jet Blaze) jokingly reminisced about being beat up
by Tori Amos with a hairbrush at Lilith Fair, gained the audience’s approval
for his new bearded look (saying he looked like the Brawny paper towel guy after a bone
marrow transplant), and noted that the Legally Prohibited From Being Funny on
Television tour was the first time anyone’s paid to see him perform. The appropriate
jabbing at NBC came early and often, and Conan even gave us a spot-on Leno impression,
which he sarcastically pointed out, for legal reasons, was actually an impression of
rapper Ludacris. Truly a one-of-a-kind occurrence to see the legend at work, and as
Conan chanted, “It was sorta worth it” to check it out.
Bonnaroo by Dave Vann
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String bands were the thematic trend over in That Tent and Carolina Chocolate
Drops, Hot Rize and the excellence of Steve Martin and the Steep Canyon
Rangers carved out a grassy scene throughout the day. The communal Edward Sharpe
and the Magnetic Zeros connected with the audience from the get-go, opening with the
familiar “Janglin” from last year’s debut record and harkening up comparisons to
Polyphonic Spree.
The oppressive heat finally subsided in time for the day’s highlighting set by Dr.
Dog, in coincidence with the band performing “The Breeze”, off 2008′s Fate
album. Lyrically, there are few better current bands out there than these Philly vintage
rockers. The set was heavy on tunes from this year’s Shame, Shame and Fate
including the excellent new tune “Where Does the Time Go” and “Hang On”. The band’s third
appearance at Bonnaroo was a chills-inducing (even in the heat) performance and set the
tone for the rest of Bonnaroo Friday as a smokin’ and stretched out rendition of “The
Rabbit, The Bat, and the Reindeer” closed down this heater of a set.
Tenacious D by Dave Vann
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Sweet Zooey Deschanel and M. Ward make up She & Him and a female-
heavy crowd took in their vibin’ folky display in This Tent. Just a likable duo altogether
and Zooey was only one of many Hollywood stars we came across throughout the day.
Performances by Steve Martin, Conan O’Brien, Jack Black and a run-in with Superbad’s
Christopher Mintz-Plasse at Tenacious D marked the star-studded day. The
National made believers in the unusually scant crowd at Which Stage with their heady
brand stern and directed rock music. Surprisingly, the band’s lead singer took a few trips
out into the audience and was far less serious and more animated than I’d of guessed after
listening to their somber new record High Violet. Tenacious D was hilarious
and bandmate Kyle Gass quit the band after Jack Black received a phone call mid-set
telling him that a sequel for The Pick of Destiny was in the works and Gass would
be replaced with the guy from Paul Blart: Mall Cop.
Kings of Leon aren’t my cup of tea but credit should be given to the band for
digging deep into their catalog for the career-making headlining set highlighted by
“Molly’s Chambers”, and a cover of the Pixies’ “Where is My Mind?”. KoL was also
the first band to rise through the Bonnaroo ranks from the smallest tent to the main stage
and I think we’re looking at the American U2, as the largest U.S. arena rock band,
for better or worse. After a run-in with a loose-talkin Caleb Followill in
Nashville on Wednesday night, it was funny to watch the man at work on what may have been
the most important night of the band’s career.
The Flaming Lips by Dave Vann
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It’s no secret that Bonnaroo doesn’t really start until midnight on Friday and we
arrived just in time for the spectacle of the chaos-embracing Flaming Lips on Which
Stage. Wayne Coyne told JamBase how the idea to play Dark Side at the Roo came to
fruition, saying “we didn’t really know if anyone would care when we thought to record the
cover album.” Bonnaroo approached the Lips, asking the simple request “Why don’t you do
something weird” to which the Lips responded “Why don’t we play Dark Side of the
Moon and the rest is now history after the last night’s incredible display. As always,
the visual element was top-notch with loads of confetti, dancing girls, lasers and a semi-
circular LED wall behind the band taking the massive crowd to some far away places during
“The W.A.N.D.” and especially during the Floyd set. Few people can do Dark Side
right (although many try), and the Lips put a unique spin on the classic album,
with a more gritty, raw and hard rockin’ version of songs like “Any Colour You Like” and
the absolute burn-down-the-house, hide-the -children closer “Brain Damage > Eclipse”. As a
huge Floyd fan, I was admittedly skeptical (although excited) and the Lips delivered the
best Bonnaroo set of their career (also performed in ’03 & ’07). A short trip to the
sparsely attended Galactic show was a nice change of scenery from the Lips brain-
frying visual display before we were lured over to the party scene at LCD
Soundsystem.
Largely unfamiliar with LCD until the release of their ultra-hyped newest record This
Is Happening, I had no idea what we were getting into. Comparisons to the Talking
Heads and <Duran Duran can be made, and frontman James Murphy is an odd
bird. At one point he curiously asked the crowd, “Why are you throwing things” and
concluded that “This is a weird job, it’s weird, thanks” before lyrically improv-ing his
way through the set. Their performance closed with a stunning and slow “New York (not sure
if that’s the name)” replete with a verse from Jay-Z’s monstrous hit “Empire State
of Mind”, serving as a nice transition towards Saturday, which will feature Jay-Z’s first
performance at the fest on the main stage this evening at 11:30 p.m.
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Bonnaroo Music Festival – 6/11/10 (Manchester, TN) View
Photos
Continue reading for Thursday’s recap and photos and stay tuned for more from Bonnaroo
tomorrow…
Be sure to check out our real-time Bonnaroo updates at http://www.jambase.com/bonnaroo
Bonnaroo Day One: Thursday, June 10th
Walking into Centeroo on Thursday is always a re-orientation of sorts
and it was nice to see the kindly Which Stage bobbleheads
decked out in World Cup jerseys and regalia for the big weekend.
Multiple inches of Wednesday and early Thursday rain created a muddy
environment, making veterans of the festival feel strangely at home.
As much as things change in Centeroo, notably, with the addition of
the bumpin’ new Lunar Stage, the vibe and layout of the
festival’s power center remains largely the same.
Bonnaroo 2010 got off to a roaring start as per usual on Thursday
afternoon with threatening skies clearing up just in time for
Baroness who brought their gritty refined brand of jam metal,
inflicting some bruise-inducing mosh madness at The Other Tent. These
guys look to be in it for the long haul and delivered a powerfully
gnashing set that was arguably the day’s best.
Miike Snow was unfortunately placed before dusk, but regardless an early club scene
thrived amongst the youthful crowd. With numerous
dance artists performing in the wee hours (where they belong), this
time placement may have been Bonnaroo’s biggest head scratcher of them all.
Blitzen Trapper by Dave Vann
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Local Natives’ harmonic indie pop was lost in the mix and
failed to meet expectations, especially after producing one of
the year’s finest albums (Gorilla Manor) earlier this year. An
unplanned (but expected) break in the action caused your faithful writer to miss out
on The Temper Trap, but we made it back in time to see
Blitzen Trapper crank things up, opening with “Black River
Killer” and “Wild Mountain Nation” to a crowd mostly unfamiliar with
the young band’s work. Blitzen gave people a delectable
array of tunes (including the set’s highlight “Furr”), spanning the
band’s varied catalogue and treating the Bonnaroo crowd to a few new
tunes off the band’s three-day old album Destroyer of the Void. A quick trot over
to the packed Lunar Stage was a trip to
take in, as thousands blew it out with the future sounds beaming from
the decent-sized stage newly situated between The Other Tent and That
Tent.
Lotus by Dave Vann
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Lotus stirred up a familiar air in the Bonnaroo
night, giving us Bonnaroo vets a taste of good ole jam flavor with a
surprisingly juiced up rock set. Night One as always introduced the
masses to a host of new bands and gave jam the band a long
overdue chance to perform for a large Roo late night crowd.
This
morning, festivarians were awakened to Primus’ “My Name Is Mud” from
the What Stage’s absurdly powerful P.A. system. How appropriate, Day
Two is underwayÂ…
p.s. As I’m typing this Dr. Dog is giving us media folks a
special acoustic set. Very, very appropriate lyrics flowing:
What a strange day, maybe I was dreaming, nothing seemed entirely
awake. What a strange night, it’s dancing with a candle, the atmosphere is
scandalous. We’re all in this together, as we all fall apart
Truer words never spoken? Happy Bonnaroo 2010!
JamBase | Manchester, TN
Check out our full Thursday Bonnaroo Photo Gallery below and keep up with the real-time
chatter on our Bonnaroo Page!
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Bonnaroo Music
Festival 2010 – Thursday View
Photos
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