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Just wanted to do a quick post on the few other videos I collected from the weekend.  It’s fairly random and mostly from the first two nights.  Security was tighter than tight (wow that’s a bad metaphor) on Friday and Saturday, which means there’s is no video of John Vanderslice, Vampire Weekend, Lackthereof, Blitzen Trapper, Fleet Foxes, Menomena or Helio Sequence (those last four bands all played at the same show Saturday night!  My face melted clear off and I still haven’t put it back together. I look worse than Joan Rivers).

I’m particularly upset about this because my final memory of MusicFest Northwest was Menomena coming out to play with Helio Sequence, a band they dubbed “The Helio Unsequence.”

Also Danny Seim is a world class fucking drummer.  I’m not sure you could definitively say he’s the best drummer right now, but between Menomena and Lackthereof, if you’re having that conversation it definitely starts with him.

Anyway, some video from the week that was.  We’ll have a final “thoughts” roundup about the fest with some photos to touch on all the good stuff.

1900’s

The 1900’s are a Chicago outfit and became one of my favorite acts. They have about seven members and sound similar to numerous tweepop bands like Belle and Sebastian or Camera Obscura, Essex Green, etc. However, their brand of psychpop with boy-girl harmonies and upbeat melodies was catchy as hell.

The played one extended jam to close their set and at times I kept thinking “wow they sorta remind me of Velvet Underground or Zombie.” Not that they were beholden to any of those influences, only that you could parse them. I’ll be keeping my eye on them, as I think they have a full length that’s out Oct. 2 from Parasol Records.

They played Berbati’s Pan and it was the first set I caught on Wednesday to kick things off. Great way to start.

M. Ward

Like Mr. M. Ward needs any introduction at this point. He closed Thursday night and delayed coming on by about 45 minutes. The crowd, usually patience reigns in Portland, became agitated with this and you could see it everywhere - the mumblings and grumblings, the loud cheering and clapping anytime the house music songs ended and the rapture when M. Ward finally strode out on stage.

He played songs from across his entire catalogue, played solo for a bit and I was shocked by how much he rocks out. His albums are generally quiet, contemplative affairs - even the uptempo tracks - but here he let loose just noodling his guitar and having fun.

I left a bit early to try and catch Starfucker and Deerhunter across town. My last mistake in trying to leave a show for another one. Needless to say, lines suck.

And this one got cut off unfortunately due to the ever vigilant security. *Sigh* Don’t they know?

Eskimo and Sons

These guys and gals are from Portland and only have one EP and a 7″ to their name, but it’s a gloriously awesome set of songs. Unfortunately, they are going on indefinite hiatus, well they are on hiatus as of Sunday morning. Saturday at the Towne Lounge was their last concert. I caught them on Thursday and it was an emotional show for all involved. They played with friends The Old Believers.

Bittersweet is the word. I’m glad I caught them though and hopefully they’ll come back under a different name or lineup or something. Too much enjoyment and talent involved to just walk away.

And the song “No Shit” which I incorrectly typoed as “No Shirt” when I uploaded the vidoe. Grrrrrr.

Okay, that’s it for video. We’ll be back with some closing thoughts on the rest of the bands we saw this past week, possibly tonight, as well as an open letter to Vampire Weekend. We hope the band might take some steps to alleviate what we would call their “fan base problem.” Unless they take steps they are going to become the next DMB with a fan base of 15 year-old girls and college asshat dudes. The crowd just about ruined their set for me. Just sayin’

Just wanted to point out two other great websites that have been covering the past week with photos, reviews and videos.  It’s also nice because Pampelmoose, which is run by Gang of Four bass player Dave Allen, has the best videos going - lots of behind the scenes and up close performances.  Also the Willamette Week, who organizes the festival has top notch coverage as well.  They also both seem to cover the shows we didn’t get to.  Obviously.

Britt Daniel is one of us.  Yeah sure, he’s the front man for Spoon and that makes him nothing like us on a certain level.  But seeing him kick around Portland at shows, whether it’s checking out White Rabbits or Los Compesinos!, I get the impression he’s one of us.

Wearing jeans, red chucks and t-shirts he blends in more than most of the crazy fashionistas here, except it’s Britt Daniel and he stands out because of who he is.  Still, I get the sense that Britt Daniel was the most popular guy in high school.  Not in that captain of the football team kind of way, but the kind of guy who floats between cliques, excels at everything, is loved by cheerleaders, teachers and moms alike.  He’s that guy.

And we’re all the better for it.  Nowhere were these traits on display more than during his solo set at Wonder Ballroom for MusicFest Northwest.  He was charismatic and coy, often laughing at his mistakes and having fun.  He came on the stage with a simple “thanks for coming to my show” (as if noone would show up?) before blasting into “The Beast and the Dragon, Adored.”

His set was rife with material from Ga Ga Ga Ga Ga, Gimme Fiction and Kill the Moonlight. But the highlights were the three new songs he debuted.  One was “Writing to You in Reverse,” a song Spoon played at Pitchfork Music Fest that’s been kicking around; the second had no name but it was an aggressive uptempo number in the vein of their Telephono days.  You could almost here the Pixies influence in the tune’s rawness.  Unfortunately, I didn’t get great video of the song; a shame because it was the best of the three.  Finally, he played “Who Backs Your Money?”

But over the course of the hour that he played there is no doubt that Britt Daniel is one of the biggest rock stars we have, even if he refuses to act like it.  His mini-set with Quasi/Sleater-Kinney drummer Janet Weiss was one of the highlights of the entire music fest, just an awesome surprise.

He left the stage with an even simpler slight wave of the hand and “goodbye.”  In five years I doubt I’ll remember most of the music I caught this week, but Britt Daniel solo isn’t one of them.

Mp3: Britt Daniel (w/Janet Weiss) - “Who Backs Your Money?” (new!)

Mp3: Britt Daniel - “Underdog”

Mp3: Britt Daniel - “The Beast and Dragon, Adored”

Mp3: Britt Daniel - “Something to Look Forward To”

More videos from the set after the jump.  MORE »