How Would We Know it is the End of Summer Without Bumbershoot?

A Preview of Bumbershoot This Weekend

            It’s that time of year again. It’s time for Seattleites to roll out of bed, walk through their gardens of pizza boxes and cans, and put on some clothes. Why, you ask? Because Summer is almost over and it is not only time for the sun to leave us for a sad majority of the year but also the time for people to get their lives together for the rest of the year. “But the sun is up, how do you know summer is over?” Because its almost labor day weekend, a weekend better known to Seattleites as One Reel’s Bumbershoot weekend. You don’t remember buying a ticket a few months ago in your sad excitement for summer! Well you did! At least, you most likely did.

Bumbershoot will again be held by the Needle with a new lineup to tell you what music you should be listening to next year (and in some cases, to remind you of the music you were listening to 5-10 years ago). It also has one big change from last year, which I am very excited for! The Mainstage will not be inside the Key Arena this year, but rather it will be outside. I am not sure how it is going to work, but this will most likely mean that there will be less 4 hour lines and less crying. I believe the two things are correlated.

(A Note From Jasmine, a person who edits this stuff sometimes: Traditionally the Mainstage has always been the Memorial Stadium where legendary performances have taken place. About two years ago the weirdest decision EVER was made when they switched to the Key and let’s just say, no person with ears was stoked about it. The Key, while admittedly a large room, has TERRIBLE acoustics and so everyone who has ever been to the outdoor Mainstage area is probably crying Real Tears about how great it is to return. It’s like coming home, but better because dope bands are going to be there playing music really loudly and selling merch. Seriously, though, I have felt Real Feelings when at the Memorial Stage and the reason is #1 because Death Cab for Cutie is kind of AMAZING and #2 because the sound is actually really great and it works so well to have people in the stands as well as down on the general floor area; it never seems overcrowded but you know you’re among friends.)

Like every year I expect Bumbershoot to have pretty good music, overpriced food, great comedy, and many people searching for great selfies!! The lineup this year is not quite as full of bands that I am familiar with as last year, but that could mean that it just did a better job of picking musicians that are very up and coming for the new school year. There are also quite a few bands that people will remember fondly like The Replacements and Bootsy Collins. This lineup seems to have something for everyone which is…pretty amazing, considering the vast and varying interests of the Seattle population.

Also, like every year Bumbershoot has done a great job of picking bands like Elvis Costello and Wu Tang Clan that many would give up 3 toes to see, and bands that have meticulously picked great names and will most likely become more popular next year like Craftspells!

KSUB Reporters Jasmine Schwartz, Shannon Phelps, and myself Marcus Shriver will be doing full coverage of our experience at Bumbershoot. We will be doing all the dirty work of seeing great bands and awful bands and most likely picking some new favorite bands by the end of it. Last year after seeing Thao & the Get Down Stay Down play live, I decided that she should be the performance standard for live musicians and I have not stopped listening to her since.  Another great find from last year was local Seattle rapper Dave B who threw a great, fun show.

This year I am most excited for the one and only Wu Tang Clan. I hope that all of the members show up, but I know that that has been a controversy lately, so we will see. Other bands that I have on my radar that I think are going to be great bands to watch at Bumbershoot as well as throughout the next year are as follows:

  1. Mac DeMarco. Fountain Lawn Stage. Saturday 5:15pm: I cannot talk to anyone in Seattle about music without hearing about Mac DeMarco. It has actually become quite irritating. Despite my mild to severe irritation, Mac DeMarco has done quite well for himself this year in becoming an indie folk househeld name. His music is great, with a great mixture of irony, beats, and unique vocals. There is no surprise in my mind that he will only get bigger, and I think that he may have the most filled stage at Bumbershoot.
  1. Kishi Bashi. Fisher Green Stage. Sunday 3pm: Kishi Bashi was recently brought to my attention by a friend of mine because of his wonderful way of mixing electronic sounds with folk music to make catchy music. His music is fun catchy, intriguing and also quite intricate due to his former life as a concert violinist.
  2. The Lonely Forest. Fountain Lawn Stage. Saturday 3:30pm: The Lonely Forest is known as one of Seattle’s best Alternative rock bands that never quite hit the big time. One of Chris Walla’s of Death Cab For Cuties disciple bands, The Lonely Forest has great energy, a bit of angst, and great lyrics. A day before Sasquatch this summer, The Lonely Forest announced that they will be breaking up. Their show at Bumbershoot will be one of their last shows. I have seen them live twice before and am quite distraught about them breaking up, but this show will certainly be one to remember.
  3. Gregory Alan Isakov. Starbucks Stage. Sunday 6:15pm: Gregory is indie folk music at its purest. With beautiful lyric based music surrounded by orchestral back music Gregory’s set will be one of the most relaxed. He has been pretty big in the music community since he started playing festivals about 2 years ago, but has stayed a bit more stagnant in popularity than a lot of bands in the indie folk genre. He will no doubt have a very genuine heart felt performance.
  4. LA LUZ. Fountain Lawn Stage. Monday 12:30pm: La Luz is Seattle music royalty. You cannot do anything musical in Seattle without it crossing ways with a member of La Luz, especially Lena Simon who is also heart of band KAIROS and a member of the all-star band Thunderpussy. La Luz plays a great show, and will make you wish you were on a beach forever.
  5. Hooray For the Riff Raff. Starbucks Stage. Monday 6:15pm: Hooray For the Riff Raff is one of the folkier bands at Bumbershoot. They have a banjo player and know how to use him. The singing is beautiful and the music is catchy. Hooray For the Riff Raff is just wonderful.
  6. Nada Surf. Fountain Lawn Stage. Monday 7pm: Nada Surf will undoubtedly be one of the punkiest bands here. With an interesting way of catching anger and pain in a genuine way, this alt rock band is hard to group with anyone else at Bumbershoot (which makes them a must see).
  7. Tangerine. End Zone Stage. Monday 7:15pm: If you don’t know who Tangerine is, stop reading this and read some other articles are our blog. WE WRITE THEM FOR A REASON, and it is not to take up internet space to fight the system. Anyway, Tangerine is a wonderful local Seattle band that will certainly have you dancing whether you want to or not. Their music classic feeling is very unique nowadays, and turns into a great show.
  1. Iska Dhaaf. Pavilion Stage. Saturday 5:30pm: Iska Dhaaf has conquered the Seattle Music scene, playing at almost all of the notable venues and festivals, while gaining quite a fan base in the process. They will be moving to New York this year, to conquer more music ground. I am interested to see the fan base they bring out as well as how confident they seem moving to New York. They could easily be popular in New York, but they could also be easily swallowed up by the size and saturation of New York’s music scene.
  2. Real Estate. Fountain Lawn Stage. Monday at 9pm: Real Estate is more indie folk! They have a calming voice and a great mixture of instruments that creates a soft sound to the ears. This band just makes me think of Instagram filters. Perfect for the Seattle crowd.

 

-Marcus Shriver / Your Travel Guide through the Poppy Fields / KSUB Reporter

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