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Pitchfork Fest Day 2 Highlights

July 16, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

After and eventful first day at Pitchfork 2017, we returned to Union Park for another full day of music. During the second day, we managed to watch more than ten bands, but here are the moments that stood out as the top five highlights!

Jeff Rosenstock Became Obsessed Over The Wave

Brooklyn based punk rocker Jeff Rosenstock had the crowd at The Red Stage getting rowdy before the clock struck 2PM on Saturday. From the get go, Rosenstock expressed his elation about his band being invited to play at Pitchfork, even joking at one point that the person who invited his band to play must have gotten fired. Early on in his set, Rosenstock requested that the huge crowd did the wave, shortly after asking, "What if we do a converging wave, and when it gets to the center, everyone just does spirit fingers?" (The crowd happily obliged again). Rosenstock kept the crowd hooked for the remainder of his set with his humorous stage presence and lighthearted songs that had the crowd screaming back the lyrics. If you didn't roll out of bed on time to see him yesterday, catch him tonight at The Beat Kitchen!

Cherry Glazerr Crawled On Stage

Los Angeles based rock band Cherry Glazzer played a very sold out show at Schubas Tavern on Friday in advance of their Pitchfork Fest performance, and as one of the buzziest bands around at the moment, it's no surprise The Blue Stage viewing area filled up quickly for their 2:45PM show. Known for her outlandish stage presence, lead singer Clementine Creevy entered the stage by crawling to her mic stand. As the performance continued, Creevy continued her boisterous antics, making faces at the crowd and working the entire stage. Definitely one of the most entertaining sets at Pitchfork so far, Cherry Glazerr is a band you don't want to miss live.

Mitski Was So Grateful She Almost Cried

"I can't thank you enough," Mitski told the crowd early on during her afternoon set, which followed Cherry Glazerr's show at The Blue Stage. Although she's quite the contrast to the over-the-top Cherry Glazerr set, Mitski drew in a massive crowd with her mellow narratives, which provided a nice break from the fast-paced day. Mitski first mesmerized the crowd with her soft, ethereal vocals, but quickly showed off her chops when the pace gradually picked up and she held out a roaring note towards the end of her set. Mitski reiterated her appreciation of the crowd saying, "This has been my dream since I was a little girl," her voice wavering with her thanks. If you missed Mitski's compelling set, she'll be back in October with The Pixies.

Francis Climbed a Tree

Francis Farewell Starlite, the man behind Francis and the Lights, has collaborated with everyone from Bon Iver, Kanye West, and Chance the Rapper, recently remixing his song "May I Have This Dance" with the latter. That new collaboration coupled with Chance's tendency to show up announced at Chicago festivals had the crowd buzzing with rumors about a Chancis (Francis + Chance) performance. Although Chance never did end up joining Francis during his set, Francis kept the crowd glued to him the entire time, darting around from one end of the empty stage to the next as he sang over his tracks like "See Her Out (Thats Just Life)" and "I Want You To Shake" from his debut album Farewell, Starlite! Towards the end of his set, Francis took the energy up a notch, climbing a rig on the side of the stage and eventually making his way over to a tree next to the stage to climb that. Francis's Pitchfork performance reinforced his captivating stage presence as a musician and as an entertainer.

A Tribe Called Quest Brought On Nostalgia

Although it's been a while since they've toured and the iconic 80's hip hop group lost one of their founding members Phife Dawg last year, when A Tribe Called Quest hit the stage at 8:30PM Saturday, the energy at Union Park reached an all time high. Festival goers of all ages could be spotted screaming the lyrics back to the stage, which was lit up by the constantly-changing graphics and videos designed for this farewell tour by A Tribe Called Quest. The remaining members of the tribe also paid tribute to Phife Dawg, leaving an empty mic stand on stage in his memory. The nostalgic performance wrapped up about two minutes before the noise curfew of the festival and left the crowd wandering out of the park in awe of the historic performance.

A Tribe Called Quest making their Chicago comeback

Day 2 also included incredible performances from Vagabon, PJ Harvey, Angel Olsen, and more. Stay tuned for a photo gallery of the whole weekend, featuring photos of performances across the entire weekend, and follow along on our socials for real time updates of the third and final day of Pitchfork!

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categories / Festival, Gigs, Reviews, Photos
tags / Pitchfork Music Festival, Music Festival, Photography, Jeff Rosenstock, Mitski, francis and the lights, A Tribe Called Quest, Cherry Glazerr

Pitchfork Fest Day 1 Highlights

July 15, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

Pitchfork Festival returned to its rightful place in Union Park yesterday on Friday, July 14th, and so begins one of the best festivals of the summer. Each year, Pitchfork Festival curators do an excellent job of placing some of the best up and coming acts on the Red, Green, and Blue stages at the three day event, but this year they also wrangled in massive headliners LCD Soundsystem, Solange, and A Tribe Called Quest. This year's line up also feels more diverse and wide-reaching with genre, drawing in a large crowd early on Friday afternoon. If you weren't among the masses last night, here's what you missed at P4K Day 1.

Priests Put On A Bright and Bold Performance

Prior to the festival, we compiled seven of our most anticipated acts, and of course it included Washington DC punk band Priests. Although they got stuck with the second performance of the festival at 1:45PM on Friday, a surprisingly large number of festival attendees managed to get out of work and to The Green Stage just in time. Lead singer Katie Alice Greer had the crowd instantly wrapped around her finger with her roaring vocals and magnetic stage presence. In addition to singing back the words of popular Priests songs like "JJ" and "Appropriate," the crowd also went wild when drummer Daniele Daniele multitasked on the drums and vocals during one of the songs. If you missed their wild and captivating performance yesterday, catch them tonight at Schubas! Tickets will still be available at the door, and show starts at 8:45 with Espejos.

Frontwoman Katie Alice Greer in her bright and bold Pitchfork getup

Phil Cook Rocked The Harmonica with Hiss Golden Messenger

Based in Durham, North Carolina, Hiss Golden Messenger is the brainchild of M.C Taylor, but on his records and live performances, you never know who will show up to lend a hand. In fact, on the Facebook page for Hiss Golden Messenger, under band members it just says "M.C Taylor + pals," and on Friday afternoon, Taylor's definitely brought his pals out to play. The collaborative set of folk and alt-country music featured the likes of Ryan Gustafson on guitar, Scott Hirsch on bass, and Phil Cook on the keys. Cook brought some character into the afternoon set, multitasking on the harmonica and keys at one point, which had the crowd going wild.

Vince Staples Promoted #WearOrange

This year, Pitchfork Festival has partnered up with organizations Everytown for Gun Safety and Mothers Against Senseless Killings to promote the campaign Wear Orange, to raise awareness of the senseless gun violence that plagues Chicago. Vince Staples took the stage at 4PM Friday and performed his entire set in front of an orange backdrop with orange stage lights, lending a hand to the campaign. In addition to his powerful backdrop, Staples had the crowd screaming back his lyrics and moving nonstop during his rowdy performance.

Frankie Cosmos Overflowed The Blue Stage

Another act on our list of can't miss performances this weekend, Frankie Cosmos and her band completely overpacked the area in front of The Blue Stage for their 5:15 PM show. As the smallest stage at the festival, The Blue Stage often gets crowded, but folks showed up early to soak in Frankie Cosmos' indie pop narratives, and the band gave it their all during each song. Keyboardist Lauren Martin danced while playing the keys and Frankie Cosmos (Greta Kline) enthusiastically played guitar, at one point dropping to the stage floor to ground all her energy into playing. If you missed their mesmerizing set, catch the band at SPACE in Evanston on September 30th!

Great Kline, AKA Frankie Cosmos playing her heart out

LCD Soundsystem Made It Smell Like Middle-Aged Sprit

Hands down the best set of the day, the seasoned musicians of LCD Soundsystem had the crowd grooving the whole time. Although they've been around for a while, the band still gave an incredibly enthusiastic performance, completely entrancing the audience. Lead singer James Murphy acknowledged their veteran status early on in the set joking "it smells like middle-aged spirit up here." In addition to the high-quality tunes, LCD Soundsystem's performance also featured topnotch production, with trippy effects added to their video projections on the big screen and of course--their trademark disco ball.

That's all for Day 1, but don't forget to follow along on our social media for some real time updates, and check back for day 2 highlights, as well as a photo gallery of the whole weekend!

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categories / Festival, Music, Photos, Reviews
tags / Pitchfork Music Festival, Priests, Frankie Cosmos, Hiss Golden Messenger, Music Festival, Chicago, P4K, Vince Staples, LCD Soundsystem

Post Animal and Co. Rocks the Pants off the Subterranean

July 12, 2017 / Kevin Sterne

“Playing Subterranean has been a long time coming for us,” said bassist and vocalist, Dalton Allison prior to his band, Post Animal, headlining the sold-out Wicker Park venue on Monday, July 10. The show was very much a homecoming for Allison, Jake Hirshland (guitar, keys, vocals), Matt Williams (guitar, vocals), Javi Reyes (guitar, vocals) and Wesley Toledo (drums)— who have been in the wet, sticky center of a summer-length, nationwide tour.

Presented by ANCHR Magazine & KickstandProductions, the 17+ show featured a full bill of five acts all in benefit of the ACLU. Right before Post Animal took stage, evening organizer and ANCHR editor, Rachel Zyzda, announced that the overzealous and very sweaty crowd had helped raise over $4,000.

The night had been slowly building to this celebratory moment. Revivalist pysch jams by Condor & Jaybird and Jude Shuma had the psychedelic-wallpaper-clad crowd bobbing and swaying like a lava lamp. To compliment the music, Olivia Oyamada, Emily Schexnayder and Haley Sumnicht (collaboratively known as EO Lightshow) used colored oils and overhead projectors (the same your teacher used in middle school) to cast drippy light and moving patterns on the stage backdrop. This mix of sound and visuals peaked with The Evening Attraction and Post Animal, each ratcheting the dials on their amps and the body temps of the tightly packed crowd.

The venue’s industrial fans did little to cool an enthusiastic head-banging and crowd-surfing group. By the time Post Animal took stage near 11pm, Subterranean was near bedlam. From the opening, riff-heavy stomper (from yet-to-be-released new album) to their heaviest song—by far—“You Were Not There” it was apparent Post Animal—and the crowd—were hell-bent on rocking out.

“In the last year, we’ve realized we wanted to lean more towards heavy rock and rock and roll,” said guitarist and keyboardist Jake Hirshland. “It’s kind of an identity change for us, not a huge change, but definitely a change in identity over the last year.” The shift is evident in their live show. Having seen the band for Water Activity shows at venues such as Schubas and Double Door, the transformation from swaying psychedelic rock to full on rock and roll is striking—but welcomed. All culminating in a Chicago show with enough energy to power an Edison bulb. Post Animal had the crowd in its hairy paw, with kids crowd surfing and romping into one another like moths to said bulb. Beads of sweat flung in the air as heads bobbed. And I left immediately after the closer—for it was long past my bedtime.

Those outside of Chicago can still catch Post Animal with The Evening Attraction on their current tour.

Can't get enough Post Animal? Check out the video for their latest single "Special Moment" below, and revisit our interview with them here.

Stay tuned for a full photo gallery of the benefit show by Jennifer Machuca

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categories / Reviews, Music, Gigs
tags / Post Animal, The Evening Attraction, Condor & Jaybird, Jude Shuma, Lucille Furs, SubT, ANCHR Presents, Kickstand Productions, ACLU Benefit, Kevin Sterne, Review

Summerfest Highlights: July 1st

July 03, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

With so many acts over the course of nearly two weeks, the highlights reel of Summerfest is endless. The festival kicked off June 28th, and headliners range from classics like Paul Simon and Tom Petty to new popstars like The Chainsmokers and Alessia Cara. With over ten stages, those are just the tip of the iceberg.

This past Saturday, we traveled to Milwaukee to get in on some of the fun by checking out the likes of The Naked and Famous and Bleachers. In case you missed it, here are the top three moments of that day, as well as the full photo gallery!

Flint Eastwood Called The Crowd Out

I've only had to privilege of seeing Flint Eastwood perform twice now, but both times, she's blown me away with her endless supply of positive energy. Some performers, especially those at festivals, accept the fact that the whole crowd isn't there to see them, but Jax Anderson (Flint Eastwood's real name) doesn't let anyone use that as excuse to not get involved with the music. "Nobody is too cool for this," Anderson addressed the Milwaukee crowd, encouraging everyone to stand up, put their hands up, and sing the hook of her song "Monster" back to her. "We're going for loud, not pretty," Anderson also told the Summerfest audience, encouraging everyone to give as much energy as possible. By the end of the set, everyone had loosened up and reciprocated the energy that Anderson exudes during every single one of her shows.

MUNA Performed New Songs

The trio MUNA were everywhere last summer, playing major festivals like Lollapalooza and touring with Børns...and it doesn't seem to be slowing down this year. Fronted by Chicagoan Katie Gavin, the now LA-based group also consisting of Josette Maskin and Naomi McPherson are on the road with Bleachers currently, and they will be out with Harry Styles in the fall (no big deal). Despite their insane touring schedule, Gavin introduced two of their songs performed during Summerfest as new ones, called "In My Way" and "Loser." MUNA's debut album just came out in February, so as a big fan of their work, it's pretty exciting to hear there's already new material in the works.

Bleachers Reminisced...and Then Stripped

Shortly before Jack Antonoff's band Bleachers took the stage as headliners on Saturday night, Michelle from FM 1021 (the local alternative station) introduced them, reminding the crowd that Bleachers had played one of their first ever shows at Summefest 2014. Well, Michelle isn't the only one that remembers that performance...about halfway through their set, Antonoff recalled bandmate Mikey taking his sweatshirt off during the 2014 set and the crowd going wild. Mikey proceeded to take off his jacket, getting the same rowdy response this time around. The band also performed new songs from the latest Bleachers album, Gone Now.

Photo gallery of The Naked and Famous, Flint Eastwood, Calum Scott, MUNA, and Bleachers.

Summerfest is still going on through July 9th. Grab tickets and checkout the lineup here.

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categories / Festival, Gigs, Music, Photos, Reviews
tags / Summerfest, Music Festival, Bleachers, Muna, Flint Eastwood, The Naked and Famous, Calum Scott, Live Review, Concert Photography, Photography, Photo Gallery

LIVE: (Sandy) Alex G with Japanese Breakfast and CENDE at Bottom Lounge

June 30, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

Collaborations and (unexpected) crowd surfing seemed to be a common theme at Wednesday night’s sold out (Sandy) Alex G concert at Bottom Lounge. Kicking things off, Brooklyn based CENDE got the early crowd warmed up. Towards the tail end of their set, they brought out Michelle Zauner of Japanese Breakfast for the first cross-lineup collaboration of the evening.

After CENDE left the stage, the room continued to fill in as Zauner and her band quickly set up for their own set. When 7:30 struck, an undeniable wave of energy swept through the room during the first notes of Japanese Breakfast’s introductory song. The crowd remained attentive and supportive as the band moved through their performance of old favorites and new tunes taken from the upcoming album Soft Sounds From Another Planet, out July 14th on Dead Oceans. Zauner introduced one of the new ones, “Road Head,” about halfway through the set, which got the crowd cheering and intrigued by the title. Zauner also set the scene for Japanese Breakfast’s latest single “Boyish”, telling the crowd to imagine you were at prom with a disco ball illuminating the room, and your crush makes a beeline for you...only to pick the person next you. During this friend-zone anthem, Zauner’s dreamy vocals rang out, her blunt and relatable lyrics echoing through the venue. The mellow mood picked back up with the viral song “Everybody Wants To Love You,” with the crowd screaming along to the call-and-response style chorus and moshing. As Zauner gave a shout out to CENDE and (Sandy) Alex G for being the best tour mates before leaving the stage, the crowd displayed an unwavering display of appreciation for Zauner’s heartfelt narratives and easygoing stage presence.

Lightening things up and taking the energy to another level, (Sandy) Alex G and his band took the stage to “Life is a Highway” around 8:30PM, and the crowd packed in even closer to the stage. “Judge” from the new album Rocket led the formal setlist of the evening, with Giannascoli (the full name behind ‘G’) starting off standing center stage with his guitar. The violinist of the group joined Giannascoli in his center-stage spot during the third song of the evening “Bobby,” which he released as a co-lead single with “Witch” back in March. Shortly after performing both of these debut singles from Rocket, Giannascoli moved over to the keyboard posted up next to his mic stand to perform a few tracks from his 2015 album Beach Music, like "Bug" and "Kicker." As the set progressed, the energy of the crowd only amplified, with Giannascoli hopping down from the stage at one point to join his fans in the pit, and some of the audience crowd surfing. Although he has diverse sonic range that goes everywhere from lo-fi to country, an Alex G concert is one of the last shows you’d expect to see crowd surfers. The performance drafted such an electric energy that it didn't exactly feel out of place, though.

At just about 9:30, Giannascoli and his bandmates left the stage, part one of the set drawing to a close. The group soon returned for a request-based encore, including crowd favorite “Brite Boy,” which guest starred Zauner of Japanese Breakfast again. The fact that the group is able to take requests and keep the setlist fresh for each show displays their raw talent and steep musicianship.

To ensure you don’t miss out on your own unique (Sandy) Alex G set, spiked with collaborations from the equally brilliant Japanese Breakfast and CENDE, head here to get tickets to the remainder of the tour! To hold you over until these bands make their return to Chicago, check out the photo galleries below.

Japanese Breakfast

(Sandy) Alex G

Listen to Rocket here:

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categories / Gigs, Music, Reviews
tags / Sandy Alex G, Alex G, Japanese Breakfast, CENDE, Concert Photography, Photo Set, Photos

LIVE: Elliot Moss at Baby's All Right 6.24.17

June 27, 2017 / Gabriela Cocco

Multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, and producer Elliot Moss graced the stage at the legendary Baby’s All Right in Brooklyn, New York on Saturday night. As soon as you walked into the 280-person venue, an eerie yet calming sense hung in the air, a vibe that closely matches the mood in some of Moss's tunes. The singer has described his main goal as taking the listener through an unworldly experience, and Moss did just that this past weekend, using his electro-pop sound and ethereal vocals. Throughout the night, he kept the talking to a minimum and focused on delivering a show that left the audience hanging onto every chorus and craving more.

Kicking things off with “High Speeds” from his debut album, Moss quickly opened up, revealing himself in his songs. Raw, unfiltered emotion comes through in all of his songs, especially during a live performance. With his endless talents, Moss effortlessly goes through each song with his piano and guitar with such passion, that it’s hard to not feel the same emotions he tries to portray through his songwriting. Song’s such as “Even Great Things” and “Slip” deal with issues such as the loss of a loved one and depression. Although the topics are dark, Moss delivers it in a way that shows both sides to each situation, and he's managed to turn the pain into a way for his listeners to cope.

Moss's therapeutic and hypnotizing set consisted of songs from both his first album “High Speeds” as well as his new EP “Boomerang”. By the end of the night, the crowd was begging for an encore. Once again, Moss did not disappoint and delivered with “I Can’t Swim” and “VCR Machine”.

Leaving the venue, the room buzzed with positive remarks about the performance that had just transpired. There is no doubt that there are only good things coming for Moss this year as he continues to tour. You can check him out on the rest of his tour here.

The Set List

Highspeeds
Faraday Cage
Closed Loop
Falling Down and Getting Hurt
Plastic II
Even Great Things
Slip
Best Light
99
About Time
Big Bad Wolf
Without the Lights
I Can’t Swim
VCR Machine

Can't get enough of Elliot Moss? Check out our interview with him here.

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categories / Gigs, Reviews
tags / Elliot Moss, Live, Gig Review, Gigs We Dig, Baby's All Right, NYC, Contributors

Eaux Claires Day 2: The Highlights

June 18, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

The second day at Eaux Claires 2017 carried even more collaborations and improvisations, which make up the core of the festival. Although there had been a potential thunderstorm brewing all day, the rain held off until the evening, which is when the festival organizers had to improvise with the schedule. Tune in to find out which artists teamed up on Saturday, who played surprise sets, and how the fest made up for the change in schedule.

The Creek Acted as a Collaboration Hub

Just like Day 1, The Creek stage opened on Saturday with a People Mixtape set. The second volume of People Mixtape remained instrumental and came across as a genuine jam session between friends (which is what a lot of the performances at Eaux Claires really are). After entrancing the group with the 1PM mixtape set, Aaron Dessner and Justin Vernon returned to same stage only a couple of hours later, to perform as Big Red Machine. For this collaborative set, Dessner and Vernon were joined by even more of the acts playing the festival, like s-t-a-r-g-a-z-e and Mouse on Mars. With their jam-packed line up and debut of new music, Big Red Machine was able to draw a huge crowd to one of the festival's smaller stages.

Eaux Claires curators Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner performing People Mixtape Vol. 2

The Sad Saxes Joined This Is The Kit

This Is The Kit once again made it onto the highlights list. After an incredible performance at the Flambeaux stage on Day 1, This Is The Kit now moved their set into the woods at The Oxbeaux Stage on Saturday. Once again joined by Aaron Dessner, the three piece of Kate Stables, Rozi Plain, and Jamie Whitby-Coles were also joined by The Sad Saxes. Although the two groups were working together on the fly, with Stables at one point explaining to the saxophone choir how she envisioned their contribution, the collaboration paired perfectly and sounded well-rehearsed. At Eaux Claires, there's never any shortage of really talented musicians going with the flow to make something special together. At the end of the mesmerizing set, the crowd gave a standing ovation.

Kate Stables of This Is The Kit performing at The Oxbeaux

Jenny Lewis Packed the Sparreaux Stage

Featured as an "Artist in Residence," Jenny Lewis was never officially on the 2017 lineup. On Friday, a set named "Jenny Lewis and Friends" appeared unannounced in the app, set to occur at 3:30 on one of the smallest stages, the Sparreaux stage. Well before the start of the set, an overflowing crowd camped out to be able to see this special, last-minute set. Lewis described herself and her friends as "Hawaiian psychedelic swing band" from Minneapolis, called Econo Lodge. The set opened with an improvised performance before moving into the crowd favorite "Just One Of The Guys."

Feist Played Her Entire New Album

Shortly before Feist was set to take the stage, Eaux Claires narrator Michael Perry took the stage to announce a change in schedule. "There's only one thing we care about more than art," he said, adding that they would be improvising some schedule changes due to safety concerns with the incoming storms. Feist ended up getting a 15 minute extension on her set, which she used to play her new album Pleasure from start to finish. Between the songs, Feist would explain her vision behind the lyrics and compositions, vividly describing one song as the chase scene in a movie. She ended her set by singing out her appreciation for the crowd and her excitement over seeing Paul Simon perform later.

The App Revealed Paul Simon and yMusic's Set List

Paul Simon's set at the festival acted as the debut performance of a collaboration with yMusic. Although this set had originally been bumped up to 7:30 from 8:30 with the oncoming storms, a downpour hit the festival during Danny Brown's set. When Simon and the yMusic ensemble eventually took the stage around 8PM, the official festival app paired with the setlist, announcing the songs as they started. Similarly to Bon Iver's performance last year, festival goers were able to keep up with the order of songs in real time.

The Festival Organized an After Party After Wilco

The collaborations and surprises don't end there--Day 2 also featured a set from Field Report at The Decorum, and after a stunning performance from Wilco that closed out the festival, it was announced on Bon Iver's Twitter that some of the evening's cancelled performances from the smaller stages were being moved to the Lismore Hotel in downtown Eau Claire. Sets at The Lismore included Mouse on Mars and Velvet Negroni.

While the festival may be over for this year, we'll soon be posting photo galleries and interviews with The Autumn Defense and This Is The Kit from the weekend. Stay tuned for those and start counting down the days until Eaux Claires 2018!

Words and Photos by Rachel Zyzda

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categories / Photos, Gigs, Festival, Reviews
tags / Eaux Claires, Music Festival, Justin Vernon, Aaron Dessner, Wilco, Feist, Jenny Lewis, Paul Simon, Field Report, This is the Kit

Eaux Claires Day 1: The Highlights

June 17, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

On Friday, June 16th Wisconsin's beloved Eaux Claires festival returned in full force, with its signature artist collaborations, surprise sets, and art installations involving crowd participation. Although there were many highlights, Friday undoubtedly belonged to Francis (of Francis and The Lights). Read on to find out what surprises day one entailed, which traditions carried on, and how Francis stole the show with not one, but four appearances.

Early Arrivers Got a Special Show at The Creek

If you're an EXC veteran, you know that the formal schedule is never really the full list of all of the performances, and that live collaborations and guest performers are what make Eaux Claires so special. So naturally, going into day 1, the 12:15 slot on The Creek Stage labeled as "People Mixtape Vol. 1" sparked some curiosity. Sure enough, at 11:45 the app sent out a notification that the performance would include Justin Vernon and Aaron Dessner, the curators of the fest. (Side note: if you read our preview of Eaux Claires, you know that the app is a must.) The intimate set for the early festival arrivers featured what Vernon and Dessner described as a "work in progress," but the performance went over so smoothly. Francis also joined the band for the first half of the set, disappearing towards the end for a reason that was also revealed in the app notifications.

Justin Vernon performing during People Mixtape Vol. 1

Francis Gave A Dance Lesson

As noted earlier, the app sent out another notification before the end of the People Mixtape performance, alerting festival goers that Francis would be teaching dance at The Decorum stage at 1 PM. The roughly 45 minute performance featured an introduction with the house dance team of the festival, delivering a moving, beautiful, and entertaining opening number. Following up their opening moves, Francis himself took the stage to many cheers to teach the crowd the "Friends" and "May I Have This Dance" dances. The crowd loved it and happy obliged after Francis instructed them to try the moved featured in these songs. This performance represents a perfect example of why Eaux Claires stands out from any other festival...the spur of the moment, unique experience added some unexpected fun into many of the festival-goers days.

This Is The Kit Teased Their New Album

The Bristol-born, Paris-based This Is The Kit provided some soothing early afternoon tunes on the Flamebeaux stage. During their set, the frontwoman Kate Stables mentioned the band's upcoming album Moonshine Freeze will be out July 7th, and they performed some of the new tracks like "Bulletproof" and the title track "Moonshine Freeze." Aaron Dessner also joined the band onstage, as he had produced their previous record and helped out by playing on the upcoming record. If you missed out of their brilliant performance yesterday, catch them again today at 2PM on the Oxbeaux Stage.

Eaux Claires curator Aaron Dessner joins This Is The Kit

Francis Asked The Crowd To Have This Dance

As the Eaux Claires evening set in, the crowd got ready for a full Francis and the Lights performance back on The Creek stage. By far one of the most packed performances of the day, the set easily could have taken place on one of the main stages, but the more intimate setting made for an incredible experience. Although the set started off slow, with Francis sitting at his keyboard, he got things moving about 15 minutes in, working the entire stage, which includes two ramps on the side. Last year, Francis closed out the festival, debuting "Friends" with Justin Vernon and a surprise appearance from Chance The Rapper. This year, he brought up his choreographer to the stage, and the crowd still went wild for the viral song. Closing out his set, Francis played his other crowd favorite "May I Have This Dance," asking some lucky audience members if they'd like to join him on stage. Definitely a once in a lifetime experience, the impromptu backup dancers were all smiles when the song finished. Francis was such a hit with his overflowing crowd that they even demanded an encore and he obliged.

Impromptu dance party during Francis and the Lights

Justin Vernon Got Pissed Off About Balloons

Following Francis's set, everyone rushed to the main stage, Lake Eaux Lune, to see the set officially labeled "Bon Iver Presents John Prine & The American Songbook." The nearly 2 hour set featured all sorts of live collaborations, surprise guests, rain...and balloons. Towards the start of the set after Jenny Lewis and Mountain Man had joined Justin Vernon onstage, Vernon called out the many balloons floating around in the crowd, admitting that they were pissing him off, if he's being honest. Despite his annoyance with the balloons, Vernon continued to deliver a magical set with the likes of The Staves, Field Report, This Is The Kit, Spank Rock...and John Prine himself. Although it started to downpour towards the end of the set, nothing could put a damper of this special performance.

Chance Closed Out The Night With Friends

Last year, Chance attended Eaux Claires via sneak attack, showing up unannounced for the very end of Francis and the Lights' set, where we saw Chance, Francis, and Justin Vernon perform "Friends" (including the epic dance moves). This year, Chance came in full force, with his backing band The Social Experiment and a big-scale production. Just about halfway through his performance, Chance flipped the script on last year's performance of "Friends," this time inviting Francis and Justin to join his set for the performance. Before we witnessed this Eaux Claires tradition, Francis first joined Chance to perform their remix collaboration of Francis's song "May I Have This Dance," followed by "Summer Friends." After his guests left the stage, Chance continued his massive show, which included confetti during his hit "No Problem." The most special part of Chance's show was that despite the huge crowd and full blown production backing him, he performed graciously and humbly.

Chance is joined by Justine Vernon and Francis

Stay tuned for Day 2 highlights and a full gallery of all the highlights from the festival. As always, follow along on our social media for live updates throughout the day.

Word and Photos by Rachel Zyzda

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categories / Gigs, Photos, Reviews
tags / Eaux Claires, Justin Vernon, Aaron Dessner, Highlights, Festival, chance the rapper, Francis and The Lights, This is the Kit, John Prine, Concert Photography

OXBEAUX 2017: A Prex Claires Kick Off At The Oxbow Hotel Featuring The Shouting Matches and More

June 16, 2017 / Rachel Zyzda

Last night the town of Eau Claire got ready for the third annual Eaux Claires Festival (AKA TROIX) with four incredible bands, all performing in the parking lot of the new Oxbow Hotel. Kicking off the evening, EC’s very own trio Idle Empress took the stage promptly at 7:30 PM, playing a half hour set. Fronted by Laura Anderson, the band performed their hypnotizing indie tunes, Anderson’s haunting vocals striking the evening crowd. After a short stage change, Minneapolis’s DEM YUUT took the stage right around 8:20, the band’s frontman beginning to sing their opening song off stage. Their loop-heavy electronic-tinged indie music possessed traces of Sir Sly and The Neighbourhood influences, yet their songs all packed a refreshing and unique twist. Check them out next month on tour with Now, Now.

Taking us towards the end of the evening, Milwaukee’s own Field Report made their comeback on the Oxbow Hotel stage. Although the band mentioned it had been a while and they only recently started playing again after they’d been on hiatus, the four band members exuded a complete sense of comfort and ease playing together. Their performance had an air of effortlessness, yet it was still packed with passion and entranced the entire crowd. Closing out the night, The Shouting Matches graced the stage with one of their rare live performances. The legendary trio of Phil Cook, Brian Moen, and Justin Vernon became a foursome with musician Jill Heinke joining them onstage, and together they ended the evening in epic fashion. Although Cook and Vernon joked that they didn't practice much when they had to re-intro a song, their set had a magnetic, magical energy to it, similar to the vibes at Eaux Claires Festival. The crowd remained hooked and eager for more during The Shouting Matches 45 minute set, which acted as the perfect teaser for the weekend ahead.

Check out our photo galleries of each of the bands at the OXBEAUX event last night, then keep your eyes on all of ANCHR's socials this weekend for more coverage of TROIX.

Idle Empress

DEM YUUT

Field Report

The Shouting Matches

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categories / Photos, Gigs, Festival, Reviews
tags / OXBEAUX, TROIX, Eaux Claires, The Shouting Matches, Idle Empress, DEM YUUT, Field Report

Gang of Youths Deliver a Raw and Wonderful Performance in Minneapolis 6/6/17

June 09, 2017 / Morgan Winston

Gang of Youths’ Minneapolis show this past Tuesday was one of the most raw, honest and wonderful shows I have ever been to. The smaller crowd and venue allowed for an extremely powerful connection between frontman David Le'aupepe and the audience.

Opening their set with their newest single “What Can I Do If The Fire Goes Out”, the band arrived in full force. This song teases their sophomore album and stays true to their quick and flashing guitar lines and pounding drums. The softer tones of their loud alt-rock music provides an excellent platform for Le’apepe’s lyrics, without which their meaning might be lost beneath the noise. Le’apepe took the time to explain nearly every song to the crowd, giving each one an important weight. It’s easy to get lost in their catchy anthem songs, but this show gave me the chance to step back and really understand the lyrics.

Many of the themes in their debut album The Positions, released in 2015, deal with Le’apepe’s experiences with his former wife’s cancer and his trying personal experiences. “Knuckles White Dry” gave Le’apepe the chance to share one of the most trying times in his life with the audience while the rest of the band ceased playing. This is a man that examines the entire spectrum of humanity and remains so grounded while doing so.

Much to my excitement, they played three new songs that I assume will be included in the second album. Le’apepe joked with the audience about playing the same songs for four years and expressed the band’s need for variety. After these new songs, Le’apepe quoted Charles Bukowski, “as the spirit wanes the form appears”. This quote served as the inspiration for their song “Do Not Let Your Spirit Wane”, a nine minute triumph of profound lyrics, airy guitar and complex layering. I willingly got lost in it.

At the conclusion of their set, Gang of Youths returned to their hits “Magnolia” and “Radioface." Le’apepe’s presence became more playful, leaving the stage to dance with the audience and suggestively shaking his hips and beating his hand in time with the music. I think that “Radioface” live was an amazing improvement on their recorded version. The grittier live sound accompanied Le’apepe’s desperate singing to create an amazing atmosphere to close out the night. He made sure to thank the crowd for making the venue feel full, and I left the show more in awe of this band than before.