Langerado Day Three | Lazy Sunday Can Rock
Story by:
Marc Whitman
The third and final day of the Langerado Music Festival was a mix of mellow good times, even sunnier weather, and some rockin’ evening sets.
Photo round-up after the jump…
The name of the game for us today was checking out the new stuff. Unfortunately, one of the groups I was super excited to see, Rodrigo y Gabriela, canceled last-minute and was replaced by a band called the Lee Boys. They were very similar in sound to Robert Randolph & the Family Band and definitely a fun replacement, especially since I really love the pedal steel.
Lee Boys:
We grooved for a bit, but decided that Toots & the Maytals might lift our spirits a bit better.
Toots & the Maytals:
Although we missed our chance for better photos, the music was high energy reggae and soul that perfectly captured the sunny day and happy vibe.
We also ran into Leopard-print Elvis:
Keepin’ with the musical exploration, we checked out Cat Power and Dirty Delta Blues…
This woman has a really beautiful voice and was backed by some country-tinged blues musicians that were very tasteful. They rocked out some interesting cover versions of “Satisfaction” (Rolling Stones) and “Crazy” (Gnarls Barkley) that were completely different than the originals.
Much of the set was on the mellow side, and gave us a chance to enjoy a seat in the sun. Some other folks also had the “lazy Sunday” vibe.
Monkeys in trees:
We stuck around the Swamp Tent and checked out the instrumental rock band that has all the indie music blogs going nuts: Explosions in the Sky
They had a cool sound that layered various distorted and effects-laden guitars into a giant wash of sound. Not sure if this was quite what folks wanted at Langerado, but it was definitely something new that I’d like to give another listen.
Then it was onto the big Southern-style party that is Widespread Panic:
They went back to the old-school and played a rockin’ version “Space Wrangler” that had the crowd going nuts.
I saw several shirts representing Mr. Dave Schools, WSP’s bassman. He laid down some thick basslines and fills…and still managed a few smokes:
Widespread was really rockin, but as I said, the name of the game was checkin’ out new music, so we decided to move on from the more familiar WSP and see what the hell was in store at the Swamp Tent….
And man, was it swampy/sweaty. Girl Talk is really just a guy with a laptop rocking out on a DJ platform. But by the time we made it over, he head worked up the tent into a frenzy, even joining him on his little stage. This guy pieces together and mashes up just about every famous pop song from the 70s through the 90s. You gotta hear it to really understand, but it’s just pure nostalgia and a ton of fun.
After Girl Talk came the New Pornographers, who I’ve been getting more into lately…They opened with one of their tunes I really dig, “Sing Me Spanish Techno” (now officially stuck in my head)…
Right before they came on I chatted with the security guard who asked me if this was one of those bands that played music where you can’t tell where one song ends and another begins (Disco Biscuits reference perhaps?). Anyways, I told him they definitely had songs and that I didn’t think they’d break out any trance fusion jams. The New Pornos are a solid rock band that mixes up the vocal arrangements and instrumentation really nicely…
They played a solid set, but it was definitely much less packed and nuts than I’d seen the Swamp Tent the night before for the Biscuits. Widespread Panic was clearly the big draw on Sunday, so we caught the tail end of their set which rocked out to close an amazing day.
We did a little night-time clowning at the festival sign for good measure before heading off to get some much-needed rest and relaxation…
It was a hell of a weekend of good tunes, great vibes, and amazing weather, but I’m pretty darn spent. After a little R&R and some time to let all the events soak in, we’ll have some more thoughts on Langerado, so stay tuned…
ahhh…the tree of life. that tree was the place to be.
ahhh…the tree of life. that tree was the place to be.
I’d just like to post for the record that although Explosions may not have been what the Langerado crowd “wanted” at first, they definitely wanted more. I was up front and people were genuinely entranced. The band was so tight and the music was some of the deepest most riveting things I’ve ever experienced. The only way to explain the set is to imagine a band shooting off musical fireworks that seemed to go up and up for ever and, well, explode in the sky. This wasn’t faux-psychedelic laid back cathodic trance nonsense, their set had real energy and I’d see them again anyday. I was really conflicted about missing an hour of WSP (I’m a Jimmy Herring fanatic) but wow, EITS was nuts. The crowd was in an uproar after the last song, so much so that the band came out from the back just to take it all in and give a few last goodbye waves, obviously apologizing for the lack of a much needed encore.
Speaking of much needed encore, how funny was it when people pelted that girl with glowsticks after WSP? Mean maybe, but still funny (and relatively harmless). She came out to apologize for the lack of an encore and said something about this being a “cool way to end Langerado” and hundreds of those little soft glowsticks pelted the stage (and the girl).
The glowstick war continued into the night, for all us campsite warriors.
I’d just like to post for the record that although Explosions may not have been what the Langerado crowd “wanted” at first, they definitely wanted more. I was up front and people were genuinely entranced. The band was so tight and the music was some of the deepest most riveting things I’ve ever experienced. The only way to explain the set is to imagine a band shooting off musical fireworks that seemed to go up and up for ever and, well, explode in the sky. This wasn’t faux-psychedelic laid back cathodic trance nonsense, their set had real energy and I’d see them again anyday. I was really conflicted about missing an hour of WSP (I’m a Jimmy Herring fanatic) but wow, EITS was nuts. The crowd was in an uproar after the last song, so much so that the band came out from the back just to take it all in and give a few last goodbye waves, obviously apologizing for the lack of a much needed encore.
Speaking of much needed encore, how funny was it when people pelted that girl with glowsticks after WSP? Mean maybe, but still funny (and relatively harmless). She came out to apologize for the lack of an encore and said something about this being a “cool way to end Langerado” and hundreds of those little soft glowsticks pelted the stage (and the girl).
The glowstick war continued into the night, for all us campsite warriors.
sorry you missed Taj. My first time seeing him and glad I did. He’s a great showman as well as musician. Great time. And two days later, am still missing it.
sorry you missed Taj. My first time seeing him and glad I did. He’s a great showman as well as musician. Great time. And two days later, am still missing it.