Rhett Miller of the Old 97'sFor a lot more photos check out my Flickr Account (http://www.flickr.com/photos/dukeufo/) I didn't have a photo pass, so I took all these with a standard digital camera (no detachable lens).
As you may remember, I decided at the last minute to go to the first Stagecoach festival. The country/roots music festival took place May 5th and 6th on the Polo fields in Indio (which hosted Coachella the previous weekend). Coachella’s gotten a little overblown for me. Given the crowds and frustrations I’ve had with Coachella, I went into Stagecoach a bit apprehensive.
My girlfriend and I left the Eagle Rock area around 10:20 AM Saturday (about 20 minutes later than planned). Our goal was to see the Old 97’s at 1:45 PM. We experienced absolutely zero traffic. Eerily fast. We arrived in Indio around 12:20 PM and stopped for a restroom break and small snack. As we drove towards the Polo field, we kept expecting traffic jams. Finally, when we got to the part with one lane, we hit some LA type traffic. By the time we parked and arrived at the Will Call window it was about 1:15. After some minor snafus with our tickets, we finally got in and made our way to the Palomino Stage (if there were corporate sponsors, this would be the No Depression stage).
As we approached the stage, we noticed that most of the people in the crowd were sitting in lawn chairs. We walked straight to the front and stood against the barricade. One woman complained that we were blocking her view, but since when can you set up a lawn chair at a music festival and expect to have an unobstructed view? Give me a break. When you can get front row at a big festival you’ve got to take it. There were some hardcore fans next to us who pumped their fists throughout the entire show. I was disappointed that they didn’t play anything off of Fight Songs, but they still sounded really good. Rhett had his arm swinging wildly and looked like Evan Dando with his shirt unbuttoned below his man boobs. We also had fun watching the guitar tech who had to contend with a bad cable and a broken strings. All in all, it was a nice way to start the fest.
Next up (conveniently on the same, No Depression stage) was Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson. As a founding member of the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers, I obviously have a huge amount of respect for Hillman. He didn’t disappoint. The set was mellow and heavy on traditional songs (Hillman got his start playing the mandolin in bluegrass bands). It was great to hear “Sin City” and see Pamela Des Barres dancing in front of the stage. Thinking about Hillman and Gram Parsons sitting around writing songs made me very happy. The day was getting better. We stayed put and watched as Richie Furay took the stage. Instead of having Hillman and Pederson as his backup band (as billed), Furay had his family. Since I was never a big Poco fan, we were hoping for some Buffalo Springfield. After a few songs we headed for some shade, snacks and a drink. At Stagecoach you can walk the grounds with drinks in hand. I don’t remember being able to do that at Coachella.
We ended up running into friends, walking over to the other stages and getting some barbeque. We totally missed Raul Malo. Observations? Stagecoach is family friendly and has stages and activities specifically geared to kids. At Stagecoach, hipsters stand out like your Grandma at Cinespace on a Tuesday night. The Mane Stage should be renamed the NASCAR Stage. Some of the new country singers have songs that could easily be South Park spoofs (“I went down to the monster truck show.”) Female artists have a much larger presence at Stagecoach than KROQ’s Dong Roast. There are a lot of brown gals, but not so many brown dudes. They had a museum area with some classic Nudie suits and Manuel shirts. And to paraphrase David Yow (Scratch Acid, Jesus Lizard, Qui): there’s nothing sexier than a girl in cowboy boots.
Lucinda Williams went on the No Depression stage at 6:00PM. The weather was pleasant all day, so the Coachella fatigue had not set in. Lucinda’s a rock star, and you get the feeling that her day probably usually begins around 6:00PM. In spite of that, she sounded great. From the front row, you could tell she references her lyric book fairly regularly. It didn’t bother me because her voice is so soulful and her band is so good. Doug Pettibone could play guitar with anybody. She sang one new song about her man spraying honey all over her tummy and in her hair. She’s got so much more punk rock attitude than you.
The only real hiccup (for me) in the festival came next. Willie Nelson followed Lucinda on the No Depression stage. Obviously he’s Willie and probably should have played the main (Mane) stage. It started to get really packed…much more than at any other time during the day. I wanted to snap some photos, so I pushed up a little. I ended up behind some douchebag with some big friends. This guy was a little old and a little drunk. But he had some big friends. As Willie was up there singing “Whiskey River” and “Crazy” this guy was trying to start shit with everybody. He finally got one military looking guy to take the bait. The old dude pushed the young military dude and the military dude couldn’t believe. “I just want to watch Willie, are you serious?” “F--- Yeah I’m serious.” And then the old dudes’ friends swept in. I didn’t stick around to see what happened next. I’d seen Willie last year at the Bowl and kinda knew what I was in for. Willie’s a legend, but he tends to sleepwalk through his sets. This audience didn’t seem to respect the laid back party vibe, so I headed for the relative comforts of the VIP area.
When I lived in Austin I heard a lot about Robert Earl Keen. He’s a legend in the Texas music world. Being completely ignorant, I always wrongly assumed that he was a bit of a backwards redneck. Stagecoach set me straight. He’s the kind of guy that can write/sing a really sensitive tune and then follow it up with a barroom anthem. After witnessing his phenomenal connection with his fans, I finally see why he’s so popular. And judging by his willingness to pose for photos after his set (see the Flick photos) he seems like a super nice guy. Shame on me for writing him off before I knew more.
The final performer of the night (but not the headliner, Willie was the headliner) on the No Deprssion stage was Neko Case. I love her singing on the New Pornographers records, but I don’t have any of her studio albums. Unfortunately her bass player was absent, due to a car accident on the way to the show. I stood on stage for Neko’s performance (which is never the best place to hear, but it is a good place to see). While it wasn’t as noticeable in the audience, the sound from George Straight on the Mane stage really bled over when you’re standing the No Depression stage. It was a little distracting for Case. She joked about her Grandma wanting to get with Straight, and was in a good mood in spite of the surroundings. There were probably only about 150 people watching her, but her voice sounded great. I’ll definitely make an effort to see her next time she comes to town.
Stay tuned for a review of the second day of the fest. On paper the first day looked like the winner, the second day ended up being even better.
My girlfriend and I left the Eagle Rock area around 10:20 AM Saturday (about 20 minutes later than planned). Our goal was to see the Old 97’s at 1:45 PM. We experienced absolutely zero traffic. Eerily fast. We arrived in Indio around 12:20 PM and stopped for a restroom break and small snack. As we drove towards the Polo field, we kept expecting traffic jams. Finally, when we got to the part with one lane, we hit some LA type traffic. By the time we parked and arrived at the Will Call window it was about 1:15. After some minor snafus with our tickets, we finally got in and made our way to the Palomino Stage (if there were corporate sponsors, this would be the No Depression stage).
As we approached the stage, we noticed that most of the people in the crowd were sitting in lawn chairs. We walked straight to the front and stood against the barricade. One woman complained that we were blocking her view, but since when can you set up a lawn chair at a music festival and expect to have an unobstructed view? Give me a break. When you can get front row at a big festival you’ve got to take it. There were some hardcore fans next to us who pumped their fists throughout the entire show. I was disappointed that they didn’t play anything off of Fight Songs, but they still sounded really good. Rhett had his arm swinging wildly and looked like Evan Dando with his shirt unbuttoned below his man boobs. We also had fun watching the guitar tech who had to contend with a bad cable and a broken strings. All in all, it was a nice way to start the fest.
Next up (conveniently on the same, No Depression stage) was Chris Hillman and Herb Pederson. As a founding member of the Byrds and Flying Burrito Brothers, I obviously have a huge amount of respect for Hillman. He didn’t disappoint. The set was mellow and heavy on traditional songs (Hillman got his start playing the mandolin in bluegrass bands). It was great to hear “Sin City” and see Pamela Des Barres dancing in front of the stage. Thinking about Hillman and Gram Parsons sitting around writing songs made me very happy. The day was getting better. We stayed put and watched as Richie Furay took the stage. Instead of having Hillman and Pederson as his backup band (as billed), Furay had his family. Since I was never a big Poco fan, we were hoping for some Buffalo Springfield. After a few songs we headed for some shade, snacks and a drink. At Stagecoach you can walk the grounds with drinks in hand. I don’t remember being able to do that at Coachella.
We ended up running into friends, walking over to the other stages and getting some barbeque. We totally missed Raul Malo. Observations? Stagecoach is family friendly and has stages and activities specifically geared to kids. At Stagecoach, hipsters stand out like your Grandma at Cinespace on a Tuesday night. The Mane Stage should be renamed the NASCAR Stage. Some of the new country singers have songs that could easily be South Park spoofs (“I went down to the monster truck show.”) Female artists have a much larger presence at Stagecoach than KROQ’s Dong Roast. There are a lot of brown gals, but not so many brown dudes. They had a museum area with some classic Nudie suits and Manuel shirts. And to paraphrase David Yow (Scratch Acid, Jesus Lizard, Qui): there’s nothing sexier than a girl in cowboy boots.
Lucinda Williams went on the No Depression stage at 6:00PM. The weather was pleasant all day, so the Coachella fatigue had not set in. Lucinda’s a rock star, and you get the feeling that her day probably usually begins around 6:00PM. In spite of that, she sounded great. From the front row, you could tell she references her lyric book fairly regularly. It didn’t bother me because her voice is so soulful and her band is so good. Doug Pettibone could play guitar with anybody. She sang one new song about her man spraying honey all over her tummy and in her hair. She’s got so much more punk rock attitude than you.
The only real hiccup (for me) in the festival came next. Willie Nelson followed Lucinda on the No Depression stage. Obviously he’s Willie and probably should have played the main (Mane) stage. It started to get really packed…much more than at any other time during the day. I wanted to snap some photos, so I pushed up a little. I ended up behind some douchebag with some big friends. This guy was a little old and a little drunk. But he had some big friends. As Willie was up there singing “Whiskey River” and “Crazy” this guy was trying to start shit with everybody. He finally got one military looking guy to take the bait. The old dude pushed the young military dude and the military dude couldn’t believe. “I just want to watch Willie, are you serious?” “F--- Yeah I’m serious.” And then the old dudes’ friends swept in. I didn’t stick around to see what happened next. I’d seen Willie last year at the Bowl and kinda knew what I was in for. Willie’s a legend, but he tends to sleepwalk through his sets. This audience didn’t seem to respect the laid back party vibe, so I headed for the relative comforts of the VIP area.
When I lived in Austin I heard a lot about Robert Earl Keen. He’s a legend in the Texas music world. Being completely ignorant, I always wrongly assumed that he was a bit of a backwards redneck. Stagecoach set me straight. He’s the kind of guy that can write/sing a really sensitive tune and then follow it up with a barroom anthem. After witnessing his phenomenal connection with his fans, I finally see why he’s so popular. And judging by his willingness to pose for photos after his set (see the Flick photos) he seems like a super nice guy. Shame on me for writing him off before I knew more.
The final performer of the night (but not the headliner, Willie was the headliner) on the No Deprssion stage was Neko Case. I love her singing on the New Pornographers records, but I don’t have any of her studio albums. Unfortunately her bass player was absent, due to a car accident on the way to the show. I stood on stage for Neko’s performance (which is never the best place to hear, but it is a good place to see). While it wasn’t as noticeable in the audience, the sound from George Straight on the Mane stage really bled over when you’re standing the No Depression stage. It was a little distracting for Case. She joked about her Grandma wanting to get with Straight, and was in a good mood in spite of the surroundings. There were probably only about 150 people watching her, but her voice sounded great. I’ll definitely make an effort to see her next time she comes to town.
Stay tuned for a review of the second day of the fest. On paper the first day looked like the winner, the second day ended up being even better.
No comments:
Post a Comment