Since the 1970’s Bumbershoot has been a cultural celebration for viewers near and far. The festival not only provides music but food, art, comedy, spoken word, and film. This year we were lucky enough to make the trip to Seattle to see the long established event for ourselves.
Friday:
Rocker babes Deap Vally started off our weekend full force with heavy guitar riffs. Having been introduced at the Rino Festival here in Denver, we were happy to run into them again. We scurried over to the main stage next for one of our faves Foster The People. Stoked to see their new album live in action and they truly didn’t disappoint. Lead singer Mark Foster made a similar sweeping inclusive declaration as he did at Lollapalooza and wet eyes were seen throughout the crowd. (Castro write about Big Sean) Again we got to see a lot of musical favorites we’ve never seen live before and Friday saved the best for last. Watsky was next at the Fisher Green stage and took over his hour set! His hip hop stylings are rapid and the content is intellectual and real (aside from that being said he basically started his set with a “Fuck Donald Trump”). Key Arena in the city center was host to Die Antwoord and holy shit, kids. They were about as weird and awesome as you’d expect. Ninja and their back-up dancers hyped us up while the techno blared and Yolanda rolled around on a vaulted stage above chirping her alien sex voice. Their live production/gigantic dance party was truly the best of the weekend. Confetti explosions erupted as the set was brought to a climax. Kelly is still finding confetti momentos throughout unpacking her luggage...Not mad. The festivities didn't end without the electronica brilliance of Flume who turned the main stage into his own dance party.
Big Sean brought the hip hop vibe on day two (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)
Flume headlined night one of Bumbershoot (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)
Saturday:
Saturday morning we planned on hitting the Corepower yoga set at 2pm doors open. Yeah nope. We couldn't muster the energy to sit in the muggy Seattle heat before 4pm. Blaming Die Antwoord. We made sure to head over to Tacocat at the Fisher Green. Epitomizing grungy angsty rock, Tacocat made for a bouncy start to the day. Visually pleasing with their bubble gum colored hair and bright, chunky anime style. Kaleo was next on main stage. He brought us back down. Maybe a little too down for Saturday. He resembled Hozier with his deep bluesy voice and guitar riffs. Let's just say it was good music to sit down, relax and eat a sandwich to. Meanwhile alt rock legends Weezer took to the main stage to make sure we all knew the hits as the crowd often was caught singing word to word to songs such as "Hashpipe", "Island In The Sun", and "Beverly Hills". Kelly caught E-40 at the Key Arena where all the classics were brought. The Key Arena was transformed into a high school dance auditorium. We fled back to the main stage to catch queen Lorde in the flesh. Retable and real she addressed Melodrama's romantic heartbreak influence. Her recent flu symptoms reflected in her "Homemade Dynamite" VMA dance were no longer. She sounded better than ever. Hail Lorde. As with all music festivals we ran into our first scheduling conflict of the weekend. As Lorde was slaying on the main stage, the legendary The Roots crew were causing havoc at The Fisher Green stage, flanked by one of the most amazing array of musicians Black Thought and company swept us off our feet with their unique legendary sound that has been a staple for the Philadelphia band.
Tacocat was amazing and colorful. (Photo Credit: Robert Castro)
Sunday:
The last day of the festival had us enjoying some of the smaller acts on the bill such as Léon from Sweden and Ellie Mae from the Third Man Records label. Both impressive in their own style and sure to be commanding bigger headline status in the near future. We also got a chance to catch one of or=ur favorites Spoon who managed to play a longer set due to HAIM cancelling. We weren't complaining as the band played more of a studio session with what seemed an impromptu setlist. The final act of the night was more of a homecoming show for Odesza who just released a new album this past week. Always a plus as a listener as we got many new songs including a few surprise guest appearances including Naomi Wild who sang their newest hit "Higher Ground", as well as R&B crooner Leon Bridges to sing "Across The Room". It definitely felt like a homecoming show as the band seemed to be having the time of their life. A perfect ending to a successful music festival, until next year Bumbershoot.
