Kevin Bronson on August 25th, 2014

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Reviews: Flying Lotus, Built to Spill, Thundercat, Ryan Hemsworth, Benjamin Booker

FLYING LOTUS

You Should Have Been Here Because: “No speeches. Fuck it, you’re dead!” Steven Ellison, aka Flying Lotus, said to begin his set, in reference to his forthcoming album “You’re Dead!,” due out in October. He then stepped behind his rig, which was elevated and situated between two sheer backdrops, one in front and one behind, and allowed for 3D effects, creating the most stunning visual display of the weekend. FlyLo conducted his signature cacophony of snaps, crackles and pops with triggers, knobs and faders, composing a grimy and beautiful hour of experimental hip-hop and electronica. In addition to pieces throughout his catalog, he worked DJ Rashad’s “Pass that Shit” and Juicy J’s “Low” into the mix, in addition to a few new Kendrick Lamar rhymes, which may or may not be part of the new album (“Never Catch Me?”) or just some of the many beats he’s rumored to have recorded on recently. With about 20 minutes left, Ellison picked up the mic and his rapper alter-ego Captain Murphy emerged, stepping out front again to spit “The Killing Joke” and the Earl Sweatshirt-guested “Between Friends” from the 2012 album “Duality.”
Downside: No Kendrick Lamar appearance or other special guest stars, but in the end, they weren’t needed.
– Andrew Veeder

BUILT TO SPILL

You Should Have Been Here Because: Built to Spill started early. Scheduled to go on at 7:10, the band was ready at 7, so they were off and running. Opening with “Goin’ Against Your Mind,” the band looked more comfortable on that stage than most people do on their living room couches. After seven albums and 20 years, they’ve earned that right. Sure, their hair is grayer and thinner, but they’re still as badass as ever and they know it. Drummer Steve Gere was just stunning. His hands were invisible. If you told me he was a drumming robot sent back to us from the future, I would believe you. The crowd was made up of everyone from teenagers to those who probably saw Built to Spill on their first tour. One young lady managed to convince two young men to hoist her between them on their shoulders singing along loudly to every lyric. Soaring guitar solos and earnest lyrics peppered the audience as they indulged in some very relaxed crowd surfing. However if Built to Spill was impressed by the show last night, they did not show it. They were not playing for an audience last night. They were playing for themselves.
Downside: There was not much in the way of witty banter between songs. The most lead singer Doug Martsch ever said was “Thanks.”
Postscript: Security guard walked by with a giant sandwich bag of drugs. He went right through the center of crowd with no attempt to hide it. I saw a number of people eye them longingly, wishing he would drop it.
– Molly Bergen

RYAN HEMSWORTH

You Should Have Been Here Because: Early on in his set, Canadian DJ and producer Ryan Hemsworth said, “It’s too sunny for this sh*t, but f*ck it,” echoing a sentiment of his mid-afternoon placement while dropping hypnotic bass heavy beats and a remix of Kanye West’s “Can’t Tell Me Nothing” at a time of day usually reserved for happy hour. It turned out that Hemsworth was perfectly scheduled for the afternoon, spinning an incredibly curated set that felt very “now,” like DJing in a 2014 time capsule. It was tailor-made for a festival, full of ebbs and flows that took the music from trap beats to twee-electro synth rhythms to propulsive dub bass blasts to woozy purple syrup slurs and back again, throwing in remixes ranging from Danny Brown to the Backstreet Boys.
Postscript: To the girl sitting in the craft beer garden watching a video on your portable handheld device: You are at a music festival and you are doing it wrong.
– Andrew Veeder

THUNDERCAT

You Should Have Been Here Because: Having only seen him before in dark venues late at night, it was utterly fascinating to see Stephen Bruner as Thundercat in the light of day and watch those fingers fly up and down that guitar with such a blurred frenzy. Backed by his longtime band, Justin Brown on drums and Dennis Hamm on keys, and clad in an unidentifiable animal headdress, black t-shirt, and Thundercat logo necklace, Bruner jammed it out with his cohorts like the seasoned pros they are, completely in sync and eyeing each other as if to say, This is awesome! He got nastier on that bass guitar than almost anyone I have ever witnessed, his face possessed by the groove as the music flowed through him as the afternoon turned evening. They closed with “Lotus and the Jondy” and “Heartbreaks + Setbacks,” two of many standouts from last year’s album “Apocalypse, and they were most triumphant.
Downside: Presidents of the United State of FYF Scheduling Casualties.
– Andrew Veeder

BENJAMIN BOOKER

You Should Have Been Here Because: A sparse crowd gathered in the bright August sunshine at the lip of the Lawn stage for Benjamin Booker. However, the crowd that was there was stoked, screaming his name during soundcheck. For a young man whose album came out a few weeks ago, not too shabby. Striding out on stage in a black and white polo shirt, black jeans, Ray Bans, a cigarette between his lips and a tall boy in one hand, he looked quite comfortable as he lifted his shiny red guitar. This man was all about simplicity: guitar, drums, bass, that’s it. Nothing flashy but, the second he started his first song everyone’s temperature rose. This was hip-swaying, good old-fashioned rock ’n’ roll. The kind your dad would approve of. The kind that got kids laid in the 1960s. The kind that infects everyone from the souls of your feet, shoots into your calves, thighs, hips, and spreads into your heart. This was no cover act, however. Nimble drumming, even quicker strumming, and a voice that went from a Ray LaMontagne-esque whisper to a raw, completely unintelligible growl gave the set a distinctive sound that was all Booker’s. He made that guitar howl and moan in ways that sounded both indecent and appropriate. The crowd grew and grew as the set went on and began clapping along with songs they didn’t know as if it was their favorite songs in the world. Big things are in store for this man from New Orleans. Big things.
Downside: In the middle of the finale, Booker stopped and asked, “You guys are having a good time?” The impulse to check in is understandable, but don’t do it half way through the finale. It is not the time to stop the dancers midstep and ask them to give a confused “Yes?!” Also you shouldn’t need reassurance, dude. We are on your side.
Postscript: During soundcheck Booker jumped off the stage, cigarette between his lips, to greet a friend in the crowd, as if he just couldn’t wait until the show was over to do it, and then climbed back up on stage. It’ll be interesting to see if that kind of impulse friendliness carries over to the next tour.
– Molly Bergen

Photos by Zane Roessell, except Jacco Gardner and Ryan Hemsworth, courtesy of Concertphotography by Scott Dudelson