San Francisco – The ninth annual Outside Lands Music Festival kicked off this Friday in the misty glens of San Francisco’s Golden Gate Park. The sparse early afternoon crowds swiftly grew to massive proportions as the day progressed, and the areas around the festival’s four stages quickly filled with attendees keen to catch some of the most renowned acts in music. As a headlining set by dance-rock titans LCD Soundsystem loomed at the end of the night, there was plenty to see and do, from sampling craft beers at Beer Lands to catching classic acts like Duran Duran. Of course, there were plenty of newer bands and artists to catch throughout the day, featuring a wide array of styles and genres.
Whitney
Chicago newcomers Whitney—formed by previous members of Unknown Mortal Orchestra and the now disbanded Smith Westerns—were the first band to light up the Sutro Stage, nestled in the narrow valley of Lindley Meadow, located near the park’s north side. The sun was doing its best to burn through the early afternoon fog, and while it never quite achieved its goal, the warm guitars and vocal melodies were effective in bringing a sunny disposition to all those in attendance. Drummer Julian Ehrlich sat center-stage, right in front, behind his kit, taking the helm with high tenor lead vocals—evoking memories of Neil Young—as guitarist (and other key member) Max Kakacek and the rest of the band filled the space, both physically and sonically. The brighter sounds of “No Matter Where We Go” and “The Falls” and the golden trumpets of “Red Moon” were balanced out with softer performances of “No Woman” and the title track from Whitney’s debut LP Light Upon The Lake. On stage the band’s demeanor was tame and mellow between songs, yet their performances were far more energetic, bringing new life to Whitney’s studio material by adding several layers of sound and bringing a welcomed upgrade to Bob Dylan’s “Tonight I’ll Be Staying Here With You.”
*Photo of Whitney by Sarah Hess for Best New Bands
Marian Hill
Philadelphia songwriting duo Marian Hill—consisting of singer Samantha Gongol and producer Jeremy Lloyd—opened the Twin Peaks Stage, bringing a cornucopia of sweet melodies to California, bundled in the twosome’s eclectic blend of jazz-fueled electronic production, heavily enhanced with the saxophone stylings of Steve Davit. Gongol made the most of the space as she floated around the stage like a petal on the wind, belting gorgeous renditions of “I Know Why,” “I Want You,” and “Lovit,” only taking a few minutes halfway through the set to rest and perform a costume change, while Lloyd and Davit happily filled the time with an impromptu jam session mixing production and the cascading sounds of Davit’s sax playing. As the low clouds started to roll back in over Hellman Hollow, Marian Hill slowed down Whitney Houston’s “I Wanna Dance With Somebody” from 80s dance jam into a sweet, melancholy ballad that revealed the pure vulnerability of the classic song’s lyrics.
Ra Ra Riot
Wes Miles and his band Ra Ra Riot were met by sound issues and a somewhat distracted and aloof crowd, but the audience’s poor attitude and the lack of volume didn’t seem to bother them, as Miles pranced around the stage in his pastel-colored sweater, flanked by the band’s army of musicians that play everything from guitars (Milo Bonacci) to bejeweled violins (Rebecca Zeller). Tunes from recent Need Your Light and 2013’s Beta Love dominated the set, and while Miles and company blasted through enthusiastic renditions of “Foreign Lovers,” “Suckers,” and “Absolutely,” the crowd struggled to keep focus. Even during the vigorous “Binary Mind,” or my personal favorite “Beta Love,” most of the attendees simply stood and watched or carried on conversations with their neighbors. “Water” seemed an appropriate fit for the afternoon, as it was one of the only songs that didn’t seem to suffer from the rampant sound problems, but given the crappy hand the band was dealt, I’d say Ra Ra Riot did its absolute best, as the dynamism never wavered once during the set.
Poliça
As Foals raged on the Sutro Stage across the park, things took a mellower turn over at Twin Peaks as Minneapolis trip-hop/down- tempo electronic band Poliça offered up a selection of songs from three studio LPs, focusing primarily on tracks from the band’s latest effort United Crushers. Vocalist Channy Leaneagh moved around as if in a trance, warbling mystically as she wandered amongst her bandmates (including two drummers). As Poliça slinked through songs like “Summer Please,” “Lately,” “Lose You,” and “Spilling Lines,” their audience seemed to be caught either in the same trance that Leaneagh appeared to be in, or under a spell she was incanting, as we all swayed back and forth, commanded by some unseen force.
Miike Snow
Dark pop trio Miike Snow has blown up from early afternoon, small tent act to main stage powerhouse in what seems like no time at all. On the heels of the release of the trio’s third LP iii, the band commanded an evening set on the main stage (Land’s End) to a vast crowd. Andrew Wyman drifted between a seat behind a keyboard to a standing microphone at the front—occasionally with a tambourine or maracas in one hand—addressing the audience intermittently to gush his and his band’s love of San Francisco (especially the trees). The hour long set showed off Miike Snow’s poppier tendencies, as newer songs like “Genghis Khan” and “Heart is Full” urged people to bounce and sway, though the most passionate responses were during tracks from the band’s self-titled first LP, like the lengthy “Silvia,” the glitchy “Black and Blue,” and of course, the elastic “Animal” which ended the set with thousands of people bobbing up and down as they screamed the lyrics along with the band.
Grimes
Canadian musical sensation Grimes’ reputation must have preceded her as the crowd that materialized in front of the Twin Peaks Stage was the largest I have EVER seen at this festival. As the overture-esque sounds of “laughing and not being normal” came on over the speakers, one of her three cohorts emerged onstage amidst a flight of graceful ballet choreography, followed by the other two and finally, Grimes herself, sporting short hair and an outfit that made her look like a long lost character from Mortal Kombat. She powered through an hour of spunky, infectious dance tunes from her most recent release Art Angels, including “Flesh Without Blood,” bass-filled “Venus Fly,” “REALITi,” and “World Princess Part II,” while also throwing in some old ones, like “Be a Body,” “Genesis,” “Oblivion,” and “Go,” for good measure. The crowd reacted in violent jubilance with flailing dance moves and the upward thrusting of colorful totems. Taiwanese rapper Aristophanes was unavailable to do her Mandarin rap on “SCREAM,” so Grimes did the rap in Russian, howling and screaming at the top of her lungs in between verses. “Kill v. Maim” was the perfect ending to the set, though a few people may have injured each other as they thrashed around, packed in front of the Twin Peaks Stage like a raving can of sardines.
Two more days of music await us at Outside Lands 2016, so keep an eye on Best New Bands for upcoming OSL coverage! Follow Best New Bands on Facebook and Twitter.
Words and photos by Corey Bell for Best New Bands, except where otherwise noted.
Corey Bell
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