Manchester, TN - As the second half of the Bonnaroo Music & Arts Festival’s 15th anniversary edition began on Saturday morning, neither the merciless (and gradually building) heat and humidity nor the profound, almost tangible energy emanating from the thousands of festivalgoers showed any sign of halting. Despite a dramatic increase in temperature and a severe weather threat that prompted an evacuation of Centeroo (the first I’ve seen in my eleven years), the festival was in full swing. Best New Bands was once again on-site to brave the sweat and the dust to check out some more of this year’s rising talent, on Saturday and Sunday.
The Knocks
Despite the heat, The Knocks managed to get a party started at the Other Tent. “New York City,” from The Knocks’ debut LP 55, began the duo’s set. People immediately broke into dancing. Best New Bands already knew The Knocks party hard, but how the crowd and duo were dancing is beyond me because it was H-O-T; so hot the pair’s computer equipment started to malfunction, but B-Roc and JPatt kept going, giving the crowd a mix of old songs and new, including 2011’s “Dancing with the DJ.” Of course The Knocks performed 2014’s hit single “Classic,” which features “Powers,” who just so happened to be playing Bonnaroo, too. Mike Del Rio and Crista Ru came out on stage, bringing the song to life, with Rio playing guitar and Ru singing, “Yeah, it feels so classic / You and me, the magic / And I know we have it.” (SH)
Haim
The three sisters Haim—Alana, Danielle, and Este—are almost in the same boat as CHVRCHES, having played one of the smaller tents previously (2013), graduating to a prime spot at the coveted Which Stage for a Saturday evening performance. HAIM’s yet to be titled sophomore LP will hopefully be released later this year, and the trio took this opportunity to preview some new material, including new tracks “Nothing’s Wrong” and “Give Me Just a Little of Your Love.” Haim also played a healthy selection of songs from the band’s sole LP, the sisters’ 2013 debut Days Are Gone, including “If I Could Change Your Mind,” “Don’t Save Me,” “Forever,” “Honey & I” (during which we were instructed to cuddle up with our neighbors) and “My Song 5.” The hour-long set was one that brought life not only to the festival crowd that had begun to wilt after enduring the brutal Tennessee sun during the day, but also the heavens themselves, as directly following the show, Centeroo was evacuated due to hazardous weather that threatened the Manchester area. While I’m sure there are some that would assume this to be an “act of God” meant to punish our debauched ways as Bonnaroovians, (I’m looking at you, Pat Robertson), I like to think that the sky above was merely brought to life, as the storm only grazed the grounds’ northern edge, as if some celestial being were simply trying to sing along. (CB)
Ellie Goulding
UK songstress Ellie Goulding was one of the few acts of Saturday evening whose set was slightly displaced, due to the inclement weather, though that did not deter the pop star from delivering a hit-filled set to a devoted yet somewhat bewildered crowd. She is currently touring behind her 2015 LP Delirium, which will be her last tour before taking a hiatus from music for the foreseeable future, and while the show had some finale-like elements to it, it seemed to place more of an ellipsis than a period in this point in Ms. Goulding’s career. The show was energetic at points (as is to be expected), especially during her more famous, Calvin Harris-helmed songs “I Need Your Love” and “Outside,” there were some softer moments, both expected and unexpected, as in the case of a rather stripped-down, piano-driven version of perhaps her most famous single “Lights.” Ellie Goulding’s name was one of the few on this year’s lineup that surprised me with its presence, though after seeing her at Bonnaroo, post-storm and pre-hiatus, there was a palpable sense of synchronicity that can only come from being truly surprised, and impressed. (CB)
Kurt Vile
Philadelphia favorite and festival mainstay Kurt Vile kicked off an evening of folk-tinged tunes with an hour-long set on Sunday at the Which Stage, delivering a variety of tunes from his rather prolific and successful career as a solo artist (he’s also a former member of The War on Drugs). The songs he played as he squinted into the slowly crisping yet dedicated crowd were mostly songs featured on his most recent LP b’lieve I’m goin down… (set opener “Dust Bunnies,” “I’m An Outlaw,” “Wild Imagination,” and single “Pretty Pimpin’”) and his 2013 album Wakin on a Pretty Daze (“KV Crimes,” “Wakin on a Pretty Day,” “Goldtone,”), though a few older tracks were snuck in as well (2011’s “Jesus Fever” and ending track “Freak Train,” from 2009’s Childish Prodigy). Vile’s twangy vocals were just the right cadence to sync up with the heat waves bubbling up from the ground and even seemed to tame them as they washed over, like a glass of cold iced tea. (CB)
Father John Misty
“This giant question mark sign does not do much to contribute to the existential quandary that is getting in front of thousands of college students on mushrooms and talking about your feelings.” Said in true Josh Tillman fashion, this was one of the few gems offered to the sun-drenched crowd basking in the glory that is a live Father John Misty performance. Tillman often has quite the rapport with his audiences, and despite his “lofty” status as one of the final performers on this year’s Which Stage, he did his best to deliver his brand of cheeky, heartfelt folk/rock hybrid without any sense of irony. His appearance was at once scraggly and elegant, lanky yet muscular, hilarious yet sincere, which translated well to his material (as it is wont to do). After opening with “Hollywood Forever Cemetery Sings,” he crashed and banged and strummed and plucked through the highlights of his catalog, including “I’m Writing a Novel,” “Chateau Lobby #4 (in C for Two Virgins),” “When You’re Smiling and Astride Me,” “Nothing Ever Happens at the Goddamn Thirsty Crow,” and “Bored in the USA.” He closed things down with the raucous “The Ideal Husband,” which had sweat flying in all directions as we banged our heads up and down in the boiling late afternoon heat, and many of the girls in the front row caught his eye, thinking that he could be theirs. (CB)
Lorn Huron
Sunday night ended with the sweet harmonies of American folk quintet Lord Huron, as they conquered This Tent’s final slot, just as the sun was finally setting and the final evening of Bonnaroo crept onto the grounds. The band released its sophomore LP Strange Trails last year, and much of the soothing echoes that drifted from the stage were taken from the album, including Western-tinged set opener “The World Ender” (one of the band’s heavier tunes), “Hurricane (Johnnie’s Theme),” “Meet Me in the Woods,” and “Dead Man’s Hand.” Favorites from their debut LP Lonesome Dreams came on earlier in the set than expected, including the title track “Lonesome Dreams,” “Ends of the Earth,” and jubilant single “Time To Run.” Strange Trails song “The Night We Met” was the final song heard on the smaller stages at Bonnaroo 2016, and it was somewhat appropriate as it brought to mind the many friendships and bonds one makes under the starry haze of Bonnaroo nights. (CB)
Sadly, Bonnaroo is over. If you’re feeling a bit of a Bonnaroo depression, you can relive Roo with our Day 1 and Day 2 coverage, till next year, when we’ll all be back down on the farm, enjoying the music and those new, wonderful flushable toilets!
Be sure to follow Best New Bands on Facebook and Twitter.
All photography by Sarah Hess and Corey Bell for Best New Bands.
