We arrived late on Friday, but caught the second half of Nickel Creek’s set. They were pretty on, a group of very talented musicians who clearly love their work. The amplified tap dance routine was amazing. Who needs a drummer when you can tap?
After Nickel Creek, we cruised over to check out Thievery Corporation. We saw them last year on a smaller stage, but they were on the big boy stage this year. We were pretty far away, but I got this shot of their set:
Obviously, the view from where we were wasn’t great, but the sound was good and the energy level was high. Thievery Corp are at the core two DJs with killer taste in world music, but their live sets include bass, sitar, percussion, and several vocalists doing ambient, rap, reggae and a host of other styles.
After Thievery, we caught the Tragically Hip:
Tragically Hip are one of my all time favorite bands and I’ve seen them a number of times. Unfortunately, their sound was off. The vocals were too hot, a shame considering singer Gordon Downie’s performances are full of his off-the-cuff stream-of-conciousness explorations, which are one of the things that makes seeing the Hip so fun. With the vocals so hot, the music sounded buried and muddy.
Still, “Courage” and “100th Meridian” came through just fine and were highlights of their set. Downie also dedicated “Ahead by a Century” to “Annie Richards,” a gesture which seems truly appropriate considering that she really was ahead by at least a century if not more.
Rounding it out, the heat wasn’t as bad as previous years, the grass was in good shape so dust wasn’t a problem, and despite the crushing crowds you have to deal with when the music you like suddenly becomes popular, it was a pretty good day.
James Brush is a teacher and writer who lives in Austin, TX. He tries to get outside as much as possible.
[…] For some photos and another take on yesterday, please visit my husband’s post. […]
[…] The sound at the Hip’s set wasn’t too good. Mostly the vocals were buried too far in the mix, and the iTunes selections reflect that, though the guitars sound great. There are seven Hip tracks available, the best being “100th Meridian” and “Courage,” which is about how I remembered the set. If you like The Tragically Hip, you’ll want these two at least. The rest are good, coming off better than they sounded in person. […]
[…] sound at the Hip’s set wasn’t too good. Mostly the vocals were buried too far in the mix, and the iTunes selections […]