Here’s to “Letting it go”

Pitchfork was brilliant. What can I say? The vibe was perfect, the music rocked, crowd was all that; fuck, even parking was easy. I will say--write--this: I loved all weekend, ‘cept for somethings not related to the fest. I loved it and canna wait till next year.

Sonic Youth Day
There was such a lead up to Sonic Youth’s presentation of “Daydream Nation”. Preparation and nostalgia. When first alerted that SY was gonna DN, I knew I wanted to go. The Peter Strasser only has a cassette player (too lazy, not to cheap, to CD the PS), so the cassette copy of DN Joker gave me c. 1990 has been played to shit these last 2m or so.

I spent most of the early part of the day @ Rockies, and in between watching practice videos of the Bulls P. we gorged ourselves on things Sonic and things vegetable. The Bulls- they got some good shit, and I was in such a mood that afternoon that I was able to -- I guess the term that’s gonna be used is ‘let go’ -- I was able to let go and drabble on about this song and that song-- I actually would have them completely drop one songs entire structure for a bit of a loop that I am just certain convinced that if the entire world could just listen to and danse to this little loop, this super little duper loop-- why then, then there would be no more wars, no more poverty, the eagle would fly with the dove…………….ok, I got ideas for it.

The Aerie is a class address. Treetop views indeed. They have that precious commodity: windows facing south - so they will have no problem growing things. I have both a bean and a tomato plant that would do well in their place.

Pasta luncheonette.
Wine and fine folk
Sonic things said
Parma reigned a-mok

We gorged ourselves on Lucia's pasta, and then we gorged ourselves on SY. @ first we listened to a boot of a most fabled SY show, the 14 Oct. 1987 Metro show on the Sister tour. This’ll be covered in the upcoming Sister Test, so not now. We also listened to, for the first time of three this day, DN. We also had extended discussions about the Sonics, DN, and Sister. I must admit to a little shockery when Rockery proclaimed DN the better of the two- and I thought he was one of US!! Later. Two stops: Orf’s and a prof rocky went to grad school with. Then…


Sonic Youth Nite
Collected Gf from the Loop. As stated, parking was kool- 3 blocks away. Lotsa people had taken bikes and the El and buses-their were so many bikes locked up outside the park that it looked like Amsterdam @ rush hour- loved the site of so many bikers. Another lovely site was when we went to collect our tickets. William Randolph is good guys with a honcho in the parks, so TWENTY of us got comped all weekend. When Gf and I presented our licences, they gave us back three shiny new holographic’d tickets for each day. Sometimes it’s really kool to know someone and get some goodies going. Given the fact that William Randolph had set up twenty good guys, there is a whole lotta good karma working in that man rite now. It was an appreciative Set of Twenty.

Gf and I’d missed all up to the opening sounds of “spirit desire”. But when it came time for DN to start, we were in place. We’d been rushed, so there was no time to make grand connexions. I met Rocky, Lucia, Issac, the prof and buddy, and happened to be next to Ian Curtis. We were set.

A lot has been written….well, all by me- about wanting to hear, once and for all, the beginning part of the song “Teenage Riot” that is unofficially known as “spirit desire”. Basically, the abstrat is : “Never’ve heard it: want to”. And lo and behold, there were those familiar guitar sounds and Kim singing.

But.

And I knew, because I’d exhausted Ewetube looking for a perfect example when writing the last SY article, what I’d probably hear: a drastically shortened version of it that really only scarcely touches @ the grandeur of the original “Spiritdesire”. The original is a whole 1.26m piece with lyrics, structure, progression- it’s a song- and the version we got was just a tag piece - it sounded good, but they didn not seriously attempt to play the whole piece. Now, I understand that SY this whole nite played DN not as a note for note reproduction of the original but as a jammed up and slightly improvised template, but I feel that they still have not addressed us with a solid version of Spiritdesire. I’ll take what I can get, but when they said from the stage they’d be hanging out all day Saturday, my mind immediately practicing what I’d say to them:

#1- spirtidesire nextimechicago pleaseforme
#2- sister?

So, here I am sounding like I’m did not enjoy it.
Loved it.
The sound was really rough-- Ian Curtis and I were wishing it wasna so rough. Turns out they had to get a huge new sound system in to correct the problem. But mainly DN sounded through. There were two instances that I registered as my favourite. The bottom of “Total Trash” totally pounded down -Kim played some very heavy --what, bass riffs, bit that wouldn’t be the word- it sounded so low and loud. Alrite, this is no explanation for what I felt, so the second favourite memory is this: Lee thanking the crowd--a heartfelt “Thanks“ and an arm extended--when they ‘ovated’ ready and loud @ the end of “Eric’s Trip”.

They played a three song encore- “Pacific Coast Highway”, “White Cross”, and “Schizophrenia”. Just kidding. The second song was great, but the third song’s spirit was best encapsulated by Ian: “They should have quit while they were ahead.”

Alright.

The Touch of the Artists

Twice was Ulysses refered to me this weekend directly:

1=In the book, the decent Bloom has a shadow character- this guy, like bloom, is a total good guy- a decent man. I can’t remember his name, but @ one point the ‘stream of consciousness’ of this guys mind is taken up. Eventually the shadow character’s ‘stream’ runs across a banana on the street- he thinks it’s a danger to unsuspecting others, so he scoops it up and throws it into the bin.
And yes did I notice a young man doing the same to another banana in a dangerous path. End of this allusion, and the far more important allusion follows==

2=I do believe the same character- I pretty sure, and he’s not a main character-- is amongst some gents who mock Bloom as he passes**. This character takes a look @ the retreating Bloom and disagrees with them along the lines of saying “That Bloom. He has the touch of the Artist about him”- meaning there’s something artistic about him. It’s an important concept in my appreciation of the book: basically, Joyce is taking Bloom, who represents Everyman (you and me and whoever), and saying “Bloom represents ye all. He is an artist. Ye all artists in yr own way”***

And when I watched the two performances I’d come to see this day- Girl Talk and Yoko - I thought “Mad, in each their own way, they recognized the inner artist inside themselves and………….just……let go.” And look @ the shit they have come up with!!
I was very interested in taking in Girl Talk. Girl Talk is the stage name of Gregg Gillis, a d.j. whose sthicht (sic) is best summed by The Readers Jessica Hopper, who wrote that he “… (mixes) good pop music with “bad” pop music for the ironic-appreciation set”.

Since I’m a bit of a d.j. myself, I’ve followed his career so far with a lot of interest. A major deal with d.j’g is the deep confidence in the self. Although I’m no where near Girl Talk, there have been many times during my “career” in which I wanted to drop something dicey and questionable on the dansers. The confidence comes in when you realize that they have been digging yr shit and dancing, and they’re more than likely to follow wherever you take them. A d.j. has to realise that the good shit they hear in a song; if it seems that the people will danse to it, they more than likely will- trust in yr abilities, and the crowd will hear what you hear and respond how you respond). So there have been times where I’ve felt The Fear as a d.j. (“they won‘t danse to THAT- lets put…….this on? Shit, I got 10 seconds….just……ok, this on” ), and it’s been tepid beyond belief. Then there have been times where I get to mix and play anything (“Now I really hear this beat, but if those dansing don‘t, then I can come back next song with this or this…..ah, enough of them will dig it and their body language will bring in even more….kool, play it !!” ), and the crowd trusts the aestic.

It was obv. I had to see him, and it was the first of the nites high points. He was on the small third stage, and it was beyond crowded. It was too crowded; it’s been written that he should have been on one of the main stages. Whatever. I was solo, so it was easy for me to worm my way to a good viewing location. There were people on top of cars, straddling fences, balancing in trees, etc… One punk rock girl took a knife to cut down some banners hung on fences, allowing people trapped behind them to have a great side view of the stage. Great crowd that was really rowdy and bouncy. It was the kinda chaotic situation where I must admit I was waiting for some girls to gone wilde. Never happened, but it was that sorta atmosphere, us all squished to-gether and moving.

The music is all on laptop, and the whole 45m show had him hunched over it pressing buttons. He had a bunch of people on stage dancing around him, and he would sometimes punctuate a musical change by himself jumping out and rocking for 10 seconds until duty behind the laptop called. He came out in a suit, but eventually took off the coat, continually wiped his face with the shirt, and eventually doffed his shirt. It was a great stage presence. The swirling crowd, the presentation, the fucking beats: stunning.

Of particular smug enjoyment from myself was the songs he’d mine for Beats and breaks. I’ve always harbored a love of that early mid 90’s junky disco stuff they play on B-96- stunningly great danse songs, but most shy away because…………….well whyever. Girl Talk mixed in a lot of those glory songs along with other ‘problem songs’ : it was great to hear the crowd respond to this junky stuff.

I will say the last 10m or so were less than the first 35m, but it’s just to quibble. It was a plan to see him, and I got it done. But it was much more than ’done’ : Girl Talk’s great, and I’m glad I took it in and……..learned.

I’d been planning to see a snatch of Yoko, whose set had already started on the main stage. I drifted through the crowd, enjoying what I was hearing: it was Yoko ‘yoking’, but the big old band had a real kool percusion thing going- loud and crisp and moving, and I loved. I stood still, enjoying the song realizing that it would be over soon. Later I learned it was a variant of “Don’t worry”, one of her famous songs. I’d stay another song or so, I thought, then break. But I waited out two more songs: the first ok, then the second really nice. And then Thurston came out tom play. Well, now I’d have to stay……

A thing about Yoko and the crowd. That whole idea of “Letting Go” I’d written about earlier-- it was very apparent in Girl Talk, and it was very important in Yoko’s career as well. One has to dig yr own aestic if one of yr performance pieces is people scissoring off yr clothes and yr vocal styling is a mess of yelling and screaming. Yet, she obv. had so much confidence in herself: she has always been a prime example of Letting Go. But would this crowd respond ? When I originally walking in, there was a % of people who obv. were not feeling it**** and bit by bit opting out. Yoko’s stage patter was very eccentric. Scattered young girls voices behind me basically intoning “What the fuck is this????” But basically the crowd dug it: those same girl voices also kept talking in approving tones “Yoko’s soo cute!” when she’d say something out there. Basically, the amount of chaff walking out couldn’t match the amount wheat moving up for better views. The crowd densed up and concentrated on enjoying the show.

We, as a crowd, wanted to Let Go with Yoko: in the end, we, to-gether, touched each other with our artistry. Ensemble. Some notes on the show read ‘the crowd was great--many had “let go”, & accept life in part as art- & the atmosphere premeated it all.’

Justly, I’ll leave it @ that, and get back to Thurston and the Best part of Yoko’s show.

Thurston produced those sonic stylings - seascape sounds***** - he’s known for and Yoko squelched back in a song she and John had done called “Mulberry”. I really dug that Thurston sound and the nice interplay. Then the band rocked out another groove, and in 15s yoko had the crowd swingswaying arms and singing along “War is over if you want it/ War is over if you want it/ War is over if you want it/ War is over? Nowwwwwww.” You had this fantastic percussion beat, Thurston @ sea, Yoko, and the entire crowd singing along. Yeaaaaaaahhhhhhhhhhh!!!!! Until the day I die, I do dearsay. And then, to end it all, remember that song I walked in on after I left Girl Talk and only got to hear part of ???? Surprise Reprise !!!! Got to end this Saturday nite by enjoying the “Don’t worry” beat again, this time with Thurston adding on.

This is the reason we go to concerts. Well, maybe just the main one.

Peek Neek!

The last day @ Pitchfork was less spent to music and more to family. Quite early Gf and I ran into Snowden, and he pointed out the crowd of frenz sitting just there all nice on blankets and such. We went there after our bathroom wait was over and based ourselves w/ our frenz till the end. The Gunners and the Jokers were there in total (both had their little blond additions in tow). The superhero of the wkd, William Randolph was in the circle, as was Smokey Treats, Vampire, Guitars, and who am I missing?

First the music: as per above, I had half an ear towards the music, so here’s my clipped reviews:

Malmukus: Solo guitar, ok, the Jiks show I saw 2-3ya was much better
Of Montreal: Amusing, some kool synth beats
New Pornographers: several kool songs
Klaxons: on the little stage-they were loud and boisterous punk types
De La Soul: Seen them in 1990, and they were much better now. Played a bit of “Hey Love”, and when Gf and I were ready to leave, they kept us there by playing one of their absolute best beats- song title ????

But mainly it was a day to relax on the blanket and take part in a music fest w/ my frenz. The thing aout it is that this crowd of frenz has a love of going to see new music. For years they have been going to SXSW in Austin, and I’ve never went. So it was a pleasure to finally enjoy a pure music fest--like I was one of them--for the first time with them. I was cognizant of that fact.

I also liked that there were two kids there. Pitchfork was a family friendly place; as frenz get older and more kids come, I’m glad that the wives and kids were also able to take part in the wkd. Although Jesus pointed out that when man gets married he truns his back on all else, it’s gratifying to watch the relevance and importance of friendships continue. I’m a big believer in “It takes a village”, even if the village never takes any part in rearing the kids. To me, simply an available social outlet for parents outside the stunning pressure cooker of a young family is a very important thing. They need it.

In addition to That Crowd sharing the blanket space, Ms. W. Burg and her buddy Chance Fry were spotted by Gf and I. They’d been there the whole wkd- Chance was a high faltuing dude who mixed with the stars in Manhatten (why yes, he did tell me a story of when he worked with Yoko-she’s kool says he) and’d flown in for the wkd. He was leaving with a bunch of L.P.’s. I’d met him briefly in 2000 in NYC, and we had a good time trading stories of a certain nature.

Berg had a great insite: She’d last seen one person on the blanket many many years ago when he was deeply troubled- especially that last nite she‘d seen him, he was just a total stunning mess. She, with great satisfaction, noted how he’d made it through and not with the damage others in his situation had suffered. She was surprised to find him not just alive but thriving. Very interesting insite.

It was also a day for Gf and I to explore. Usually I’m deep cheap - barato in Spanish. I eat before I go to concerts or ballgames and refuse to pay their stilted prices. However, since the whole wkd was free, and the fact that Pitchfork made a point of keeping the prices down, I ate a double rib sandwich from Robinsons and had a beer. Ok, Gf bought them both. But later, I did pay meself for a blackbean sandwich from some esoteric kinda place. See, I can spend money…….sometimes……..

We wandered about the whole park. Gf enjoyed the whole experience. She was excited to be part of the crowd, to listen to the music, and to hang out w/ frenz. She likes everyone a lot, and obv. peeps like her, so she had a rush of a time (except for some time on Friday when we…….well, whatever….). I’m glad.

I also got my confidence up and went garbage picking- Berger and I wandered the post-show Of Montreal grounds looking for the magic 12 empty water bottles so we could get a free CD sampler. She’d gotten a lot by hanging around the merch. tent, but I was too scared to copy her model later. One C.D. in three days will have to be enough.

So, I loved it. Yoko and girl talk were the main musical highlights, with love to SY and Daisy Agers. But just the whole vibe of the wkd was special. Not just Gf and my frenz, or grand thoughts on art and artistry becoming apparent, but all of that ensemble. A great ensemble.
………………………………................................................................................
*=yes, I know i'm going -v- the grade, but consider this: way back in November, when she was first noted in this blog, this is what she was called- and I liked it a lot. She was first named in the "Ithica" post, still waiting to be posted.
**=yes, I know, it’s not exact, but whatever
***=taking it even further, we are just not artists, but we are all
****=yet another Crankf. popped term
*****= early use of some terms I’m to use in Sister Test

First half of photos thank you pitchfork site. It has lots of other photo's and interviews and etc.... nice site.
Second half of photos thank you liznoise site. It has lots of other photo's and no interviews etc... nice site.

Here are some more takes on various aspects of the weeknd from frenz who were there:

The Rockford Times
The Army Zeitgust