Excellent day but super long. Expecting a sea of thousands, I showed up just shy of 11am competing with nearly no one for parking in the main lot. I think I saw just about every band...
-- Brite Lite Bright: I enjoyed the first few minutes of it but it didn't hold for me. Yes, singer is cute. The set reminded me of pomplamoose for some reason.
-- Temper Trap: I had lower expectations for them and they surprised me. Really enjoyed the half-set I caught. And, as it was early, a much smaller crowd to negotiate.
-- Jimmy Eat World: Amazing. It's as if they asked me personally for the songs I wanted to hear. Even from the lawn, great rock set. I also managed to see their brief interview before Brite Lite Brite; awkward interviewer but definitely cool to be in the same room. I am still surprised they were one of the first bands of the day; I would have expected them to play later (following ES&TMZ and M&K).
-- Edward Sharp & The etc etc: I saw them from 9:32 with kosmo and sweetcell (nice meeting you dudes). As I said to them, ES&TMZ looks like they're just making music to occupy themselves while they wait for Hale Bopp to make it's next appearance. Bonus points for the super awkward interview of Alexander.
-- Yeasayer: I remember seeing them thinking it was really dusty and hot. For some reason, I was surprised they lead singer is from the US. For some reason, I always think he's British (I of course have no basis for this thought).
-- Joan Jett: Very cool to see and I enjoyed the half-set I saw. It felt like she's played the same set about a bazillion times.
-- Thievery Corporation: First time I've seen them. I liked it.
-- Matt & Kim: A big surprise for me. Usually two people playing two instruments does not mean a lot of energy. But they brought the energy. It's a lot of fun watching people playing music having a lot of fun with it. Really enjoyed this set.
-- Ludacris: For some reason, the half-set I saw was comical to me.
-- Pavement: Second time I've seen them this year and second time I haven't been blown away. I know they're indie gods...perhaps I'm just not as familiar with their catalog. I enjoyed Malkmus's banter: "...wait, I don't know what song we're playing."
-- Sleigh Bells: I loathe the songs I've heard from them. That said, their set was a big surprise and I enjoyed it. I'm sure my ears would bleed if the set was indoors. I also wonder how big a loss their show would take without the lighting and volume.
-- MIA: As with Sleigh Bells, I really dislike MIA; I do not understand the fuss about her. I wanted to see MIA's set to see if she really was a singer/rapper or, like I expected, more like Charlize Theron's character in Arrested Development. After an annoying 10-minute late start followed by a terrible 10-minute DJ intro, I concluded MIA's sole purpose in art is to irritate me and I left. From what I've heard, I don't regret it ("I just watched an MIA song involving a power drill solo"....srsly?)
-- LCD Soundsystem: Fantastic. I was exhausted by the time they showed up but I was really impressed with their set. "All My Friends" was perfect. What a good ending to a great day.
Other random notes:
-- There was a lot of free stuff but a long line to collect the free stuff so I didn't get any free stuff.
-- I had no problems buying food. The BGR grub was delicious.
-- Yesterday was crazy hot. And the dust!
-- Getting out of the parking lot was super easy. I was home in DC in under an hour from the time I got to my car. No idea why but I was thankful.
It really did appear that all 30,000 people was having a lot of fun. Even though I was flying solo, I had a great time. I haven't been to a lot of festivals but I must say that FreeFest2010 was exceptionally well organized and managed. And for free! I still cannot get over that. I saw so many bands for the price of food and beer.
So: Thank Seth and everyone who helped put the day together. It was a hell of a festival!
