Outside Lands 2008 Round-Up: Sunday, August 24th

Sharon Jones, lead singer of Sharon Jones and the Dap Kings, is the diva to be paying attention to right now. The Dap Kings jammed a good ten minutes before she finally offered her divine presence to the audience. Whatever, the Dap Kings made me feel like I was in some sleazy Vegas bar in the 60’s drinking stiff cocktails. Finally, after being announced, she ran onstage, booty dropped, busted out a chicken dance then sang “Not Gonna Cry” – grand. She went on to explain how her tiny little legs like to strut, she said, “I call this the Tina Turner Strut” then busted out – click here for a taste of what that’s like. A few songs into the set she brought out Tuesday, a cute little Asian boy, to dance with her. She asked if he had a girlfriend and he said no… then she offered him some advice, “Now listen Tuesday, some people say you gotta fight for a love that’s true… Now I’m here to tell you Tuesday if you wanna girl to come you leave a little room for guessin…”

Broken Social Scene is thee super band, the perfect band for brooding kids that know how to have a good time. I’ve grown more and more attached to them throughout my adult life and was pleasantly happy when they came onstage and announced San Francisco is their favorite city in California. The clouds whizzed overhead as they played magical number after magical number, pot flowed through the crowd as party goes swayed to the dark synthy rythms, hushed vocals, screams, guitars and drum breaks coming from stage. They epitomize the emotionally balanced Canadian, a personality trait many Americans need to consider. When they played my favorite song “Anthem For A 17 Year Old Girl,” the audience stood in rapt attention, dancing subtly, most everyone quietly sang along as the song slowly built into sublime.

CHECK THEM OUT:

Despite the lack of an electro tent, the festival had many wonderful dancing moments. After much sweat and awkward body movements, I have to give BEST DANCE PARTY to Los Amigos Invisibles, their fusion of noise had me moving in ways I thought only Ricky Martin capable. I wasn’t alone, there should be a new chapter in “Stuff White People Like” titled “White People Like to Pretend They Have Rhythm.” In the chapter, Los Amigos Invisibles would be referenced as one of those South American wonder bands able to give white people their ultimate dance experience. During their show a wasted long haired white boy ran toward the stage, he flailed like a maniac, tossed his glass of wine in the air and tried to catch it with his teeth, of course the glass splashed into the grass, he flopped in the field like a fish on land then jumped to his feet and ran into the dancing crowd.

Mike Gordon, of Phish fame, delivered nineties soft classic rock, Americana folk, that is reminiscent of Steely Dan and The Doobie Brothers. His set was full of jazzy goodness, full of guitars and soft whimsical lyrics. Before his set I had the chance to catch him in a press conference. He had just arrived to San Francisco, a little late to the press conference, and as he walked onstage he said the ride he had just finished had been 14 hours in a car but he still managed to muster up some energy to answer some questions.

Q: What determines what you play?
A: So many variables, I don’t know what will make it different. Whether we slept, mood, bands that improvise and go with whats happening, theres so many variables, I don’t know what to expect. We’re playing some covers, some older stuff, and some from the album and some stuff that is more upbeat as opposed to what I used to do in the past.

Q: Whats the San Francisco crowd like to you? What do you expect?
A: The whole vibe is magical. I rent a scooter whenever I come here and go up and down the hills. It seems much more enchanted than most cities and I try to spend a few extra days here whenever I come.

Q: Any surprises we should be anticipating for today or the near future?
A: Theres so many people lurking here, it’s too soon.

DOWNLOADS:
(from two artists I’d like to see next year)
Patti Smith – White Rabbit
Nomy Lamm – Spell No. 9

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