During 'Festival Revealing Week' back in January, one weekend immediately identified as a 'can't miss' experience was Shaky Knees Music Fest. The Atlanta festival put out the strongest lineup of their three year existence. This included worthy headliners The Strokes and Avett Brothers, as well as personal favorites Frank Turner and the legendary Noel Gallagher.
Full Lineup:
So after tickets and a reasonable hotel were purchased, it was just a quick 7 hour drive up to Atlanta for a very worthwhile lineup. Here's who I ended up seeing on the weekend (and in order): Jukebox the Ghost, the Kooks, TV on the Radio, the Strokes, Portugal the Man, Flogging Molly, Neutral Milk Hotel, Milky Chance, Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds, Avett Brothers, Frank Turner, The Mowgli's, Best Coast, Dr. Dog, Old Crow Medicine Show and Tame Impala.
And here were the top 9 sets:
9. Dr. Dog
8. Portugal. the Man, Live in Heaven
As good as Friday was at the festival, it somehow wasn't enough to satisfy. Following the Strokes, we headed over to the Masquerade for a late show performance on their 'Heaven Stage.' Portugal wasn't even on the bill for the festival, but they had no trouble selling out this intimate venue.
The Lords of Portland took full advantage of the indoor stage, utilizing some mesmerizing lasers and smoke machines. The band members remained cloaked in hooded jackets for most of the evening, and played a different setlist from past Portugal experiences. It was a fun show but somewhat difficult to appreciate after an epic Friday headliner.
7. The Kooks
6. Flogging Molly
No matter what time slot Flogging Molly is given, they seem to act like a headliner. The Irish band turned Saturday afternoon into a rocking dance party, complete with moshpits and circles of running festival attendees. Lead singer Dave King threw cans of Guiness into the crowd, and played all you would expect from the ever touring Flogging Molly experience. He also announced plans for the group to head back to the studio following their performance and put together some new music.
5. Old Crow Medicine Show
The showmanship and talent of Old Crow Medicine Show are difficult to top. They feature 7 members who all sing and rotate instruments. They also have the current Folk Record of the year in Remedy, as well as the most well known song of any bands discography on the weekend with 'Wagon Wheel.' All these things added up to a very comfortable and enjoyable Sunday evening slot.
4. Frank Turner, Live from Hell
Frank showed his usual passion for a 90 minute set that invoked plenty of singing, jumping and moshpits. Frank even displayed some impressive stage diving and crowd surfing skills. The setlist included Frank favorites like the storied 'I knew Prufrock Before he Got Famous,' and about 3 new songs. His lead single 'Get Better' is a sure sign that his new album Positive Songs for Negative People is not a record to be missed.
3. Noel Gallagher and the High Flying Birds
While most of the Saturday evening crowd elected to see fellow sub headliner Wilco, I was perfectly content in seeing an absolute legend in Noel Gallagher. Noel is obviously best known for his work in Oasis, and he satisfied the Oasis faithful with playing 5 of their songs.
He also mixed in work from both of his solo albums, which are both very solid. In total, he played 75 minutes in which he was very much just 'classic Noel.' He called out some fans, made jokes, played his tunes, and thankfully ended with a brilliant rendition of 'Don't Look Back in Anger.' It's tough to beat that.
2. Avett Brothers
The Only Music Blog and The Avetts have been far from strangers this year. I caught their back to back gigs in Orlando last month, and both received high reviews. The Avetts seemed like the perfect headliner for this Shaky Knees crowd, and festival organizers rewarded them with a full two hours, good for the longest set of the weekend.
The mighty Avetts took full advantage, cramming 24 songs into this time slot. They played all their biggest hits as well as crowd favorites. It was definitely the biggest and best sing a long of the weekend, and perhaps the year for that matter.
1. The Strokes
While Avetts had the best sing a long crowd, the best overall fans to be in attendance with belonged to the Friday headliner. The Strokes came out with Reptilia and the crowd was certainly ready for it, jumping and screaming from the start. This was just the beginning of a fantastic set list put together by Julian Casablancas and company.
I've seen the Strokes once before (GovBall last summer), but this performance blew that show away. The energy from the crowd was incredible, and the band fueled off this. Set highlight was a rousing encore that included 'Is This It?' and 'New York City Cops.'
Strokes Setlist:
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
-
- Encore:
-
-
Overall, no real disappointments on the weekend. Shaky Knees lived up to the hype and I'm glad I was able to experience a new festival. I'll definitely be on the lookout for it again next spring. So thanks for putting on a great festival Shaky Knees, and thanks for keeping those EDM artists away too!
No comments:
Post a Comment