Take a moment. Move away from your computer only slightly, place your hands in your lap, and picture this:
- Two beautiful days in the great city of Chicago.
- Thousands of people all gathered for the same exact reason as you.
- Three stages with some of the best music you will ever see/hear.
- All different types of food you can imagine.
- Huge areas of shopping, everything is mostly handmade.
- Last but not certainly least, there are over fifty port-a-potties.
(don't worry, their not as bad as you think... ok I lied they really are horrible)
Everything you just imagined took place over two days this past July, and I was there to experience it all. From the mixed up train ride, to the best performance by a band that I had no previous hearing of, but now I adore them greatly! I'll explain it all, from the best of my memory that is. After-all it is October..
July 14th, 2007 (Saturday)
Union Park-- located at the intersection of Lake St. & Ashland Ave.
Sounds simple right? WRONG! It took us over three hours from the time that we arrived in Chicago to make it there. I won't bore you with the details, just know that we ended up at the wrong Ashland stop, on a not so nice part of the city. Can anyone say south-side!? Now I have nothing against the south side, but that is not where I wanted to end up.
Moving right along...
We got off the L (for you non chicagoans: the L is like the subway, but its not underground) only to find a huge line. At first I was bummed, but it moved rather quickly. Once inside, I could not believe my eyes. This festival is so much more then just your typical music festival. Its a social gathering. Like I mentioned above ^^ thousands of people get together for this 2 day festival to hang out and listen to awesome indie bands. Seeing that the first band that my friend Carolyn and I wanted to see didn't play until a later time. We decided it would be best to walk around and experience everything.
There were two main stages out in what seemed to be the grassy area of the park. With plenty of port-a-potties for your using pleasure only a few 20 feet or so away. On the other end of the park was the other stage, quite smaller. But there were still some awesome bands playing there. Next came the many food tents. Anywhere from Vegan Ice Cream (quite tasty), to Watermelon Lemonade (also quite tasty, I enjoyed 3 of them while there :]). And past that were close to a hundred art stands, with beautiful and unique music posters. Oh and did I mention that people were playing
4 SQUARE!! I have not seen, yet played that game since elementary school. Oh the days...
Back on track...Quickly, 3:00 was approaching us, which meant it was time to check out our first band of the day. Grizzly Bear. (the link takes you to their myspace. do yourself a favor and ch-ch-check it out). As you can see in the picture, that was about as close as we could get. Though my hearing did not disappoint me, they were excellent, and the crowd seemed to agree as well. Did I mention that everyone was extremely friendly!? Grizzly Bear is one of the bands that the moment you hear them you fall in love. Though I must say, every band I saw over the two days I fell in love with, and have been telling people to listen to them ever since. They are certainly a band I feel everyone would enjoy. Their music is soothing but enjoyable all the same. Good right before you go to sleep, you listen to them and fall asleep with smile on your face band. At least that happens when I listen to them. :)
After seeing Grizzly, we headed over to the other stage to check out Fijiya and Miyagi. Again click on the link, don't be scared you'll like what you hear. Especially if you enjoy music that makes you wanna start dancing. Which is exactly what they did for me. I remember standing there, trying to get the best picture of them I could. After finally getting an OK picture, I just started dancing, and didn't stop. It did not matter though, everyone was dancing and having a good time.
Sadly enough, after viewing those bands, we decided to leave and walk around the city being tourists of course. Instead of boring you with details, you can view pictures. Because as the saying goes. A picture is worth a thousand words....
July 15th, 2007 (Sunday)
Second day of the festival. This time though, there were no crazy mix-ups that landed us on the south-side (sorry to disappoint). The only highlight was this crazy pigeon that would not move, even though we kept stomping at it, (yeah I know, I'm cruel, but I wanted to know why it wouldn't move.)
Basically we made it to Union Park with no problems and an hour to spare. This was perfect, because the first band we wanted to see was one of the first bands of the day to perform. And right after was another band that we wanted to see.
We made it through the gates at 12:30 and headed straight for the stage, so we could get a good spot. You think third row is good enough!? :D
First up was Deerhunter. I know what your thinking, "How can a band with that name be so good!?"
Well if you take your mouse and click on the link that took me 2.6 seconds to make. You may just find out. Sarcasm is a beautiful thing, isn't it!?!
Back to Deerhunter, I didn't know what to expect with a name like that. For all I know the lead singer could come out with a deer costume on, (do they even make such a thing?). Wasn't even close, it was creepier to be exact. The lead singer was super skinny, I am almost positive that if he stood next to a pole, you would not be able to see him. To top things off, he wore not ONE but TWO dresses. Think I'm lying, HA let the photos tell you the truth...
Now despite the weird band name, and the dress. They too are an excellent band. I mean how many bands do you know, where their bassist (3rd picture, dude in the blue shirt) not only plays a mean bass, but smokes AND drinks while performing. Not many, don't let that alarm you though. yes the music is a bit eerie, but nonetheless highly enjoyable. Bottom line: if you enjoy Grizzly Bear, check out Deerhunter.
So after standing in the blazing heat for Deerhunter, granted a nice camera guy, handed us his bottle of water. I was minutes away, and this time 2nd row (that means I was only feet away) from one of the best bands of the whole festival in my opinion. Drum roll please... MENOMENA. Amazing, I don't think all the bragging in the world could do them enough justice. I'm gonna tell you again, take your mouse and click on the pretty blue link. You won't be disappointed. Guaranteed, except this time you won't get your money back sorry. They are a three piece band, made of a tall drummer who plays barefoot, (how he does it, I'll never know). One of the lead singers, who plays an assortment of instruments that I don't even think I can remember them all. Let it be known though, he plays the Sax-a-phone beautifully. And last but not certainly least, another singer, (part lead, part backup, same with the drummer dude) who also plays a bunch of instruments, those being the keyboard, guitar, and synthesizer.
Guess what comes next.. MORE PICTURES DUH!!
Overall, despite all the sarcasm, random questions and billions of photos. Pitchfork was one of the best times I have ever experienced. And you can bet your bottom dollar, I'll be there next year, enjoying the sun, people, and of course all the excellent bands Pitchfork simply has to offer.
Photos by Carolyn Marie Umfress.
For more information on Pitchfork Music Festival check out: pitchforkmusicfestival
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