Sasquatch! 2013 Is Officially Sold Out

It appears the festival is already sold out, within an hour of the passes going on sale.  That's the quickest sell-out I recall.  It's not surprising, as mentioned in the previous post, "never underestimate the power of the radio." There's always a chance the website malfunctioned, so until you hear official word in a press release, it doesn't hurt to keep trying.

UPDATE: As noted in the comments section, Sasquatch! is officially sold out. DO NOT ATTEMPT TO BUY TICKETS FROM SCALPERS. Scalpers take advantage of people freaking out about not getting a ticket, so this is the worst time to attempt to purchase a pass on craigslist. Be patient. There are plenty of good people out there who are not looking to screw you over to make a couple bucks.

Sasquatch! 2013 Lineup Revealed

Several good points made in the comments section, and I agree with almost everything said, good and bad. 

First, the bad. The top nine billed acts are as unspectacular as any Sasquatch I've been to, and this will be my nineth. It's not unspectacular because the bands suck, they don't. It's unspectacular because most of the bands haven't been around very long, and have been actively touring. The only real "gets" are the Postal Service and Sigur Ros, but the Postal Service are going to be absolutely everywhere this year (including NW shows later this fall I'm sure), and Sigur Ros hit the NW last August.

I like the top nine bands, at least the ones I can listen to for three minutes without falling asleep, and several are great live. However, I wouldn't pay $50 to see any of them (again), and that's my only beef with the lineup. Would you believe the top nine acts collectively have 21 proper albums? "Now That Is What I Call Music" is up to Volume 45, and the Residents have put out 21 albums since this festival was born.

Most proper albums by the noxious nine:

6-Sigur Ros
4-Arctic Monkeys
2-Mumford & Sons
2-Vampire Weekend
2-Edward Sharpe & The Magnetic Zeros
2-The xx
1-The Postal Service
1-Macklemore & Ryan Lewis
1-The Lumineers

Moving on to the best part of the lineup, the next two highest billed acts, Cake and Primus.  Each band has also toured extensively in the last couple years, but are both worth the admission price. It's not often a festival features two musicians who are the best in the world at their chosen craft.  Les Claypool is hands down the best bass player alive, and John McCrea playing the vibraslap has no equal. Primus is already the most exciting act on the lineup without their 3D doodad (there are three Ds in the word doodad) they've been hauling across the country since early 2012. One cautionary note, after seeing the Flaming Lips set in 2011, I'm not completely sold "Cake" being on the lineup is actually referring to the band.

After the top 11, most festivals start falling flat on their pony tails, while Adam Zacks continually delivers with up-and-comers, and/or bands who are outstanding live. This is what makes a music festival.  More on this in the comings weeks when I start the Quadros series.  This year, I plan to at least double the amount of Quadros I wrote last year. 

There is a hidden genius in the construction of this lineup, and it goes like this. In order to make this easy to understand, I'll classify music listeners in the following five levels:

1. I don't listen to music because it sucks.
2. I like pop and/or country because silence sucks.
3. I listen to the alternative radio because hearing the same songs every 24 minutes sucks.
4. I'm a music hipster and the radio sucks.
5. I'm a music nerd and music hipsters suck.

Ideally, a festival lineup will have something for each level of music listeners. Now, let me throw out a couple names on the Sasquatch lineup. Mumford & Sons, Macklemore & Ryan Lewis, The xx, Vampire Weekend, and Edward Sharp & The Magnetic Zeros. These acts appeal specifically to those level three music fans who listen to a lot of radio. These are gateway bands, designed to give the curious a reason to dive deeper into music nerdery if they choose to do the research, and this year's undercard is stacked and waiting.  I envy those who are fans of these gateway bands who are attending Sasquatch for the first time. You'll be foaming at the mouth shortly, and your friends will no longer recognize you. This is why I wouldn't be surprised if the festival sells out quickly this year.  Never underestimate the power of the radio. 

It's not my favorite lineup, and Primus (or any form of Les Claypool) is my only can't miss when I usually have a handful of can't misses each year. I have a reason to be underwhelmed, but it's still going to be one of the greatest weekends of the year, and just being at the Gorge watching live music will make up for any lineup dissapointments. I really like a bunch of bands on the lineup, but I wouldn't fly across the country for this lineup. If the gateway bands mentioned earlier end up being the flash-in-the-pan 2009 Kings Of Leon, we'll be laughing about how awful this lineup is two years from now.

Post your reactions and opinions in the comments section.

Sasquatch! 2013 Confirmations/Rumors

Sasquatch! 2013 Confirmations:

Ron Swanson

Sasquatch! 2013 Rumors:

Deadmau5, Black Rebel Motorcycle Club, Knife Party, DIIV, Disclosure, Atlas Genius, The xx, Cody ChesnuTT, Imagine Dragons, Mother Mother, Father John Misty, Vampire Weekend, Foals

Predictions For Sasquatch! 2013 (Top 50)

These are my guesses based on some facts, some probability, and a lot of hunch/wishlist. It is not the actual lineup! For those who know how to count, you are correct, this isn't 50 acts.  I'll add more in the next couple days. It's a rough draft, so changes will be made. Typically I avoid predicting comedians, so I'm not going to use Nick Offerman to pad my stats. 

NOTE: Regarding Primavera, the festivals share acts every year.  Yes, Primavera was a different weekend than Sasquatch last year, but it was the same weekend the previous years, and they still shared a handful of bands. If you've ever flown from the east coast to the west coast, you know with the time change, you land only a couple hours later.  It's similar flying from Europe. Primavera also is a Thursday-Saturday festival, while Sasquatch is Friday-Monday.  A band playing Thursday at Primavera could fly from Europe to Seattle, continue flying west, fly around the world back to Europe, then on to Seattle for a second time, and still make it in time for a Monday Sasquatch set.

Mumford & Sons / Deadmau5 / Sigur Ros / The Knife / Knife Party / Every Other Band Containing the Word Knife / The xx / Vampire Weekend / Postal Service / Bassnectar / Kendrick Lamar / Hot Chip / Yo La Tengo / Macklemore & Ryan Lewis / Arctic Monkeys / Built to Spill / Foals / Empire of the Sun / Beach House / Tame Impala / Tegan & Sara / Flying Lotus / Japandroids / Dinosaur Jr. / The Lumineers / Franz Ferdinand / Infected Mushroom / Amon Tobin / Father John Misty / Black Rebel Motorcycle Club / Portugal. The Man / Akron/Family / A DJ With a Neat Light Show / Solange / Surfer Blood / The Cults / Grimes / Menomena / Atlas Genius / Deerhoof / Disclosure / Dillon Francis / Imagine Dragons / Wild Nothing / Gold Panda / Theophilus London / DIIV / A Guy With A Mustache / Cody ChesnuTT / Blondfire / Seattle Rock Orchestra performing the songs of Mother Mother / Suuns / Mother Mother

Post your top 50 guesses in the comments, if you dare...

2013 Sasquatch Launch Party Monday, February 4th

Built to Spill and Cody Chesnutt are set to perform.  The Sasquatch! 2013 lineup will be announced. Don't assume everyone playing the Launch Party will be at the Gorge. History has shown not every act playing the Launch Party will be on the bill. There is still a decent chance Built To Spill and Cody ChesnuTT will be there

.

Sasquatch! 2012 Lineup

Jack White, Beck, Bon Iver, Pretty Lights, Tenacious D, The Shins, Beirut, Girl Talk, The Roots, The Head & The Heart, Portlandia, Feist, Silversun Pickups, Metric, Explosions In The Sky, The Joy Formidable, Mogwai, Nero (DJ), M. Ward, John Reilly & Friends, Childish Gambino, St. Vincent, The Civil Wars, Jamey Johnson, Little Dragon, Tune-Yards, Wild Flag, Blind Pilot, Wolfgang Gartner, Beats Antique, Apparat, The Walkmen, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, Mark Lanegan Band, Spiritualized, Blitzen Trapper, The Cave Singers, Shabazz Palaces, Fun., Grouplove, Tycho, SBTRKT, STRFKR, Ted Leo and the Pharmacists, Deer Tick, Alabama Shakes, Dum Dum Girls, The Helio Sequence, Kurt Vile, Cloud Cult, We Are Augustines, Ben Howard, Here We Go Magic, Zola Jesus, The War On Drugs, Shearwater, Cass McCombs, Active Child, Trampled By Turtles, Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, Araabmuzik, Star Slinger, L.A. Riots, Com Truise, Unknown Mortal Orchestra, I Break Horses, Walk The Moon, Dry The River, Allen Stone, Pickwick, Hey Marseilles, Gary Clark Jr., Purity Ring, Electric Guest, Yellow Ostrich, Nobody Beats The Drum, Coeur De Pirate, Lord Huron, Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside, Beat Connection, The Sheepdogs, Hey Rosetta!, Said The Whale, Howlin Rain, Gardens & Villa, Felix Cartal, Craft Spells, Vintage Trouble, Poor Moon, Black Whales, Gold Leaves, Greylag, Awesome Tapes From Africa
, Thee Satisfaction, Dyme Def, Fresh Espresso, The Physics, Sol, Metal Chocolates, Grynch, Spac3man, Don’t Talk To The Cops, Scribes, Fatal Lucciauno, Fly Moon Royalty, Katie Kate, Nick Kroll, Beardyman, Todd Barry

New Additions: Santigold, Of Monsters & Men, Graffiti6, Hospitality, Polica, Chelsea Peretti, Little People, James Murphy, HoneyHoney, Sean Wheeler & Zander Schloss, Reptar, The Staves, Damien Jurado, Chiddy Bang, James McCartney, Feed Me (with Teeth), Howard Kremer, Dale Earnhardt Jr. Jr., ReignWolf, The Sights

Removed From Lineup: Imelda May, Anthony Jeselnik

Quadros 1: Jack White, Clap Your Hands Say Yeah, The Joy Formidable, Wild Flag

I got one Quadros in before the festival. When you get married, have a child, get convicted of a felony, spend a couple months in prison, spend a couple months in rehab, lose your job, have your internet disconnected, and have to sell your Sasquatch tickets to afford paying $5.30 for a mocha to use the wi-fi at the local coffee shop, you'll understand why I couldn't write more this spring.  None of this actually happened, but pretend it did for a second.  I'll redeem myself next year.

Jack White:

We might as well start off with the top billed performer at the festival, the most well known rock god under the age of 40, and the reason the Black Keys are so gigantic.  I have some serious history with the White Stripes, even though I was never a superfan.  I remember the first time I heard the song "Seven Nation Army," I thought it would be the next "Smells Like Teen Spirit."  I pictured children growing up idolizing this Guitar Hero and video games eventually capitalizing on his excellence. I pictured the guitar being so popular by 2009, a new genre of music called Electric Guitar Music (EGM for short) would be gigantic. There would be entire stages at major music festivals devoted to these EGM performers playing to crowds of chemically induced youngsters, complete with flashing lights, lasers, and video monitors. Everyone would be playing their air guitars, or inflatable replica guitars, and glowsticks would be everywhere. I was so close.

More history, seven years ago, I had convinced a group of friends to attend the Stripes Gorge show.  Like many of you, I wasn't interested in attending shows by myself. My crew is excited, the local show sells out, then everyone bails. I couldn't afford to get to the Gorge solo, and I couldn't afford the scalper prices for the local show.  It was that moment I decided I would never depend on others to accompany me to shows I want to see.  Since then, I've seen almost every band I want to see, many of them by myself.  I owe it all to my sketchy friends and the White Stripes.

Now that the White Stripes have call it quits, I probably won't get a chance to see them live. Although I subscribe to the theory that bands break up to make more money further down the road, I feel like this White Stripes break-up is for real. One reason, Meg has stage fright, but another is because Jack can play White Stripes songs on his own. Case in point, he is playing White Stripes songs on his current tour.  I'm a bit surprised, I was expecting him to play only his new album and covers or extended jams.  Doesn't it cheapen the White Stripes when he plays their tunes live? Then again, his solo album Blunderbuss is solid, and sounds just like a typical White Stripes album.  I'm probably giving Meg White too much credit in that duo (I'm being nice).

I've seen Jack White perform five times, and he commands the stage like few performers I've ever seen. At the first Dead Weather show I attended, he stepped down from the drums to play one guitar solo, and it literally sent chills through my spine.  That solo is one of the highlights of my live music career, and a reason Jack White is number one on my list of can't misses this Sasquatch season. When have you witnessed a live performance that gave you chills? You are missing the highlight of the weekend if you skip him. I've often said, "I love Jack White like a little brother," but that might be an understatement.

Suggested Tracks: (All White Stripes songs unless otherwise noted)

1. Seven Nation Army
2. Carolina Drama (Raconteurs: Proof he can still write a compelling song lyrically)
3. Ball And Biscuit
4. The Union Fever (his bluesy scream is on display)
5. Fell In Love With A Girl (pretty sure this song is the reason for Neon Trees, Louie 13, and other pop/indie/electro band's popularity)
6. Dead Leaves And The Dirty Ground
7. Icky Thump (before you laugh, listen to the sounds he emits from his guitar)
8. Broken Boy Soldier (Raconteurs)
9. I'm Slowly Turning Into You
10. I Want To Be The Boy To Warm Your Mother's Heart (He doesn't need a guitar, the piano works fine)

The Joy Formidable:

If I made a list of the top Sasquatch bands you need to see live, even if you are unfamiliar with their music, The Joy Formidable would be top ten.  I caught them twice last year, and was willing to pay for round three in December, but the show sold out.  This three piece rock band from across the pond can best be described as the female Foo Fighters. While dormant, the lead singer/guitar player is a tiny adorable lady, but she has the most intense (nearly psychotic) expressions when she gets going. Quite frankly, she scares me, and I'm nearly twice her size. She could easily parlay her intensity into a serial killer role in Hollywood. Thankfully, after each song, she flashes her easy going smile which lets me (and anyone else paying attention) exhale.  The bassist and drummer are very animated as well, bringing a ton of energy to their set.

With only one alum and one EP so far, the Joy Formidable aren't loaded with outstanding tunes, but they rock out, which is something increasingly rare in the pop/indie music scene. They are a perfect festival band, because everyone will have a great time regardless of it they are a current fan. Blame me if you think their performance sucks. 

Suggested Tracks:

1. Whirring (It's the one that gets stuck in my head)
2. Chapter 2
3. The Greatest Light Is The Greatest Shade
4. Cradle
5. Austere

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah:

The year was 2005. After living with over 40 roommates since High School, I was finally able to afford my own apartment near the action (downtown Portland). Okay, it was more like a 300 square foot studio in the basement of an apartment building, but you haven't lived until you've cooked on a stove while laying in bed.  It was also the first time I could afford to buy albums, something I hadn't regularly done since BMG and Columbia House started recognizing my address. Clap Your Hands Say Yeah's self-titled debut album was one my first purchases, an album I still listen to every couple weeks.
Fast forward two years, they release their long awaited follow up which frankly stunk. It was so bad, I won't even mention the album title for fear of people googling it, and finding this blog. They even tried to incorporate static distortion, like they were trying to make it sound awful. If I hadn't paid $13 for a physical copy of the album, I would have assumed it was an illegal download, because the sound quality was that bad. I understand it's art, but I don't have to like it just because it's art.

By the time their third album Hysterical dropped last year, I had forgotten this band existed in a current form.  I finally gave it a chance, and it's actually pretty great. It's a pleasant album, which is a pharase I never thought I would associate with the band after hearing their second album. But enough about me, you probably want to hear something other than my "love, hate, like" relationship, so here goes it.

Clap Your Hands Say Yeah is an artsy indie rock band from New York who helped invent the hipster movement seven years ago. It is music you would expect to hear in the dressing room at Goodwill.  If you ever meet someone with a french tickler and a scarf who claims to be a painter, ask him if he likes Alec Ounsworth's solo material better than with CYHSY, and you'll have an instant friend.

Alec is the lead singer, and has a high pitched yelpy voice which can be best explained as annoying. It's so annoying, if you played 52 seconds of any CYHSY song to someone wearing a Slayer shirt, there is a 89.1 % chance you will get punched in the face. That album voice is also tough to pull off live, which has caused me to leave a couple of their shows less than impressed. I can't tell you this show will be fantastic, or it's a can't miss, but I can say you might like their music. The voice is an instrument, so when a vocalist is unique, that shouldn't be a negative, right? I never get CYHSY confused with any other band.  I have nostalgia on my side, so I'll be there.  I'll be the one tossing glow sticks during the first drop.

Suggested Tracks:

1. Home On Ice
2. The Skin Of My Yellow Country Teeth
3. Details of the War
4. Let The Cool Goddess Rust Away
5. Same Mistake (from the new album)
6. Adam's Plane (from the new album)
7. Heavy Metal
8. Hysterical (from the new album)

Wild Flag:

All female NW super group featuring Carrie Brownstein (Sleater-Kinney/Portlandia), Mary Timony (Helium), Janet Weiss (Sleeter-Kinney, Quasi, The Jicks), and Rebecca Cole (Minders). Their debut self-titled album was one of the better releases of 2011. I would be lying if I said I follow all four parts of this conglomerate, but Janet Weiss has controlled the sticks for several of my most memorable shows.  Carrie Brownstein has flare live, so at least she's trying.  She's been around, and knows a leg kick here and there get people like me excited. I'm like a baby with a rattler shaking in its face, and her leg kick is that rattler.

Their song, "Boom" is one of my favorite songs of 2011, and is worth the price of admission.  It is female punk at its best. In my opinion, "Boom" is as good as any Sleater-Kinney song (the hater comments section is now open for dissenting opinions). I caught most of their set at Coachella, only because I couldn't leave. They were that fun. For only having one album, they sure jam out on their hot tracks. I believe "hot tracks" are how the EGM kids refer to them?

Suggested Tracks:

1. Boom
2. Future Crimes
3. Short Version
4. Romance
5. Racehorse (as cheezy as the lyrics and theme are, they sure do jam out. Guitar/keyboards/vocals are all highlights)