Being a pretty new festival, only the third year that it had been put on, it wasn't as vastly huge and overwhelming like Governor's Ball was, or Bonnaroo that Stephen attended last year. The crowds were big, but maneuverable, and pleasant. At least for the shows we went to, no one was rowdy and we always got an amazing spot, if you walked up about half an hour before the band started. To me, it was the sign of a good line-up, no one really stood for hours waiting for a certain band to play. Everyone saw everyone, and it was easy to predict when the crowds would come, so after a day of experiencing the festival, we had a good idea of where we wanted to be and when we had to leave to get a good spot. The span of the venue wasn't miles long either, so that was a nice change. But the line-up, in my opinion, was the best one this season.
Now, that could be because The Strokes were there, and they're my favorite band of all time, and I'm biased. That could be a thing, but even on the days where we considered our schedule "light," we still wanted to see four or five shows that day.
We stayed at the W Hotel, they had a deal with the festival goers, and it was a beautiful modern skyscraper that was in the heart of Midtown Atlanta. The first night we walked to find food and felt totally safe, basking in an area that felt young, creative and full of life. It was a short 1.3 mile jaunt to the festival everyday. We decided to walk because we didn't want to deal with taxi's and busses and it honestly never felt like we were walking a mile. We tried to go down a different street everyday to see more of Atlanta and it was a really neat experience. If we ever go back, we have a mental list of all of the restaurants we want to try.
And then finally, Friday afternoon around 12:15, a giant Zeus-like mascot greeted us and we walked through the gates of Central Park and into Shaky Knees!
Friday was Strokes day, so of course, me being a nut case, I was already stressed, but we had a lot of other bands to see, and while there were already people at the front of the big stage ready and waiting for the long haul until 9:30 that night, I let them have their fun, sun-soaked day (and not the kind you're thinking of when you're on the beach and having a good time, more like, "oh my god, I can feel myself drying out and becoming jerky type sun-soaked." Atlanta was !$#%ing hot!), and we went to go find some lunch.
As we returned from the food truck with our chicken caesar wraps, (I have a sensitive stomach, so I made Steve go to all the bland food trucks for lunch, I'm sure he was thrilled about that) we sat in the grass and listened to the first band of the day, Surfer Blood. Their upbeat, but beach-wave sound was the perfect start to the festival, playing a short set that left you wanting more, but excited to get started with the day. After they finished we walked across the park to see Black Pistol Fire. I knew one song by them and I thought Stephen might enjoy their raw guitar sound. And what a set! Who knew that just a two-piece could have so much energy and make so much noise. A drummer and a guitarist/vocalist, they rocketed over the stage drew a large crowd. Their song "Blue Eyed Commotion" is featured on a Verizon commercial, I believe, and I would highly recommend checking it out, especially fans of Jack White.
The next band on our list was Tennis, a dream-pop group that we have been listening to lately. And with a sound from the 60's and a look from the 70's, their music filled the tent with a groove that had everyone swaying. (The lead singer wore a top that plunged to her navel and with any more grooving we could have had an accident, but she was stunning nonetheless.) For fans of Best Coast (who was also at the festival), I would give Tennis a try. The make you want to go back in time and drink soda out of a glass bottle.
During the hour that we waited for the set to be built, we had a side view of the Mac Demarco set. He is an up-and-comer who is probably going to be everywhere very soon. More dream-like strange than dream-like pop, his music wafted over the audience. Personally, and maybe this was because I could only hear the left side of the stage, I wasn't that impressed with his performance. The vocals were sloppy, and even Stephen said he was a very laid back performer, but he drew an enormous crowd that ate up every second of his set. Regardless of his performance, he is one to watch, so get on that bandwagon.
We had a much needed break at this point, we caught part of Wavves set, a rollicking group with a DGAF attitude that had people actually moshing in the front, and we went to get food before The Pixies played.
The unfortunate thing about Shaky Knees was some of their decisions with the schedule. Maybe it couldn't be helped, but scheduling The Strokes immediately after The Pixies, to me, seemed like a terrible decision. Especially when The Pixies are one of Stevo's favorite bands. Luckily, however, I have the best boyfriend in the universe and after the first 45 minutes of The Pixies set, he let us go down and get our spots in front of the big stage. The Pixies were good, not a band I'm super familiar with, but I could still appreciate how much they rocked and respect how much of a figurehead they are for modern day rock. But even the greats can mess up and it was quite comical when they completely stopped one of their songs because the lead singer went into the chorus too early. They apologized and went right back into the song, but it gave us amateurs hope.
The 45 minute wait for The Strokes was excruciatingly full of anticipation and anxiety. We weren't super close, but we could have been a lot worse. I could see the stage perfectly if I held my head just so, and if nobody moved, but overall, I was really happy with where we were. And then finally, after waiting 10 minutes past when they should have come out, the lights went down and my 5 favorite men walked out on stage and went instantly into my favorite song in the entire world, "Reptilia." That was a magical moment, I didn't cry this time!
SATURDAY
Day two of Shaky Knees was hot. And the day we forgot to put on sunscreen. It did nothing for our morale though which was still at an all time high from the day before, and even more excited about a day that was instantly not quite as stressful, but that was still going to be as awesome. The morning was much the same, we got our coffee/teas and strolled to the festival, deciding to listen to a few of the first bands of the day as we walked through the park. One we really enjoyed was Hey Rosetta! I haven't looked them up since we got back yet, but their full sound caught our attention and we sat and enjoyed the end of their set. Saturday afternoon we had more time to kill than the previous day and we grabbed our food and hung out in the shade before Real Estate. This prompted us to witness one of the most bizarre and yet original sets I'd ever seen. The band playing the big stage was called Mariachi El Bronx, and they were literally a mariachi band with a rock twist and sung in English. They were super fun and you could tell the crowd standing and watching them was having the time of their life. I kept hearing about them for the rest of the day as we went to our shows.
The first band that we had scheduled to see that day was Real Estate. And let me tell you, during that set, I don't think I've ever been more relaxed and in the moment. A generally mellow jam band, Real Estate played for an hour and chilled everyone out with their soft beats and guitar tones that hovered over you like the soft breeze that we desperately needed. We were very close to the stage for their performance, which I was happy about, and the band helped build and tear down their own set, being very personable with the crowd and just making me love them even more.Now came the stressful, if you can even call it stressful, portion of the day. Built To Spill and Interpol played back to back, and it was another Pixies/Strokes situation, without quite the caliber. Unfortunately, Neutral Milk Hotel played at the same time Interpol did, so we had a tough decision, but Interpol being one of our favorite bands, won out in the end. It helped too, that Stephen had just seen Neutral Milk Hotel in Springfield the week before. We stayed for about half of the Built To Spill set, roasting on a hill in the sun. (My face is still peeling from that day.) And after it seemed like they were only going to play songs mainly from their new album, we went to the stage that Interpol were going to play on and got a fantastic spot. The hope of the day was that they would play "Stella was a diver and she was always down," a song that they had played at Governor's Ball, but that they hadn't played on their new tour and at the other festivals they had just been to. But we hoped and in the end it turned out that they played a set full of older songs, staying away from their third and fourth album and only playing the three singles off of their newest one. They ended up playing "Stella" instead of "NYC," and it basically made our festival. And while an hour wasn't near enough time for them, we thought, their set was still one of the highlights of the whole trip for us.
The Avett Brother's were good; great performers, their energy was high and their mannerisms very entertaining and almost silly to watch. There is something about seeing a cellist run around the stage holding his cello to his neck and playing it at the same time that you don't forget easily. They were a little too country for my taste, but a great headliner for the area we were in. Personally, I will probably never get into their music, but I can understand now why so many people do.
SUNDAY
I woke up Sunday morning asking myself how it was already Sunday morning and the last day of our trip. Time flies when you're having fun was an understatement. But we still had a whole day and I was going to cherish every second of it.
Our first stop when we got to the festival was to get an outrageously expensive, but delicious pretzel dog, and then we snagged spots on a hill to catch The Mowglis play. A pop group that could make even the most depressed people happy, their set was fun and upbeat, the vocals a little sub par, but made up for with charisma and catchy tunes. It was a fun way to start the day.
After the most delicious lemonade with agave, we watched the first half of Frank Turner's rallying set before we took our places for the Dr. Dog show. Frank Turner, an English songwriter, was very fun to watch. He was extremely funny and his songs made you feel like you were in a pub singing old drinking songs about the good old days. If you haven't heard of him, give him a listen, you won't be disappointed.
Dr. Dog was the trump card of the day. Stephen wanted to see their entire set, so we walked over and again, got an amazing spot pretty close to the front. I had only heard one song by them, but I was eager to hear more, and I was not disappointed. As a band that tours almost constantly, they have really ironed out the kinks. Their set was fantastic and groovy and absolutely a joy to hear live. And they played the one song I knew! Having just released a new album, they played most of that with a few oldies thrown in and a cover of Architecture In Helsinki's, "Heart It Races" to finale. A favorite song of mine, and a cover that I wish was actually recorded because it was incredible to hear.
Once Dr. Dog finished we pretty much had artists we wanted to see for the rest of the night, so we had to make a few sacrifices. Panda Bear was next and since his music is entirely electronic, he didn't really do much except stand in front of his computers to sing. We stood in line for coffee during his set and could hear it perfectly, we didn't feel like we had missed a thing. After coffee and Panda Bear, we walked over to hear Ryan Adams play, another up-and-
comer (although we found out that he has been making music for a long time), and an artist that Stephen has been getting really into lately. The first song he played was the one that Steve wanted to hear, and luckily Panda Bear's set ran short so we had time to walk over and hear all of it. Things at the festival just kept working in our favor and we couldn't ask for anything more.
Tame Impala, an Australian, psychedelic rock group, headlined the last night and brought a close to the wonderful festival. We stood in the crowd and let their waves of sound wash over us. I don't think I've seen so many people crowd surf at one show. Their music, not hard, but not mellow was the perfect way to send everyone off. They weren't even going to do an encore, but when they left the stage the crowd went so wild that they came out and played one more song. As Mugatu says, "That Tame Impala is so hot right now." (We practically quoted Zoolander the entire trip, so I had to throw one in there, it just felt right.)
All of the artists at Shaky Knees kept saying the same thing. "You've got a really great thing going down here, Georgia." They all seemed to be enjoying themselves and the crowds were supportive and fun to be in. It took everything I love about seeing live music, and made it better than ever. The experience is one that I will never forget, and it's a festival that I could see myself going to for years to come. It was over much too quickly, but never disappointed.
"We are the angry mob, we read the paper everyday. We like who we like, we hate who we hate, but we're also easily swayed."
