popwreckoning

Last.fm is a website I’ve used extensively in building my music collection. I’ve discovered some of my favourite bands there. And based on my general music tastes and most played artists, The Drums is on my list of recommended bands. Seriously, they always pop up. So because this website I so dearly trust told me that I’d like this band, I wanted to love their newest album Portamento so much. I really did.

I gave it several listens to see if I’d like it even more the second time, the third time. But every time, it was as forgettable as the last. Not that I wanted to turn it off. That’s definitely not the case. The album isn’t bad. But it’s not good. It’s just there. It’s stale. Sadly it fades into the background of all the Bloc Partys, Two Door Cinema Clubs, Mystery Jets, Maccabees and all those who came before them in the endless sea of surfy, synthy dance rock.

And I know my synthy dance rock. I’ve seen We Are Scientists seven times in four different states.

The problem with the Drums’ newest effort is that it’s trying too hard to be safe, to fit in with those types of albums. In this day and age, to stand out is to be avante garde, progressive. It’s one thing to be refreshing and reminiscent of prior decades, but to make retro work for you, you have to either do something different with it, or do it really really well.

The Drums started the album off with a rather hollow introductory song. “Book of Revelations” features a monotonous melody, rather nasally vocals, and a guitar line that sounds like an electric guitar that’s unplugged.

Sadly, after that most of the songs flow together in one forgettable indie movie soundtrack. Probably the worst of them is “Please Don’t Leave,” which like the title, sounds whiney and a bit annoying. I seriously can’t get over the sound of the empty electric guitar. Maybe it will sound different live. I was planning on seeing them on their upcoming tour because I know the drummer they’re touring with, but now I’m not so sure about that.

The album’s one saving grace is the charming harmonies from the multiple vocalists. Especially on the fast-paced and quite catchy “Money,” the harmonies exemplify the 80s-esque New Wave feel of the album.

Portamento is minimalist, and a tad sad in some places, but while droning – it makes sense within The Drums career. Hopefully it’s one of those sophomore slump things, because I want to believe in this band. I want them to push through, especially since earlier in the summer they almost broke up. And it could be that Portamento was what came of that – but not in the best way.

Track listing

1. “Book of Revelation”
2. “Days”
3. “What You Were”
4. “Money”
5. “Hard to Love”
6. “I Don’t Know How to Love”
7. “Searching for Heaven”
8. “Please Don’t Leave”
9. “If He Likes It Let Him Do It”
10. “I Need a Doctor”
11. “In the Cold”
12. “How It Ended”

Visit http://thedrums.com/

The Script used to be my guiltiest pleasure: when you’re a female music blogger, you get a lot of sniggering from boys in bands when they hear you’re seeing any act that is manufactured, whether real or perceived. But I’ve seen the Dublin band twice now, and I can say without a doubt that they have the goods and they bring the goods live, so the argument that they’re manufactured holds no water. I’d also like to point out that singer/piano man Danny O’Donoghue has the kind of smile that could melt a million hearts, but I digress…

The importance of a good opening band cannot be stressed enough: when they’re good, they psych up the audience, setting the stage for the rest of a great evening; but if they’re bad, it can leave a bad taste in your mouth. (The latter was true when I saw Abe Vigoda open for Vampire Weekend in April 2010 at the same venue, DAR Constitution Hall.) As I predicted, opener Hot Chelle Rae was an immediate hit with the MTV teeny crowd right from the start. The high-pitched screams as the band took to the stage nearly rivalled the headliner’s entrance later.

There’s nothing objectionable about Hot Chelle Rae: the Nashville band look like they’re trying to be really “rock” (their bass player Ian Keaggy has tattoos up and down both of his arms) but they come out sounding like lite mainstream rock. Their music has a good, infectious beat and the band members appeal to what my companion for the night refers to as “the Disney crowd.” (Not far off: think about it. They’re signed to Jive, aka the first label home of Backstreet Boys and still Britney Spears‘ label.) While their set was short (only 7 songs), it looked like the predominantly female and underage crowd would have been up for much more.

Hot Chelle Rae Set List
Beautiful Things
I Like to Dance
Alright
The Distance
Bleed
Teenage Dream
Tonight, Tonight

It’s interesting attending a show filled with teenagers. None of them can drink of course, so the line for the bar is short or nonexistent, and because they can’t drink, they’re all trying to look cool by milling about near the merch table. But once they’re seated and the show starts, something magical happens. I won’t show my age by revealing when I saw my first show, but watching all those girls in their micromini summer dresses jostling each other to take photos of the bands and fighting each other for guitar picks was, shall we say, rather heartwarming to me. And if you have to choose a band for your first gig, I don’t think you can do much better than the Script in a nonthreatening, huge venue like Constitution Hall that can support a spectacular light show featuring flashing lights, interactive backdrops, and live zoom-in shots of the Script (primarily for the benefit of those unfortunate souls up in the nosebleed sections).

This Dublin band is both disarming and incredibly charming. They sneaked their way into everyone’s heart by being apologetic for their June gig cancellation due to illness. They told stories about whiskey and getting drunk and let’s face it, these kinds of stories go down better when told by Irishmen. They complained about the DC heat and said they wanted to move here so they could work on their tans. To say they had the audience eating out of their hand is an understatement. Still, it was the music that wowed the most.

“Nothing” is probably one of the saddest pop songs ever written; it’s the musical equivalent to drinking yourself to death after getting dumped. I had to pat myself on the back for not crying when this song came on. If guitarist Mark Sheehan is to be believed, it was written after a night of boozing when O’Donoghue’s heart got broken and he made an ill-advised cell phone call to his ex. The only weird part about the live performance of this song is that O’Donoghue had the biggest of grins on his face while he was singing it. I guess life as the frontman of one of the biggest bands in Europe (and now the world) isn’t too bad.

Of similar topic and with a decidedly more lighthearted bent, “If You Ever Come Back” was a definite highlight of the night, as everyone’s arms were raised and waving in time to O’Donoghue’s own. “Rusty Halo,” with its r&b groove and aggressively red lighting, segued effortlessly into the song that finally broke them here in the States, “Breakeven.” I wasn’t sure how the band could top that when they returned for the encore but a similar singalong broke out for the closer, “For the First Time.” My only complaint: the set list was far too short. Maybe they were trying to follow the DC curfew laws and make sure all those kiddikins could leave the place on time? All in all though, it was a superb night of much and atmosphere, ending on a high note.

The Script Set List
You Won’t Feel a Thing
Talk You Down
We Cry
The Man Who Can’t Be Moved
If You Ever Come Back
Before the Worst
The End Where I Begin
Science & Faith
Nothing
Dead Man Walking
Rusty Halo
Breakeven
//
This = Love
For the First Time

Tour Dates
Sept 04 – Stage AE / Pittsburgh
Sept 06 – LC Pavilion / Columbus
Sept 07 – Fillmore Detroit / Detroit
Sept 09 – Ryman Auditorium / Nashville, TN
Sept 10 – PNC Pavilion @ Riverbend Music Center / Cincinnati
Sept 11 – Murat Theatre / Indianapolis
Sept 13 – Palace Theatre / Louisville
Sept 14 – Pageant / St. Louis
Sept 16 – Hartman Arena / Park City, KS
Sept 17 – Table Athletic Center @ Carthage College / Kenosha, WI
Sept 18 – Ogden Theatre / Denver
Sept 20 – Crystal Ballroom / Portland
Sept 21 – Paramount Theatre / Seattle
Sept 23 – Fox Theatre / Oakland
Sept 24 – Palladium / Los Angeles, CA
Sept 25 – Marquee / Tempe
Sept 27 – Riverwind Casino / Oklahoma City
Sept 28 – Coins Ballroom / Tulsa
Sept 30 – Stubbs Waller Creek Ampitheatre / Austin, TX
Oct 01 – House of Blues / Houston
Oct 02 – Palladium / Dallas
Oct 04 – Mahalia Jackson Theatre / New Orleans
Oct 05 – Ruth Eckerd Hall / Clearwater, FL
Oct 07 – Fillmore Miami Beach / Miami
Oct 08 – Hard Rock Live / Orlando
Oct 09 – Tabernacle / Atlanta
Oct 11 – Fillmore Charlotte / Charlotte
Oct 13 – Roseland Ballroom / New York City
Oct 14 – Paramount Theatre / Huntington, NY
Oct 15 – MGM Grant Theatre at Foxwoods / Mashantucket, CT

The Script: website | myspace | The Script – “Breakeven” | Science & Faith review
Hot Chelle Rae: website | myspace

Is it terrible that like…basically the only acts I want to see on Monday are local bands? I feel like at a festival I should be broadening my horizons, which I will anyway, but I can’t help myself. I love my city, and the music that comes from it.

12:00: Motopony at the Fountain Lawn Stage. This band is finally getting some radio play in Seattle on stations other than KEXP, which is well-deserved, because lead singer Daniel Blue’s jazzy voice with the catchy indie rock makes for great songs live and on record. I haven’t seen them in over a year, so I’m excited.

1:30: Curtains for You at the EMP Level 3 Stage. Another group of locals – Curtains for You is the epitome of adorable, but not to an annoying extent. Hopefully this new stage has lots of dancing room.

2:15: Grand Hallway at the Starbucks Stage. Orchestral chamber pop. That’s all I have to say.

3:15: Yacht at the Fountain Lawn Stage. I loved. LOVED. Yacht’s last album, and I’m ready for their electropop awesomeness.

4:30: Lemolo at the EMP Level 3 Stage. These girls are awesome. I’ve seen them twice now, and it’s quite amazing what they can do between the two of them. It’s almost like it’s one magical musical mind in two different people.

5:30: Eisley at the Exhibition Hall Stage. More girls! I need more female artists in my musical repertoire. And Eisley is just perfect for that with their ethereal melodic voices that I just can’t get enough of.

6:00: Lake at the EMP Level 3 Stage. More adorable! But in all seriousness, we need more bands from Olympia in this world. We’ve got Sleater Kinney and Gossip. Olympia has a great music scene too, Seattle shouldn’t get all the credit.

6:45: Sharon Van Etten at the Fountain Lawn Stage. Since I am hitting up two festivals this week (you’ll be seeing my Musicfest Northwest previews pretty soon too!) I’m seeing Sharon Van Etten with her gorgeous compositions and earnest songwriting here at Bumbershoot before I miss the chance in Portland.

7:30: Ravenna Woods at the EMP Level 3 Stage. I cannot say enough about this band to make you want to see them. They’re so amazing that they’ll be a part of the Nevermind Showcase at the EMP later this month on the 10^th Anniversary of the release of Nirvana’s iconic album. Yeah, you wanna see them now before they get too big, or else you won’t get another chance like this one.

7:45: Fitz and the Tantrums at the Mainstage. This is the only band that I seriously and in all honesty WANT to see at the Mainstage on Monday. I saw a tiny bit of their set back in May at Sasquatch and I wasn’t nearly satisfied with that little bit. I want more!

9:00: Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside at the EMP Level 3 Stage (wow, looks like I’ll be hanging out at this stage basically all day). Here’s another band that will be at both festivals I’m attending this week, and I’ll need my dose of roots and blues rock for the day.

9:15: Hall & Oates (why they list them as Daryl Hall and John Oates, I don’t know. It’s just Hall & Oates) at the Mainstage. Not that I don’t want to see Hall and Oates. I do. But I feel like their appearance at Bumbershoot is nothing more than a gimmick. Like, shouldn’t they be playing at the Puyallup Fair? Last year Bob Dylan played. This year we get Hall and Oates. Something just doesn’t feel quite fair.

So here’s you pre-dose of Bumbershoot. Now go enjoy the sun, sounds, and smells of the festival before the namesake becomes too literal.

Sunday at Bumbershoot is pretty typical of a “middle day” of a typical festival. Attendees know where most of the stages are, they know who they want to see, and they know where to stand in line for comedy passes. On the other hand, it usually means that photographers, like myself, have some serious scheduling conflicts to contend with, and even then we usually are running around like chickens with our heads cut off.

For me, Sunday schedule was a hard one. From giving up The Lonely Forest (as they are playing Mainstage at The Key Arena which requires a special photo pass) to passing on Das Rascist, just because I know it’s going to be a pain to get in the line with my schedule the way it is. Even so, I managed to put together a schedule with a little bit of everything!

2:00 pm – DJ Justin Timbreline: A Decibel Festival collaborator, Timbreline makes a pretty unique form of underground electronica and techno. It’s emotive, bass-heavy, ethereal. Definitely a great way to kick off your Sunday in the Skychurch.

3:00 pm – The Sight Below: With ambient and visceral sounds accompanied by lots of beats and thumps, The Sight Below is an homage to the darkness and will carefully usher you into the light with a journey full of isolation, atmospheric energy, and hopeful light notes. This carefully constructed wonderland of ambient trance is going to be one of the highlights of the Skychurch all weekend.

4:00 pm – Shigeto: As the moniker for producer Zach Saginaw, Shigeto is also his middle name and an homage to his Japanese heritage. Combined with this background and adding in his father’s tastes for older jazz and a continuing education with jazz music, it’s no wonder that his electronica is riddled with jazz influences. Combined with early IDM, dubstep, soul, and some seriously sick drum beats, the Skychurch will be filled with more amazing electronica.

4:45 pm – Atari Teenage Riot: If you’re looking for one of the best genre-combining bands of all time, Atari Teenage Riot would have to be near the top of the list. Combining punk, industrial, drum and bass, techno, house, and j-pop influences, they are a live powerhouse and know how to make a crowd move. Always a fun hardcore show and a must-see at the Exhibition Hall.

5:00 pm – Com Truise: Producer Seth Haley describes his music as “mid-fi synth-wave, slow-motion funk.” Need I say more? Another Decibel favorite at the Skychurch at the EMP, and will definitely show off Haley’s synth obsession.

6:30 pm – Anti-Flag: If you’re a fan of good, hardcore punk, Anti-Flag is a must-see. With circle pits and enough in-your-face political views, they are one of the pinnacle bands in recent punk history. Catch them at the Exhibition Hall and see more than a decade of punk rock live, in action.

7:00 pm – Tycho: As much as I love Tycho, I feel like it should have lyrics. That being said, Tycho is some impressive atmospheric music. It’s hard to classify and ever-changing, so that’s not necessarily surprising. I’m looking forward to seeing what he brings to the table in the Skychurch.

9:30 pm – Carbon Leaf: “Ether-Electrified Porch Music” is how the band describes themselves. This Americana bluegrass blend is fused with Celtic, folk, and rock for a career that has stood the test of time for more than two decades. Another diamond in the ruff, they are definitely worth the trip to the Mural Amphitheater for their set.

9:45 pm – Symphony Untuxed: Seattle Symphony Music Director Ludovic Morlot is just about to start his inaugural season here in Seattle, so what better time to go see him and select members of the Seattle Symphony play five pieces. Morlot will be emceeing as well as playing the violin on the final piece, a Vivaldi that has not been revealed yet. As a musician, I’m more than a little excited to see them perform at the Bagley Wright Theater.

Come back for more previews and upcoming Bumbershoot coverage from Abby and I here on Popwreckoning!

As a long time veteran of Bumbershoot, I definitely try to take advantage of the plethora of arts that Bumbershoot offers- everything from Flatstock (a giant poster sale), to comedy and performing arts shows, to (my personal favorite) the music. From local to international, metal to rap and everything in between, Labor Day weekend at Seattle Center’s biggest festival of the year is always a party. Set underneath the prolific Space Needle and amidst the Mural Amphitheater and the Experience Music Project/Science Fiction Museum, it has always been my favorite way of kicking summer out the door and getting ready for fall.

My picks this year are not as varied as I may have liked or have tried to plan in the past. In all honestly, looking at the lineup, I could not be happier with my choices. With that being said, for me, this weekend is mainly metal and electronica, per my usual tastes. (Abby’s all over local Seattle acts on Saturday, check it out!)

1:00 pm – Witchburn: This is definitely going to be one of the best ways to kick off Bumbershoot, for any of you rock/metal fans, especially for locals. With their prog undertones and Southern rock style, this powerhouse of scorching guitar riffs, heavy bass, and exquisite lyrics, this Seattle-hailing band is sure to be rocking the Exhibition Hall.

2:00 pm – The Great Mundane: Portland, OR based electro/house/hip-hop beatmaster The Great Mundane is downright one of the best producers I have heard in a long, long time. Lacing instrumentals and synthesizer to make a downright epically imaginative mix of sound, he still maintains a very minimalist approach to beatmaking. The tracks are full of emotion and will definitely fill the Skychurch at the EMP for one heck of an electronic experience.

2:45 pm – Red Fang: A long-time favorite of mine, Red Fang brings metal back to its heritage with their urgent lyrics and the general fuzz that good metal has. Every song is a hard rock anthem, designed to get you headbanging and rockin’ along with the band, growling out their lyrics to the accompaniment of LOUD. Reminiscent of PNW The Melvins or the more prevalent Black Sabbath, these fist-pumpers are definitely going to shake the Exhibition Hall down to its very foundation. On the plus side, chances are that you still will have their lyrics stuck in your head on the way home that night (which isn’t necessarily a bad thing…).

3:00 pm – Natasha Kmeto: Another PDX based act, Natasha Kmeto refers to herself as “futuristic soul.” I couldn’t agree more as her newest release Expressor is saturated in between IDM, hip-hop, soul, and trance. With her enigmatic voice and the blatant genre-bending tracks that form her repertoire, I have a feeling that the Skychurch is going to be dancing their collective asses off.

4:00 pm – Emancipator: If you’re looking for some amazing melodies and some downright immaculate production, Emancipator’s beats are completely clean and crisp. With organic sounds, folk instrumentals, and a haunting woman’s (choir?) vocal track, these layered pieces sport some major Asian influences (probably due to his immediate success in Japan back around 2006), as well as some incredibly playful and anthematic tracks. This is going to be one immersive, intricately crafted set- and definitely one you won’t want to miss, filling the Skychurch with some intense sound.

5:00 pm – Nice Nice: Nice Nice can be summed up fairly easily: guitarist, drummer, loops. Their dreamlike tracks are full of ambient, psychedelic sounds and are presented with startling fluidity and an amazing ability to sound a lot bigger than they really are. Once again, the Skychurch is definitely the place to be for amazing electronica all day.

6:00 pm – Beat Connection: This local Seattle duo is one of my ABSOLUTELY MUST SEE acts, mainly for the fact that I have not gotten the chance to see them before. All in all, they play a saccharine synth pop, overlaid with chillwave and 80’s influences, reminiscent of a lighter version of The xx or possibly some Asura and Anon. By now, I would just plan on hanging out in the Skychurch for the rest of the night- trust me, it will be well worth it.

6:15 pm – Pentagram: As one of the pioneers of “doom metal,” Pentagram has been around and playing gigs since 1971. For me, they’re the kind of metal I was raised on by my drummer of a father, and definitely influenced my musical tastes today. Combine this with the fact that they’re almost legendary and I’m there. I can’t promise they will be amazing, but it’s definitely worth seeing them at the Exhibition Hall, if nothing more for the general experience.

7:00 pm – Free the Robots: My first take on these guys is definitely BASS. Another psychedelic eletronica band but with a darker, heavier twist, complete with some video game/8-bit tunage vibes. For fans of dubstep and bands like The Glitch Mob or Flying Lotus, this California native producer is guaranteed to have a packed house to exhibit his beats to at the Skychurch.

8:00 pm  – Lawnchair Generals: LCG are definitely some of the more prolific Seattle house acts of all time- and for a damn good reason. I’ve had the pleasure of hearing their tracks mixed live by various DJ superstars, but also on compilations by Ministry of Sound and Kaskade. For true house fans, they are an absolute necessity for almost any occasion. If you’re hesitant about getting into house music, I would say that their set at the Skychurch would be one amazing introduction.

9:00 pm – Pezzner: Dave Pezzner is electronica. The internationally acclaimed beatmaster doesn’t really fall into any one subgenre, playing almost anything  and everything that he can create electronically. Rising from our acclaimed Emerald City, his set at the Skychurch would definitely be the one to catch before heading to Bumbershoot After Dark – it will get your body moving for sure.

Come back for more previews and upcoming Bumbershoot coverage from Abby and I here on Popwreckoning!

As I mentioned yesterday in my Bumbershoot preview for Saturday, Seattle’s own Pickwick is amazing, fantastic, the next big thing. I haven’t changed my mind from yesterday, so I’ll elaborate.

Last weekend I saw Pickwick for the first time at KEXP’s Concerts at the Mural at the Seattle Center (it was free!) and I was flabbergasted. If you take one look at these guys, you wouldn’t expect the beautiful soulful jams that came from this group of white guys with great hair.

They’ve been all over local blogs like Seattlest, Sound on the Sound, Another Rainy Saturday, among many others.

The band started in 2008 when lead singer Galen Disston left Los Angeles and came to Seattle, and he established Pickwick as an alt-country band. Then spending the next couple years bringing themselves into the Seattle folk scene – finding dozens of like-minded artists. Needless to say, in Seattle, folk is the new grunge.

And it was when Disston began playing with his voice after hearing Sam Cooke’s “A Change is Gonna Come,” that Pickwick made a name for themselves.

In the past year, they’ve been on the heels of the Head and the Heart, in terms of local buzz, and hopefully they can make their way to at least getting signed. It’s blasphemous to me that someone hasn’t picked Pickwick up yet, but I guess in Seattle that doesn’t really matter – seeing that they’re playing Bumbershoot with plenty of other unsigned artists.

Back to last weekend’s show. I cannot tell you how much my feet hurt at the end of their performance. I did not stop dancing. At one point they brought up several other local artists FROM THE CROWD and had a dance party on stage. There was even a little girl with a shaker dancing along to the effervescent soul beats.

I, for one, am glad that Pickwick found their current sound. It’s refreshing. I love the Head and the Heart and all, but we don’t need a dozen clones of them running around Seattle. We’re known for our innovation in this town, and sometimes the most innovative thing to do is to go back to our roots. And that is what Pickwick has done with their music.

One last thing, it’s come to my attention that Pickwick has posted something about “big news” today on my MySpace page. Once I find that out, you’ll hear it first from me.

Catch them at Bumbershoot on Saturday on the EMP Level 3 Stage tomorrow at 6p.m. You won’t be disappointed. And if you are, what’s wrong with you?

*EDIT* Here’s a video of one of my favourite songs from the KEXP Concert at the Mural last weekend.

Visit Pickwick on Bandcamp at http://pickwick.bandcamp.com/

While Saturday is my designated FOLK day, Sunday is going to be non-stop energy. I can’t wait.

1:00: Wayne Federman and the Gregory Brothers at the Intiman Theatre. I don’t really know anything about this Wayne Federman guy, but the Gregory Brothers (otherwise known as Auto-Tune the News on YouTube if you didn’t already know) are sure to be a spectacle. They played at the 2^nd Annual Vidcon in Los Angeles in July. And from what I heard, it was awesome.

1:30: The Lonely Forest on the Mainstage. I may have seen this band way too many times, but I don’t care, because they’re that good. It might be kind of weird seeing them on the mainstage, because they moved the mainstage to the Key Arena this year instead of Memorial Stadium (yeah, that happened).

2:15: Mad Rad at the Fisher Green Stage. This band is an anomaly – I think they call themselves hipster-hop. I don’t even know how to describe them. Their live show is not for the faint of heart, but definitely not one to miss.

3:00: Broken Social Scene at the Mainstage. I missed their performance at Sasquatch 2010 and I smacked myself so many times for missing them, and I’m not going to do it again.

5:45: Das Racist at the Fisher Green Stage. Whether or not this group’s stage antics is alcohol-induced (most likely is), they have so much hilarious charisma that you’ll be laughing through singing along.

6:45: Warpaint at the Fountain Lawn Stage. You don’t see a lot of all-girl groups anymore. Also, I have not been able to stop listening to Warpaint all summer, so I will be getting my fix this weekend.

7:30: Allen Stone at the EMP Level 3 Stage Sponsored by Mission Foods Artisan. Allen Stone hasn’t even recorded a full-length album and he’s already been featured in USA Today. Seriously? How can you not see his live show? I can vouch – he’s awesome live.

8:00: Macklemore and Ryan Lewis on the Mainstage. I was already in awe of his performance at Sasquatch, and I cannot wait to get back into that crowd full of energy once more. Plus, hearing “My Oh My” actually IN Seattle will be even more moving than before.

9:15: The Kills on the Fisher Green Stage. Alison Mosshart is fantastic, and anything she is apart of – I want to see. Plus, their last album released in April is a winner in my book. And since this will be my last show of the night, I wanna go out dancing.

Oh, but that’s not all! Tomorrow the festival starts, but it’s my final preview for Monday. So keep on the lookout for Bumbershoot coverage all weekend!

As Annastasia and I will be attending this year’s Bumbershoot Festival, we’ll be your trusty PopWreckers bringing you all the details about Seattle’s biggest festival of the year.

For now, here is my preview of Saturday’s lineup.

As much as people rave about festival headliners, this year’s mainstage lineup for Bumbershoot is kind of a bust, save Macklemore and Ryan Lewis on Sunday and Hall & Oates on Monday (but really, Hall & Oates is just for the nostalgia factor).

The best part of this year’s lineup is the overwhelming number of local bands playing the festival. For example…

12 Noon: Campfire Ok on the Fountain Lawn Stage. These adorable KEXP darlings released their first full-length this year, and I have yet to see them live. And I call myself a Seattle music geek. Pshh.

12:45: Yuni in Taxco on the Fisher Green Stage. I saw these guys open for the Builders and the Butchers earlier this year, and I’m interested to see where they’ve gone with their live show since then. Very interested.

1:15: Brite Futures on the… MAINSTAGE? What?! How did I not know they were playing the mainstage? Sure it’s at 1:15, but that’s pretty awesome for Seattle’s little band full of art students formerly known as Natalie Portman’s Shaved Head.

1:30: Kris Orlowski & the Passenger String Quartet at the EMP Level 3 Stage Presented by Mission Foods Artisan. One of many local musicians who has gone the grassroots route for building a fanbase – Kris Orlowski is friends with like every other music to grace small stages throughout the city. And he’s the one sending out all his releases, not a publicist.

2:15: Champagne Champagne at the Fisher Green Stage. This is my kind of hip-hop – fun and full of life, easy to dance to, and lyrics about Molly Ringwald. Tyler the Creator can eat his heart out.

2:45: Presidents of the United States of America on the Mainstage. Okay, so Presidents play Seattle quite often, since they do live here. They’re oldies but goodies. And if you haven’t seen them play live yet, it’s kind of like a right of passage in the Seattle music scene. So why not do it at Bumbershoot?

6:00: Pickwick at the EMP Level 3 Stage Presented by Mission Foods Artisan. This band is awesome. Amazing. Soulful. The next big thing. I’ll tell you more later (see my next edition of Fantastically Local…tomorrow).

8:30: STRFKR at the Fountain Lawn Stage. Enough with the name changes already! Thankfully, the whole Pyramiddd/Starfucker fiasco has ended and now we can just focus on dancing our skinny-jean-covered little asses off.

9:15: Minus the Bear at the Fisher Green Stage. For me, this time slot was a decision between Ray Lamontagne and Minus the Bear. For a closing act, I want something to keep my energy up, and Minus the Bear will do that for me over at Fisher Green. I don’t need sleepy folk soul at the main stage, because frankly it’s a bit boring at that point (i.e. Jason Mraz headlining at 10 PM two years ago, why? I don’t know.)

So you can either take my word for it or go build your Bumbershoot schedule over here at http://sched.bumbershoot.org/ But I suggest you take my word for it. More picks coming soon!