The coasts of the United States never seem to be at a shortage for festivals, but travel to the heart of the country and festivals are scarce. 
Chicago does have Lollapalooza, which is a fun festival, but very mainstream. So the addition of Monolith Festival has been a haven for the Midwest hipster to see new buzz indie bands and some classic gems in one of the most beautiful venues in the world: Red Rocks Amphitheatre in Denver, Colorado.
The first day of the festival was a cold and rainy mess, but the bands stuck it out with smiles and were gracious to all the people who stayed the whole day. Store bought ponchos and trash bag made ones became the must have fashion accessory and one stage emcee quipped he would give a prize to anybody who could pull off the most creative, hipster rain outfit.
I wore two jackets and a poncho and wrapped my camera gear in a bag and despite only operating on an hour of sleep, I made it through the festival and loved every minute of it. Monolith fortunately has one of the best indie line-ups with few disappointments, so it was easy to lose yourself in the music and forget that you couldn’t feel your toes anymore.
Generationals // Woxy.com Stage @ 12:20 – 1 p.m.
Like I said, it was ridiculously cold out and off and on sprinkling, so heading to the indoor stages early seemed like a good plan when I arrived at Monolith Amphitheatre. Turns out it was. I started at the Woxy.com Stage, a stage that ended up having the best line-up of the day and hosting a majority of the best acts that I saw. Generationals were among those acts.
Generationals had a rock sound with folksy inclinations. The singer was a lot of the reason I liked them because he had a sort of nasal boldness to his vocal that made me think a bit of Tokyo Police Club without ever thinking that the band sounded like them. The female keyboardist balanced out his vocals, but I wasn’t as thrilled with the band when they gave her the lead vocals on a song. She was a fun support member to watch, switching from keys to keyflute (I have no idea what those mini-keyboards are that you blow air into, but that is what I’m calling keyflute.)
As I walked off from their set, I made a mental note to check out this band’s music at home. I quickly learned that I’d be making a lot of these mental notes.
Stars of Track and Field // Radius Earphones Stage @ 1:00 – 1:40 p.m.
I’ve been dying to see Stars of Track and Field since a few years ago, my local radio station, 96.5 the Buzz, played “Moons of Antarctica” on air and I went out and actually purchased their album. “With You,” my favorite from that album, was actually the last song I listened to in the car ride before t
he fest.
I don’t know why, but for some reason, I always figured the group had a girl in the band because of the records’ harmonies, so I was a bit surprised when three guys came out wearing tight pants and leather jackets. Despite the gray day and playing indoors, the singer had on bug-eyed sunglasses. He also adorned a scarf and their whole look reminded me of the time I saw Barcelona and their musical sound isn’t that different from each other. Perhaps they’re all friends–they are both bands from the Northwest, and maybe they do their shopping together.
Once I got over my surprise that a weird falsetto was the actual harmonizer, I got really into their set. They had a few pitchy problems, but it was still good. The new songs fit perfectly with the old and it was fun to watch the guitarist take random dips and jumps as he rocked out. Another cool thing that I discovered about Monolith watching them is that to the side of the Radius Earphones Stage, there was an artist that was painting them. I guess this was happening all day and it was fun to see a mixing of the two art genres. Stars of Track and Field just released a new album about a week ago. Go check them out.
Set List:
Movies
EOAT
Static
Bright Fire
With You
The Aviator
Arithmatik
Now You Lift
Lacuna
Lights
The Antlers // Woxy.com Stage @ 1:40 – 2:20 p.m.
The Antlers were yet another amazing discovery for me. I really hadn’t heard much about them until this past week and had no idea what to expect
. What I got was the product of if the singers of Cold War Kids and Passion Pit had a baby that then the kid was raised by Fleet Foxes in some mountain cabin in the heart of the Rockies. This group had that sort of classic sound meets modernity.
The vocalist was a crooner and he would crawl up the scales at the end of the verses, hit his high note and add a beautiful, yet different vibrato touch at the end. Gorgeous. As a whole, the group had the Fleet Foxes vibe with that sort of blending and harmonizing that the Foxes do so well. Also gorgeous.
A warning though—the musical subjects are very sad–hospitals, death and cancer.
Set List:
Bear
Sylvia
Shiv
A Trophy
2
Epilogue
Lydia // Radius Earphones Stage @ 2:20 – 3 p.m.
I’ve seen these barefoot indie pop musicians multiple times and they always give warm fuzzies. Piano, pleasing guitars and a perfectly happy band that never stops smiling kind of does that for you. They’re like Straylight Run, but happier.
These United States // Woxy.com Stage @ 3 – 3:40 p.m.
I think this band might win for favorite new artist of the day. PopWreckoning recently raved about them in an album review, and now we continue the raving by declaring them fucking amazing live. 
It was like being at a barn party with your closest friends gathered and just as you hit the tipsy point, somebody whips out an acoustic guitar and just starts jamming. It’s the kind of party where you love your friends and the music and are having such a good time that you think you could be eternally happy holding your beer and listening to your friends play forever.
These United States made every person in the room feel like they were all close friends at a party such as that. Their crowd interactions made it seem like if you did have a request, they would have tried to fulfill it. In fact they tried to do something like that. A person in the audience asked where they were from and after responding, they want on to say that they had a question box on the side of the stage because nothing was as important as responding to what the people want. And as for the crowd, whether they knew the bands very, very, very new music, they would still try to sing along.
When I left the room, I was still singing, “Get yourself home, boy, get yourself home.” The little jamboree at the packed Woxy.com Stage was hands down one of the best sets of the festival and maybe one of the best sets that I’ve seen in my life.
Edward Sharpe and the Magnetic Zeros // Southern Comfort Presents Stage @ 3 – 3:30 p.m.
I only caught a bit of this group, but it was exactly like the Letterman performance. Smiliing hippies dancing to the feel good “Kumbayah” like music that a bajillion musicians on stage were performing. It was good, but it is hard to give a complete review of a band when you only caught a song and a half.
Frightened Rabbits // Esurance Music Stage @ 3:30 – 4:15 p.m.
This Scottish act was the first of three that I would see at the festival and the Scottish acts came to the festival to show the American audience who was boss.
Accents made it difficult to really follow lyrics, but it didn’t matter. It sounded great and the people loved it. Some fans got really, really into it:
Pains of Being Pure at Heart // Southern Comfort Presents Stage @ 4 – 4:45 p.m.
Pains of Being Pure at Heart was a band that I was really excited and really nervous to see. I loved their self-titled debut, but one of the critics I respect in Omaha gave them a mixed review about two days before this festival. He basically said something along the lines of PoBPaH as one of those groups that has a great band, but a singer who can’t sing.
After seeing them for myself, I have no idea what he was talking about. The singing was perfectly fine and a nice cheery spot in the extra dismal weather. Kip, the singer, even quipped, “Today we’re the Rains of Being Pure at Heart.”
I think the band’s genuine glee at playing for Monolith made the set just that much better. It would have been easy to be wallow in misery that I could see my breath, couldn’t feel my extremities and was now at risk for pneumonia, but then I would look up and see Pains’ smiles and I’d smile too and forget the cold and get lost in their noise pop.
OK Go // Esurance Music Stage @ 4:45 -5:45 p.m.
You know them for their dance moves whether in front of funky wallpaper, on treadmills or in a backyard, but OK Go is so much more than that. They are a talented band that cares about their fans and really understand the art of performance.
One member walked out ahead of the group and struck out a large clear sideways bass drum. He was the herald to singer Damian Kulash‘s entrance. It was an attention grabbing opening. 
The band proceeded into a set filled with all their well-known songs and some brand new ones. There was lots of confetti and cute little anecdotes.
What I liked the most about OK Go was that the band really was all about the people. Red Rocks is an epic amphitheatre, but there is a big gap between the main stage and the front row of the audience. Kulash bridged that gap and carried his mike stand to the heart of the audience for a love song.
“Denver, are you lovers?” Kulash asked. To which the crowd cheered a yes. “Good. Our next one is a love song. We’re going to give it the 60s treatment and wave…or you got lighters? Those allowed here? Hold up you cell phones and let them get fucked up in the rain.”
They had a playful edge about them that just made it impossible to not like every moment of the set.
“This next one is a new song, but I need your help singing. This is in C er G no D…Pitch perfect. We’re pitch perfect.” said Kulash. “You’ll sing, ‘Let it go, this too shall pass.” The audience had a miserable attempt at repeating it back. “That was a bit fast, but we’ll give it a try.”
Kulash does not have a future in teaching because that was the worst attempt at giving directions I have ever seen. When the song finally got to that part, it sounded nothing like what he sang in the practice run, resulting in a kind of pub like singalong on the audience’s end. Fortunately I think Kulash has a secure future in music so he won’t have to toy with the idea of education as an alternate career.
Set List:
Shooting
Get Over It
Million Ways
White Knux
I Want You
Oh No
BFK
Don’t Ask
HIGA
Last Leaf
Skyscrapers
Disaster
TTSP
Good Idea
Invice
DWYW
The Walkmen // Southern Comfort Presents Stage @ 5:30 p.m. – 6:15 p.m.
I couldn’t bring myself to leave OK Go and I was dreading trekking up the stairs again, so I was strongly contemplating skipping the Walkmen to wait to see M. Ward, but others at the site have said this act was the shit, so I embraced more soreness to add to my calves and jogged up to see the Walkmen. It was good, but kind of blah. After the last few really solid and crowd-welcoming performers, it was hard to get into this set. The Walkmen’s downfall? They could sing and play well, but the performance was lacking in the entertainment value. Sorry other editors at this site. I just didn’t feel it. 
M. Ward // Esurance Music Stage @ 6:15 – 7:15 p.m.
M. Ward had a similar problem to the Walkmen, except, unlike them, I felt really guilty that I found his set a little blasé. He is a fantastic guitarist and singer, but I think he would have been better off either earlier in the day or playing one of the smaller indoor stage. 
His act was nice because it diversified the line up a bit and I think some of the older audience members really got into it, but the younger kids had a hard time staying awake.
Ward just had a tough act to follow after OK Go’s set and like I said, his problem wasn’t that he isn’t talented. Simply poorly placed in the line up.
Set List:
Sad Sad Song
Chinese Translation
Requiem
Epistemology
Fool Says
Poor Boy
Some Lucky Night
One Life Away/Lullaby Rag (acoustic)
Poison Cup
Four Hours
Magic Trick
To Save Me
Fahey/Fisher of Men
Nobody Like You
To Go Home
Vincent
Big Boat
Beethoven
Girl Talk // Esurance Music Stage @ 7:45 p.m. – 9 p.m.
Anybody who has heard of Girl Talk knows that Girl Talk tears it up every time. My friends had never experienced Girl Talk and I had to rush off to an interview before this set, so I gave them a little tip: stay close to the front before this set and keep your eyes open. 
Why would I give this tip? Because Girl Talk is a DJ that likes to be surrounded by people, toilet paper and lots of confetti…sometimes blow ups and balloons, but those were missing this time around.
Anyways, my smart friends took my advice and soon noticed a line toward the side of the stage and hopped in the line. This line was to get on stage with Girl Talk and to dance your heart out. So as Girl Talk blasted his spin on modern and classic hits, my friends got to dance up close and personal on one of the most epic stages in the United States.
I got out of my interview to join the rest of the audience getting covered in the rain, toilet paper and confetti and I loved every messy minute of it. Girl Talk has to be the love of everyone…well, maybe not the security and clean-up crews, but still, you know what I mean.
Of Montreal // Southern Comfort Presents Stage @ 8:45 – 9:30 p.m.
It is weird to say this, but Of Montreal was kind of tame this time around. No guitars were given out like at Bonnaroo and Lollapalooza at the end of the set. No guest performers. No balloons. Even the costumes weren’t quite as crazy as usual.
They still had the gas mask Christmas story and they had the little dance bits with the people in black.
So since I wasn’t as distracted by the other stuff that usually accompanied their set, I was actually left to focus on their music this time around. Guess what? It was still fucking amazing. Great keys, falsettos and guitars and all while every band member moved around and danced.
Set List:
Intro
Mingusings
Fashion
Seine
Cato
Forecast
Rapture
Id Engager
Faberge
Elegant Castle
Touched
Eluardian
Heimdalsgate
Rejector
Yeah Yeah Yeahs // Esurance Music Stage @ 9:30 – 11 p.m.
I want to be Karen O. This is a woman so creative that she can wear jackets more colorful than Joseph’s technicolor dreamcoat.
So bold she has no problem spitting like a man. And so talented that she can be caressing the vocals to a love song one moment, “They don’t love you like I love you,” and then going into a loud yowl, “I do! I do love you!”
Karen O owns the stage and uses every square inch for her dance moves and she never tires as she hops around. Watching her, it is almost easy to forget that Yeah Yeah Yeahs is a band and there are other people on the stage. I’ve seen this band multiple times and tonight was the first time that I really watched the rest of the band. Nick Zinner has some great guitar lines, but I finally noticed him as a performer tonight. He often just stands off to the side in a too cool for school leather jacket with his lower lip out in a concentrated pout as he plays. This show he seemed to finally interact and Karen and Nick even came together in an embrace at one point.
Each song was better than the last as the band went through old and new hits. “Cheated Hearts” into “Headz Will Roll” into the normal full version of “Maps” just made for a non-stop dance party and singalong.
It was a great way to end the night and left the crowd psyched and ready for day two of the festival.
Set List:
Runaway
Dull Life
Honey Bear
R Tung
Shame
Gold Lion
Zero
Miles Away
Skeletons
Hysteric
Soft Shock
Cheated Hearts
Headz
Maps (full)
Dates
Look for the Sunday follow-up soon!
Monolith Festival: website
