Living that Festival Life | Bumbershoot Seattle
Bumbershoot Seattle was nothing short of absolutely amazing; from Lany’s first solo sexy guitar riff to Odesza’s epic closing remix of, “It’s Only”, I was blown away. It was very clear that Bumbershoot had definitely stepped its game up and put quite a bit more time and effort into production. Each day had its own unique vibes and styles, but each day was also just as wonderful as the last. For those of you who have never experienced it, or want to live it all over again like myself, here’s how my weekend went:
After a quick drink at Sam’s Tavern to get the day going, I headed downtown to begin what would be one my favorite festival experiences. My first stop was Foster the People to check out the more alternative side of the festival, and let me tell you, Mark Foster can sing, and if you’re not careful enough, he might even steal your girl with his dazzling good looks. After jamming out to the groovy music they were putting out, I made my way to the beer garden near the top of the Fisher Green Stage. After snagging a refreshing vodka lemonade, I heard my name called out, and was stoked to see a couple I had recently met at a different show waving at me from across the bar. We ended up spending the whole weekend together, and I later learned that Seattle had actually brought them into the scene, and helped them fall in love with it!
After leaving the bar, we made our way down to Key Arena, and were happily surprised to feel the bass the moment we stepped inside. After making a quick pit stop to the beer garden to re-up on bubbly, we headed inside to see the king himself; Jauz. I had already warned them they would fall in love with his music, but they definitely underestimated my words. His set was, oh how would you put it, an out-of-this-world-get-your-momma-to-shake-her-booty kind of set.
And like many of the artists I got to see for the second or third time all weekend, he had just gotten better and better.
The night ended with a trippy, beautiful, and visually entrancing set by Flume; leaving everyone dizzy and blissful. During one of his classics, the visuals began with a three dimensional, almost creepy looking, werewolf, with the album cover flower in its jaws, and white glowing eyes staring into your soul. Throughout the buildup, the face began to shift and melt downward, hypnotizing the entire audience. As the drop emerged, the face built back up, and had me thinking about it
for the rest of the evening. But the best part of the night had to be when my friends and I were making our way back to the car, talking about how sad we were that we missed “Say It”, when all of the sudden, us and the people nearby heard the song off in the distance and all began to sing together. Can’t say it sounded quite like Flumes version, but it definitely made my night.
How can you top Day One you say? Just throw in a little more of the Huckleberry Lemonade from the bars, Big Wild, and Dilly himself. A little hangover couldn’t keep me from going just as hard the second day, nor could it keep anyone else from having a great time either. After checking out some of the food vendors around, we meandered back over to Key Arena to witness the lyrics spitting genius, E-40. He switched it up between his own music, and some classics like, “I Got Five on it” that no one could resist from singing along with. By the time he was done and Big Wild was ready to start, the crowd was BUZZING with energy.
Now, as easy as it would be for me, I can’t write an entire novel about how great Big Wild was, but I can keep it simple and sweet; you need to see him. He was fun, he was smooth, he was loud, and he was atmospheric, just as I had expected. His whole set screamed energy, love, and talent. Right behind him was Dillion mother fucking Francis. Now, he may be a funny guy on Snapchat and Instagram and all that, but he’s even FUNNIER on stage. He has to be one of the only artists I know who can make me simultaneously head bang and cry from laughing so hard. To say the the crowd went absolutely bananas would be an understatement; the crowd lost their damn minds. My ears may have been ringing the whole next day but I regretted nothing, not a single second.
Day Three of the Festival, it was a bitter-sweet experience. I was so heart broken it was nearing the end, with each moment a fleeting one, but I was also so overwhelmed with joy by the fact I got to experience it all. The day began late, having rolled out of bed just in time to frantically make my way to Seattle, but it was a going to be a good one, I could tell. After one last stop to our favorite bartender, we headed to catch the last half of Louis the Child, and I really didn’t think they could get it better; boy was I wrong. Not only did they play all of their own tracks, but they also had visuals that played a part into each lyric, and at one point, group member Robert Haulder literally jumped into the crowd and floated around for half a song until jumping back on stage to finish the show. They were by far one of my top three favorite sets.
After vibing with them, we headed towards my favorite artist and show to date: Odesza.
I know people who like Odesza, I know people who love Odesza (that would be me), and I even know a few who hate Odesza (we call them the crazies). But the show they put on at Bumbershoot 2017 was sure to change anyone’s mind who may have second guessed them. My girlfriend was just like me; a die hard fan who knew the lyrics to every song, beginning to end. Her boyfriend on the other hand; he was skeptical, more of a bass-head as he’d describe himself previously, and someone who enjoys more high energy music.
Now, would you believe me if I said by the end of the show he was the one saying, “Just one more song, let’s stay for just one more, please?” and dancing his heart out to their music? Well, it happened, we all were screaming, some of us even crying, because they put on one of the most beautiful, captivating, and emotionally intense shows I have ever seen. From having singer Leon Bridges come on stage and belt his heart out, to having an entire drum line perform the last song with them, they were beyond incredible; in fact, I don’t think the dictionary even has a word to describe the extent to which they killed it.
Ending the weekend like that just brought the whole experience to a phenomenal close. I would say Bumbershoot overall was delightfully surprising because of how much better the artists did than expected, and refreshing, because of how kind and friendly people were; it was like one big giant family with the sickest beats I’ve ever heard.
Seattle Freeze you say? Never freakin’ heard of it.
