As I was scanning the initial list of artists for the Sasquatch! Festival that was released this week, I could only think one thing: Man…this year’s lineup sucks.
Admittedly, part of this is taste. I’m not gaga for some of the indie darlings that grace the bill. Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Silversun Pickups, Bon Iver, and other critical darlings of their ilk might do it for some, but I’m hardly clamoring to get myself to central Washington and shell out over $55 a day (plus camping) to see them. It just seems like Sasquatch! is trying to be a bit too hip. Aside from TV on the Radio, The Decemberists, and Explosions in the Sky (all of whom happen to be playing different days) there isn’t a lot to spark my desire to go to a festival I loved last year.
Most astonishingly, Kings of Leon is the headliner on Saturday. Who listens to Kings of Leon?!? Aside from my A&E editor, I don’t know of anyone who does. While they are huge in Europe, last time I checked, Washington wasn’t a part of the EU.
On top of that, Ben Harper and Relentless7 headline Monday. That’s two of the three days being headlined by a band that has no business in such a slot. While Coachella may have lost a bit of hipster cred by choosing Paul McCartney, The Killers, and The Cure as this year’s headliners, at least all of those artists are huge. For goodness sake, Modest Mouse and Death Cab for Cutie were both sub-headliners last year. Has Sasquatch! really fallen that far so quickly?
Why not throw some cash at a band like Pavement (who has been open to reuniting) to headline and actually one-up Coachella? Something needs to be done to inject some life into this lineup.
I’ll grant that Sasquatch has always been about indie cred and representing the Northwest. And with bands like Fleet Foxes and The Builders and the butchers, they do just that. But Sasquatch is becoming more than a localized event. It needs to draw upon more than underground Northwest talent, spanning their invitations across the globe as the more successful Coachella festival has done. The Northwest is known for its sound, it should be known for it’s music festivals as well.
The strongest part of the entire bill are the comedians. Featuring Zach Galifiankis, Demetri Martin, Tim & Eric Awesome Show Great Job, Todd Barry, and others, the comedy tent should be a total hoot. But when the comedians are the highlight of your music festival, well, you’re doing it wrong.
Unless some serious additions are still to come, there’s no reason to waste your money on this year’s incarnation. Here’s to Sasquatch! 2010.
*Published in today’s issue of The Gonzaga Bulletin*
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all i got to say is…. MOS DEF MAYN, DJ Girltalk, N.I.N., Peter Bjorn and John are hopefully still coming…i think they are playing a joke like the presidents did last year, chromeo’s doing a dj set, the fleet foxes rule, its going to be great