Day Two
Day Two
by Joshua Krage
After acquiring gourmet tots from Q Restaurant, started out mellow at the Panhandle stage for smart, synth-infused pop from Ximena Sariñana, who endured almost an hour waiting for soundcheck but still delivered some great tunes. Second on the bill was the Twin Peaks stage for British it-boys The Vaccines, whose immense amounts of vocal reverb rendered most words indiscernible but really got the crowd moving with their “British Strokes” sound. Hook-stacked hit “If You Wanna” fused everyone together– it was electrifying.
From here, a worthy trip to the main stage yielded prime placement for a killer set by OK Go, decked out in bold primary colors. Frontman Damian Kulash spent some time wading through the crowd, sparking every phone within 200ft to rush into “video mode.” Noting that San Francisco is a city full of “dirty sinners,” the boys brought out some “God-made” handbells for a reverent rendition of “Return” before rocking their sizable roster of hits, even striking the chimes for “Skyscrapers” and bringing out original guitarist and SF resident Andy Duncan for “Get Over It” from their first LP.
Our next destination was more fodder and libations, which were procured by way of jaw-dropping mac & cheese from Homeroom. (If you’re in LA or SF and get a chance to enjoy any of their gourmet cheese-topped macaroni masterpieces, take the chance. So worth it.)
On to the Twin Peaks stage for Sia, the lovely, unassuming Aussie with the huge voice, who got people dancing right away and had her band decked out in what appeared to be colourful Afghan rugs. Songs were great, and she even played new song “Hostage” from upcoming release produced by The Strokes‘ Nick Valensi, which was amazing. Less amazing was her peculiar banter with the crowd, but that’s another story. Next chapter: passing by the Panhandle for a bit of electro-chill from Eskmo, which was interesting but not engaging enough to stay away from the main stage for one of the festival’s biggest draws, The Black Keys.
The Polo field was packed for this working-man’s duo from Akron, Ohio, and the crowd was singing along with every song. I knew they had become popular, but wow. Also surprising was how well I knew every song they played, some from commercials I’d prepped and seen and some from film soundtracks (like “Chop and Change” from the latest Twilight OST). They trucked the first half of the set with backup from a bassist and organ, but dropped down to a duo for the later hits. I waded through the surprisingly polite crowd to find the perfect spot, just in front of the soundboard, for the night’s headliner, Muse.
Anyone who’s seen Muse in recent years will tell you their stage show has [ahem] grown a bit, and while I expected the lasers and the smoke and pyrotechnics, what really blew me away was the video effects on-screen. Quick takes and wave fades are one thing, but when they’re lightning-quick in time with the beats and changes mid-song, it’s mind-blowing, and they kept that up all night with their awesomely-futuristic stage design, even featuring a piano with responsive LED lights and their recent bonus of huge inflatable eyeballs bombarding the crowd. Also, for my money, I don’t think there’s a song with more cajones to watch live than Muse’s “Hysteria”; it just crushes, as did every track they played from their still-bulletproof Absolution LP. Frontman Matt Bellamy kept his intensity on 11 all night, feeding off the crowd and feeding it right back, and by the time their encore of “Plug-In Baby” ended with massive pillars of smoke filling the stage, everyone was in alien space-rock heaven.