Bumbershoot 2013 Preview

Most alternative music festivals in North America don’t exactly have deep roots.  When people think Lollapalooza is a veteran because it goes back two decades, that’s saying something.  But Seattle’s Bumbershoot stretches all the way back to 1971, morphing along the way into the impressive fest that it is today.  Incorporating not just a wide variety of music (Heart and Kendrick Lamar share the same stage on Day One…), but also one of the best comedy line-up at any festival out there (including live podcasts & a ton of Patton Oswalt), EDM, film, theatre, panel talks, visual arts, a kids zone, and even regularly scheduled zombie flash mobs, there’s tons to see, hear, and experience at Bumbershoot ’13 on Labor Day Weekend, Saturday to Monday, August 31st to September 2nd:

SATURDAY, AUGUST 31st

Mainstage Heart, 9:45pm Singer Ann Wilson and her sister & guitarist Nancy Wilson rose in the seventies as Heart (QRO photos), mixing that decade’s popular hard rock and folk.  The eighties saw a decline, but then another revival, this time behind album-oriented rock and hard ballads.  Most recently, the long-lived outfit has returned to the heavy/folk mix, such as last year’s Fanatic.
Jason Bonham’s Led Zeppelin Experience, 8:30pm So you’re more than a few decades late to see the legendary John Bonham pound the skins in Led Zeppelin.  But if you can’t see the late Bonham, how about a more recent one, in his son, Jason, who leads the ‘Led Zeppelin Experience’ (QRO photos).
Kendrick Lamar, 4:00pm The Mainstage at Bumbershoot welcomes back a newer hip-hop hit, Kendrick Lamar (QRO photos at a festival), who got notice with his 2010 mixtape, Overly Dedicated, and lived up to the hype last year with debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city – he’s got no “Fuckin’ Problems” (QRO video).
Also: Joey Bada$$, 2:45pm – QRO photos at a festival
Fountain Lawn Stage Washed Out, 9:00pm Slowly percolating up has been the new ‘chillwave’ movement, whose sound is about as defined as that term, but one of those artists is Ernest Greene (QRO interview) who moved his work out of the bedroom (where he recorded Life of Leisure EP – QRO review) and onto the live stage (QRO live review) as Washed Out (QRO spotlight on), as well as recruiting a full band (QRO photos at a festival) for 2011’s Within and Without (QRO review) and the upcoming new Paracosm.
Watsky, 7:00pm Mixing rhymes in a whole new way is the slam poetry of Watsky.
The Physics, 5:15pm From Seattle’s South End, brothers Thig Nat and Monk Wordsmith, along with producer Justo, form the critically acclaimed hip-hop outfit, The Physics.
Thao & The Get Down Stay Down, 3:30pm Thao Nguyen (QRO interview) broke through in 2008 with We Brave Bee Stings and All (QRO review) and its fun, charming folk-rock, and followed it up the following year with Know Better Learn Faster (QRO review).  After teaming up with Mirah for Thao + Mirah (QRO review), she since returned to the Get Down Stay Down (QRO spotlight on) with this year’s We the Common (QRO review).  Her live shows (QRO photos outdoors) are, if anything, more engaging (QRO live review), whether in a college student center (QRO photos) or a massive converted warehouse (QRO photos).
Also: Grynch, 2:00pm Dave B, 12:30pm
Starbucks Stage Maceo Parker, 9:45pm Saxophonist Maceo Parker served in two of the greatest funk orchestras ever, first Parliament/Funkadelic in the seventies, then behind James Brown in the eighties, but has long since made his impressive name.
Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires, 8:00pm The ‘Screaming Eagle of Soul’, Charles Bradley is one of the many great soul singers to emerge from Brooklyn’s DapTone Records, which also brought the world Sharon Jones  & The Dap-Kings (QRO album review) and Budos Band (QRO album review), but Bradley more than stands on his own, from festivals (QRO photos at a festival) like Bumbershoot ’11, to recently topped the bill at the one-and-only Apollo Theater (QRO photos)!
Also: Total Experience Gospel Choir, 6:30pm ZZ Ward, 4:45pm – QRO photos Robert Glasper Experiment, 2:45pm Ernie Watts with New Stories, 1:10pm Human Spirit, 12:30pm Matt Jorgenson +451, 12:00pm
TuneIn Stage Crystal Castles, 10:00pm Most electronic acts are restrained on stage, even when their crowd is going nuts, but the duo of Ethan Kath & Alice Glass (QRO live review) match their audience’s fervor – which has gotten them booted from more than one stage, especially at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).  So even if you fall on the ‘hate’ side of this love-them-or-hate-them act (from Canada, surprisingly…), show up for the spectacle… (QRO live review)
Gary Numan, 8:00pm Lots of electronic music pioneers are finally getting their due, and no one is more due than Gary Numan.  His chart-topping 1979 hits “Are ‘Friends’ Electric?” and “Cars” virtually introduced the world to electronic music, paving the way for New Wave and much more.  Of course, pioneers get passed by those who stood on their shoulders, and the eighties saw Numan lose the limelight, before a shift to a more industrial sound revived his career in the more alt-friendly nineties.  This century/millennium has seen virtually every artist who ever put a keyboard through a guitar pedal name-check Numan (Bowie, Beck, Blur, Basement Jaxx – and that’s just the B’s…). Numan comes to Bumbershoot behind his latest, Splinters (Songs From a Broken Mind), his twentieth studio album!…
!!!, 6:15pm Sacramento dance-punk act !!! (QRO photos) – pronounced “chk chk chk” – were seriously blowing people away a few years ago (QRO live review) with Myth Takes (QRO review), then seemingly disappeared, only to come back (QRO live review) in 2010 with the somewhat derivative Strange Weather, Isn’t It (QRO review).  But this year has seen the now-New York outfit (QRO live review in New York) back in force with the great TH!!!ER (QRO review), and the band still knows how to liven it up live (QRO live review outdoors), even at festivals (QRO photos at a festival), like Bumbershoot ’08.
Icona Pop, 4:30pm “I Love It” – with that song Icona Pop (QRO spotlight on) jumped from just another Swedish electro-pop act into growing stardom.  Caroline Hjelt and Aino Jawo (QRO interview) having been bringing it live ever since, from small headlining gigs (QRO live review) to massive opening slots (QRO live review), and now their festival gigs features sprawling, over-capacity crowds (QRO photos at a festival).
Diamond Rings, 2:45pm Check out the wild electronics of Diamond Rings (QRO photos), who come to Bumbershoot after opening (QRO photos) for OMD (QRO photos from that tour). Also: Nacho Picasso, 1:15pm The Flavr Blue, 11:45am
Plaza Stage Sallie Ford & The Sound Outside, 9:30pm – QRO photos outdoors Kris Orlowski, 8:00pm Lake Street Dive, 6:30pm Gus + Scout, 5:00pm Davidson Hart Kingsbery, 3:30pm Down North, 2:00pm
Comedy at the Bagley Patton Oswalt & Friends, 6:30pm Modern, laugh-track free comedy has been enjoying a serious renaissance, from Judd Apatow movies to Flight of the Conchords (QRO live review) to Pixar animation to NBC’s actually funny Thursday night of ‘Must-See-TV’, and one of the most significant kick-starters of that was ‘The Comedians of Comedy’ Tour, originated by Patton Oswalt, who brought alternative comedy & stand-up out of comedy clubs and into rock clubs.  Once just the sidekick on King of Queens, Oswalt has become a top-tier stand-up comic, as well as wowing with his dramatic chops as the lead in 2009’s Big Fan.  Comics don’t always work well at a music festival, but between ‘Comedians of Comedy’ & his many previous appearances at Bumbershoot (including headlining the Bagley all three days of the fest), Oswalt knows what he’s doing.
How Was Your Week? with Julie Klausner & special guest Ted Leo, 4:45pm Comedian Julie Klausner first gained attention with her first book, I Don’t Care About Your Band, but she’s since been making her name in the twenty-first century medium of podcasting in How Was Your Week?.  At Bumbershoot, she’ll be joined by special guest, great musician, and one of the funniest musicians on twitter out there, Ted Leo (QRO photos at a festival). Also: Improv4Humans, 3:00pm
Comedy at the Playhouse Jerrod Carmichael, Todd Barry, 8:00pm In the New York alternative music scene, there’s no more ubiquitous stand-up comic than Todd Barry (QRO photos at a festival).  The laid-back comedian has opened for Tapes n’ Tapes (QRO album review), Superchunk (see below) and They Might Be Giants (QRO photos from that show), been seen at CMJ (QRO recap), SXSW (QRO recap) & McCarren Park Pool Parties (QRO venue review), and is friends with/stand-up mentor to The Rosebuds’ (QRO spotlight on) Kelly Crisp (QRO interview).  He also guest-starred in the season one finale of Flight of the Conchords (QRO live review).  So he’ll fit right in as he returns to Bumbershoot for his umpteenth year.
Also: Mike Drucker, Morgan Murphy, Joe Mande, 6:15pm Matt Besser, Natasha Leggero, 4:30pm Kyle Dunnigan, Doug Benson, 2:45pm Mike Vecchione, Marc Maron, 1:00pm
Comedy at Vera Laff Hole Presents: Fresh Faces, 6:30pm SketchFest, 4:45pm Best of Tacoma Comedy Club, 3:00pm NorthWest Comedy Fest’s Canadians of Comedy, 1:15pm Punch Pod, 11:00am
Brooklyn Vegan @ The Soundwave Tent Gary Numan (interview), 1:00pm Todd Barry (chat), 2:00pm Sallie Ford (performance), 2:30pm Washed Out. (interview), 2:45pm NYC über-indie website Brooklyn Vegan brings its Soundwave tent to Bumbershoot, with interviews & performances and hosts & DJs Dave Hill & Billy Jones.
EDM at EMP Cookie Monsta, 11:00pm Dannic, 10:00pm Hyperfunk, 9:00pm Sean Majors, 8:00pm DJ Tyler Brown, 7:00pm
1 Reel Film Festival Films4Adults: To the Extreme, 8:00pm Tales of Science Fact, 7:00pm Parental Guidance, 5:30pm Best of SIFF: Audience Award Winners, 4:30pm Best of SIFF: Jury Award Winners, 3:30pm Tales of Science Fiction, 2:00pm Music Video Madness, 1:00pm Films4Families 1, 12:00pm
Theatre Puget Sound Stage Weird & Awesome with Emmett Montgomery, 7:00pm The Swashbuckling Spectacular, 5:15pm NERDprov, 3:45pm Owl & Pussycat, 2:15pm
Words & Ideas Stage Fantagraphics Follies, 6:00pm Seattle Arts & Lectures presents The Lunchbox Podcast Live: Literary Pleasures and Musical Shenanigans, 4:00pm Why Froyo? Why YOLO? Why Now?, 2:00pm The Better Bombshell, 12:00pm
Fisher Pavilion Visual Arts in Fisher Pavilion, 11:00am Seattle Center Pavilion Visual Arts in Seattle Center Pavilion, 11:00am
Kids Zone Northwest Tap Connection, 4:30pm Gansango Dance, 3:00pm Au Lac Vovinam, 1:30pm Joyas Mestizas, 12:00pm Youngershoot All Day Activities, 11:00am
Festival Grounds Zombie Walk, 10:00pm Zombie Attack, 7:00pm Thriller Flashmob, 4:30pm Zombie Attack, 1:00pm

SUNDAY, SEPTEMBER 1st

Mainstage Death Cab for Cutie, 9:45pm When Pacific Northwest alternative favorite Death Cab for Cutie (QRO photos at a festival) left long-time indie imprint Barsuk for major Label Atlantic in 2005 with Plans, fans thought the sky might be falling.  But instead, Death Cab (QRO photos) has released not one, but two of their best records to-date, following up Plans in 2010 with the excellent Narrow Stairs (QRO review) – and their latest, 2011’s Codes and Keys (QRO review). Singer/guitarist Ben Gibbard may have gone from dork to looking like a Cascadian beefcake (QRO photos at a festival) – he was married to Zooey Deschanel of She & Him (QRO live review)/The New Girl (meanwhile, his side project, The Postal Service, recently went on a tour – QRO photos – behind the tenth anniversary deluxe edition of the one-and-only album, Give Up – QRO deluxe edition review), but guitarist Chris Walla is still an indie producer extraordinaire (and kept his alt-cred with his own solo record la few years ago on Barsuk, Field Manual – QRO review).  And with over a decade’s worth of strong material (QRO photos), their well is deep for a wide performance (QRO photos at a festival). However, at Bumbershoot ’13 (their first time at the festival on five years), they’ll be digging back deeper into the vault, playing their entire seminal Barsuk release Transatlanticism in full, for its tenth anniversary!
Ra Ra Riot, 8:15pm Oh, how they’ve grown (QRO spotlight on)!  In the less than six years since their self-titled EP (QRO review) and the death of singer/drummer John Pike, this Nor’easter collective (QRO photos) has not only rebounded but exploded (QRO photos at a festival), embracing life even more on 2008’s excellent The Rhumb Line (QRO review) than early single “Dying Is Fine” (QRO video) could have predicted.  Ra Ra Riot’s live show (QRO live review) sees everyone but the new drummer running around on stage like kids on candy (especially singer Wesley Miles – QRO interview – but also guitarist Milo Bonacci – QRO interview – and bassist Mathieu Santos – QRO interview), but they’re also relative road ‘veterans’ (QRO photos at a festival), from near-immediately after Pike’s death (QRO live review) to outdoor festivals (QRO photos outdoors at a festival) to in-stores (QRO photos) – even at an Apple Store (QRO photos) – to industry showcases (QRO photos at an industry showcase) to bigger & bigger rock clubs (QRO photos) to bigger & bigger outdoor venues (QRO live review outdoors) to opera houses (QRO live review) to fashion launch parties (QRO live review) – and even the occasional basement show (QRO photos).  They’re also building in songbook, from early numbers like “Each Year” (QRO video) and “Can You Tell?” (QRO video) to Rhumb single “Ghost Under Rocks” (QRO video) and the Pike-penned “St. Peter’s Day Festival” (QRO video) to “Too Dramatic”, from 2010’s follow-up The Orchard (QRO review), and now “Dance With Me” (QRO video) & “I Shut Off” (QRO video) from this year’s new, more dancetronica, Beta Love (QRO review). Before Beta Love the band did see the departure of cellist Alexandra Lawn (QRO interview) – so what will happen to the usual tight pack of males (QRO photos at a festival) in front of everyone’s indie-rock crush (QRO photos in 2013)?
fun., 3:30pm One of the most successful new pop/rock bands recently is New York’s fun. (QRO photos at a festival), who scored a hit last year with Some Nights (QRO review) and an engaging (and yes, fun) live show (QRO live review).  The young band (QRO photos at a festival) have already graduated to special events (QRO photos), international tours (QRO photos aboard) and festivals (QRO photos at festival abroad), and even headlining (QRO photos headlining a festival) – still not as big as playing The Colbert Report’s ‘Pepsi Presents Stephest ColbChella ‘012 Rocktaugustfest’ (QRO photos)…
Tegan and Sara, 2:00pm Identical twin sisters Tegan and Sara (QRO interview) Quinn emerged out of Calgary at a young age over a decade ago (QRO spotlight on), and are returning to Bumbershoot (QRO photos at a festival) behind their seventh record, Heartthrob (QRO review) after a hiatus following the end of their touring behind 2009’s Sainthood (QRO review).  The duo manages to combine both the mature songstress(es) style and today’s indie-rock (QRO live review) – along with some great between song banter (QRO live review).  They come to Bumbershoot after touring the world (QRO photos at a festival on the other side of the world) – including, most recently, French-speaking Montreal (QRO photos) and Major League Baseball’s ‘Fan Cave’ (QRO photos).
Fountain Lawn Stage Beats Antique, 8:45pm World fusion electronica act Beats Antique (QRO photos) not only fuses styles of music, but also styles of dance, including that of the belly (QRO photos at a festival).
Tamaryn, 7:00pm New Zealand-born, New York-living vocalist Tamaryn (QRO photos) comes to Bumbershoot.
Mates of State, 5:15pm Lawrence, Kansas’ husband-and-wife indie-rock duo (QRO photos) of Kori Gardner and Jason Hammel make up Mates of State (QRO photos), are coming off of 2011’s Mountaintops, as well as 2008’s Re-Arrange Us (QRO review) and 2010’s cover album, Crushes (The Mixtapes).  Their new Mountaintops came out last month, so expect old, new, and covers as they return to Bumbershoot.
David Bazan, 3:30pm Formerly the main man behind Pedro the Lion, David Bazan (QRO photos at a festival) went solo in 2006, and already has two full-lengths under his new, own name. Also: Ramona Falls, 1:45pm The Redwood Plan, 12:15pm
Starbucks Stage Vicci Martinez, 10:00pm From nearby Tacoma, Vicci Martinez made it all the way to third in NBC’s The Voice two years ago, and now plays her home state fest.
The Zombies, 8:15pm Not the flash mobs of the living dead that are haunting the festival grounds every day (and night) of Bumbershoot, The Zombies (QRO photos at a festival) pre-date even George Romero’s original Night of the Living Dead.  The British pop ground (QRO photos outdoors) have been a band for more than fifty years (and do look it – QRO photos), for whom it is always the “Time of the Season”.
Vintage Trouble, 6:30pm From Hollywood, Vintage Trouble (QRO photos at a festival) brings some soul & funk to Bumbershoot (QRO photos at a festival).
Also: Eric Burdon & The Animals, 4:45pm – QRO live review The Duke Robillard Band, 3:00pm Nikki Hill, 1:15pm Ayron Jones & The Way, 12:00pm
TuneIn Stage Matt & Kim, 10:00pm Serious, long-time ‘Friends of the Q’ (QRO spotlight on), it’s been great watching Matt & Kim (QRO photos at a festival) blow up so seriously – without losing their infectious cheer (QRO live review).  Singer/keyboardist Matt Johnson (QRO interview) and drummer Kim Schifino (QRO interview) bring a self-described ‘onstage pizza party’ with their sugar-filled hyper-pop/rock on stage (QRO live review).  Known for spreading their giant, ever-present grins (QRO photos) to every crowd they play for (QRO live review), large, outdoor stages (QRO live review outdoors) don’t faze them, and neither do massive festivals (QRO photos at a festival), nor even foreign crowds (QRO live review overseas) or playing on holidays like New Year’s Eve (QRO live review on New Year’s Eve) or Halloween (QRO live review on Halloween).  They also stepped up their musical game on 2009’s Grand (QRO review), with Sidewalks (QRO review) the following year, and most recently with last year’s Lightning (QRO review).  So expect them to rock the crowd (QRO photos), from old tracks like “Silver Tiles” (QRO video) and “Yea Yeah” (QRO video) to Grand ones like “Good Old-Fashioned Nightmare” (QRO video) and “Daylight” (QRO video) to Sidewalks’  “Good For Great” (QRO video), Lightning‘s “Let’s Go” (QRO video) and even a cover of Biz Markie’s “Just a Friend” (QRO video) – as the kids go nuts (QRO photos at a festival), and so do Matt & Kim (QRO live review).  And those up front better be ready for when Matt (QRO interview) sends Kim out to do her ‘booty shakin’ crowd surf’ (QRO photos at a festival)…
The Breeders, 8:00pm In 2013, Bumbershoot has jumped on the ‘artist performing their classic albums in full’ with The Breeders (QRO live review) performing their classic Last Splash in full (QRO live review performing Last Splash) for its twentieth anniversary (QRO photos of them performing Last Splash at another festival – which is good because, while Last Splash is still amazing (QRO photos of them performing it at yet another festival), their later material, like 2008’s Mountain Battles – QRO review – isn’t…).
Bob Mould, 6:15pm Few at Bumbershoot (QRO photos at a festival) have been doing it as long as Bob Mould (QRO live review).   From the seminal Hüsker Dü (QRO spotlight on) in the eighties through the nineties’ successful Sugar (QRO deluxe edition review) to his solo work and today’s Bob Mould Band (QRO live review), Mould has been crafting great record after great record, most recently with 2008’s District Line (QRO review), the following year’s Life and Times (QRO review), and last year’s Silver Age (QRO review).  Last year he toured playing Sugar’s amazing Copper Blue (QRO live review) for its twentieth anniversary, but comes to Bumbershoot (QRO photos a festival) with his whole impressive discography in tow (QRO live review) on a festival circuit tour (QRO photos at a recent festival).
Charli XCX, 4:30pm Charlotte Aitchison, under the moniker Charli XCX (QRO photos at a festival), is one of Britain’s most elusive dark pop songstresses. Already toured with Santigold (QRO live review) and Coldplay (QRO album review), as well as festivals (QRO photos at a festival), she has started to solidify her career as a pop songwriter to be reckoned with (QRO photos).  This year’s seen her release her debut full-length, True Romance, and play her own headlining gigs (QRO photos).
FIDLAR, 2:45pm Back in the long-lost eighties, punk outfits like Black Flag would prompt conflict with Commissioner Chief Daryl Gates’ pre-Rodney King LAPD – but everyone’s mellower these days, right?  Not if FIDLAR (QRO photos) have anything to say about it.
Also: The Mowgli’s, 1:00pm Kithkin, 11:45am
Plaza Stage Matt Pond, 9:30pm – QRO live review BRONCHO, 8:00pm The Grizzled Mighty, 6:30pm The Comettes, 5:00pm Midday Veil, 3:30pm The Round 100, 1:45pm
Comedy at the Bagley Patton Oswalt & Friends, 6:30pm Modern, laugh-track free comedy has been enjoying a serious renaissance, from Judd Apatow movies to Flight of the Conchords (QRO live review) to Pixar animation to NBC’s actually funny Thursday night of ‘Must-See-TV’, and one of the most significant kick-starters of that was ‘The Comedians of Comedy’ Tour, originated by Patton Oswalt, who brought alternative comedy & stand-up out of comedy clubs and into rock clubs. Once just the sidekick on King of Queens, Oswalt has become a top-tier stand-up comic, as well as wowing with his dramatic chops as the lead in 2009’s Big Fan. Comics don’t always work well at a music festival, but between ‘Comedians of Comedy’ & his many previous appearances at Bumbershoot (including headlining the Bagley all three days of the fest), Oswalt knows what he’s doing.
WTF? Live with Marc Maron, 4:45pm It used to be that stand-up comics graduated from the club circuit to appearance on The Tonight Show to a network sit-com (see Seinfeld and virtually ever other sit-com in the nineties that wasn’t Friends or a rip-off of it).  Now the path still might start with the club circuit, but has grown into comedy specials and podcasts, before getting your own single-camera cable show.  Louie C.K. did it with Louie, and now equally veteran, equally self-hating, equally hilarious Marc Maron is Maron – but comes to Bumbershoot to do a live version of his WTF? podcast. Also: Improv4Humans, 3:00pm
Comedy at the Playhouse Mike Vecchione, Marc Maron, 8:00pm Matt Besser, Natasha Leggero, The World Champion Judah Friedlander, 6:15pm – QRO photos Mike Drucker, Morgan Murphy, Joe Mande, 4:30pm Emily Heller, Jerrod Carmichael, Todd Barry, 2:45pm – QRO photos at a festival Kyle Dunnigan, Doug Benson, 1:00pm
Comedy at Vera Laff Hole Presents: The Idiot Brotherz, 6:30pm Competitive Erotic Fan Fiction with Bryan Cook, 4:45pm Podaholics Comedy Stand, 3:00pm NorthWest Comedy Fest’s Canadians of Comedy, 1:15pm Punch Pod, 11:00am
Brooklyn Vegan @ The Soundwave Tent intros, 1:00pm Mates of State (interview & performance), 1:15pm John Roderick of The Long Winters (interview + guitar battle), 2:00pm Say Hi (interview & performance), 2:45pm Ramona Falls (interview), 3:20pm Ra Ra Riot (interview), 3:45pm It’s ‘Barsuk Day’ at The Soundwave Tent, with artists like Ra Ra Riot (see above) and Say Hi (QRO spotlight on).
EDM at EMP DJ White Shadow, 10:45pm GUY, 10:00pm DJ Girl 6, 9:00pm Supreme La Rock, 8:15pm Rise Over Run, 7:45pm DJ Phase, 7:00pm
1 Reel Film Festival Films4Adults: Neither Here nor There, 8:00pm Best of the Northwest, 7:00pm SIFF Fly Films 2013, 5:30pm Best of SIFF: Audience Award Winners, 4:30pm Best of SIFF: Jury Award Winners, 3:30pm Love… in the Afternoon, 2:00pm Dance, Dance, Dance, 1:00pm Films4Families 2, 12:00pm
Theatre Puget Sound Stage Owl & Pussycat, 6:45pm Audrey & Nelson: A Puppet Sex Musical, 5:15pm Impromptu, 3:45pm My Last Year With the Nuns, 2:00pm
Words & Ideas Stage Writing Staff of NBC’s Parks & Recreation, 6:00pm Seattle Arts & Lectures presents Allie Brosh of “Hyperbole and a Half”, 4:00pm Why Fan Fiction? Why YA? Why Now?, 2:00pm 15 Years of Barsuk Records, 12:00pm
Fisher Pavilion Visual Arts in Fisher Pavilion, 11:00am Seattle Center Pavilion Visual Arts in Seattle Center Pavilion, 11:00am
Kids Zone Brian Vogan and His Good Buddies, 3:00pm Brian Vogan and His Good Buddies, 1:30pm Music and Movement with Nathan, 12:00pm Youngershoot All Day Activities, 11:00am
Festival Grounds Zombie Walk, 10:00pm Zombie Attack, 7:00pm Thriller Flashmob, 4:30pm Zombie Attack, 1:00pm

MONDAY, SEPTEMBER 2nd

Mainstage Bassnectar, 9:45pm A festival mainstay (QRO photos), Lorin Ashton (a.k.a. Bassnectar – QRO photos) brings the lights live (QRO photos at a festival) – as well as the hair… (QRO photos at a festival)
GTA, 8:15pm Miami is America’s home for pioneering DJs, like GTA, who mix house music with hip-hop and salsa influences.
MGMT, 3:30pm All of a sudden, Wesleyan University gave birth to a bunch of indie acts, but none blew up like MGMT (QRO live review).  Songs like “Electric Eel” (QRO video) and “Time To Pretend” (QRO video) launched 2007’s Oracular Spectacular in the stratosphere. The follow-up was bound to bring them more back down to earth, and Congratulations (QRO review) is a classic over-ambitious sophomore release.  But the two-man psych-rock band of Ben Goldwasser & Andrew Van Wyngarden (QRO photos outdoors) is more than prepared to blow minds outdoors at Bumbershoot (QRO photos outdoors at a festival), as they tour in lead-up to the release of their new self-titled record this fall.
alt-J, 2:00pm Among all the overnight alt-successes, maybe no one has done it as quickly or as majorly as alt-J (QRO live review). Also known as ‘∆’ – that’s what you get when press the ‘alt’ and ‘J’ buttons on your keyboard – the indie-more quartet went from playing tiny places at terrible hours in 2012 (QRO photos) to winning their native England’s prestigious Mercury Prize later that year (QRO photos at a U.K. festival), and now come back to America (QRO photos at a North American festival) playing much, much larger spaces (QRO photos).
Fountain Lawn Stage Deerhunter, 9:00pm No one was more prolific in 2008 than Deerhunter’s singer/guitarist Bradford Cox (QRO live review), who not only put out the well-received Microcastle (QRO review), but also included a second disc of all-original bonus material, Weird Era Cont. (QRO review) – and oh, yeah, released a solo record (as Atlas Sound – QRO live review), Let the Blind Lead Those Who Can See But Cannot Feel (QRO review) that beat ‘em both. And, after a hiatus & Atlas Sound’s Logos (QRO review), 2011 saw Deerhunter (QRO photos outdoors) reach even higher thanks to Halcyon Digest (QRO review) – and this year they’ve followed it up with Monomania (QRO review), a more garage-rock record – and show (QRO photos at a festival), including at festivals (QRO photos at a festival).  Known for electric shows whether as the Sound (QRO live review) or with Deerhunter (QRO live review outdoors), Cox & Deerhunter (QRO photos outdoors) have been as prolific with the festivals (QRO photos at a festival).
Superchunk, 7:00pm At this point, Superchunk (QRO live review) are better known for what they did when not playing – founding the little indie label-made-big Merge Records, home to artists such as The Arcade Fire (QRO live review), Spoon (QRO live review) and She & Him (QRO live review).  But the North Carolina natives started Merge for their work as influential nineties alt-punk act Superchunk (QRO photos at Merge showcase), and have come back as good as ever, both on the road (QRO live review), including festivals (QRO photos at a festival), and with 2010’s Majesty Shredding (QRO review) & “Learned To Surf” (QRO video), not to mention oldies-and-goodies like “Slack Motherfucker” (QRO video), evoking the time when indie-rock could be fun & skilled, not either/or (QRO photos at a festival).  The band returns to Bumbershoot behind their new I Hate Music.
Baroness, 5:15pm 2012 was the best year and the worst year for Savannah’ Baroness (QRO live review).  The metal group put themselves at the forefront of today’s metal renaissance with the highly acclaimed Yellow & Green (QRO review) – only for tragedy to strike in the form of a terrible bus accident in England.  No lives were lost, but drummer Allen Blickle and bassist Matt Maggioni had to quit the band due to their injuries.  Thankfully, replacements have been found and Baroness are back on the road (QRO photos), returning to Bumbershoot.
Redd Kross, 3:30pm The hard punk of Redd Kross made them a mainstay of the eighties punk scene alongside Circle Jerks (QRO live review) and Black Flag (both of whom shared members with Kross), made it to a major label in the nineties, but went on indefinite hiatus after the death of guitarist Eddie Kurdzeil in 1999.  But, after almost a decade off the stage, Redd Kross came back, touring last year’s new Researching the Blues, the first new Redd Kross record in a decade-and-a-half.
The Men, 1:45pm Harder-hitting pop-rock outfit The Men (QRO photos at a festival) cross boundaries from pop to metal to experimental (QRO photos at a festival). Also: Bellamaine, 12:15pm
Starbucks Stage Trampled By Turtles, 9:45pm From frigid Duluth comes the warm jam-folk of Trampled by Turtles (QRO photos), who are hitting up a number of festivals this summer (QRO photos outdoors), and are returning to Bumbershoot.
Justin Townes Earle, 8:00pm Justin Townes Earle (QRO photos outdoors) is yes, the son of famed alternative country artist Steve Earle (and his middle name, yes, comes from the equally acclaimed Townes Van Zandt), and started off in music in his father’s backing band, The Dukes, but he has more than made his own (three) names in music.  Last year’s Nothing’s Gonna Change the Way You Feel About Me Now received widespread praise (as did his 2012 production work on Wanda Jackson’s Unfinished Business), and now he returns to Bumbershoot (QRO photos at a festival)
Delta Rae, 6:15pm The latest female-led folk-rock outfit to capture wider notice has been Durham’s Delta Rae (QRO photos at a festival), behind last year’s Carry the Fire.
The Sheepdogs, 4:30pm In 2011, Rolling Stone ran a ‘Choose the Cover’ contest for the first unsigned band to ever appear on the venerable magazine’s cover, and the winner was Saskatoon’s The Sheepdogs (QRO photos at a festival two days before winning the contest).  However, the group (QRO photos) was unsigned more due to location than sound, as their seventies guitar-rock isn’t entirely original, but is popular – they’ve since signed to Atlantic Records (QRO photos at a festival).
Lissie, 2:45pm Things are on the up swing for Rock Island, Illinois’ alt-country songstress Lissie (QRO spotlight on).  Elisabeth Corrin Maurs (QRO interview) had an enjoyable debut full-length in 2010 with Catching a Tiger (QRO review), and comes to Bumbershoot before this October’s release of follow-up Back To Forever, so expect some new songs (QRO live review). Also: The Maldives, 1:00pm Hot Bodies in Motion, 11:45am
TuneIn Stage The Joy Formidable, 10:00pm Welsh powerhouse The Joy Formidable (QRO spotlight on) has already taken Europe (QRO photos at a European festival), Canada (QRO photos at a festival in Canada), Australia and even The States (QRO photos) by storm with expertly played opening slots alongside Passion Pit (QRO live review), Temper Trap (QRO live review) and Editors (QRO album review).  The impressive trio (QRO live review) got a killer live show (QRO live review) to go with 2010’s killer The Big Roar (QRO review), and now they’ve got follow-up Wolf’s Law (QRO review) – so be ready for a jolly good time (QRO photos at a festival)!  Be sure to catch killer frontwoman Ritzy Bryan as she rocks Bumbershoot (QRO photos at a festival) with bassist Rhydian Dafydd (QRO interview) and exuberant drummer Matt Thomas (QRO live review).
Allen Stone, 8:00pm Allen Stone (QRO photos at a festival) began his singing in a church right in Seattle, and his soulful sound has kept that connection (including two years ago at Bumbershoot). Also: Sol, 6:15pm Kinky, 4:30pm Red Baraat, 2:45pm – QRO photos at a festival Aurelio & Garifuna Soul, 1:00pm Cascadia ’10, 11:45am
Plaza Stage The Lone Bellow, 9:00pm – QRO photos outdoors at a festival Ivan & Alyosha, 7:30pm – QRO album review Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands, 6:00pm Kopecky Family Band, 4:30pm – QRO photos at a festival St. Paul de Vence, 3:00pm Red Jacket Mine, 1:30pm
Comedy at the Bagley Patton Oswalt & Friends, 6:45pm Modern, laugh-track free comedy has been enjoying a serious renaissance, from Judd Apatow movies to Flight of the Conchords (QRO live review) to Pixar animation to NBC’s actually funny Thursday night of ‘Must-See-TV’, and one of the most significant kick-starters of that was ‘The Comedians of Comedy’ Tour, originated by Patton Oswalt, who brought alternative comedy & stand-up out of comedy clubs and into rock clubs. Once just the sidekick on King of Queens, Oswalt has become a top-tier stand-up comic, as well as wowing with his dramatic chops as the lead in 2009’s Big Fan. Comics don’t always work well at a music festival, but between ‘Comedians of Comedy’ & his many previous appearances at Bumbershoot (including headlining the Bagley all three days of the fest), Oswalt knows what he’s doing.
Doug Loves Movies with Doug Benson, 5:00pm While he first got notice on programs like Best Week Ever, comedian Doug Benson has since made his own name, primarily in hilarious regular podcasts like The Benson Interruption and Doug Loves Movies, which he does live at Bumbershoot ’13. Also: Improv4Humans, 3:15pm The Comedy Bang! Bang! Experience, 1:30pm
Comedy at the Playhouse Emily Heller, Doug Benson, 8:00pm Jerrod Carmichael, Todd Barry, 6:15pm – QRO photos at a festival Mike Vecchione, Kyle Dunnigan, 4:30pm Mike Drucker, Joe Mande, Reggie Watts, 2:45pm Matt Besser, Natasha Leggero, The World Champion Judah Friedlander, 1:00pm – QRO photos
Comedy at Vera Laff Hole Presents: Funny Over Everything, 6:30pm Hot Comedy with The Spicy News, 4:45pm Comedy Jam (Preserves), 3:00pm NorthWest Comedy Fest’s Canadians of Comedy, 1:15pm Punch Pod, 11:00am
Brooklyn Vegan @ The Soundwave Tent alt-J (interview), 1:00pm tbd Ivan & Alyosha (performance), 3:15pm
EDM at EMP DJ White Shadow, 10:45pm GUY, 10:00pm DJ Girl 6, 9:00pm Supreme La Rock, 8:15pm Rise Over Run, 7:45pm DJ Phase, 7:00pm
1 Reel Film Festival Films4Adults: Thrill Me, 8:00pm Make Me Laugh, 7:00pm Show Me the World, 5:30pm Best of SIFF: Audience Award Winners, 4:30pm Best of SIFF: Jury Award Winners, 3:30pm Zoology, 2:00pm Face the Music, 1:00pm Films4Families 3, 12:00pm
Theatre Puget Sound Stage Audrey & Nelson: A Puppet Sex Musical, 7:00pm NERDprov, 5:30pm Owl & Pussycat, 4:00pm Impromptu, 2:15pm
Words & Ideas Stage The Marijuana Chronicles, 6:00pm Seattle Arts & Lectures presents Compounded: Writers in the Schools, 4:00pm Why Board Games? Why Zombies? Why Now?, 2:00pm Put It All on the Table: Inappropriate Lectures By Irreverent Artists and Spoiled Children, 12:00pm
Fisher Pavilion Visual Arts in Fisher Pavilion, 11:00am Seattle Center Pavilion Visual Arts in Seattle Center Pavilion, 11:00am
Kids Zone Pedalheads Bike Camps, 4:30pm Owl & Pussycat, 3:00pm Evergreen City Ballet, 1:30pm Ocheami, 12:00pm Youngershoot All Day Activities, 11:00am
Festival Grounds Zombie Walk, 10:00pm Zombie Attack, 7:00pm Thriller Flashmob, 4:30pm Zombie Attack, 1:00pm

For festival website, go here: http://bumbershoot.org/