Once upon a time, in the long-lost days of the twentieth century, festivals would tour North America, instead of just rooting themselves in one spot for a weekend a year. Lollapalooza is probably the best-remembered, but there was everything from Lilith Fair to H.O.R.D.E. (not to mention Hullabalooza…). Conditions changed in this millennium, with even the return of Lolla settling down in Chicago’s Grant Park like an aged alt-rock fan with kids. But everything old is new again, and the touring festival has been revived with the Re:SET Concert Series, a traveling three-day weekend that came to Queens’ Forest Hills Stadium, June 16th-18th.
Technically not a touring festival but a ‘concert series’, Re:SET is set up where a single line-up plays one city one day, another city another day, and then a third city/day, alternating with two other line-ups, so it could cover the likes of New York, Boston, and Maryland in one long weekend. It limited each day’s line-up to just four acts, but that meant that it could cover maximum ground. It also made it easier if you were mainly just interested in one day, as it seemed most were at Re:SET, the audiences varying from the young to the once-young.
The New York edition was at Forest Hills Stadium (QRO venue review), the former home to the U.S. Open, in the picturesque residential neighborhood, deep in Queens (while close to the E & F trains stop, not helping on Saturday & Sunday was the F train not running uptown to it…). The very mainstream big space was a bit of an odd match for the alt-series, from the rather thorough security (bags were checked twice, in full, and you had to leave your umbrella at the entrance) to staff leading VIP concertgoers to their seats by holding up an actual tennis racket. But both outside the stadium and inside were well laid out, including a wide selection of food and drinks (okay, over-priced, but that’s post-COVID concert-going for you…), a well-visited merch booth, and even Yeah Yeah Yeahs’ promotional punk limo promoting last year’s Cool It Down (QRO review). Not all fans could get onto the stage floor (there were lines inside right from doors to get the extra ground floor access wristbands), but the impressive bowl and its impressive sound & light system well served all.
Friday at Forest Hills started off a little risky, with weather pushing back the doors an hour, but didn’t stop opener L’Rain from performing as doors opened (though perhaps this is what happens when you book an act named “L’Rain”…). But it was IDLES that threatened to steal the show, like they have at many a festival. The British punk rockers are notorious for their wild performances, perhaps a bit relatively toned down this time at a festival during the day, but certainly not tame, with guitarist Lee Kiernan going into the mosh pit right on the second song. They’re already big new names in the native country, and Re:SET is a great way to showcase them to American audiences – including the frontman of the headliner, James Murphy, who watched their whole set from the super-VIP artist spot on the side of the front of the crowd (note: not the celeb first sighting there…). Singer Joe Talbot dedicated “Mother” to yesterday’s birthday boy, drummer Jon Beavis – as well as yesterday’s birthday girl, his own mother, who was not only in attendance, but “shit-faced in the back…”
After IDLES’ wild punk fury, it was admittedly something of a jarring shift to the modern DJ Jamie xx. One-third of The xx, Jamie has made his own side solo DJ career, big enough to be the main opener for this night. He certainly knows his way around his decks, and fit with the headliner, but after the energy of IDLES, was a bit of a come-down, just him behind the decks. It was still daylight, limiting what his lights and the biggest & lowest mirror ball ever could do, not to mention too much smoke machine covering up what was there. And he came before/after between-song DJ The Juan MacLean.
Topping off the first night was NYC disco-punk legends LCD Soundsystem. James Murphy & co. basically invented the term ‘disco-punk’, introducing aughts era rock hipsters to Daft Punk and much more. Yet their electronics have never lost that punk energy, whether on keyboards or hitting the skins. Set up right at the front of the stage, it was particularly great to see others in the band such as drummer Pat Mahoney (like when Murphy would join him, hitting the drums & making faces on the other side of the kit), guitarist/keyboardist Al Doyle (at one point stretching to play two different keyboards), and keyboardist Nancy Whang, whipping her apt wig. Unfortunately, Murphy announced that bassist Tyler Pope was out sick (after the crowd awwed, Murphy added, “It’s okay…”), but noted how everyone else, not just those on instruments in the back but the crucial roadies (who looked cooler than you will ever be…) & more helped out. Indeed, IDLES bassist Adam Devonshire joined for their cover of Joy Division’s “No Love Lost”.
LCD Soundsystem are old enough to have broken up and gotten back together (admittedly, only a five year hiatus), and had more than enough bangers to rock the night. The likes of “Get Innocuous”, “I Can Change”, and “Tribulations” opened up the night, with Murphy in his white suit noting, “This is good energy”. The frontman can sometimes be a bit of a diva, but he was fully into his festival-headlining role this night. Not only were there thrilling classics, but thrilling seamless segues between said classics like “Someone Great to “Losing My Edge”. And there is nothing quite like hearing LCD do “New York I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down”, with the crowd putting up their phone lights (because this is the twenty-first century – everyone’s got a cellphone, but you’re not even allowed to bring lighters in anymore…).
After the threatening skies of Friday, Saturday was clear sailing – so clear that it pushed into hot. This was effectively the first ‘hot outdoor weekend’ for New York City this year, the prior weekend having been marred by the apocalyptic-like polluted atmosphere from the Canadian fires right before. It was also the first ‘everyone is out of school’ weekend, which was one of the reasons for the high amount of young people. particularly compared the prior day at Re:SET – and particularly young women, thanks to the supergroup headliner.
The day started with Bartees Strange, a rising alt-artist that was actually more indie-rock than might have been expected. Strange has been highly touted in the artiste hipster crowd, but instead of being one of those acts that only Pitchfork likes, he & his band delivered a fuller, more engaging sound, to a crowd that was appreciative for the early slot. He even covered The National’s old “About Today”, even if as smooth soul.
Contrastingly, there was Dijon. The Dijon Duenas brought a full band, but it was the kind of band where everyone was seated, behind folding tables of effects gear. While this did bring active drummer Henry Kwapis to the front, otherwise the group was rather limited, visually, despite Dijon’s own emotive faces. They did sound good, but more as background than thrilling live performers.
[note: one fan who was there to see Dijon was none other than Justin Bieber! Spotted in the ground floor level artist super-VIP, he understandably caused a stir, and headed backstage soon after. All your correspondent could do was get a photo of the back of his backwards baseball cap wearing head as he was leaving – reportedly he didn’t even take a photo with the on-site EMTs…]
Perfectly fitting the night was main opener Clairo. The catchy young singer has been rising quite fast, and had a large band behind her, including saxophone and even flute! Playing primarily off of her most recent record, 2021’s Sling, but with a few older fan favorites such as “Alewife”, “Blouse”, and closer “Bags”. While the young folks at Forest Hills knew her material, she was also not ‘too young and precious’ for all the old fogies [like your correspondent…].
But everyone was in the stadium for the sad girl pop supergroup that is boygenius. The trio of hit solo artists Julien Baker, Phoebe Bridgers, and Lucy Dacus had seemed like more of a fleeting side operation until this year, when they took the world by storm with the record (QRO review). They’ve graced the cover of Rolling Stone (where they aped the magazine’s classic Nirvana photoshoot, the suits staying as their signature look – there were a number of female fans wearing ties this night…), even put out the great multi-song video the film (QRO review). Before their set, they had an acknowledgement of the land upon which the show was happening, thanks to indigenous educator and Matinecock Turkey Clan member Tecumseh Ceasar, who was visibly blown away by all the big cheers from the crowd that he got (“I wish all my students were like you…”).
boygenius had a massive stage set-up as befits their success (and tongue-in-cheek ‘rock star’ status, such as coming on to Thin Lizzy’s “The Boys Are Back In Town”), with a four-woman backing band raised behind them (including Melina Duterte, a.k.a. indie musician Jay Som) – who you could have focused on, all their own, were they not behind the trio. After a backstage a cappella rendition of the record opener “Without You Without Them” put up on the big screen, Baker, Bridgers, and Dacus bounded onto the stage with maximum energy, hair and ties flying as they rocked out, starting with Baker’s rocker “$20”.
The whole set was a giant, cathartic one, an expression of exuberating even with sad songs, such as “Emily I’m Sorry” – hearing the packed stadium sing/say along to Bridgers, “Called me / A fuck-ing / Liar” was epic. The fanbase was very much there in force – earlier, there were two gigantic lines for merch – one was the special, shorter one for American Express credit cardholders. The trio were all smiles on the stage, a delighted amazement and enjoyment of their success and connection with the crowd, amplified by being able to not only share it with their best friends, but even reflect upon with them; you could almost feel it when one would look at the other two with a big grin as if to say, ‘I can’t believe this is real…’
With only a full-length and earlier EP, boygenius were able to hit most of their songs & more. The set included Baker’s Little Oblivion (QRO review) “Favor” (QRO review), which unfortunately had not-one-not-two-but-three pauses as fainting fans up front needed help, or at least water; Baker called it “cursed,” and after their restart was stopped, said that they were moving on [there was one working EMT at the event who was also clearly a fan – got her friend a t-shirt – who was kept quite busy, but could always say that boygenius asked for her directly]. The group even played new the record outtake “Boyfriend”, which they’d never played before, never been heard before, and dedicated it to, “all the boyfriends out there” – sweet for all the boys who not only love boygenius themselves, but also love the ladies who love boygenius.
At one point Bridgers noted that she’d played Forest Hills Stadium only last year, with Dacus as a surprise guest – now Dacus was an “unsurprise guest”. Later, Dacus asked who was at their Brooklyn Steel (QRO venue review) show in 2018, noting that each one of the three musicians had, independently, picked that show as their ‘safe space’ when in separate group therapies.
[and because there’s gotta be another celeb in artist VIP, Bridgers’ new boyfriend Bo Burnham was spotted there…]
During the Dacus-led ballad “We’re In Love”, some fans not only waved their phone flashlights, but had pink heart shape silhouettes over them (apparently distributed earlier in the evening), something the group noted. Dacus was on piano while Bridgers kneeled on a box at the front of the stage for the intimate “Letters To an Old Poet”, while in the encore it was Baker & Dacus on that box while Bridgers was on acoustic guitar, no backing band, for boygenius EP’s “Ketchum, ID”. Into the encore break was the record’s epic team-up single “Not Strong Enough” (QRO review), and the evening ended with uplifting “Salt In the Wound”, Baker finishing it with a solo while Bridgers & Dacus collapsed together in joy.
While Friday at Re:SET went disco-punk, and Saturday was sad girl rock, Sunday leaned into the smoother styles. The only thing not smooth was the F train, which prevented some [including your correspondent] from catching first opener Fousheé. But there were the enjoyable sounds of the charming Toro y Moi. If the daytime prevented any light show, he and his band were still a good fit for the slot, if not completely gripping.
Then was another seated Re:SET performer in James Blake. The ‘post-dubstep’ synth artist at least came up to the front with his drummer & guitarist/keyboardist, if still behind his decks – one of which he noted was out-of-tune. A hard-working roadie came on to fix it, while Blake slid in a solo song before resuming their planned set.
At a festival with a host of young successes, perhaps with no one was that as clear as Steve Lacy. A big crowd came out for the new hit artist, in his slick suit & shades, vibing with the audience (shaking his ass for them at one point). He even brought out Fousheé for “Sunshine”. Though of note was that his performance was focused almost exclusively on him and him alone, his backing band hidden in the dark behind a second big screen that he walked through and closed behind him, while his back-up singers literally dressed in full black bodysuits like they were doing green screen invisibility.
Music festivals are never a sure thing, between the weather, increasing security concerns, COVID, and your headliner acting bad on social media. So, it’s no wonder that they’ve shifted to stabler situations, no longer roaming the country. But that also means it’s great when a touring festival can happen in this day & age, combining more established artists with brand new phenoms. The Re:SET Concert Series brought three great days of music to New York (and elsewhere).
-words & photos: Ted Chase
