Mountain Oasis Festival 2013

As printed in Metro Pulse.

 
Mountain Oasis Electronic Music Summit is the Asheville-based festival AC Entertainment launched after parting ways with Moog Music, who will continue Moogfest next spring. Aside from the new fest’s name being much more of a mouthful, there was not really an appreciable difference between it and the three Moogfests AC produced in 2010-12. While there was still an abundance of DJs and electronic dance music, and the marketing seemed to skew that way, the festival’s diversity was such that it was possible to fill all three of your days without hearing much in the way of those things.
Such was the case Friday, when I took in a string quartet backing a composer playing a guitar and ukulele (Jherek Bischoff), an old old-school indie rock band (Half Japanese), a cult songwriter with just an acoustic guitar (Daniel Johnston), an art-pop duo performing off-off-Broadway-style material (Sparks), and Neutral Milk Hotel. Even Deltron 3030, the only hip-hop act present over the weekend, brought a full band, choir, horns, string section, and turntablist Dan the Automator, keeping the electronic backing to a minimum. That’s a pretty fun evening, and I still missed things I would love loved to have seen, like Laurel Halo and Silver Apples.

It’s easy to be wary of the nostalgia and hype surrounding the return of Neutral Milk Hotel, but the fact is they put on a great show and were easily the highlight of the night. Countering their primary legacy as an emo-y folk act, it was great to see that they functioned as a raucous rock band as much as anything. Their excitement for playing again after a 15-year hiatus was evident, as was their gratitude for the crowd’s enthusiastic response.

Things got a bit moodier on Saturday, beginning with the electro-punk Bosnian Rainbows. Zola Jesus’ Nikola Danilova performed with a string quartet playing arrangements by Foetus’ Jim Thirwell, who conducted from behind a MacBook as he cued the beats. This seemed a completely natural setting for Danilova’s classically trained voice, and while the arrangements were occasionally repetitive, the set-up worked best during the more theatrical material. British drone ’n’ bass duo Raime executed a darkly atmospheric, bass-heavy set that rattled the seats in the small Diana Wortham Theatre, accompanied by eerie slow-motion films of a trench-coated man in various states of action. Though there had been some question about how it would go over, Godspeed You! Black Emperor in an arena absolutely worked, their music still maintaining a dramatic intensity that could make you forget you were in the middle of a few thousand people.

I peeked in on a couple of Gary Numan songs, and while Trent Reznor has been singing his praises of late, watching Numan perform makes clear his influence on Nine Inch Nails. Numan’s a pretty cocky frontman, strutting around stage like a middle-aged goth-pop Mick Jagger. As for Nine Inch Nails, I haven’t deliberately listened to any of their music since The Downward Spiral, but they loom so large I figured I should at least catch part of their set, and hung around for about half an hour. They have quite a light show, and that bassist is really good.

Sunday started out with the drowsy ambient soundscapes of William Basinski, then kicked into a much higher gear with South London soul singer Jessie Ware. Have you seen Fish Tank? From the balcony, Ware kind of looked like that film’s protagonist, and was similarly full of cheeky humor and attitude. She’s a fantastic singer, and, like with Danilova, it was a pleasure just to be in the same room with her voice. How to Dress Well has come a long way from his early hypnagogic sample- and vocal loop–based music, playing more or less straight blue-eyed soul backed by a cellist and keyboardist.
Darkside was the most buzzed-about newcomer, and the duo’s set stuck out as quite a bit different than everything else going on around them. They play EDM with guitar accompaniment that occasionally takes a bluesy turn, something like grafting Manuel Göttsching’s Ash Ra Tempel guitar solos onto his electronic music. Last year British house-pop duo Disclosure played the festival’s smallest club; this year they played the arena. Though their music hasn’t changed much, the change of venue made a huge difference to the atmosphere, and their stage presence was much more confident as they engaged with the crowd.

With the festival happening so close to Halloween, costumes were encouraged, and this year a costume contest was sponsored by Four Loko (presumably because few beverages are scarier than Four Loko). Also added to this seasonal ambience was the appearance of John Carpenter associate and horror/sci-fi soundtrack master Alan Howarth, performing excepts from his best-known works on the final evening. Accompanying the music were digitally tweaked scenes from such films as Halloween, Halloween II, Halloween III: Season of the Witch, The Thing, Assault on Precinct 13, and They Live. Howarth sat behind his keyboard for most of the set, but finished with a wailing guitar solo from that classic ode to urban dystopia Escape From New York while photos of him and Carpenter in the studio back in the ’70s appeared on the screen behind him. Following the scenes of terror and gore (and a bit of camp), it was an unexpected and surprisingly moving moment, and the final image I took from the festival.

Hopscotch Festival 2013

Review originally ran here.

You might have seen it written in a preview, or overheard it around Raleigh, NC a lot last weekend, but a popular line on Hopscotch is that it's the music festival created by people who really like music. That's obviously true of any music festival, of course, but the point seems to be that unlike other large festivals, the masterminds of Hopscotch don't have the muscle of an industry showcase, popular music website or powerhouse promotional booking company behind them. Rather, it was conceived of by employees of Raleigh's alternative weekly, Indy Week, in 2010, and has grown with each installment. This year saw 175 bands performing in 15 venues (not counting the numerous free day shows) from Thursday, September 5 through Saturday the 7^th.

The music lovers' tag also refers to the incredible amount of musical diversity available at the festival, and while diversity is the name of the game of most festivals these days, I'm not sure any other one would position as their opening act an experimental banjo player (Nathan Bowles), and make audiences choose as their final act of the weekend a member of one of the most influential rock bands of all time (John Cale), a long-defunct legendary band that helped pioneer stoner rock/sludge metal (Sleep), a hardcore band (Coke Bust), a neo-pigfuck band (Pissed Jeans) or an avant-psych-folk band that's been around for over 20 years (Charalambides).

There was a good deal of Americana, folk, electropop, EDM, old time music, rock, and a lot of things that fit somewhere in between all that, but as usual for this kind of festival, there was some grumbling about the limited number of hip-hop acts present. (Though it surely was difficult to complain about Big Daddy Kane filling in for Action Bronson when the latter threw his back out.) Avant-garde/out/whatever you want to call it music was represented very well, with acts like minimalist composer Charlamagne Palestine, several drone and noise acts, a couple of jazz sets, and Japanese noise merchant Merzbow, who was all over the place, collaborating with about half a dozen bands at the festival. Two free day parties hosted by record labels featured other acts in this vein, North Carolina's Three Lobed label hosting Thurston Moore's Caught on Tape duo with drummer John Maloney, and the North American debut of Desert Heat, one of the most buzzed about underground bands of the fest. The new-ish Philadelphia-based label Paradise of Bachelors hosted a day party at an outdoor amphitheater, joking about Pink Floyd Live at Pompeii vibes as people lounged about in the bright sun. Guitar heroes Steve Gunn and Chris Forsyth led their bands through fantastic sets, while indescribable outsider artist and musician Lonnie Holley puzzled and wowed the sleepy, largely hungover noonday crowd with his improvised keyboard playing and ruminations on flowers and the universe.

The headliners played the large open air City Plaza, Friday night's lineup devoted to the very now electropop/EDM sounds of Future Islands, Holy Ghost! and A-Trak, while Saturday was devoted to indie rock bands who started out in the '90s, The Breeders and Spiritualized. Attending these shows felt like a different festival altogether, as the other venues were primarily small clubs and bars, and even a church. There was also Raleigh's impressive if unfortunately named Progress Energy Center for the Performing Arts, which features an intimate black box venue, a sizable Opera Theatre and the much larger Memorial Auditorium. About the latter venue, cult British artist Richard Youngs commented that he had never played half a stadium before. Youngs performed to an audience of less than 100 people in a venue that seats 3800, and as someone joked in a tweet, 80% of the audience was musicians. Though not very well known, and hardly a draw, the organizers obviously love his music, so he got to open for John Cale in the festival's largest and lushest indoor venue. That's Hopscotch.

     Thursday, Day One
  

Wolf Eyes w/ Merzbow

Surprise!

Angel Olsen

I'd heard Angel Olsen sing live and on record with Bonnie Prince Billy, and she has an undeniably striking, gorgeous voice. Cursory listens to her records left me a little cold, but that all changed after seeing her perform solo live. With riveting performances of songs like the personal and pained “Creator, Destroyer” and some very Leonard Cohen-ish thing of which I don't know the title, she was captivating throughout. I wish I had a picture for you but it was such a quite and intimate performance I didn't want to sully it with a clicking shutter. Anyone, she's been photographed plenty, and will be even more after her next record is released on Jagjaguwar.

Best Show to Catch Some zs

Grouper

It's no insult to say I nodded off a bit during Grouper's set, and I know other people did as well. Liz Harris probably wouldn't take offense, as her droney, ambient Grouper project is designed to sound like a hazy half-dream state. She kept motioning for the lighting guy to turn the lights down lower, which elicited a laugh from the audience who must have known what they were in for. So, not much to see, really (from the balcony I could barely make her out sitting behind a table onstage), but there was plenty to hear as we let the sound wash over us.

Highlight

Wolf Eyes/Merzbow

Stalwart Michigan noise dudes Wolf Eyes are always changing up their approach, even as at their base they remain committed to extreme sonic explorations. The recent addition of guitarist Crazy Jim Baljo has been nothing but a boon for the group, adding new texture through his freak out solos and power fuzz. Japanese noise legend Merzbow contributed the first of several collaborations over the weekend, joining Wolf Eyes for a lengthy encore. Not surprisingly, it was easily the most intense and loudest thing I heard all weekend. (Though word is Wold got pretty far out.)

   Friday, Day Two 

Pere Ubu's David Thomas

Surprise!

Protomartyr and Pere Ubu

I basically spent all Friday night in a church watching artsy guitar, drone and minimalist performers, except when I snuck out to see Protomartyr and Pere Ubu at Kings Barcade. I had to see Protomartyr after one of my festival companions read that they were compared to Pere Ubu and The Fall, and looked up a live video performance by them. “This can't be them,” she said. “It looks like a group of teenagers and their drunk uncle.” Hey, that does sound like The Fall! Well the band turned out not to be that young, but man, their singer sure does have a case of the Mark E. Smiths. The do sound like The Fall, and also reminded me a lot of Tyvek, which makes sense as both bands hail from Detroit. Great guitarist, a solid rhythm section and a goofy but charismatic frontman, these guys were the best surprise and probably the best straight up rock act I caught at the festival, along with...

Pere Ubu, led by a true Drunk Uncle, David Thomas. Anyone who has seen them live knows how cranky and unpredictable Thomas can be, and honestly I wasn't expecting much as I closed out my Friday night with the band. But it was an amazing show. The band was great, the sound was good, and Thomas was in a jovial mood (for him), cracking jokes about Sting and Billy Jo-el. They encored with “Final Solution” and “Heaven” before Merzbow came out to join them for one more song. Never thought I'd see that.

                                                                    

John Truscinski and Steve Gunn

Highlight

Paradise of Bachelors day party

New Philadelphia-based label Paradise of Bachelors threw a day party at an outdoor amphitheater and it was a blast. The label head joked about the Pink Floyd at Pompeii vibes as everyone lounged about in the sun. Rising guitar heroes Steve Gunn and Chris Forsyth each led their bands through fantastic sets, Virginia's Black Twig Pickers played some old time music, Spacin' and Birds of Maya brought the psych rock vibes and kicking it off was indescribable outsider artist and musician Lonnie Holley, who puzzled and wowed the largely hungover noonday crowd with his improvised keyboard playing and ruminations on flowers and the universe. It would have been worth the trip to Raleigh for the free day shows, and this one seemed extra special.

Lonnie Holley

The Legend

Charlamagne Palestine

It was kind of a tough choice between Charlamagne Palestine and Earl Sweartshirt and last minute Action Bronson replacement Big Daddy Kane, but I didn't know when I'd have the chance to see the minimalist legend again, and the guy's almost 70 years old and drinks a lot of cognac. (Later I heard Earl was having some sound issues, so I have no qualms at all about my choice.) Before playing, he always places stuffed animals in front of his piano, and has a bottle of cognac handy. The animals are some sort of totem or something to do with his childhood, I think, and he probably just enjoys cognac. He begins the performance with a high-pitched vocal chant and rubs the edge of his cognac glass to produce a tone, before sitting down at the piano to “strum” on it for 45 minutes or so. The constant runs he makes up and down the keyboard produce undertones, and it was pretty remarkable to be sitting in a church, everyone bathed in red light, 10 feet away from the piano making these sounds. Big Ears brought Philip Glass and Terry Riley to Knoxville, Tony Conrad has played here a few times, and it was a thrill to get to see a lesser known but seminal American minimalist performer.

     Saturday, Day 3 

Spiritualized's Jason Spaceman's got those old shoegaze blues again

Surprise!

The Breeders

I know it sounds stupid to say The Breeders were a surprise, but I hadn't listened to Last Splash in probably 15 years or more, and I honestly forgot how good it is. The band and crowd were both in a great mood and people lost their minds during “Cannonball,” as they should. Great song, great album, great band.

Highlight

Richard Youngs

The British musician is known for his unpredictable and prolific output (he probably has close to 200 recordings counting collaborations), and no one seemed to know what he would be doing at Hopscotch. So much of his stuff leans to the noisey/experimental side of things, it was kind of surprising when he took to the stage with an acoustic guitar and performed a hypnotic, 15-minute long version of “Spin Me Endless in the Universe” from his new album. He then performed a few songs a cappella, one in which he petitioned the audience to accompany him by imitating a sped-up wah bass and drumkit falling down the stairs. I'm sure we've all been in situations where audience participation can seem a little forced and cheesy, but despite the odd request, it ended up sounding quite nice and a little haunting. Youngs is a big believer in repetition, from his guitar playing to his chanted vocals, and there was a hypnotic feel to the entire performance which, excepting the audience participation part, had the large auditorium hushed. The most unique and affecting performance I saw all weekend.

John Cale

The Legends

John Cale/Sleep

What can you say about John Cale? Look on his CV, mortals, and despair. He opened with “Hedda Gabbler,” played a coupe of songs I didn't recognize, and had a really good stripped down rock band. But it all seemed too tasteful and civilized a way to close out this great weekend, so I went to Sleep.

What can you say about Sleep? A legend before their time, the stoner rock/doom metal band have influenced so many bands since they broke up in the late '90s that they don't sound quite as awe-inspiring and heavy as they did 20 years ago, when their classic Holy Mountain was released. Still, it was thrilling to see, and especially hear, them live, a sentiment shared by a packed out theatre which included members of Spiritualized, Scout Niblett and a hoard of revelers who didn't want the weekend to end. “No sleep 'til Sleep” was a sort of unofficial rallying cry for many at this year's Hopscotch, and they were the perfect band to close out the festival.

To be sure, Hopscotch draws a lot from the Raleigh-Durham-Chapel Hill triangle, and there were a lot of local acts on the bill that most out of towners had never heard of, let alone heard. So that 175 bands might not seem as impressive when compared to Pitchfork or Bonnaroo, but on the other hand there was a lot of opportunity for discovery, and there's something great about the fact that the festival organizers schedule two of their favorite North Carolina bands to open for the big City Plaza shows. This seems to be what makes Hopscotch so unique and beloved; it can draw established and respected acts that pack the city plaza or auditorium, but allows plenty of room for up and comers and more esoteric performers in fairly intimate settings. I am certainly not alone in saying it's one of the best music festival I've attended.