W.W.Y.F.

WRLT Lightning 100 is asking our listeners What Would You Film at Bonnaroo. The Bonnaroo video will be about the fans, so why not ask the fans what we should film? Send in your ideas and we will film them. I can almost guarantee it.

The List

Bonnaroo is kind enough to supply a list of items to make sure not to forget, but if you have every gone to Bonnaroo you might be able to think of a few more needed supplies.

Bonnaroo's list
- Raingear
- Camping Gear
- Clothing with a hood
- Extra pair of shoes/sneakers
- Mud Boots (in case it rains)
- Bug Spray
- Blanket for seating
- Sunscreen
- A hat for shade
- A bandanna
- Sunglasses
- Plastic container for water
- Plastic bags for trash
- Extra toilet paper (just in case)
- Lantern/Flashlight with extra batteries
- Portable Radio
- Flag or balloon to identify your campsite
- Small luggage lock for your tent
- Earplugs
- Extra trash bags
- Camera
- Pen and paper for names, addresses, memories, and setlists!
- Extra set of keys to keep with you at all times

My List:
-Gold Bond
-Cheap Electric Fans
-Canopy
-Tarps
-Rope(hemp if you are in the spirit)
-Hammer
-Bungee Cords
-Grill
-Dry Ice(will last you the whole weekend)
-Couch
-Table
-Spray Bottles
-Wet Wipes
-Camel Bag
-Frisbee(if not, the hippies will make fun of you)
-Air Mattress
-12 volt Power Car Converter
-Gatoraid(Poweraid if you are watching your weight)

Langerado Day 4: Before my tent blew away

Posted by Brian Waters

Langerado :: 03.09 :: Big Cypress :: Florida

Before having to leave Langerado, there was one more show that I wanted to see. Will Hoge is a Nashville artist that was interviewed by Lt. Dan the Monday before Langerado and is primarily the reason I was able to make it out to Langerado. It was a good wayto start Will Hoge four month tour by kicking off the day at the Swamp Stage. Playing songs off his debut album "Draw the Curtains", Will preformed for a good size morning crowd. An important note on festivals is that 12:30P.M. is still considered a morning show due to the fact that bands might play until 4:00 A.M. When the song "Washed by the Water" was preformed, it reminded of how much I will enjoy a shower when I return home. Will Hoge upbeat Nashville country rockabilly rock was enough to wake anyone up to a full day of shows. I was disappointed that I would be missing acts such as The Natioinal and Of Montreal, but seeing Will Hoge play was enough inspiration to get me back to Nashville. The combination of school, work, and a 14 hour drive ahead of us, we had to leave a little early.

When I started tearing down my tent, it brought up memories of all the good times we had together at Langerado. The festival events have proven to be a bonding experience for man and his home. We made it though tornado warnings, monsoons, and even a little tent flying while attached by rope to our car. Langerado did more than bring man together with his basic needs for survival, it provided fan with a more diverse lineup than previous years with weather for northerners that felt like the first week of summer. Being a promising festival, I would gladly attend the next Langerado with the promises of improved sound quality, more hip hop artist, and the addition of a second alligator to at least keep the first one company. Thank you Langerado for making my first media coverage an genuinely interesting experience.

Langerado Day 3 pt 2: I was almost killed before I saw REM

Posted by Brian Waters

Langerado :: 03.08 :: Big Cypress :: Florida

During a break in between band sets, I ventured over to the media tent to take down some quick notes. It was planned to be my break away from everything to upload pictures, charge my cell phone, and report back to Lightning 100. Again mother nature took wrath against the lonely intern with her mighty breathes of wind. Before anyone typing away on their laptops could notice, a gust of wind wrenched the four foot spikes from the ground and lifted half the tent into the air. As I go to hastily gather all my gear, I can hear the spikes flailing around colliding on the fence two feet in front of myself and more importantly my mac book. It reminded me of hearing The Heavy Pets the night before, but this time I was almost killed with spikes. The thought of being impaled by a four foot tent spike just before I saw R.E.M. in my mind would be considered a crime. The stage crew later took down the media tent to leave two couches, three tables, and an area to hold press coverage in the middle of an open field. The rest of the festival the press would spent all of it's time in the hot sun, watching shows just like everyone else.

So after my near death impaling with at the media tent the next show on coming up would be Dr. Dog at the Chickee Hut stage. Dr. Dog’s set of psychedelic rock was just what I needed to forget the amount of safe haven that had been destroyed. Possible being one of the best shows at Langerado, Dr. Dog kept convincing me to take more pictures of the band than any other. Scott McMicken swaps off on the mic with Toby Leaman on a good number of their songs which makes it a hard decision on whose vocals to enjoy more.

Missing the tail end of Dr. Dog set to support Nashvillian Ben Folds I walked up to a song that didn’t really fit his normal song tones. Who ever thought Ben Folds would have enough Compton influences as he covered "Bitches Ain’t Shit" by Dr. Dre. While watching Ben Folds it was apparent that there were an extra amount of beach balls on the left side of the audience. The wind that had already knocked over my tent twice today was also affecting the trajectory of the beach balls as well. I later noticed one eager fan jumped at the chance to grab a fallen beach ball to later launch it back into the crowd. The short fan jumped into the air to get the most velocity gained to her hit to have the wind return the favor with the ball gliding back to her to thump in the face. It made me laugh just as much as the Dre cover.

After seeing Thievery Corporation perform with a full band at the last Echo Project in Atlanta, doubts in my mind were stirring on how this show would compare. Thievery Corporation still had a good amount of members with them, but this time the set had a little more of a DJ influence on the overall sound of the music.

Langerado also offered live artist painting to artist as advertised in the Langerado itinerary. As the artist stroking to the rhythm of the music, the allusion that I could do the same given an ipod. Also while trying to get a better picture of the artist I hastily yanked by security out the photo pit before any mention that our time was up.

After Thievery Corporation set we were placed in a perfect place to view R.E.M. As Michael Stipe walked out supporting a green Obama shirt, he initiate the long over due show with "What’s the Frequency". Seconds after finishing the first song, Michael Stipe threw his Obama shirt to barely miss the audience. A kind photographer later threw the shirt to some fortunate fan. Even with the stage headed stage lights of the Everglades stage, Stipe during the song "Dive" put on a button up shirt and matching white jacket. Even the artist understood the chilling temperature as fans manage past it while watching R.E.M. though a mixture of frozen breath and cigarette smoke. During the R.E.M., I was standing with a group of people who were lucking to be listening to R.E.M. with one of their foremost vocal fans. Between each song, before the crowd could get done applauding, the drunken king of R.E.M. fans would shout out "Man on the Moon". With each holler his voice would slowly become raspier with fewer repetitions for the fans favorite song. Only he would know his real allegiance to the song. It could be to Andy Kaufman or mistakenly Jim Carey portraying Kaufman. My guess is that it was the only REM song he could remember the name to that is embedded into the chorus. All I asked for was for him for was to be quiet during "Losing My Religion". Ironically the super fan lost his voice by the time R.E.M. ended with "Man on the Moon", I almost felt bad.

After thinking that Man Man won the title of the most convincing band imitated a group of drunken pirate, I was able to witness a close second and possible separated at birth twin sister the Yard Dogs Road Show. Adding a 1930's traveling circus element to the show the Yard Dogs Road Show made the set feel like each song was an act. The band also reminded me of the junk yard gang from Fat Albert, but with an additional treat of three gorgeous burlesque type dancers instead of the large man in red. The Yard Dogs were the first band I have seen to have someone play an accordion during a tap solo while she was singing.

After being extremely distress about the last minute movement of Dan Deacon to a different stage due to daylight saving time, the Yard Dogs restored retracted my angry before I went to sleep to a peaceful night of no storms.

Langerado Day 3 pt 1: The secret of youth - Festivals

Posted by Brian Waters

Langerado :: 03.08 :: Big Cypress :: Florida

After receive a little over four hours of sleep due to the Langerado wind punching my tent last night, I promised to not turn this blog a lack of sleep, weather man bash blog. There are always enough topics to mention about at a hippie festival and on a strange note, this one is about fashion. It's a sad day for sunglasses enthusiast, during the third day of the Langerado festival it was apparent that the aviator's era has pasted. It is believe that the ex champ the ray bans sunglasses have taken the back over with Bob Dylan coaching from the ring corner. Ray bans beat out the aviators at least five to one with support from artist and festival goers like in this new ultraviolet trend. Let us not forget our aviators though, we had some great times together. I will always remember the time together when we went to the lake house in 2005, the years of surviving Bonnaroo without a scratch, and who could forget the classic pictures created with the reflection off the shades. So do not throw away your aviators in haste just because they have a scuffed on one side. Keep them to show your kids when they are old enough or maybe the triumph comeback of the aviators in a few years, which ever comes first.

Today might be the sturdiest line up of shows for Langerado. After reenacting the Beastie Boys set with better sound in my dreams, I was ready for a nonstop line up of shows. Blitzen Trapper would be the first show that most people would stumble into being the closes to the Langerado gates. Blitzen Trapper was a good example of the festival lineup becoming more diverse than the jam band scene. Performing a majority of songs from their new album "Wild Mountain Nation", Blitzen Trapper provided mellow western sound that made the crowd forget about the terrors of mother nature put us to sleep with the night before. I would much rather Blitzen Trapper sing me a lullaby any night over the everglades' storms, which is an open invitation to the band. Blitzen Trapper is playing at The Exit/In in Nashville on March 19^th if you were not able to check them out at Langerado.

The Bad Plus from appearance looks like a high school band teacher, Tom York's brother, and that uncle that shaved his head before he went bald. The blending the trio made for a distinctive, classical three piece collaboration with a mixture of original songs and covers. It was disappointing when The Bad Plus did not cover "Iron Man" by Birmingham like previous shows, but they perform a cover of "Blondie" was refreshing.

The first let down of the day would be the last minute cancellation of the Avett Brothers. As five hundred fans stood waiting, cheering at the sound check of a stand up bass ended with a roadie come out later announce that the Avett Brothers had canceled. Suddenly, as if one person yelled out Arrested Development, the entire crowd walked to the Sunset Stage. The crowd slowly learned that the possible secret of youth could lie in sounds of positive hip hop, while watching seventy five year old could Baba Oje pumping up the crowd supporting an African garnet. When they played the song "Tennessee", for a second I became homesick, but this instantly went away when remembering about the five inches of snow on the ground in Nashville. I will wear my sunburn with Tennessee pride.

Langerado Day 2: And then there was light - Festivals

Posted by Brian Waters

Langerado :: 03.07 :: Big Cypress :: Florida

Waking up for the first full day of shows can sometimes make you forget important daily items. It is possible to get up in a sleepless daze that will cause you forget to put on some early morning sunscreen. Being late to the first show is a common occurrence due to overzealous morning campsite building. It is also the first chance you will always get to meet those interesting, but always friendly tie die type neighbors next door. The year at the 6^th annual Langerado might have taken the cake on fascinating neighbors, or at least ones with creative names. Now I have met a good amount of hippies at festivals that all have out of the ordinary, all natural names. It's sometimes hard to believe that some people’s actual legal names could be something like Sunshine, Waterfall, or Moon Light. Today I might of found the most absurd hippie name to date, so I started off today’s blog with it. I met a girl with the legal name of Sundrop on Friday morning hanging out near my campsite. Diving deep into origin of Sundrop, I found out her parents legally named her this in 1986, which is 26 years after the cola drink came out. Maybe they thought their daughter would be sweet, overactive, and only be seen in certain counties. Something tells me that anyone named Wind Dancer later in his or her adult life will not make the choice to go into a business career or politics. If you want your child to do things such as dread their hair, give up on corporate activities such as bathing, and devote their lives to following Phish, it’s a simple formula. First take the weather condition outside when they are born and then combine it with the street you lived on as a kid to create your hippie name. For example, my name would be Sunny Oaks. Create your own hippie name for fun, just please don't name your kids this way.

The first act to begin the Friday festivities would be Nashville’s own The Dynamites. Nashville had a small presence of local music scene performing at 6^th annual Langerado festival including The Dynamites, Ben Folds, and Will Hoge. The Dynamites were the opening band to play on the main stage of Langerado, understandable named the Everglades Stage. After three instrumental songs, the band brought out Charles Walker to bring some soul to the Dynamites' funk. Charles Walker's was impressive with his Apollo Theater like presents and the tolerance to kept a lime green suit at least until the last song. After thanking the audience, The Dynamites went to artist tent to sign copies of their new cd Kaboom! The only thing I was disappointed in The Dynamites show was the fact that this was my first time seeing them being a fellow Nashvillian.

One frequent connection the press and festival goers have alike is sometimes bands just do not show up. Langerado unexpected number had late cancellations from Ben Jelen, Avett Brothers, Vampire Weekend, and last minute stage change for Dan Deacon. While back at the media tent, I was able to help set up sound for Jules at Earhoria.net for an interview and acoustic set with The Walkmen. After waiting around for 45 minutes on the band, I changed locations to catch the tale end of Matt Pond PA. Later I found out the band needed some much needed prep time before the show due to a case of sunstroke obtained at the festival. It did not slow them down during the performance, playing for the full time length. Luck was not on their side during this set while the sun blazing upon them at the Chickee Hut stage. It is still puzzling why it was named the Chickee Hut, yet it was just an open stage that was no different than any others. After playing a few new songs from an upcoming untitled album, Hamilton Leithauser told the audience that "This going to be the Bob Dylan portion of the show. Not really, we just use a harmonica during the song."

Later Jules said she did get the interview with The Walkmen after their show. Make sure to check back at Earhoria.net in the next month for an interview with The Walkmen and other artist from Langerado.
"So who was that band?" a very common question after seeing the band !!! for the first time. Fans would later find out from other campers that the band is pronounced Chk Chk Chk. The band is a mixture of early 80's electro pop beats, a steady, firm walks down the bass line, and dance rock guitar rifts that makes the band sound like they could only be from New York.

It would be impossible to not mention !!!, without refer to the lead singer Nick Offer pulsating stage charisma. Nick Offer energetic onstage presence was even hard to contain to just the Chickee Hut. A version of the two-step kept recurring during the show as if Nick had created it himself. While listening to show, it only seemed natural for Nick to move in this fashion. Later I imagined Nick viewing other artist at the festival, never once pausing with his matchless dance style. People might not have known the correct way to say !!!, but this was probably one band they will look up after the weekend over. Nick Offer later thanked the crowd at "didgeridoo" for being a good audience, I think he enjoyed the set. For a festival predominately fill with hippies, out of the everglades' swamp appear the indie kids crowd for Built to Spill. Vacationing from their vinyl record stores for the weekend, indie rock fanatics were flocking to the Chickee Hut for Built to Spill.

Being that I have never seen Built to Spill I pressed my luck with staying in the photo pit for the entire show. Normally photographers get to stay for the first three songs of the artist set, but at smaller stage this rule is less enforced. Built to Spill is not really an vivacious band, especially after following the sweat dripped performance of !!!. Built to Spill was the calming early 90's indie rock I needed to hear before I ventured to the Beastie Boys. Seconds after hearing "Strange" I remembered the need to rush to the Beastie Boys to get a spot.

A feat that is normally impossible to accomplish at a large festival is being able to glide your way to the front of the stage minutes before the headlining band plays. During my brisk speed walk to the Beastie Boys I found it astonishing how easy it was to get up close. The Beastie Boys will always bring back teenage angst against my parents who denied my right to party when they preformed with Rage Against the Machine the summer of my 8^th grade year. Ever since then I have only been able to watch dvd concert footage and music videos with vivid caprice of seeing them in concert. The start of Mix Master Mike putting down the first vinyl to the tables would get any fan heart pumping with anticipation for the opening song. Expecting the type of Bonnaroo bass for the show, I was extremely disappointed at the sound mixers for the set. It was already frustrating that the levels were all too low, but when the song "Sabotage" which Mike D prominently yells into the microphone ended up loosing its intensity. Soon after Mike D told the crowd, "You better watch out because Mix Master Mike is about to drop kick all you alligators back to the swamp," the gators apparently working in the sound booth started to adjust the levels. Along with some of their signatures - rhyme-passing, three-way raps including Body Movin', Super Disco Breakin' and Intergalactic, the Beastie Boys played what might have been one of their early, pre-rap punk songs. The Beastie Boys show did fulfill my dream of finally seeing the band that made me think I could rap just because I could flow along with the cds.

After the Beastie Boys put everyone in hip hop mood, Bassnectar kept it coming at the Swamp Stage. Looking though the crowd it was obvious that more people were dancing to this drum n’ bass dance set than the Beastie Boys. Later Bassnectar mixed a polka song with drum n’ bass, which combine with hippie dancing, created something close to Polish rave body gyrations. It made me hungry for a gyro, which might be the best festival food available. Sound Tribe Sector 9 capped off the night playing until 4:00 a.m. STS9 was followed by a thunder storm that later hippies would clam to be god applauding the band for putting on a good show. I spent the rest of the night holding up two sites of my tent to keep the rain out and equipment dry. Normally at festivals people get tired due to the heat, Langerado ironically enough drained me due to rain.

Langerado Day 1: The calm before the music - Festivals

Posted by Brian Waters

Langerado :: 03.06 :: Big Cypress :: Florida

To begin this year's Langerado music festival, it was not that surprising to be commenced with a long wait in line. Most festival goers are just happy to be off the interstate for the final stretch, after coming from distances as far as Wisconsin, California, and even a lonely license plate from Toronto. So far we have been inching forward in the car to only make slight turns to find new endless looking lines upon us. At this point, we have been waiting in line for the last 2 hours, only to move about 6 out of 15 miles to the everglades' Big Cypress Seminole Reservation. The first thing I notice while in line was how tan my left arm has become during the 14 hour trek. My arm went from computer guy pale to crimson red within a few hours. So to start off the 6^th annual Langerado festival, I will be strapped with one tan left arm. Hopefully this will lead to some respect from other campers for my driver's side tan I have acquired from Nashville.

Soon after passing the "Welcome to Langerado" sign, a Florida down pour struck us for the next four hours. Looking for members of the Seminole tribe in the distance possible performing satirical type of rain dance, cars would keep releasing the break to slightly shift in the direction the camp grounds. The 2008 Langerado festival will be the first time that I will have the unfortunate ability to set up a tent while a tornado watch is in effect. The Seminole tribe might have had the idea of unifying neighbors with their rain break dance routine that forced campers helped spike down each others' tents during the storm. Later these campsite allies would be repaid with undercooked propane burgers, advice on debatable bands to see, and slightly chilled cooler beer. After the storm departed, most festival partakers would just put on a dry shirt on and headed to the festival grounds after hearing the start of music from their camp grounds.

The first band that really kicked off the 2008 Langerado would be Claypool, which was no surprise to most fans. It could of been the five plus dueling bass and xylophone solos or the costume changes between songs. It is difficult to put my finger on my favorite costume Les Claypool supported during the set. He started with a Cyrano de Bergerac nose, a pig mask for the song "Mr. Kringle", then a change to monkey mask, and finally changed into a plastic Elvis wig for the encore. The crowd was entertaining as well, by stirring up after each song with talk of what Primus song they are positive that Les is going to be playing, as if they just got off the phone with him before the show. Les Claypool ended the set with saying "I have not seen any gators yet, but I will be damn if I don’t wrestle one before I go."

The last group to finish off the night might be one of the most popular bands in its subgenera. Dark Star Orchestra is a Grateful Dead cover band that has been performing for dead heads since 1997. Now 3 out of 5 colleges has a Grateful Dead cover band, but Dark Star Orchestra the one able to climb out of their small town to move up to be playing shows and festival. Dark Star Orchestra should be able to keep the Dead fans at bay until Phil Lesh plays on Sunday. On the first night of a Langerado, it seems like it is not that critical who is playing as long as it's jammy enough to dance to. Most people are just double fisting five-dollar beers that allow them to dance around until they get dizzy or have finally reach the point of intoxicated. By the end of the night, they might actually have the advantage when heading back to a nice wet campsite.