Photography by Brian Waters
Well day two of Treasure Island was not looking as promising as day one. We got the festival grounds and were under some dark clouds with a strong cold wind blowing in from the bay. Regardless of the weather, spirits seemed high all around as we made our way inside and went to check out the Vetiver show.
These guys were great. As San Francisco locals they were completely stoked about playing the show. They did a couple of newer songs and even dedicated one jam to a local Thai restaurant in the Mission District of California. The weather not affecting the performance kind of set the precedent for the day… “It’s cold. Deal.”
We left Vetiver and did some walking around through the booths that were set up on the island. What an eclectic group of Vendors. Some of my favorites were the Carnival, the Indie Shop, the Vorcan 3-D paintings, the San Fran-psycho shirt company and Z. Houston the poet.
The Step Right Up Carnival was a set of five booths that look like they came straight out of the 1920’s. They had a series of carnival games and theatric sideshow performances. The Vorcan 3-D painting booth featured a couple of local artists who would do art on the spot with a special set of paints that appeared 3-D when they were viewed through the provided glasses. Then of course was the San Fran-psycho company. These guys were hilarious. Using their on location screen printing shop, they would design shirts or hoodies or whatever else right as their customers would request it. The way this company works is based around “capturing the moment.” As my friend went to buy a shirt the guys asked her what was important to her about that moment in life. She said the sunset and they designed a custom shirt featuring a gold screening to represent the colors of the sun over the San Francisco bay. Very cool set up. Very cool dudes. My final favorite was a poet who went by the name “Z Houston.” Houston sat up a small table featuring only a small typewriter and did “Your topic, Your tip” poems. Festival-goers would sit on a small stool next to his table and give him a topic for a poem. He would then write it on the spot and give it to you in exchange for a tip of your choice.
After a nice little show intermission we made our way to the main stage to see the infamous Grizzly Bear. This was the second time I have seen this act perform live. Honestly, when I caught them before a Radiohead show in Indiana I was not impressed. However these Brooklyn based musicians hammered out a hella performance on this chilly Sunday afternoon. This show became even more enjoyable as the sun peaked out from the clouds for a nice little while during their set.
The next performer we caught was the incredible 23-year-old genious Zach Condon fronting New Mexican band Beirut. These guys played a fifty-minute set featuring a whole array of different instruments. All the while making everything they were doing look easy. The horn section for Beirut is breathtaking as it underlies the marvel of Condon’s almost operatic voice.
As the sun started making its way below the horizon everyone moved to the Tunnel Stage for The Walkmen. As the sun left us, so did any of the heat it was providing. We did our best to bundle up with what we had and besides that relied on running around and dancing to maintain a comfortable temperature. Unfortunately, the Decemberists were up next and this act doesn’t provide a lot of situation for dancing. There was a time in life when The Decemberists were in my top five favorite bands of all time. There are about four albums I can sing from start to finish. My only problem with this show is that only one song from any of those albums was even played. The band played only recent stuff. They were on point with delivery but give the long-time fans something too. Regardless of their performance, the video projection behind these guys is what really made the show worth it all. Videos of nature and exploding art an imagery overtook the sound of this operatic performance to create a pretty solid experience.
The final two bands of the evening were alone worth the cost of this incredible festival. Sunday night was finalized with the performance of Yo La Tengo and The Flaming Lips, fresh off their release of newest album Embryonic. Yo La Tengo dropped an incredible showing of skill and entertainment while nestled between two light covered palm trees in front of the San Francisco bay. The stage and massive collection of people blocked a lot of wind coming in off the water which made for a much more enjoyable watch. Already pumped about seeing this band, this crowd seemed ecstatic to know that up next The Lips would take the stage.
As always, Wayne Coyne and the boys delivered an unforgettable live show. It all started off with the band entering through a screen projection of the vagina of a woman. She sat down, spread her legs and the band walked out of them. This “anatomical” entrance sent the crowd into frenzy. Then came Coyne crowd surfing into the audience inside his huge inflatable ball. The band kicked off their set with “Race for the Prize” and rained confetti into the audience through 4-foot cannons. Coyne explained that San Francisco was one of the first cities to ever allow the band to play a live show and therefore, even though they were from Oklahoma City, they would consider tonight’s show a “homecoming” of sorts. Mixing in political banter of Bush hatred and Obama love, Coyne was as always an inspired speaker in between songs. He was constantly pushing the crowd to “freak out” and really getting everyone involved in the set. This show was incredible. The Lips know how to throw a party. What an amazing end to an amazing weekend of music.
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