Having seen a ton of movies this summer, here's a quick rundown of the good, the "eh," and the "oh my god, I can't believe I just payed money to see that."
The Good: Transformers I was quite worried about what Michael Bay would do to the Transformers franchise. After seeing the Core, I figured it would be pretty easy to screw up a movie about toys that transform from vehicles to robots. Luckily Spielberg produced it, and all ended well. Sure, it had some of Bay's fall backs, ie: giant mind-numbing action and flat, stereotyped characters. But it managed to be a lot of fun, and you can actually feel for the characters and their autobot friends (especially Bumblebee).
The Simpsons Movie "Spider Pig. Spider Pig. Does whatever a Spider Pig does." This could have easily have been just an extra long episode, but Groening and Co. take full advantage of the big screen. Full of blink-and-you-miss-it jokes and a great story. Look out for the jabs at Fox.
Knocked Up Seth Rogan was one of my favorite characters in 40 Year Old Virgin. Awesome hysterical laughs, good story too. Rogan is a believable "dork who knocks up a hot girl." The best parts had to be the dialog between Rogan and his roommates/best friends.
The Eh also know as the "-3s": Spider Man 3 Loved the first 2 movies. This one could have worked if they had shortened it way down and taken out one of the villains. Why does Peter Parker need to turn emo-brat and a snappy dancer when he gets the alien stuff on him??
Pirates of the Carribean 3 This franchise should have ended after the first one. Bloated, confusing story line. Way too long as well. Best part was seeing Keith Richards play Jack's dad. I was so confused by the end of it as to why everything was taking place.
Shrek The Third Cute storyline, animation and character designs were boring. Another case of unnecessary sequel. Good message for the kids.
The Oh My God, I Can't Believe I Just Payed Money To See That: The Number 23 Jim Carey needs to stop with trying to show off his talent by starring in serious roles. Plot was ridiculous. Carey tried his best, but can't save this steaming pile of crap. Twist ending does not work with Plot. What was with all the sex scenes??
300 Probably the most disappointing of all the movies I've seen this summer. Everyone raved about how amazing the visuals were and quoting from it like it was a classic. The movie turned the history lesson into a "whose got the biggest balls" flick. As there are "chick-flicks," this was a "macho guy flick" with homo-erotic tendencies to boot. Reminded me of a high school wrestling match. The whole movie could be an allusion to Bush and the war in Iraq, but I might be looking to far into it.
So after applying to about 4 more places including Target, Wal-mart, Office Max, and a comedy theatre (calling people and offering free tickets to shows), I've gotten one call back so far from Target. I went in for the interview on Saturday and I'm pretty sure I lost the job because of the crazy questions she threw at me, but I still have my fingers crossed on a call back.
Here's a painting I did with Lindsey recently of Pele. Its for her brother who's a great soccer player and was injured skateboarding. It was fun getting back into painting with her. First time I've done a painting cooperatively too!
Here's a video I've been working on for the past 3 weeks, combining all the footage and pictures of the Bonnaroo trip. It pretty much sums up 5 days and the last post in 7 minutes. :) enjoy!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-ydbIiU71co
Band Footage courtesy of:* Regina Spektor-www.youtube.com/staten Dr.Dog-www.youtube.com/mmanzella The Decemberists- www.youtube.com/whoatemytuna Lewis Black-www.youtube.com/mmanzella The Flaming Lips-www.youtube.com/irreversibility Feist-www.youtube.com/bigdaddyhansel Franz Ferdinand-www.youtube.com/subpink RX Bandits-www.youtube.com/refusedtv Mute Math-www.youtube.com/donsegundo
*videos borrowed because I wasn't able to videotape the performances. Performances are copyright of original owners and used under fair use.
Being my second Bonnaroo experience, I had an idea of what to expect for the 4 day music festival. Last years festival was incredible with performances by Cat Power, Devendra Banhart, Bright Eyes, Beck, Sonic Youth, and of course Radiohead. Going into this year's Bonnaroo, I was a little concerned that the lineup was not as strong. Tool and The Police were headlining and I didn't have any interest in catching their shows. After four days and over 10 memorable performances, I take back any hesitancies I had towards the lineup. It was amazing. Along for the ride with me was my girlfriend Lindsey and my best friend Jess. Neither of them had been to Bonnaroo before.
Wednesday, June 13th Two days after Jess and I flew in to Tampa from PA, we packed up the tiny but spacious Yarris untill there was barely enough room to seat 3, grabbed the Google maps, and headed off to Manchester Tennessee. I took most of the driving up and we made it at the Best Western at 3 in the morning. You could tell we were in Tennessee by the way the hotel manager said, "Y'all goin' to Bon-e-roooo??."
Thurday, June 14th We left the hotel around 11 that morning and stopped at a Wal-mart to see if I could fix my video camera I brought to document the trip. It was fruitless though. Didn't get to use it the rest of the trip. We stopped at a gas station right outside Manchester and saw our first drug bust. I asked one of the police officers how to get to Bonnaroo from here and he asked why I was going to the "dope festival". We found the line for Bonnaroo around 12:30 and proceeded to wait for the next 3 hours watching Fargo and Raising Arizona, while bootleggers tried to sell t-shirts and posters.
When we finally made it in to Bonnaroo, we had the most laid back car search. All they did was ask if we had any drugs, explosives, or glass and we were on our way. We got a nice camping spot about a 25 minute walk from Centeroo (the main area where all the concerts are) and set up the tent, canopy, and cooking supplies. I even remembered to bring Flamingos and Christmas lights.
After we set up camp, we checked out the sights in Centeroo. While we were inside, Jess went off to see one of her bands, Apollo Sunshine while Lindsey and I caught the tail end of Mute Math. They played a few songs I've heard before and they sounded pretty good live. Afterwards, we walked back to camp to sleep, only to find that the air mattress had a leak.Friday, June 15th (my 20th Birthday) One of the benefits of having a birthday during Bonnaroo is that Bonnaroo tickets make a perfect early birthday gift. This was my second time celebrating my birthday at Bonnaroo. We started out the morning by waking up sweating in the Tennessee head at 8:30 and had an egg and bacon breakfast that took forever to cook. I hit my head on the trunk of the Yarri, leaving a nice little bump on my forehead which Jess is so kindly pointing out.
RX Bandits
Caught part of the RX Bandits show with Lindsey and Jess. Lindsey grew up listening to these guys and had seen them at Warped Tour. She was surprised by how good they still were. I enjoyed the reggae, ska, pop-punk rock; but I was worried for the lead singer who was shirtless and apparently forgot to apply sunscreen that morning. He was turning a nice shade of salmon by the time we left. Did I mention that it was like an oven around noonish?
Lewis Black Last year I had tried to see Mr. Black at the Comedy Tent, but gave up after seeing the impressive line that snaked back and forth for what seemed like forever. This year Lindsey and I were determined to catch him perform. We got in line right before the first show started and waited for the next 3 hours to be first in line for his second show. We managed to take shifts where one would wait in line in 100 degree heat, while the other got food and drinks. It ended up working out and we even managed to sneak Jess in at the last minute. We got the best seats too! The show was awesome. Lewis Black made a ton of jokes about anticipation and how nothing ever lives up to how we anticipate it. (How true). He had 3 other comedians who were really funny as well. It was definitely one of the best shows at Bonnaroo. Being in an air-conditioned tent didn't hurt either.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rgepSsTpB6Y
Afterwards we parted ways with Jess. She went to see The Brazilian Girls and Lilly Allen while we headed off to a grassy hill to see The Roots perform the main stage. It was fun hearing them perform "Roxanne."
Later we headed back to the campsite and got the prints and artwork together to try and sell on Shakedown street (the main road through the camping area where all the unlicensed vendors sell everything imaginable). By the time we got to Shakedown and set up a spot, it was already dark and no one could see the artwork. The only people that were interested were drunk people heading to the Tool show or the Clutch show and yelling, "hey sweet Jimi Hendrix!" It got old real quick and we didn't sell zip that night.
Saturday, June 16th This was the day to look forward to. All the main bands we wanted to see were playing on Saturday. A few were overlapping, such as The Flaming Lips and Girl Talk, which sucked to have to decide between. Our first pick of the day was Dr. Dog.
Dr. Dog
Although they may have the most misleading name in music (I originally thought they were a jam band from the name), they sounded really good live. I fell in love with their single "My Old Ways" right before Bonnaroo and really enjoyed their "Beatlesesque" harmonies. They played a pretty good set from what I heard. Lindsey and I had to skip out half way through though, to make it to see Regina Spektor. Didn't get to hear them play "My Old Ways." Oh well.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=IXs30YS6tmQ
Regina Spektor
The first time I saw Regina was way back in 2005 after her Soviet Kitsch album came out and she was opening for The Killers of all people. I went solely to see her and was disappointed when we got there late and only caught her last two songs and were so far back that she was a little speck on the stage. This time we got there early enough to for nearly front row seats on the side. Her performance reminded me why I originally fell in love with her music. She was so friendly and endearing during her performance. It felt as if she was playing an intimate one on one show for everyone there. Her music sounded perfect live as well.
http://youtube.com/watch?v=7zlxValrprQ
Lindsey and I left a little early during Regina's performance because the heat and the crowd was really starting to get overwhelming. We headed off to the Movie tent where Bill Plymton, a famous independent animator, was showing some of his short animations and answering questions from the crowd. He answered my question about "recommendations for beginning animators" and informed me that he was "surprised that there were animators in the audience and to keep the animations short, cheap, and funny." I got to meet him and get a dvd signed which was pretty awesome.
While Jess was busy rockin' out to Ween, Lindsey and I grabbed some delicious but expensive 5 dollar lemonades and grabbed some sweet spots in the front row at the end of the Damien Rice show to see Franz Ferdinand.
Franz Ferdinand Apparently this was the only festival that The Franz was playing this year, so that was kinda exciting. Getting front row spots was nice too because they put on a really energized set that hard to beat. This was another band whose music transitioned perfectly from album to in concert. Every song got the audience dancing and singing along. They even played a few unreleased tracks which was nice. We even got to see Regina dancing in the VIP section and she waved back at us! :)
http://youtube.com/watch?v=Pus46fJI0nw
We then proceeded to wait for the next 4 hours to see the Flaming Lips. Jess somehow managed to find us soon after Franz Ferdinand ended. I decided it would be awesome to wear our costumes we brought, so I raced back to the campsite (more like walked briskly), changed into my Superman costume, grabbed Lindsey's Wonder Woman and Jess's Ladybug costume and hurried back to the stage. We sat there listening as The Police played on the main stage and as they set up everything on the Flaming Lips stage. Apparently, we didn't miss much by skipping out on the Police show.
The Flaming Lips
An hour or so before the actual set, the Lips launched into War Pigs as a sound check. We knew then that we were in for something special musically and visually. What an amazing show. I've been a fan of the Lips for the last couple years and really wanted to see them live. They always get rave reviews for their performances, mostly for the theatrics, and Wayne Coyne's antics. Seeing them in the front row is the way to watch the Flaming Lips live.
There is so much going on, its really easy to miss something. On either side of the stage were a collection of lucky fans dressed up as Aliens on one side and Santa Clauses on the other. Two huge cannons launched confetti over the audience. Giant balloons and random helium filled objects bouced over the audience. The hardest thing to miss and one of the biggest spectacles was the life-sized UFO that lowered onto the stage, unloading all the band members except for Wayne. He was encapsulated in a giant plastic bubble at the top of the UFO. Here's a video of Wayne making his way down the UFO and hoisted into the audience by stage-hands dressed as superheroes:
After his crowd surf in a giant bubble, he made it back on stage to perform such classics as "Do You Realize?" and "the Yeah Yeah Yeah Song." At one point, laser-pointers were distributed to the audience and then pointed at Wayne as he held as large mirror. As great as the Lips songs sound on the albums, hearing them live is another reality all together. Wayne Coyne has an amazing grasp on how to interweave the auditory and the visual. He spent hours before the show making sure every little detail was taken care of. Catchy songs turned into epics. Every member of the audience realized that morning that they had witnessed something special.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aQ8BjWTxrN0
After the Lips finished their set, we somehow managed to stagger back to the tent and catch a few hours of sleep for the last day at Bonnaroo.
We woke up early again thanks to the Tennessee heat and our deflated air mattress. Had a nice egg and bacon breakfast. Jess went out to catch a few bands while Linds and I finalized our plans. I went out to try and sell some artwork for one last time and Linds hung back to start packing. I was really hoping to sell something that last day, because I was already out about $180 for the supplies for everything, not to mention all the time spent. After about 3 hours in the heat on the side of the road on Shakedown Street, I walked away with all but 2 originals sold and 5 or six prints sold. I was content with breaking even. I tried my hardest to help sell Lindsey's prints, but it really wasn't the right crowd. They were all hippies who could only recognize the classic rock stars. Plus the dust and dirt made it really hard to see the prints. It was a good learning experience though.
After giving up trying to sell any more pieces, we headed to Centeroo and try to catch Demetri Martin with Flight of the Concords. By the time we got there, there was no chance of seeing them with the huge never-ending line. We caught Martha Wainwright (sis of Rufus Wainwright) instead . She was fun, but you could tell that she was nervous because all the times she had to restart songs.
Feist Lindsey and I were really excited about seeing Ms. Feist. Having only discovered her in the last few months, we weren't the biggest fans there, but still loved her music. It was really nice finding out she sounds just as good live as she did on her albums. We left a little early to catch the last show of Bonnaroo.
The White Stripes Since we didn't wait for four hours to get a front row spot, we were stuck in the nose bleed section where the stage wasn't visible. Seeing the Stripes live was definitely something I was looking forward all weekend. I have to say that they were the disappointment for me for the weekend. The songs seemed way more sloppy than the album versions and it seemed like Jack White was trying to rush through them.
We left early and walked one last time around Centeroo and got on the ferris wheel to see Bonnaroo from above. Lindsey underestimated her fear of heights and got scared about 5 seconds into leaving the ground. We still managed to get a good picture and video.
We got back to camp to leave, but we were stuck till the next morning because the surrounding campers didn't leave. Overall, I had the most amazing time with the my favorite people. Bonnaroo 2007 was even better in my opinion than last year. I hope next year can live up to the hype.
Since this will be my second trip to Bonnaroo, I decided to repost my original blog that was on my myspace a year ago. Last year was such an amazing experience and I hope this year is just as amazing.
original posted July 1st 2006: Bonnaroo was the most amazing event of my life. 12 hour drive down. Passed through Dollywood on our way to our camping site. Has to be the weirdest stretch of road I have ever seen in my life. Every store and attraction screamed "tourist trap" We spent the night at a nice national park camping ground and slept under the stars after eating green beans from the can with a side of spaghettios.
The next morning, (my 19th birthday!) we left for Bonnaroo. it took us two hours plus the time we spent in line on the shoulder of the road with all the others waiting to get in. We went through the security search and then got to our site. We made friends with our neighbors who were awesome. the one kids dad owns a restaurant, so they had lots of pots and pans and tons of extra food like red bulls and danishes. We ate like kings the first night. Steak and hamburgers and ramen noodles(courtesy of us) Saw Mat Costa that night. He was ok, but I was so excited about the next day of shows, that it was hard for me to get excited about him. Plus I didn't know any of his songs.
Next day, woke up at 6 (went to bed at 1) bc Tennessee heat is almost unbearable and it was worse inside a tent. Washed my hair/brushed teeth in the sink at a wash station. I was turning into a dirty hippie right before my eyes...After hanging out at the tent, we went to the different shows. First up was Devendra Banhart, who was amazing and is one of my favorite artists. I was so close to the stage too.
After the show, I met up with this girl Chantal, who I had origially met through a myspace message board about Bonnaroo birthdays. We had corresponed a few times prior to Bonnaroo and agreed to meet at some point at Bonnaroo. Chantal came all the way from California and celebrated her birthday on the 16th, where mine was on the 15th. We headed off to see Bright Eyes together. Next up was Bright Eyes. We good seats and saw an awesome performance. Connor wore this tight hoodie and tight jeans, when it was like 100 degrees outside. I was sweating profusely.
After that, Chantal and I left and went to see Cat Power who was performing on another stage right afterward. She was so animated and fun. Her songs were so inspiring too.
After that, I went to meet up with my group again so we could go see Tom Petty. After no one showed up, I headed with Chantal back to my tent to grab a shirt. We ended up getting lost, giving up, and going back to her tent. We crashed there out of exhaustion and I slept there for a few hours. Then I attempted to find my way back to my site in the dark. It didn't work too well and I got so lost and didn't get back till an hour later. Went to the Clap Your Hands show the next day. Clap your hands was pretty good. not as good as the previous day, but still pretty good. I dont think their stuff really works live compared to in the studio.
Beck was next and he put on quite the show. He had marionettes, a guy that did freaky dancing, rapping guys in grizzly bear costumes. He even did a cover of Radiohead's "Creep" and Flaming Lips' "Do You Realize?"
Which was pretty awesome, except the fact that he left like 30 minutes early. But he's the rock star.
After Beck's show, I snaked my way in through the crowd so I could get the best seat possible for my heros, Radiohead. I ended up waiting over an hour and a half standing between Beck's show and Radiohead's show. There was this big guy next to me with his one friend and this guy and girl couple next to them. The girl was on a real bad trip from some prescription med she took. Her eyes were shut, she was sweating profusely, and she was mumbling about wanting to sit down or leave (we had to stand for an hour). She wasn't looking good... After she started to cry, her boyfriend (husband? date?) decided that the standing was too much for her and took her to get some medical assistance. (meaning no radiohead for him) After passing the time with fellow fans, Radiohead took the stage.Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting Radiohead had to be the best show I've ever seen. Hands down. Thom Yorke was amazing. They played through every favorite song of mine and even a bunch of new ones. It was the highlight of Bonnaroo for me. I was singing as loud as I could the whole time. :)
After the massive crowd left, I went and changed into my superman costume to get ready for the masquerade ball that was coming up. I didn't take any pics of myself in the costume, but I'm still trying to find someone who took some pics... update:here's the costume below
I missed out on the Dresden Dolls show bc I had to get in line for the the masquerade ball. A costume was required and there was limited seating as well as a "mystery band!" I heard so many rumours flying around, everyone from the flaming lips to the red hot chill peppers were mentioned. When I finally got in, I was disappointed to find out the band were wearing costumes as well! which really sucked bc they played an hour and a half set without revealing who they were. The song was terrible! I say terrible, bc all they did was play one continuous song where everyone does whatever the hell they want. It was in pure "jam band" fashion. I was seriously disappointed. But oh well. I ended up getting back to camp around 4 that night. I went to the Comedy tent first thing that day to stand in line and try and get a seat for the "Upright Citizen Brigade" comedy group. After an hour of waiting, I finally get in. The citizen brigade does this whole act as "Bonnaroo safety." They informed us that the injury that they are seeing most at the medical tents are a case of "torn taint." A potentially life threating, concert ruining condition. To prevent it, they showed us the exercise to stretch and work out the taint so its nice and limber.The rest of the act was equally hilarious.
Matisyahu up next. He was ok. I've just recently started to appreciate his work. I couldn't stay for his whole set, because I feel that once you hear about 8 songs, that's all you need. His heretic Jew posse was quite amusing.
Next up was Sonic Youth; another band I have recently started listening to. They were quite good with the layering of fuzzed out guitars and simple lyrics. Made me really want to go out and by a Sonic Youth record and hear more :)
Afterwards, I met up with Chantal and her friend again and we hung out the rest of the afternoon and toured "Shakedown Street" which is where all the bootlegged items are sold. We had nothing to do for the rest of the night, no shows or anything.
It then began the first actual rainfall of Bonnaroo. It was a torrential downpour and I was caught off guard. Of course...I got lost once again. But all the tents had taken down their flags and balloons they used as markers, plus, we had already dismantled the tent, so finding my site became a terrifying experience. I must have walked the same road at least ten times, looking for something familiar. When I got to the van (somehow), I was soaked to the bone and very disorriented. We left after I got back and eventually made it home safely. more pics of Bonnaroo 2006
Having seen a ton of movies this summer, here's a quick rundown of the good, the "eh," and the "oh my god, I can't believe I just payed money to see that."
Transformers
The Simpsons Movie
Knocked Up
Spider Man 3
Pirates of the Carribean 3
Shrek The Third
The Number 23
300
Being my second Bonnaroo experience, I had an idea of what to expect for the 4 day music festival. Last years festival was incredible with performances by Cat Power, Devendra Banhart, Bright Eyes, Beck, Sonic Youth, and of course Radiohead.
Two days after Jess and I flew in to Tampa from PA, we packed up the tiny but spacious Yarris untill there was barely enough room to seat 3, grabbed the Google maps, and headed off to Manchester Tennessee. I took most of the driving up and we made it at the Best Western at 3 in the morning. You could tell we were in Tennessee by the way the hotel manager said, "Y'all goin' to Bon-e-roooo??."
We left the hotel around 11 that morning and stopped at a Wal-mart to see if I could fix my video camera I brought to document the trip. It was fruitless though. Didn't get to use it the rest of the trip. We stopped at a gas station right outside Manchester and sa
w our first drug bust. I asked one of the police officers how to get to Bonnaroo from here and he asked why I was going to the "dope festival". We found the line for Bonnaroo around 12:30 and proceeded to wait for the next 3 hours watching Fargo and Raising Arizona, while bootleggers tried to sell t-shirts and posters.
Friday, June 15th (my 20th Birthday)
One of the benefits of having a birthday during Bonnaroo is that Bonnaroo tickets make a perfect early birthday gift. This was my second time celebrating my birthday at Bonnaroo. We started out the morning by waking up sweating in the Tennessee head at 8:30 and had an egg and bacon breakfast that took forever to cook. I hit my head on the trunk of the Yarri, leaving a nice little bump on my forehead which Jess is so kindly pointing out.
Caught part of the RX Bandits show with Lindsey and Jess. Lindsey grew up listening to these guys and had seen them at Warped Tour. She was surprised by how good they still were. I enjoyed the reggae, ska, pop-punk rock; but I was worried for the lead singer who was shirtless and apparently forgot to apply sunscreen that morning. He was turning a nice shade of salmon by the time we left. Did I mention that it was like an oven around noonish?
Last year I had tried to see Mr. Black at the Comedy Tent, but gave up after seeing the impressive line that snaked back and forth for 
what seemed like forever. This year Lindsey and I were determined to catch him perform. We got in line right before the first show started and waited for the next 3 hours to be first in line for his second show. We managed to take shifts where one would wait in line in 100 degree heat, while the other got food and drinks. It ended up working out and we even managed to sneak Jess in at the last minute. We got the best seats too! The show was awesome. Lewis Black made a ton of jokes about anticipation and how nothing ever lives up to how we anticipate it. (How true). He had 3 other comedians who were really funny as well. It was definitely one of the best shows at Bonnaroo. Being in an air-conditioned tent didn't hurt either.
Afterwards we parted ways with Jess. She went to see The Brazilian Girls and Lilly Allen while we headed off to a grassy hill to see The Roots perform the main stage. It was fun hearing them perform "Roxanne."
Although they may have the most misleading name in music (I 
originally thought they were a jam band from the name), they sounded really good live. I fell in love with their single "My Old Ways" right before Bonnaroo and really enjoyed their "Beatlesesque" harmonies. They played a pretty good set from what I heard. Lindsey and I had to skip out half way through though, to make it to see Regina Spektor. Didn't get to hear them play "My Old Ways." Oh well.
was really starting to get overwhelming. We headed off to the Movie tent where Bill Plymton, a famous independent animator, was showing some of his short animations and answering questions from the crowd. He answered my question about "recommendations for beginning animators" and informed me that he was "surprised that there were animators in the audience and to keep the animations short, cheap, and funny." I got to meet him and get a dvd signed which was pretty awesome.
We then proceeded to wait for the next 4 hours to see the Flaming Lips. Jess somehow managed to find us soon after Franz Ferdinand ended. I decided it would be awesome to wear our costumes we brought, so I raced back to the campsite (more like walked briskly), changed into my Superman costume, grabbed Lindsey's Wonder Woman and Jess's Ladybug costume and hurried back to the stage. We sat there listening as The Police played on the main stage and as they set up everything on the Flaming Lips stage. Apparently, we didn't miss much by skipping out on the Police show.
An hour or so before the actual set, the Lips launched into War Pigs as a sound check. We knew then that we were in for something special musically and visually. What an amazing show. I've been a fan of the Lips for the last couple years and really wanted to see them live. They always get rave reviews for their performances, mostly for the theatrics, and Wayne Coyne's antics. Seeing them in the front row is the way to watch the Flaming Lips live.
There is so much going on, its really easy to miss something. On either side of the stage were a collection of lucky fans dressed up as Aliens on one side and Santa Clauses on the other. Two huge cannons launched confetti over the audience. Giant balloons and random helium filled objects bouced over the audience. The hardest thing to miss and one of the biggest spectacles was the life-sized UFO that lowered onto the stage, unloading all the band members except for Wayne. He was encapsulated in a giant plastic bubble at the top of the UFO. Here's a video of Wayne making his way down the UFO and hoisted into the audience by stage-hands dressed as superheroes:
e and then pointed at Wayne as he held as large mirror. As great as the Lips songs sound on the albums, hearing them live is another reality all together. Wayne Coyne has an amazing grasp on how to interweave the auditory and the visual. He spent hours before the show making sure every little detail was taken care of. Catchy songs turned into epics. Every member of the audience realized that morning that they had witnessed something special.
I was really hoping to sell something that last day, because I was already out about $180 for the supplies for everything, not to mention all the time spent. After about 3 hours in the heat on the side of the road on Shakedown Street, I walked away with all but 2 originals sold and 5 or six prints sold. I was content with breaking even. I tried my hardest to help sell Lindsey's prints, but it really wasn't the right crowd. They were all hippies who could only recognize the classic rock stars. Plus the dust and dirt made it really hard to see the prints. It was a good learning experience though.
bonnaroo 2007
security search and then got to our site. We made friends with our neighbors who were awesome. the one kids dad owns a restaurant, so they had lots of pots and pans and tons of extra food like red bulls and danishes. We ate like kings the first night. Steak and hamburgers and ramen noodles(courtesy of us)
After Beck's show, I snaked my way in through the crowd so I could get the best seat possible for my heros, Radiohead. I ended up waiting over an hour and a half standing between Beck's show and Radiohead's show. There was this big guy next to me with his one friend and this guy and girl couple next to them. The girl was on a real bad trip from some prescription med she took. Her eyes were shut, she was sweating profusely, and she was mumbling about wanting to sit down or leave (we had to stand for an hour). She wasn't looking good... After she started to cry, her boyfriend (husband? date?) decided that the standing was too much for her and took her to get some medical assistance. (meaning no radiohead for him) After passing the time with fellow fans, Radiohead took the stage.Photobucket - Video and Image Hosting
Matisyahu up next. He was ok. I've just recently started to appreciate his work. I couldn't stay for his whole set, because I feel that once you hear about 8 songs, that's all you need. His heretic Jew posse was quite amusing.
