Day One!

While Wednesday March 18th was day one of the music festival officially, I have been taking part since the 13th. Exhaustion was the operative term for my experience on day one of music as I traveled amongst several Red River clubs in the scorching heat to see some of my favorite acts. Unfortunately, I didn't attempt to get into the Radio Room due to mass overcrowding, but I did see some great acts.

To start the day, I enjoyed the indie pop of Seattle's Telekinesis, led by multi-instrumentalist Michael Benjamin Lerner. The temptation of free breakfast tacos next door led me to Club DeVille to catch the loudness that is Explode into Colors. All-girl punk trios are the rage right now, but unfortunately, these girls aren't Vivian Girls.

I could only endure a few songs, and went back to the Mohawk inside stage to catch the mellow singer-songwriter Kevin Devine. A brilliant storyteller with a pleasant voice, Devine is reminiscient of some of the great emo staples of the late nineties like Jesse Lacey of Brand New.



I decided to head on over to Red 7 for awhile to catch the duo Wavves, who have put out one of my favorite records of the year. Reviving power-punk in the vein of the Ramones and similar to contemporaries like Austin's White Denim, Wavves put on an energetic set full of short, powerful tunes.

They were followed by the mellow indie pop of Sweden's Loney Dear who settled the crowd with beautiful harmonies and lots of hand-claps. Attempting to win over a sea of people who were ready to rock for the likes of Wavves and Vivian Girls, the end result seemed genuinely successful.

I migrated back to Club DeVille not only to use my free drink tickets but also to see two of my favorite bands that I discovered last year. Horse Feathers blend of a violin, mandolin, cello, glockenspiel, guitar, and hushed voices calmed a crowd who had just witnessed the agonizingly loud The Paper Chase. Playing tracks off 2008's fantastic House With No Home as well as some more obscure ones.



And then there was Thao. The east-coast trio Thao with the Get Down Stay Down formed after meeting in college, and singer Thao Nguyen has been writing introspective lyrics and singing in her juvenile voice since. In addition to that joyful youthfulness, her commanding stage presence gives off this carefree vibe that only infiltrates the audiences minds.



Setlist:
"Bag of Hammers"
"Geography"
"Moped"
"Beat (Health Life & Fire)"
"Body"
"Fear and Convenience"
"Feet Asleep"

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