My “Whole Bunch of Concerts” season is coming to a close, and honestly – phew! I need to recuperate. Normally, we choose either Coachella or Sasquatch, but this year we went to both. Throw in a bunch of local shows, and the calendar has been packed. This Friday’s Glitch Mob show should be the last for a couple of weeks. Oh right…. Vegas trip in two weeks. Hell – I can sleep when I am dead.
The core Portland crew made it out to Eastern Washington: Jamie, Shelly, and Colin. We were also joined by our Norwegian friend Arjo, who was able to combine a work trip here with the show.
On Friday, we picked up the RV. Arjo’s flight was delayed so Shelly, Colin, and I headed out on the road. Got a chance to stop at the Double Mountain Tap House in The Dalles and filled up a few growlers for the trip. Between traffic and our RV travel speed, we were able to take a quick beer break in Yakima and meet up with Arjo.
All we had was an hour or so ahead of us and we would be there. Well.. an hour or so of drive time and close to 3.5 hours in the entrance line. First benefit of the RV realized: our own mobile bathroom! Finally, we made our way into Premier Camping, nabbed a great spot near the shower trucks, and started making friends with the neighbors. Now I could be wrong, but I think we were surrounded by Canadians. Well, them, and the crew from a Boise alternative music radio station. All in all though, nice friendly people that we hung out with for most of the weekend.
On Saturday, we spent the morning getting tickets for Arjo, then headed in. In standard festival fashion, we bounced around a lot, but managed to listen to OK Go, Broken Social Scene, The National, Vampire Weekend, and Z-Trip. Listened to Deadmau5 from the comfort of our camp.
Sunday we hopped in Arjo’s car and headed out to Ellensburg for supplies and a couple of hours at the river. Too cold to go swimming but nice to relax and toss the frisbee around. As the afternoon wrapped up, Jamie showed up from Seattle. Using our secret hacker skills (sharpie and parking pass stub) we got both her and Arjo’s cars into our campsite. Sunday’s bands included They Might Be Giants (from campsite), Tegan and Sara, The xx, LCD Soundsystem, Pavement, A-Trak, Public Enemy, Massive Attack, and Booka Shade.
Monday, as usually the case during these long weekend parties, was spent complaining about our hangovers, and postponing getting ready for the show. Arjo had to be back in town bright and early Tuesday, so headed back to Portland. The girls weren’t ready to head in, so Colin and I went and caught Passion Pit, She & Him, and No Age. By that time, we were tuckered out, and headed back to camp. The girls stayed to see Boys Noize.
The “quiet time” gave me a second wind, so later that night Colin, Shelly, and I headed into the wild apocalypse of General Camping, bouncing from sound system to sound system into the night.
And that was it. Tuesday morning rolled around and we said our goodbyes. By the time we emptied the RV, returned it, and got home. It was nearly 6pm. Time for an early bed, right?
So…. The Buzzcocks played in Portland last night. Despite being drained from the weekend, there was no way I was going to miss seeing them. Seriously, they are in my top 5 of all times – the kind of band that basically shaped the music I like. So, hoping for a miracle burst of energy, I headed out to Berbati’s at 8:15. Of course, The Buzzcocks weren’t scheduled to play until 10 or so. Doh! Bracing myself at the bar with some red bulls, I waited.
And I am so glad I did. Managed to poke my way up front right near the stage and proceed to dance, sweat, and wear the biggest smile on my face as they ran through their set. So many random associations from times past flew through my mind. Hearing some of the songs that have been my “theme song” at points in my life live was incredible.They even looked like they were enjoying themselves – something a lot of “reunion bands” don’t necessarily do.
And with that I called it a night. Still can’t believe I was vertical today at work, but am definitely sleeping early tonight.
Hmmmm… now about that Killing Joke show tomorrow…
