Comments on Bumbershoot

If you missed Gogol Bordello just kill yourself now.

Do you remember when Kathleen Wilson disparaged the event?

I agree with wisepunk. Gogol Bordell was the highlight of bumbershoot day 1 for me. The Moth was a close second. ;)

Schoolyard Heroes? And you wanted to see Panic at the Disco? Too bad Fallout Boy wasn't on the lineup, right?

Not being able to bring water or even empty water BOTTLES into Memorial Stadium is ridiculous. One Reel should be ashamed of themselves for this insulting policy.

I had a dream that Panic at the Disco didn't exist. Good times.

Since I had a kid, I've been grateful for Center House, especially on rainy days. There aren't many free covered spaces at Seattle Center, and at the Center House we can even bring our own snacks. (My kid loves the Fun Forest, too, and since we're carfree it's great to have an amusement park, however rundown, right in the city.) I don't think we should screw up Bumbershoot--but it's only three days.

I agree, Bumbershoot IS too important to risk screwing up, but if you take out Key Arena and the Centerhouse you also lose the cultural / musical events that take place inside them. Think of the children, Dan. The children's museum is in the Centerhouse! Also Key Arena has housed many a talented musician. We don't have *that* many large venues in Seattle... While I prefer small venues, myself, we would lose a part of the music scene in Seattle without Key Arena.

So really, we should demolish memorial stadium. Most highschools no longer need it for their arena games and events, so what does that leave it for? Bumbershoot and the occasional outdoor concert? I think that space would be better served as a giant green space that anybody can enjoy, even concert goers.

By "complete pussies," I'm guessing you mean "strong and aggressive."

I believe the current plan is to tear down the stadium and have it be a massive green space. I think OneReel is cool with it.

I must be crazy out of touch. I didn't see a gawddamn thing worth the price of admission in the Bumbershoot schedule, not that I could have afforded it if I did. Several years ago I went 2 out of 3 days and saw a dozen rad bands (worst issue was choosing between TMBG and SNZ). Now I recognize two or three names and they aren't even close to worth the asking price or the crowd or the heat. Are you sure Bumbershoot is worth preserving? Link me to some videos of these new baby bands I've never heard of. Educate me.

Tear down memorial stadium; it's offensive to the natural laws of acoustics.

@11 christopher, you're the one who asked about killing with the frozen solid, yeah?
if so, i like you and will do my best at your request. the problem i surmise with the inability of a stranger staffer to educate you about music is because their heads are frazzled from having to play pawn in the bumbershoot promotion money game. it's tough. having a kushy job sucks, let's give em a hand at their pathetic attempts to stay relevent.

As far as baby band videos? Well, I've come in for a breather from a BBQ down the street. But a sister of somebody there is playing music somewhere on Capitol Hill tonight. I can almost guarantee a video from the show, given it is a artsy crowd at the BBQ, and wherever there is suppo-zed performance these days, there is usually the docu-reel close at hand. So that's tonight.

A quick look at tomorrow's offerings by Seattle's Only Concert Listings doesn't show much either. Stereo Total is playing, but they aren't exactly a 'baby band'. Besides I looked over their Youtube inventory, not near as interesting as I was hoping for, expecting for that matter.

Finally, on Tuesday, I think we have something for ya. Kristen Allen-Zito is playing solo. Some may like the stuff on her own, but personally I prefer the band she sings with, The Trucks. Although I expect the solo show to be very nice, the dichotomy with "solo thing" and "band thing" that happens with performers, I think you have to go with their band. That's not in stone. It's just that being in a band, especially a snotty band that makes you think about your life while having a pogo experience, is HARD work. Egos, being cramped in a van, compromise - any writer daring to critique a band should first spend a couple of years in one, cut at an album, and go on tour. Anyway, The Trucks are IMO one of the killer things going on the NW, but what do I know. Ask Everett True? Heres their promo: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YrRe9ZtRvFk&mode=related&search=

special thanks to you know who, that scene who hangs out with the Strangler's ex-art director.

ok, gotta go, a mint julep awaits--------

Oh Dan - you were drunk when you wrote that, weren't you? Not that there's anything wrong with that - I'm drunk as I write this.

I'm for keeping Memorial Stadium. But I'm also for keeping the Center House and the Coliseum.

Take a good look at the Coliseum: It's way cooler than any other arena in any other city. Take that stupid corporate logo off the top, and it would be even cooler. Plus, it's a great place to see bands, and Bumbershoot needs a venue that size.

The Center House is also a great building: from it's swords-to-plowshares vibe (those big eagles are fierce) to its great center court performance space.

Seattle Center, despite what you brain-trusters at The Stranger (or your counterparts at your personal Cogswell Cogs, the Weekly) may say, is a great place - and that's part of what makes Bumbershoot such a fun event.

Here's an idea: just enjoy Bumbershoot, and let the folks at One Reel do what they do best - there's really no need to second guess them - especially when you are just responding to what another weekly is proposing, not coming up with ideas of your own.

Increasingly the acts at Memorial Stadium are the most worthless shows at Bumbershoot. Mainstream acts like Fergie, that have no business at the festival, drive the ticket price up, and attract the worst fans. Nostalgic favorites (the Pixies, Public Enemy) are ruined by hordes who never heard of them but grabbed all the wristbands and Memorial's terrible sound. Especially bad are shows full of 15 yo fans of TI or 50cent, in the city from Bellevue for their gangsta experience, bored by the old school and concious rappers like Tribe Called Quest or Lupe Fiasco. Not to mention that the acoustics are much worse for hip hop than rock.

It's so cute how ollllld you are, Dan.

I can't tell you how nice it is to hear you had fun at a rock show, Dan.

Interesting contraptions, these "cyclecides". I'm open to replacing the Fun Forest with anything, as long as it's an amusement park of some sort.

Right on to Anne @ 15. Without Memorial Stadium, there's a chance Bumbershoot would stop trying to ape Sasquatch or Lollapalooza, stop working with huge for-profit concert promoters, stop booking Fergalicious-type crap, stop charging 30 dollars for entry, and get back to being an arts festival. Or else they'd do exactly what they've been doing in recent years, but host the headliners at Key Arena.

#9: Thank you for that. I hate constantly having to be a good sport about that bullshit.

what about the idea of replacing the stadium with an amphitheater? sounds purdy good to me...

I'm all in favor of tearing down the stadium, fun forest, and center house.

I'm certain that if we gave them to Paul Allen or Bill Gates at a bargain discount, they would be bound to do something worthwhile with them.

With no Fun Forrest, there would be no SADDEST PLACE ON EARTH!

My boyfriend and I still get so many laughs out of that feature from last winter.

Destroy the "Fun" Forest! I mean, I remember being a kid in the '80s and going to the county fair in Chaves County, New Mexico and seeing better rides.

Thanks for the info, June Bee. I also looked at the Stranger's excerpt for a little info and Gogol Bordello looked pretty interesting. Still, the price of admission would keep me away unless they really had more than the handful of stuff we've come up with. Maybe in the future I'll have the time and money to be more hip about music, and the lineup at BS will look more appealing to me. I'm sure by then the price will be even higher.
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I would pay more to go to Bumbershoot (or another outdoor festival) if the top acts playing were at the popularity level of Gogol Bordello. There would still be a big crowd, many exposed to new music, and would attract people who stay away now because of the fans of the stadium bands. Something like the Capitol Hill Block Party with more international and non-rock musicians.

Panic at the Disco! wasn't that great.

Had way more fun at Aqueduct.

Dan, you and your family looked so cute when you passed by the gate I was volunteering at...