[divider]Day Three: Monday[/divider]
To round out the long weekend we continued our quest for music with another nostalgia-ridden set with Brandon Flowers (former frontman of The Killers), which he closed out with none other than Mr. Brightside. With not as many must-sees on this day, we took the opportunity to explore Seattle Center a bit. We walked down the long row of vendors and checked out the art. While on a hunt for burgers in the Armory, a particular Odesza poster caught our attention at Flatstock.
Not knowing much more about Hozier than the fact that he sings Take Me To Church, we decided to see what he was about. Easily the most surprising set of the weekend, he proved that he’s going to be much more than a one hit wonder. We stopped by the Starbucks stage to check out Built to Spill for a bit before Ellie Goulding came on. When she did, she reminded us that Anything Can Happen, even finding the perfect gold-chain-wearing Daffy Duck jersey-dress for your performance. Seriously, where did she find that?
Despite all the genre jumping, and all the reminders that live guitar is still one of the best sounds in the world, our basshead hearts couldn’t get to Key Arena fast enough. It was terrible to have to cut out on Ellie Goulding early, but as always, Bassnectar delivered an absolutely filthy head-banging set that was worth the sacrifice. With seats right in front of a railing, we had the perfect “rage bar” to hold onto and met some of the nicest people in the seats around us. If the volume had been as loud as it had been for Zedd, it would have been flawless. But most likely in (understandable) fear of blowing out their speakers, it seemed they turned down the power on Bassnectar quite a bit, which made the experience just a touch more underwhelming than it should have been.
Photo Credit: Tina Irion
[divider]In A Nutshell[/divider]
Throughout the weekend we spanned both Seattle Center and genres. Though dance music has our hearts now, many of us grew up listening to the likes of Cake, Brand New, Brandon Flowers, and Built to Spill. So to travel back in time to our teenage years to that time we screamed every word to every song at that all-ages show at The Showbox was so therapeutic. And to do it at the same festival as twerking to Flosstradamus, headbanging with Bassnectar, and singing like Hayley Williams at Zedd? Bliss. We were reminded of the magic of live guitar solos and the beauty of art in all its forms.
So many pieces of Bumbershoot all turned together to make the weekend great: the in and out privileges, the delicious food, the art, the music, the crowds. We were lucky enough to avoid the chaos of the will call line, and arrived late enough to avoid the frustration of getting soaked on Saturday. With those two things out of play, the weekend really was a fantastic combination of art and music. With Labor Day behind us and fond memories of Bumbershoot sets to tide us over, we have only one thing on our minds: What on earth are we going to be for Halloween?
Important things happen in Pacific Northwest nightlife, and DMNW will send you alerts!
