If you are from Seattle and love a good neighbor party, you have been counting down the days since the last Capitol Hill Block Party. The 3-day music festival returned for another year, with many dance music favorites like Dillon Francis, Cashmere Cat, Chet Porter, Melvv and more. The DMNW team made an appearance this year, and here are our takeaways.
Entry
Like many festivals, if you arrive early at the venue, the wait time is close to none. Entry on the first day this year turned into a bit of a show, with lines of people weaving all the way around the block and waits upwards of 45 minutes to an hour. CHBP cited WiFi connection problems as the root cause, and the other two days were much better with barely any lines.
Food/ Drinks
The food trucks at CHBP are always amazing. One of our favorites this year was Tzar Dumplings. Apart from the food trucks, establishments and bars open for business throughout the festival with special deals going on all weekend. The beer garden this year was decorated with a fake lawn, picnic tables and outdoors lights, which was an interesting ambiance that definitely drew a bigger crowd. The beer garden is a great place to enjoy the show if you are of drinking age.
Tzar Dumplings
Stage Setup
The Main stage and the Vera stage always have great music catering to all tastes, from DJs to live bands. The sound at the Vera stage is great; there is always room to dance and never too crowded. It’s a great intimate stage experience with no bleed from the other areas.
We’ve noticed throughout the past few years that main stage becomes VERY chaotic during the closing sets, and this year was no different. It makes it a little less appealing and harder to enjoy those closing headliners. More low key acts like Father John Misty aren’t terribly bad, but when you have the hype and noise level of Dillion Francis you can barely move if you’re up close, and it’s hard to hear the sound if you’re way in the back.
One of the best things about CHBP is the variety of stages though, and we were able to enjoy all the indoor and outdoor venues. It can be quite nice to dip into the basement Barboza stage to get out of the hot sun, and we definitely took advantage of that.
Music
The lineup this year was diverse, with a range of genres for all types of patrons. The dance music community got their fix with the likes of Dillon Francis, Melvv, Cashmere Cat, Chet Faker and more. Melvv played a particularly vibey set at the Vera stage before Dillon Francis went on as the closing headliner, setting the mood perfectly and playing “bangers after bangers” as overheard in the crowded.
Day two, Pluko got the party going around 3:30, and Chet Porter took the attention of many in the early evening. Chet ended his set with his original song, Stay, which is an obvious crowd-pleaser. On day 3 we were all hyped up to see Cashmere Cat, but were a bit disappointed with his performance. There were too many lulls, and he lost the crowd’s energy quite a few times. Oh well! The great thing about CHBP is when you’re not feeling one set, you just head to another, so spirits were always high and hopeful throughout the weekend.
Chet Porter
All-in-all it was another successful block party where we danced, drank and soaked in the sun for three days straight. What did you think about Capitol Hill Block Party this year? Let us know in the comments below!
This article was contributed to by Jen Ludington.
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