Day three might have been the best day for me of the festival. I started out at The Current's Free Yr Radio Party. This party was particularly great because each band was interviewed and broadcasted on live radio. The first band that I was able to catch was The Duke Spirit from the UK. They played two awesome tracks from their latest release, Neptune. Shortly thereafter, She and Him took the stage for a few songs and to discuss the future for the duet. I was happy to learn that this is will be a long term endeavor for them. She and Him is the collaboration of singer/songwriter M Ward and actress Zooey Deschanel. This was probably the my most anticipated act of the festival and did not disappoint. His unique style of songwriting and her classic voice make this duo outstanding. The next band I caught was the scratchy Times New Viking from Columbus, OH at Emo's. I had to use my earplugs since their sound is often rough and distorted. While this is not normally the type of music I listen to, I will say that I certainly did enjoy this show. I walked back over to Red Eye Fly to catch a bit of Grand Ole Party again. It may have been just hearing a different sound from the previous club, but I just couldn't get into this band on my second time around. Around six, I made the trek over to the Auditorium Shores stage to catch Canadian alt-country band The Sadies. I had some familarity with this band, but had never seen them. I have to say that I was impressed with their style. It is certainly unlike any alt-country band I have ever heard.
The night time started for me at Bourbon Rocks where I caught Seattle singer/songwriter Sera Cahoone. This show got off to a rocky start as the sound crew at Bourbon Rocks seemed to have trouble keeping the equipment working properly. Once they got that fixed, the show was outstanding. I really like Sera Cahoone's soothing acoustic sound and look forward to hearing her new release. I walked over to the Parish to catch the next few acts that would go on there. The first was Radar Bros. I found them to be rather ordinary and couldn't really get into them. Following them were the Shout Out Louds. I found this show of theirs to be much better than the one I had seen the day before at Flamingo Cantina. The final act I saw at the Parish was She and Him. This set was much longer than the one I had seen earlier in the day. They reeled off many cuts from their upcoming (now released) album. I tried to watch the Castanets at the end of the night but got too hungry to continue.
I spent most of the day time of day four at the Garden Party at the French Legation. The first band I saw was Lightspeed Champion, whose eclectic power pop did very little for me. I was impressed with Sons and Daughters, though it really isn't they type of music I normally get into. I couldn't see the next two acts, J Mascis and Thurston Moore, but I did hear them and both sounded great. The last act I caught was She and Him for a third and final time. The show was quite similar to the night before. They are still magnificent and probably my favorite act of the festival.
At night, I caught the first few songs of Boston, MA band Tulsa. The first song didn't do much for me, but they sure did rock after that. I have since purchased their CD. I tried to catch the M Ward and Jim James show at St. David's Church, but for some reason, they wouldn't let me in. They said they were filled to capacity, but all reports I heard said that they were not. I heard I missed a great show. I ended up at the Parish again. The first band I saw there was The Most Serene Republic. I didn't get too into them. Musically they were good, but their singer weirded me out a bit. Following them, the Constantines gave a rather nice show. I had heard they were good but never really got into them. It took me a few songs to get used to the scratchy voice of the singer. I think I'll have to go back and listen to a few of the albums of theirs that someone gave me. The last band I caught was Jason Collett. This time I got to pay more attention to him and his band. I enjoyed this show a lot more than the one at Emo's Annex on day one. I tried to go by Emo's Annex to see The Spinto Band, but I guess I was just not in the mood for it. I walked into the Thirsty Nickel to meet up with B and watch Kid Dakota. He certainly got more into it than I did. We tried to catch British Sea Power at the end, but nobody was really up for it, so we left.
This year's festival was as strong as ever. I've found a few new bands to listen to and hopefully catch again. I'll be reviewing those which I like in the coming weeks. The rest of my pictures can be found here.
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