Every spring, thousands of people of all ages anxiously wait at their computers to buy tickets for various music festivals. With this pastime ruling the summer, Voice asked Bradley students about their own music fest adventures.
Wakarusa Festival–Mulberry Mountain, Arkansas Liz Lundholm ’16
At the beginning of the summer, I volunteered at Wakarusa Music Festival in Arkansas with some recent Bradley graduates. It was an incredible experience as it was my first time being in the mountains and also the largest festival I had ever attended. I got to boogie down and groove to bands such as The String Cheese Incident, Umphrey’s McGee and Papadosio, as well as my favorite band, Wookiefoot. I also had the once-in- a-lifetime opportunity to see an amazing performance by The Flaming Lips. The festival may have turned into a mud pit, but not even rain storms could dampen the vibrant atmosphere of Wakarusa.
Forecastle Festival–Louisville, Kentucky Payton Orr ’16
This summer for my birthday, I went to Forecastle Festival in Louisville, Kentucky, and I had an amazing time. The weather was perfect, the stages looked awesome and getting around the festival grounds was quick and easy. My favorite acts were Lucius, tUnE-yArDs and Beck. Lucius is a five-piece indie pop band from Brooklyn, NY. The two lead singers dress up to look identical and everyone in the band plays some kind of drum, sometimes all at once. Second favorite was tUnE-yArDs. Their lead singer, Merrill Garbus, has killer pipes, creates drum loops on the spot and layers them live. However, as great as both those bands were, Beck’s set definitely stole my heart that night. It was hands down the best live performance I’ve ever experienced. Overall, the festival was amazing, and I definitely plan on hitting it again next year.
T in the Park Festival–Kinross, Scotland Nichole Pientka ’14
I went to T in the Park with my sister and met up with a few friends from Stirling. In a huge blue tent, we sloshed in the mud, swaying to the psychedelic sounds of Tame Impala. My friend, Nisse, offered for me to get on his shoulders to see over the crowd in front of us. I said, “No way in hell! It’s too high, and I have terrible balance!” My other friend Aaron managed to convince me, though, and I experienced “Feels Like We Only Go Backwards” perched above everyone else. Washed in red and blue lights, I felt like I was going to take a six foot drop into the mud. The fear in the pit of my stomach made it that much more exhilarating.
Pitchfork Music Festival–Chicago, Illinois Jacob Wulf ’15
In July, I went to Pitchfork Music Festival in Chicago. Compared to festivals like Lollapalooza and Coachella, it’s a very small event; however, the performances were some of the best I’ve ever seen. Even though Death Grips broke up right before the festival, and DJ Rashad tragically died earlier in the year, Pitchfork still delivered some incredible sets. Headliners Beck, Neutral Milk Hotel and Kendrick Lamar all put on fantastic shows. However, my favorite sets were during the day. Scottish shoegaze giants, Slowdive, nearly brought me to tears with the sheer beauty and power of their music. My time at Pitchfork ended with smile on my face as I walked out of the park with a bag of freshly bought records, screen printed posters and a handful of “special” cranberries.
Lollapalooza–Chicago, Illinois Kelly Davies ’17
This year was my first experience going to Lollapalooza, or any sort of music festival for that matter. I bought my sister and I tickets for Sunday, Aug. 3, and we went in with open minds and no idea what to expect. Despite being completely drenched by torrential downpours about seven times on the only day that weekend that wasn’t supposed to rain, we had a pretty good time! We were able to see Bleachers first. We really only knew them for their hit song “Wanna Get Better,” but we still enjoyed them a lot. Cage the Elephant was after, and we got to dance with a very drunk, new friend named Steve, who seemed to have no shoes, no phone, no friends and no cares in the world. We saw The Avett Brothers next, and they blew my mind with their amazing vocals and talented string players. Young The Giant was our last stop, and they didn’t fail to put on a good show.
