It's all over. The final night of XX Merge was a classy one. The festival moved over to Memorial Hall, where our shoes didn't stick to the floor and sweaty t-shirts gave way to collared Polo's. Somehow it didn't seem appropriate for Clay and I to bring the beer koozies that we had been using all week at the Cat's Cradle...
Wye Oak opened with a really beautiful set... what great musicians. American Music Club followed with a strange but endearing performance. Mark Eitzel was accompanied only by piano and played crooning lounge club versions of songs from his back catalog, like "Patriot's Heart." She and Him closed out the night and the 5-day festival. M. Ward and Zooey Deschanel were backed by 4-member band which had a nice full sound. I was really impressed with Deschanel's voice... she really belted them out. In addition to hitting all of the brightest spots on their debut album they played 2 or 3 new songs that I can only assume will come out on She & Him, Volume II. They had 'em dancing in the aisles for the last few songs.
Another product of my temperamental camera...
All in all, we had a really great time. Seeing so many diverse and great musicians perform was a real testament to what Merge Records has been able to do for the past 20 years. Let's hope they never go away...
What was the best and worst performances you saw?
ReplyDeleteIt's hard to pick just one for the best. Buckner and M Ward were awesome but I've gotta give it to Lambchop. They really brought the house down...
ReplyDeleteMy least favorite was probably Destroyer... just not my thing.