By Patty Greer
Staff Writer
Avey Tare’s Slasher Flicks
From his work in Animal Collective, to his solo projects and now his latest endeavors in Avey Tare’s Slasher Flicks, he makes sure you remember his name and sound. Amongst showers of water and beer on Friday afternoon, Avey Tare brought Slasher Flicks alive for the masses too see. Before the crowd surfing and moshing began, a plethora of condom balloons bounced above the crowd almost as a precursor of the soon to be movements of the eccentric fans.
Accompanying Tare was a former member of Dirty Projector’s, Angel Deradoorian, who also happened to be serenaded by the crowd for her birthday. The mosh pit wailing to Tare’s heavy riffs and loops didn’t stop until the song “Strange Colores” final chord was struck.
Kendrick Lamar
The 27-year-old hip-hop superstar Kendrick Lamar closed down the festival Sunday night. He handled the pressure of shutting down the entire festival fantastically, giving one of the most exciting and interactive sets of Pitchfork Fest.
From having the crowd sing hooks over and over, to having the masses hold up their phone’s flashlights, he had everyone coming together in celebration of the one thing that brought each and every one of them together – music.
Backed by a full band, he rapped “Swimming Pools” and “Poetic Justice” in their entirety, not just choruses and a verse, as he has done at shows in the past. Throughout the set, the crowd kept up with him with unwavering energy and adoration for the rapper. As the night came to an end he finished off the show with “A.D.H.D.,” saying goodnight to what was without a doubt the largest crowd of the weekend.
Majical Cloudz
Majical Cloudz is a minimalist duo with simple bass lines and piano riffs, with songs performed almost as poetry by singer Devin Walsh. Their set this past weekend had many bumps in the road but proved to be a one-of-a-kind experience. When Walsh’s partner Matthew Otto’s keyboard set up refused to work the set turned a cappella. The crowd helped by clapping the beats and Walsh took this as an opportunity to showcase his vocals even more than usual.
At the end of the set both members gave their apologies to the crowd.
Then Otto did something he’s only thought of in his rock ’n’ roll dreams: he smashed his keyboard onstage.
Neutral Milk Hotel
The Neutral Milk Hotel set Saturday night was breathtaking, with simple lights and the jumbo screens turned off, fans enjoyed the music in its most minimal setting.
Jeff Mangum stood center stage hidden underneath a cap and his beard, leaving only the music to express himself.
The band opened with “I Will Bury You in Time,” one of Mangum’s solo songs, and then followed with two of their best known songs; “Holland 1945” and “King of Carrot Flowers.” The entire set unified the crowd as everyone listened in awe to the harmonious echoes over Union Park. The band closed down the night with the tune “Two Headed Boy Pt. 2.” and the crowds dispersed with a new found appreciation for humility in music.
St. Vincent
After busting into the indie rock scene is 2007, Annie Clark has done nothing but progress under her stage name St. Vincent and become one of the forefronts of inspiration in music today. On Saturday night, she took over Pitchfork’s Red Stage with her signature guitar riffs and frigid coordinated dance moves.
She mainly performed tracks from her latest album, but she didn’t forget her roots as she played songs such as “Marrow” and “Cheerleader.”
