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Sunday, 08.02
 All Points West 2009 |
As a make-good for attendee's troubles in sitting through their concert in the pouring rain on Friday, Goldenvoice announced, via Ezra Koenig of Vampire Weekend, that their tickets for Friday would be good for reentry for either Saturday or Sunday. This was news that certainly made my fiancé very happy, as she is a hardcore Coldplay fan and was hoping to get miracled into the Sunday show to see them in some form or another. However, what nobody expected for the last day of the APW weekend was how bad the rain would return. If Friday was bad in terms of weather, what we woke up to Sunday morning was nothing short of a storm of near-hurricane proportions. It was so bad, in fact, that APW promoters were forced to delay the start of sets until later in the afternoon, causing the cancellation of the early part of the day's festivities, including the performances of such acts as The Gaslight Anthem and the retro country outfit Kitty Daisy & Lewis. As fans began to arrive to the festival site, they were greeted by a denial of entry, causing a huge, cattle-like line of angry people looking to get in and start their day. Chants of "bullshit" grew with every minute the overzealous security refused to open the gates until they eventually succumbed to the growing crowd agitation and started letting people in.
Those who were looking forward to seeing comedians Dave Barry, Christian Finnegan and Janeane Garofalo in the comedy tent were treated to truncated 10-minute performances from each, the majority of which were finished just as people were getting settled in.
 Seth Olinsky - Akron/Family :: APW 2009 |
Meanwhile, on the Bullet Stage, Akron/Family was gearing up for an amazing Sunday afternoon performance that was mostly culled from the reconfigured Brooklyn band's latest, Set 'Em Wild, Set 'Em Free (JamBase review here), a brimming combination of hippie rock warmth and free jazz cool that is one of the finest releases this year. Live, the group is much more animated than their music suggests, and they played their set with maximum urgency and passion.
On the Comet Stage, British rockers Elbow delivered a fine sense of English charm and wit to the day, doing shots on stage and delivering stunning renditions of songs that are far more popular on their side of the pond than ours, including "Grounds for Divorce" and "The Bones of You." Back on the Bullet Stage, Scotland's Mogwai certainly made a much lovelier wall of noise than their Irish neighbors My Bloody Valentine did the night before, delivering a set of some of their most beloved rackets, including "Hunted by a Freak," "I'm Jim Morrison, I'm Dead" and the epic "Mogwai Fear Satan."
The Black Keys, also on the Bullet Stage, never cease to amaze at just how two men can create the sound of four, as guitarist/vocalist Dan Auerbach and drummer Patrick Carney, who broke four sticks during the duo's set, delivered a raucous, bluesy 50-minute show loaded with cuts from their five-album catalog.
 Echo & the Bunnymen :: APW 2009 |
For the elderly of the alternative nation, however, the highlight of Sunday came when British post-punk legends Echo & the Bunnymen took the stage. The group sounds much more rugged and ragged on stage than they do on record, giving their sound a more classic rock edge than their synth-heavy studio endeavors may suggest. As the group tore through their most beloved singles, including "Lips Like Sugar," "Bring on the Dancing Horses," "The Killing Moon" and "The Cutter," one can easily hear the sizeable chunk of their sound that U2 took a bite from and spun into platinum. The band also made nods to their own influences as well, working in The Doors' "Roadhouse Blues" during "Villiers Terrace" and weaving in Lou Reed's "Walk on the Wild Side" in the middle of "Nothing Lasts Forever." The group even debuted a new song, the promising "I Think I Need It Too," from their forthcoming new album, The Fountain, which is scheduled to come out October 12.
Now, I'm not sure how blasphemous it is to say that I actually enjoyed Coldplay more than Tool but I'm not gonna lie. Having seen them three times prior with my girl, the Brit-pop demigods continue to impress me with their strong stage presence and tremendous sound live. Though you will certainly not catch me with any of their studio albums on my stereo any time soon, hearing these songs live is quite enjoyable and the group certainly delivered one of the strongest sets of the weekend.
 Chris Martin - Coldplay :: APW 2009 |
"As four people who grew up in the mud and the rain, we take off our proverbial hats to you," proclaimed Chris Martin to the crowd before blasting into "42" off the band's latest, Brian Eno-produced album, Viva La Vida or Death and All His Friends. Their 90-minute set played out like a greatest hits package come to life, as they barreled through such beloved anthems as "In My Place," "Yellow" (complete with giant yellow balloons tossed into the crowd), "Clocks," "Fix You" and "Politik." Not to be outdone by his new BFF Jay-Z, Martin staged his own tribute to Adam Yauch by delivering a piano ballad rendition of "Fight For Your Right (To Party)." Cheesy, yes, but the passion with which Martin sang, "Your mom threw away your best porno mag," was both funny and endearing all at once.
In a move nicked right from the playbook of their most direct inspiration, U2, Coldplay went into the crowd and trucked through the mud onto a small stage on a catwalk in the middle of the audience a la the "Zoo TV Tour" to deliver an acoustic set highlighted by a stunning version of Michael Jackson's "Billie Jean," which beats Chris Cornell's tired take by a country mile. The Viva La Vida songs sounded great live, especially the title track, which saw guitarist Jonny Buckland do the job of an entire string orchestra as drummer Will Champion pounded on his drums as though his life depended on it during the uplifting "Lovers in Japan."
"You probably won't be seeing us again for a while, which is probably good news for some of you," joked Martin towards the end of the group's set before launching into "The Scientist," not only the band's greatest song but one that continues to grow more beautiful with every listen.
As we left the festival grounds to the pulsing sounds of French house maven Etienne de Crecy, eager to clean the mud off our legs and plunge our sore tootsies in a bath of Epsom salts, we could only hope aloud that Mother Nature will be kinder to the All Points West Festival when it comes back around in the summer of 2010.
Coldplay Setlist
Life In Technicolor, Violet Hill, Clocks, In My Place, Yellow, 42, Fix You, Strawberry Swing, God Put A Smile Upon Your Face, You Gotta Fight (Chris on piano - Beastie Boys cover) Viva La Vida, Lost!, Green Eyes (acoustic), Death Will Never Conquer (acoustic, sung by Will) Billie Jean (acoustic - Michael Jackson cover), Viva La Vida (remix interlude), Politik, Lovers In Japan, Death And All His Friends
Encore:
The Scientist, Life In Technicolor ii, The Escapist
Continue reading for more pics of APW 2009...
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