Bonnaroo 2012

[JustSteve]

Humidity?

[nosurprises12]

Anyone get the Radiohead webcast? I missed most of the main set.

[xuclarockerx]

o my. thank u.

[CGebert]

Is it just me or was that an awkward end to Karma Police? It looked like they were expecting this to happen, but it didn't.

I was in the pit for this performance at Roo and I tried to start it. It didn't work. Unfortunately a lot of people in the pit were VIPs who just were not that into it. I was at Weekend 2 when that happened at Coachella and it was amazing, but for whatever reason the crowd just didn't do it this time.

[stuporfly]

it only reached the upper 80s for the entire weekend. how do you achieve heatstroke when the weather was so pleasant (pleasant by tennessee-in-june standards)?

It was hotter than that in the sun, especially when the air wasn't moving. And I don't live my life by Tennessee standards, regardless of the month.

[fnmore]

Phish = Boring

[Mr. Dylanja]

Yeah, I started watching it yesterday, and was thinking to myself, "This isn't so bad." I didn't last five minutes, it just isn't for me.

[Mr. Dylanja]

Did anybody catch Gza w/ the backing band? How was it? How about The Roots or Ludacris? Let's hear some reviews, damn it!

Were caeden and Stup the only ones that went?

[ED GEIN]

Did anybody catch Gza w/ the backing band? How was it? How about The Roots or Ludacris? Let's hear some reviews, damn it!

Were caeden and Stup the only ones that went?

GZA was pretty damn good. He just rapped other peoples parts on the songs. So no other Wu Tag members. He did a couple other songs besides just the album. Ludacris was ok I guess. One of those type of hip hop shows where they just do snippets of a few songs here and there and of course the hits. He did bring out a stripper pole for a song and boy were thoe girls working it.

[Mr. Dylanja]

Exactly what I'd expect, and want to see from Luda.

[stinkbutt]

Danzig got pissed and acted like he was gonna punch a photographer

[ED GEIN]

Danzig got pissed and acted like he was gonna punch a photographer

Didn't see what was going on with that whole deal. Just heard him say something to the effect of I am trying to have a good time and there is always 1 or 2 assholes that try and fuck everything up. For a minute I wasn't sure he was going to come back out on stage but I was glad he did.

[Gribbz]

Obligatory:

[Drewbles]

it only reached the upper 80s for the entire weekend. how do you achieve heatstroke when the weather was so pleasant (pleasant by tennessee-in-june standards)?

my review will be up sometime late tuesday or wednesday. whenever i finally get home

Sounds like the weather was great this year. I would love to read your review whenever you get around to it. I went in 2006 and am thinking about going next year. I watched as much of the live feed as I could, looked like people were having a great time!!

[thewoodenman]

My review of my first Bonnaroo:

I have been to a good amount of festivals, including a few Coachellas. This was my first Bonnaroo and I can say that for me, it was pretty sweet. It was probably the fact that I got to see a lot of bands I have always wanted to check out but never been able to (caugh RADIOEAD) and the weather was also a factor of the greatness. It was just me and a friend who had never been to a festival like this before. I was actually pretty weary of taking him because he is not as enthusiastic as I about these type of events, but he was quickly converted and was talking about coming back next year by the end of Day 1 (Thursday). We left from the DFW area of North Texas at about 5 AM and we pulled into Manchester and got in the traffic line at about 7 PM. We actually got stopped by the cops once in Murfreesboro at around 5:45 PM for "cutting someone off", although I think they were hoping to find stuff in our car as we were obviously headed to Bonnaroo. My friend was honest with them about some legal issues he has had in the past when they asked if we had any previous records, but they insisted on searching our car and after pulling almost everything we had spent so much time packing out of the car, they still didn't find his greenery. It felt like a huge weight was lifted and we were kind of amazed. It was pretty crazy at the time, and we were both thinking we were probably in for some bullshit. But we prevailed and headed on with our journey.

There was traffic but it really wasn't that bad, we were in and setting up camp somewhere around 9:30-10 PM. They didn't search our car, just asked if we had any glass, weapons, drugs, etc., we said nope and they snapped on our wristbands and in we went. The bad thing about getting there early was that they were filling up the back of the campsite and worked the traffic forward, it seemed like. We were all the way back by the "private property lake" in Camp Ron Slater. I think it was Pod 10 or 11. In high foot traffic, it took us about 30-35 minutes to get from camp to Centeroo. We had a 10x10 canopy and had created walls out of cheap Walmart sheets and connected them with spring clamps to the canopy. We had a tarp on the ground for our "floor" and we also had a reflective tarp that we would move around depending on where the sun was. We were overprepared and had a lot of extra food, water, and supplies left over by the end. Our neighbors were super cool and nice, everyone was respectful and didn't blare music till 6 AM, although I really wouldn't have minded it if they did. It was pretty tame for my taste but at least I was able to get a little sleep here and there.

Spent too much money on just ridiculous food like shortbread donut reese's peices buckets, waffle breakfast sandwhiches, ben & jerry's ice cream, cajun burritos, and ungodly hot dog creations that I am pretty sure have taken a year or two off the clock for me.

The lines to get into Centeroo moved quick every time. The only issue we had was my wristband malfunctioned the first day and I had to get a new one. Searches to get in where pretty much non existent. I had a camelback that I carried in each time, and I was easily able to bring in my own beer, whiskey, etc. by just putting it in the bottom of the bag and covering it with a hoody. They never touched my backpack or patted me down, just looked in as I opened it and waived me in. Saved us some cash for sure. I LOVED that they allowed you to bring in your own water.

Thursday shows for us started with Dale Earnhardt Jr Jr. The tent was full and we couldn't see the band at all, but the sound was great and that is really all that mattered to us. In general, it felt like if you weren't very close to a stage, you were not going to be able to physically see the band/act. I don't remember ever being unable to view the band from any spot in a tent at Coachella unless someone really tall was in front of me. Maybe the stages aren't as tall at the Roo, i dunno. We also saw Phantogram, Big Gigantic, White Denim, and a tiny bit of MiMosa. All the sets were awesome, Phantogram was probably my favorite because we were really really close and I am in love with Sarah. They did some new songs, which sounded fantastic. They also changed up some of their old tunes, like in "When I'm Small" they did some different guitar parts and things like that for a few of the the other old ones. Pretty great. Big Gigantic was SUPER packed, and no one was really moving a lot, but I was surprised at how much unlike the albums it was. Much more lively and the sax solos were pretty cool.

Friday we caught tune-yards, Two Door Cinema Club (they played a lot of new material, it was ok), and Little Dragon (amazing) but then my buddy was getting a headache because he had gotten a buzz cut before we left for Roo and had forgotten to put sunscreen on his noggin that day like a tard and got burnt. I skipped Feist to get back to camp with him and have some dinner to give him a chance to recoup a little bit, but he didn't get much better. He ended up staying back the rest of the night and missed a lot. I felt bad leavin him but was not going to miss the late night stuff that I always hear is so great about Bonnaroo. So I went back and caught the end of Rod Y Gab & CUBA, Radiohead, Black Star, FlyLo, and Umphrey's McGee. It was probably one of the best times I have ever had in my life and easy to get where I could see well since it was just me. Seeing Radiohead as close as I got was definitely the highlight and their set list was perfect for me. When they played I Might Be Wrong I just about lost it.

Saturday we saw Das Racist (super lame, but my buddy wanted to see them. Even he was disappointed), SBTRKT (great as usual, but ended 8 minutes early), Mogwai (possibly the best set of the day for me), The Roots, Art vs Science (saw them at both the Solar Stage and the Miller stage thing, these guys were too much fun. I had an absolute blast at each show. Use your flippers to get down!) caught some of the Red Hot Chili Peppers (meh) then cruised around in a psychadelic haze from stage to stage till getting back in to our camp at 4:30 in the morning. We were just floating around meeting as many people as possible this night, partying it up and getting down. GZA was great as well. We walked by Skrillex for a laugh and he had some sort of space ship set up bullshit. It was funny to watch all the goofy e kids and their drugged up antics, but that got old very fast. It was raining when we got back, it was actually kind of nice.

Sunday we didn't stay long due to obligations we both had so we packed our gear up, headed into Centeroo one last time for some food and to use up the rest of our beer tickets and then headed out. I was bummed to miss Ben Folds 5. Very bummed. So stupid.

If I go next year, I would like to check out a comedy show or something in the cinema tent maybe. But all in all, I think it was a great time. Met some awesome people from all over the world, partied our asses off and it was a really successful first Bonnaroo in my book. I couldn't get over how there was ALWAYS something going on in Centeroo, no matter what time it was. That really sold me on this.

As far as for the whole Bonnaroo VS Coachella arguement, I don't really care. They are both superb in their own ways. I can't speak of previous Bonnaroos though. Coachella does seem to match my personal musical tastes much better though, and as always, Coachella catches a lot of special moments that cannot be recreated anywhere else.

My two cents..

[Neighborhood Creep]

The cinema tent sucks but it is a good meet up spot or if you need a day time nap. It's like 65 degrees in there which is a great getaway from the TN heat. Checking out the comedy tent is a must.
What kind of beers did you drink there? The Sweetwater 420 was always my top priority there.

[stuporfly]

The cinema tent was where I watched the sixth game of the Celtics-Heat series and it was nuts. Trying to watch a film would have sucked, though.

We took reprieve in the comedy tent on Friday and will probably wind up in crowd shots during the Comedy Central special filmed there.

[thewoodenman]

What kind of beers did you drink there? The Sweetwater 420 was always my top priority there.

I will have to give that one a shot. I tried a lot of the Magic Hat brews, like #9, Circus Boy, Elder Betty. #9 was easily my favorite. Circus Boy was also good. Elder Betty not so much my thing.

I also tried Purple Haze by Abita. It was pretty good for what it was, kind of like an amber with a hint of grape. I kept telling myself I would try to find a new IPA to try but never did.

[thewoodenman]

The cinema tent was where I watched the sixth game of the Celtics-Heat series and it was nuts. Trying to watch a film would have sucked, though.

We took reprieve in the comedy tent on Friday and will probably wind up in crowd shots during the Comedy Central special filmed there.

how long did you wait in line for tickets and how long to actually get into the shows?

[stuporfly]

We missed out on Aziz Ansari because we hit the end of the incredibly long line and realized it wasn't going to happen for either show. For the Comedy Central thing hosted by Key & Peele and featuring Marc Maron and Judah Friedlander (man, was he unfunny) there was no wait at all for tickets. They took us in early for that as well because they wanted to be sure to fill the floor seats to give the impression it was completely filled.

[Mr. Dylanja]

Nice write up, thewoodenman, I'm glad you enjoyed it. Do you remember any of the tracks that FlyLo dropped? And did Umphrey's McGee cover "The National Anthem"?

[thewoodenman]

I recognized a lot of what FlyLo played, but I couldn't tell you the names really. I am not that familiar with him. He was having a blast though and knocking back a bottle of whiskey the whole time haha he seems like a cool dude.

I don't remember the National Anther for Umphrey's but here is a recording of their set you can grab(or probably find somewhere): http://www.umlive.net/live-music/0,8...hester-TN.html

[Neighborhood Creep]

I did watch a soccer game in the cinema for a little bit then watched the rest of it outside at the 1 time Lunar Stage. Quite fun

[caeden]

I apologize in advance for this extremely lengthy review:

Thursday was the first time I drove to bonnaroo instead of flying. I stopped off in nashville to buy some shoes since I retired my last pair of festival shoes after lolla last year. And I made a trip to wal-mart in manchester for some provisions (cereal, milk, beer, yogurt) before getting to my friend's house. After dropping off my stuff and getting situated, I made my way to bonnaroo a little after 1100p. The tollbooth people quickly checked my car for no-no's, then I was waved through to day parking. I went directly to alabama shakes. Their tent (this tent) was overflowing. I stuck around for a few songs, then decided to check out the other acts going on at the time. Mimosa and big gigantic both sounded like a lot of fun, although I leaned more towards mimosa. After listening to a few minutes at each, I went back to alabama shakes for the rest of the set. I had only heard “hold on” from them before bonnaroo, but I was interested enough to make them my main objective for that time frame. Alabama shakes impressed me enough for me to change my flight plans for lolla to catch their show at the metro. Once the music was over, I followed a parade that ended in front of the comedy tent. A dj from the silent disco crowd was set up and these guys from a NYC restaurant were throwing foil wrapped sandwiches into the small crowd that had gathered. I didn't get one. I walked around centeroo for a minute then went back to the house to get some sleep.

Friday started out like any other festival day for me. Full of plans but riddled with improper execution. I wanted to get to roo early to catch either the kooks or electric guest at 1215p. that didn't happen as planned. Instead I arrived in time for the start of tune-yards. Or at least the published start time for them. I listened to the last bit of the soul rebels (who were invited on stage with alabama shakes the previous night) while waiting for tune-yards to start. They came on about 25 min late, I believe. I stuck around for a song and half. I wanted to catch their entire set at roo after hearing the first few songs at coachella, but their late start soured me. I walked off to wander a bit more in centeroo. I made my way back for two door cinema club. I thoroughly enjoyed that set. I stuck around waiting for little dragon. I left after two songs. I just couldn't get into it. It wasn't like little dragon sounded bad or anything negative. The music wasn't just connecting with me at that time. Instead I went over to the avett brothers. They hit the spot for me. I was obviously wanting to listen to some alt-country/bluegrass style of music. After they were done I headed to the back to cafe where for chappo. Another group I only know one song from, but count me as a fan now. I need to buy their cd when I find it. I checked out ludacris off and on for the last half of his set. I'd listen to him then wander off somewhere else (never fully out of earshot), then come back. The crowd was eating up his set. When he finished, I went over to rodrigo y gabriela and c.u.b.a. Another set that I immensely enjoyed. I laid down in one the shade tents at the back and listened with my eyes closed. Very relaxing way to spend my time. I heard a couple of songs from foster the people while in the broo'ers tent. I wanted to get a decent spot for radiohead so I walked over to the main stage. At bonnaroo I like to view the main stage from the left side since the vast majority of traffic comes from the right side. Everyone likes to pile up there first like sheep or lemmings (whichever animal makes more sense to you). I made my way to the extreme left side. You know, where the line for the pit forms. I had managed to walk up basically to the front of the line. Normally I follow the rules of common courtesy by not jumping in line. Not this time. I got into the left side pit for radiohead. Got some nice pics and video. Everyone around me seemed to sing along with karma police, but not like that glastonbury video where the crowd kept it going. I know I sang along. For the late night sets, I split my time between black star and the word (john medeski, robert randolph, & the north mississippi allstars) for the first block of acts. Both of them put on good sets. But since I was jumping back and forth between musical styles I couldn't really fully concentrate on the quality. My decision and i'm happy with it. Then i stayed at the other tent for dumpstaphunk and big freedia for the rest of the night. Dumpstaphunk was another good set. Had me moving. But big freedia was a highlight for me. Google big freedia for background info. I had myself a GAY ol' time at that set. I danced. And I don't dance. I even got a free shirt big freedia threw out into the crowd. Some heifer fought me for it, but I prevailed. Did a little bit of exploring the campgrounds before leaving to get some sleep.

Saturday was even more of a clusterfuck getting ready. I didn't make it to roo until 500p. I missed my planned sets of das racist/blind pilot, the temper trap, and battles. Thank god maynard cannot open a show on time. Otherwise I would've missed a good portion of puscifer. The group came on stage 24 minutes late. I checked the time. It was a fine set. He didn't play the message, but did lead off with queen b. I heard some of childish gambino while doing some more perusing in the beer tent. Wasn't that impressed. Went over to danzig legacy. Another late start. Listened for a two songs before realizing “why am I here when the only song I want to hear – mother – won't be played until the very end?” I promptly left. I sauntered over to red baraat (who?) then to mogwai (wasn't feeling it either) then to the roots. Another solid set from them. Left to go hear my one song from danzig. Heard it then left. Didn't know who dispatch was and still don't know. But what I heard was neither objectionable nor memorable. Red hot chili peppers started to play. Early part of the set was heavy with new songs. But that was ok. I saw them at coach 07. I left midway to go see we are augustines at the miller lite lounge stage. Yet another group of which I only knew one song. They put on a good-bordering-on-great set. After they finished I moved back over to rhcp. Got hit in the head by a frisbee. Learned my lesson. The late night sets for me were an odd mix. Did a little alice cooper at that tent. Some more alice cooper while getting a henna tattoo. I've always wanted to get a tattoo, but didn't know what to get. Since it's permanent, choose wisely. I used this as a test. Then worked my way over to superjam (?uestlove & very special guests). For some odd reason I was drawn to the cinema tent where I was treated to reggie watts doing the music/voice over for a silent film: the last starfighter with captioning turned on so you could see the actual dialogue. Very odd yet very fun at the same time. I went back to the superjam when the movie ended. I missed most of d'angelo. Damn it. Along with several other people, I took over a tent used for kids' activities during the day. I laid down on the bench part of a picnic table and listened to gza with grupo fantasma. I thought it was good. I also got some soundbleed from pedrito martinez group from the other tent. I was not objecting. It was some excellent sounding latin music. Wished they would've kept playing. But alas they didn't. I posted earlier about the van halen band being the last one standing. Shameful. I left in disgust and went to bed.

Sunday followed the same pattern in the morning. This time I got ready at a decent time. For some odd reason the exit off I24 for bonnaroo was blocked off. As was the next one. I had to travel way out of my way to turn around. I ended up missing grouplove. I accepted the fact that I missed gary clark, jr. through my own time management skills. But I would've made most of grouplove. Not very happy with the miscommunication amongst the different law enforcement groups. I did get to the beach boys fairly on time. They started while I was still in line to entire the stage area. I could hear them fine from there. Say what you want about them not sounding 100% or 90% or even 70%, but they did put on a fun set. It was great seeing all these different age groups singing along. I saw an older couple (60s-70s) slow dancing to surfer girl. I decided to quickly check out the other acts. I walked past city and colour (wish he would be at lolla), caught the opening of war on drugs (didn't sound like something i'd be into), and heard mac miller (I don't remember anything about him, just know that he was on stage at the time). Then i finished up the beach boys set. I stopped at ben folds five for a couple of songs before going over to kenny rogers. His music is a little hokey at times, but his stage presence has this down-home charm that was refreshing. Listened to about half of his set. Stayed by the joy formidable for most of their set. Even better than when I saw them at lolla last year. I was trying to decide how to attack the last block of acts (the shins, fun., the civil wars [I saw young the giant in wichita the day before I left for roo]) when I glanced at the cinema schedule. I opted to catch the advance screening of beasts of the southern wild. Great choice if I do say so myself. Wonderful film. Then I did my normal sunday night thing. Listen to headliner for a spell, wander about for a bit in centeroo, listen to headliner some more, wander nearby campgrounds, come back to headliner finale, then really explore the campgrounds. I found a guy wearing a coachella zip-up hoodie in pod 2. we were both going to the porta-potties. I called out “coachella.” and he responded “coachella-ella-ella-a.” I wanted to ask if he was a boardie, but it would've been exceedingly awkward while pissing. I finally made my way back to day parking and headed on out.

The weather this year has to be the best weather roo has ever had. very warm (not hot, stuporfly) days, cool nights. not as dusty as it has been in the recent past. although the campgrounds were the least full i've ever seen them. all in all, i'd say it was successful. Put another bonnaroo in the books. 'Til next year my friends.

I know this has been an outrageously long review, but indulge me for a second. I'd like to review the food trucks and beers (the ones I can remember) I had at roo:

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Beers

Terrapin (athens, ga): Easy Rider (seasonal): nice and light. Easy drinking beer. Rye Pale Ale: i'm a sucker for ryes. Delicious with heavy rye grit.
Starr Hill Brewery (crozet, va): Starr Pils: pilsener with strong hoppiness. Ok in my book.
Highlands Brewing Co. (asheville, nc): Gaelic Ale: malty american ale. I was hoping for a scotch ale, alas it was not to be. Good, but not what I was expecting.
Elysian Brewing (seattle, wa): Dragonstooth Stout: good stout, not very heavy. I liked the balance between chocolate and coffee.
Bluegrass Brewing Co. (louisville, ky): American Pale Ale: hoppier than I want I normally expect for this type of beer. Wasn't bad, but wasn't great neither.
Brooklyn Brewery (brooklyn, ny): Gold Standard: expecting a basic lager. Not what I got. Very hoppy, but extremely drinkable.
Yazoo Brewing Co. (nashville, tn): Dos Perros: I asked what kind of beer it is. Was told “it's like Dos Equis.” Bitch lied. It IS Dos Equis. You can't tell me any different.

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Food Trucks

Good You (kc, mo): sweet potato & red bean burrito. Small but tasty
Savory & Sweet (knoxville, tn): Fried Avocado taco and Cuban taco with soft corn shells. The fried avocado was good, while the cuban was alright.
Pot Kettle Black (charleston, sc): chicago italian beef sandwich. This sandwich was very good.
Roti Rolls (charleston, sc): thurman murman: creole mac-cheese, shredded pork, kimchi, some sort of crema, roti bread (an indian [south asia] flat bread). Messy but delicious.
Petros Chili & Chips (knoxville, tn): just found out this is a food truck version of an established chain in tn & ga. Buffalo chicken chili cup: frito chips, chili, chicken, buff sauce, bleu cheese dressing. Ok, but way too saucy. Basically was a soup at the end. Not recommended.

Then there was eatbox (asheville, nc): this was hands down the absolute BEST food truck. Of the four wraps they offered, I had three of them. I would've had the fourth, but they closed down on sunday before I could get it. Dirty south: peppercorn steak, tots, grilled onion, bacon scallion sauce. I wanted to get another one after I finished. Highly recommend. Cock pocket: bratwurst, homemade kraut, grilled onion, tots, dijon mustard. This would've been better if the brat was sliced up instead of in one link. Morningwood: eggs, tots, black beans, salsa, cheddar, cilanto-lime crema. The ultimate breakfast burrito/wrap. Whereas I wanted another dirty south after I finished that one, I wanted another morningwood after the first bite. If eatbox is at roo next year, this will be the first thing I go for. Highest recommendation.

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Tl;dr – I had fun

[guedita]

Was Magic Hat not in the Broo tent this year?

[caeden]

magic hat was there, but i've had #9 before here. i was trying different breweries that either don't ship here or i'm not certain if they do. a couple of breweries (clown shoes: philadelphia / good people: birmingham, al) ran out very quickly. as in they were empty after friday

[Goatchella]

Shins sound terrible.

Every time I have seen them I walked away....at multiple venues and festivals....I have come to a conclusion

So I take it The Shins put on the best set of the day.

Luls

Weirdo dude blocked the camera's view of the sexy chick dancing. Bonnaroo is obviously the worst.

the worst....but oh so good

Humidity?

this....terrible

Phish = Boring

I hate phish. The crowd and the band....nasty crackhead hippies

The cinema tent sucks but it is a good meet up spot or if you need a day time nap. It's like 65 degrees in there which is a great getaway from the TN heat. Checking out the comedy tent is a must.
What kind of beers did you drink there? The Sweetwater 420 was always my top priority there.

Mmmm sweet water

I will have to give that one a shot. I tried a lot of the Magic Hat brews, like #9, Circus Boy, Elder Betty. #9 was easily my favorite. Circus Boy was also good. Elder Betty not so much my thing.

I also tried Purple Haze by Abita. It was pretty good for what it was, kind of like an amber with a hint of grape. I kept telling myself I would try to find a new IPA to try but never did.

Love both those purple haze and #9

[canexplain]

hummm. great times but then, I'm easy to please ......took me till today to get home ... life is good ....cr****

[caeden]

i looked for that fucking moose, but i couldn't find it

[heart cooks brain]

i was basically on a four day mushroom trip. needless to say, i didn't find the moose either.