MHMF Recap

What is up fans? Since you last heard from me I’ve just been on my grind working to get that paper aka a job. Last weekend I had a great time at Mile High Music Festival. It was hot as usual but that Colorado breeze supplied ample relief and all the great music took our minds off of it.

Saturday’s highlights for myself would have to have been ALO, Nas & Damian Marley, then Steve Miller Band. ALO opened with “Maria,” a song I really enjoy and one to get people on their feet. I said in my last blog if I could hear one song it would be “Shapeshifter,” and sure enough they gave me the ecstasy I was looking for. Nas & Damian Marley was cool because although they collaborated most of the show there were points where it went solo such Nas with one of his most recent hits “Hip Hop is Dead.” It was this show where I found my calling. Through the whole set they had a guy on stage just waving a Rastafarian flag. Maybe they’re looking for a white, redheaded, skinny kid such as myself to join them on tour? Steve Miller Band really surprised me because not only did they play their classics but also new material. Bingo is their new album that came out this June. They definitely provided the same rock you’d expect from their classics just with some new life and lessons injected to their new material. Jack Johnson came to close out SMB’s set with a great version of “The Joker.” I was surprised by Jack Johnson’s set but realistically I could have just put on a mix of his greatest hits. The thing I did like about his show was his stage banter providing some entertaining stories behind the songs.

Keller Williams deserves a shout out because he is just always up there having a great time and it feeds directly into the crowd. He also threw in some of his classic freestyle rhymes after going over on his allotted time. I only saw maybe three songs by Cypress Hill but that included “Insane in the Brain,” “Hits From the Bong,” and “Tequila Sunrise;” a classic, a spectacle (they pulled out a six foot bong and blazed on stage, hilarious), and one of their more recent songs that pays homage to The Eagles. I went in between Slightly Stoopid and Phoenix from 6:45 to 8:15. I do admit Phoenix is a guilty hipster pleasure of mine but when the sun is out shinning Slightly Stoopid just seems like the right place to be and more in line with my general taste in music.

The biggest surprise on Sunday for me was an artist I have never heard of named Trevor Hall. I wish I could tell you all about him but I honestly don’t know much except for the fact that he had great stage presence and is a rock’n’roll act although some may try to describe him as a singer/song writer. Drive-By-Truckers opened the day with a great set playing a song I’ve been dying to hear live since 2005, “Let There Be Rock.” One of my favorite shows of the day was a duo I’ve seen at least five times before this show, Boombox. Being early in the day Zion was crisp and clear and didn’t wander too much on jams. It was a straight up dance party at 3pm. Jimmy Cliff was cool because he showed everyone a 62-year-old man is still a fun guy to party with, if not himself, his yellow jump suit sure proved it. My Morning Jacket played a great show but I must say I was hoping to hear “One Big Holiday,” and was sorely disappointed that they didn’t play it. I do understand that this is their most mainstream song and they probably get tired of playing it but when your playing a festival it is a different circumstance than solo shows where everyone is there to just3 see you. Weezer is near and dear to my heart and takes me back to the day. They sure did that for the three songs of theirs I managed to catch. “Hash Pipe,” was the first song I heard and brings me back to riding around with my Dad in his corvette driving way too fast pumping this power chord monster. “Say it Ain’t So,” and “Undone (The Sweater Song),” were classics that are as fun today as they were 16 years ago when the Blue Album was released and I was hoping to hear them as you surely know from my last post. I tore myself away from Weezer to catch the entire Bassnectar show and being twenty feet from the stage my ears were ringing until Tuesday. It was a straight whomp fest but I must admit the crowd at that show was alarmingly young. It seems that kids these days just love that bass bumping, hip thrusting, deafening music. He had awesome lights along the roof of the tent and beach balls aplenty giving much more ambiance than the other stages. Lorin really enjoyed himself letting his long hair flow with the breeze commenting how much he looked forward to this show and his return to Colorado. To end the festival was Dave Matthews Band. They were good but what can I say about them, they’ve been playing for 20 years and still have fun doing it but each show is pretty much the same as the last. Tim Reynolds sat in on the entire set but didn’t make himself stand out which was disappointing. One part I did enjoy was when Dave threw in a jam where he was singing “You’re a sexy motherfucker shaking that ass, shaking that ass.” He was grooving and everyone was getting down to this little romp. I also found this really funny because he seems like such a PG family show these days so it was good to see him breaking the mold.

I’m going to end on that note to keep this bearable to read but check out the post tomorrow to tell you what you need to know for this weekend. Before I peace out I’d like to say thank you to Brent Fabschutz and the Ariano family for making this weekend possible and a blast start to finish.