Saturday
The Flavr Blue
11:45 a.m., TuneIn Stage
The first decision you will face is when to arrive at Bumbershoot. Might we suggest “as early as possible.” Though its festival brethren have expanded their fests to extra days and extra weekends (even extra seasons), Bumbershoot has thankfully given everyone Friday night to rest up, which means there is no reason you can’t catch the electro-hip-hop act Flavr Blue. The group is on the come-up in the Seattle scene, usually leading late-night dance parties, but there is no reason to believe that the party will not extend into this morning set. Frontwoman Hollis Wong-Wear was not only the woman who wrote the hook to Macklemore’s “Wing$,” she is also probably the hardest working 20-something in the business. And her job this a.m. will to get you moving.
Dave B
12:30 a.m., Fountain Lawn Stage
It’s always good to witness an artist who really earned his or her way onto the bill. That’s the situation with Dave B, a young MC who won EMP Museum’s underage battle of the bands, Sound Off!, to earn the right to perform. Backed by a full band, Mr. B proved a professional onstage, adept at interacting with his audience on some classic call-and-responses and spanning the entirety of the stage, sweating hard while recalling at times the hardest-working man in show business.
Mike Vecchione & Marc Maron
1 p.m., Comedy at the Playhouse
The toughest ticket all weekend long will be the comedy stage, which every year draws a snaking line of festgoers who willfully don blinders in order to not think about everything else they’re missing. If comedy is on your to-do list but you aren’t partial to the personalities onstage, this is your best bet to get in early and take in two very talented comics. Marc Maron in particular deserves your attention for his wry and sardonic humor.
Nacho Picasso
1:15 p.m., TuneIn Stage
Why Froyo? Why YOLO? Why Now?
2 p.m., Words and Ideas Stage
The segue from Nacho Picasso’s edgy death-defying poetics to this discussion of acronymized catchphrase “You Only Live Once” is perfect. How frozen yogurt plays in is less clear, but since this, the first of three “Why Now?” panel discussions hosted by Corn Mo, features the owners of Zoeyogurt—along with webcomic creator Joel Watson—we’re guessing there will be samples. And if not, feel free to start a riot. YOLO!
Kendrick Lamar
4 p.m., Mainstage
A quick-lipped young MC with an impressive pedigree, Lamar will serve as the hip-hop headliner of Bumbershoot. His 2012 major-label debut, good kid, m.A.A.d city, is not the stuff of daytime drama. Rather, it delves into the dark recesses and excesses of his Compton youth, where Lamar swam in metaphorical pools of booze. Stick around; his music is deeper than those pools.
Thriller Flashmob
4:30 p.m., Festival Grounds
Throughout Bumbershoot, you’ll witness roving zombies, courtesy of the folks from Seattle Thrillers and Nightmare at Beaver Lake. These dead-eyed hordes can easily be confused with the line for the comedy stage (hint: The zombies have blood around their mouths, rather than powdered sugar, and they are actually moving). Before the zombies become commonplace, witness an organized performance of their native dance to Michael Jackson’s “Thriller.” (Side note: Is a flashmob that’s part of the official festival schedule really a flashmob?)
How Was Your Week?
4:45 p.m., Comedy at the Bagley
Of all the live podcast recordings happening at Bumbershoot this weekend, this episode of Julie Klausner’s How Was Your Week? has the greatest potential for witty repartee, since the red-headed comic will be joined by indie-pop punker Ted Leo, who in the world of punk is to absurdist humor what Henry Rollins is to grandstanding self-righteous spoken word.
!!!
6:15 p.m., TuneIn Stage
Leader Nic Offer will make you dance. He also might take his pants off and dance with you while screaming in your face.
Charles Bradley & His Extraordinaires
8 p.m., Starbucks Stage
A former James Brown impersonator whose personal story of struggle and redemption has been immortalized in a recent and riveting documentary, soul singer Bradley promises an entertaining and likely emotionally revelatory experience. At Sasquatch! last spring, he wept at the end of his set. He wasn’t the only one.
Sallie Ford and the Sound Outside
9:30 p.m., Plaza Stage
Nobody has a voice like Sallie Ford. Nobody. Backed by a tight Portland combo that can swing like Ali, Ford’s sour sass will move you in unexpected ways.
Heart
9:45 p.m., Mainstage
See “Sisters to the Front,” page TK.
Cookie Monsta
11 p.m., EDM at EMP
So you’ve gone the entire day without entering the EMP, where the EDM doth play. It is time to remedy that with this late-night set by Cookie Monsta, the UK purveyor of dubstep whose creations are both juvenile and sinister, as his moniker portends. It’s an acquired taste, but if you don’t like it, you can always leave knowing that there really was nowhere else to go.
Sunday
Visual Arts in Fisher Pavillion
Fisher Pavillion, opens at 11 a.m.
If you arrive today with a dub hangover, it’s a good idea to start your second day at Bumbershoot with a little contemplation at the Visual Arts exhibit at the Pavilion (one of two VA locales), where machinery is the focus. Take in the kinetic sculptures of Jonathan Schipper in Detritus We Value or a larger artistic overview of the relationship between machinery and art in The Enigma Machine. On the much more human side is an exhibition from Fashiony, which will present the latest in fashion illustration from Asia and Africa.
15 Years of Barsuk Records
Noon, Words & Ideas Stage
Today, Seattle’s Barsuk Records kicks off its 15th anniversary with a slew of performances from its roster, which will culminate with Death Cab for Cutie’s performance of its final Barsuk release, Transatlanticism, in full on the Mainstage. Before taking in all the music the label has helped make possible, find out what makes the label possible by attending this roundtable discussion with co-founder Josh Rosenfeld and a few of Barsuk’s very witty and thoughtful artists, including host Sean Nelson, the Long Winters’ John Roderick, and David Bazan.
Kyle Dunnigan & Doug Benson
1 p.m., Comedy at the Playhouse
You can only do one of these comedy things a day. Benson is a Bumbershoot mainstay who recorded a big portion of his doc Super High Me while at B-shoot. He knows what the crowds want.
The Round 100
1:45 p.m., Plaza Stage
The Fremont Abbey started the Round a little over eight years ago, and every month since has brought at least three different musicians to the stage to share a song, maybe tell a story, and then pass the mike to the songwriter on his or her left. That each month brings worthy acts to the stage is a testament to the musical talent Seattle holds. That this will be the 100th edition is a testament to the fact that organizer Nathan Marion is a bit of a nut. This, the first of four centennial Round celebrations this month, will feature Le Wrens and the always-entertaining Shelby Earl.
Tegan and Sara
2 p.m., Mainstage
See “Sisters to the Front,” page TK.
Best of SIFF: Audience Award Winners
4:30 p.m., 1 Reel Film Festival
Here, at the halfway point, is about the time this ambitious schedule will begin to weigh heavily on your feet. The idea of sitting in a dark room and staring at a screen may feel like something you could have done at home without springing for a festival ticket, but this is a show you should catch: a beautiful and melancholy collection of three shorts, jury award winners from last spring’s Seattle International Film Festival.
Eric Burdon & the Animals
4:45 p.m., Starbucks Stage
You are not going to catch this entire set, but you should cruise past after the movie lets out and pause for a moment, as there is a good chance that you will catch a classic sung by one of the greatest R&B voices of the ’60s. It might be “House of the Rising Sun,” it might be “We Gotta Get Outta This Place,” but it will be memorable.
The Comettes
5 p.m., Plaza Stage
Likewise, you might only catch a couple songs from this Seattle group, but there is a good chance an insistent melody will get seared into your mind. The Comettes have the humming keys, along with surfy, sour guitar lines, primal (though tempered) rhythm, and another memorable R&B voice, leader Timmy Sunshine’s.
Audrey & Nelson: A Puppet Sex Musical
5:15 p.m., Theatre Puget Sound Stage
This is a musical about puppets having sex and then talking about having sex with music written by Dude York’s Peter Richards. Did we mention the puppet sex?
Bob Mould
6:15 p.m., TuneIn Stage
You’re going to want a good spot for the Breeders, so get there early and take in the set from former Husker Du and Sugar frontman Bob Mould, who happens to have crafted of some of the greatest indie-rock hooks of all time.
The Breeders
8 p.m., TuneIn Stage
See “Sisters to the Front,” page TK.
The Zombies
8:15 p.m., Starbucks Stage
Yes, this is a clever booking by a festival that is grabbing the zombie trend with both bloodied, trembling hands, but the Zombies are a band that transcends novelty. Its album, Odessey and Oracle, was brilliant, which you know from the immortal (undead?) “Time of the Season.” Slip over after the Deal sisters have had their way with you.
Beats Antique
8:45 p.m., Fountain Lawn Stage
There are a few acts this year with which you can anjoy the essential Bumbershoot experience of dancing to world rhythms. But if you are only going to pad barefoot in the grass to one group, Beats Antique is it. The band’s brand of electro-acoustic tribal fusion will make for some unexpected twists in your step, and the timing—sunset—will make it feel like a ritual, which it kind of is.
Death Cab for Cutie
9:45 p.m., Mainstage
The brilliant thing about this set is that the band is playing Transatlanticism in its entirety and, I assume, in order. It’s their best album, so try to take the entire thing in. But, if you must, you can miss the beginning and the end and still get some deep catharsis, as “Sound of Settling” and “Transatlanticism” are songs five and seven.
Matt and Kim
10 p.m., TuneIn Stage
So if the outro to Transatlanticism leaves you a worthless puddle of tears and you must reconstitute your beating heart and rebuild your spine, you have to catch Matt and Kim, whose tireless hipster optimism will give you life again before you call it a night.
Monday
Cascadia ’10
11:45 a.m., TuneIn Stage
Hot Bodies in Motion
11:45 p.m., Fisher Pavilion
Monday is always a tough one for the full-ticket Bumbershoot attendee. It’s difficult to get up and get going after two solid days of festing. The organizers know this, and so they’ve scheduled two different acts to start the blood flowing. From the entrance, head to the TuneIn Stage just north of the Fisher Pavilion for the Pac Northwest Afro-beat ensemble Cascadia ’10. If their horns don’t get your heart pumping, you might be dead. But to make sure, head south to the Starbucks stage, where Hot Bodies in Motion will be executing their titular mission with an updated old-school R&B sound.
Films4Families 3
12 p.m., 1 Reel Film Festival
Maybe you accidentally took your kids to the puppet-sex show the day before and are looking to redeem yourself in the eyes of society. This is your ticket, a series of brilliant shorts for short attention spans featuring lots of animals and colors and songs to sing along with.
BellaMaine
12:15 p.m., Fountain Lawn Stage
The small port town of Anacortes, just a few clicks north, has been experiencing a pop movement of late, with both The Lonely Forest and Cumulus earning buzz in the Seattle scene and beyond. Something is in the water up there, and this band drinks deep, creating shimmering, dreamy pop anchored by the harmonies of husband-and-wife duo Nick and Julianne Thompson.
The Comedy Bang! Bang! Experience
1:30 p.m., Comedy at the Bagley
See “The Interstitial Artist,” page TK.
Why Board Games? Why Zombies? Why Now?
2 p.m., Words & Ideas Stage
By this point you’ll have had your fill of the undead, perhaps going as far as to take shelter in a drum circle to avoid the zombie flash mobs that are scheduled to continue throughout the festival. But something will be gnawing at your brain. You will want to hear someone wax honest and intellectual about them. Fortunately this final “Why Now?” panel features Isaac Marion, the author of zombie novel Warm Bodies and a consummate wit and reluctant expert on pop culture’s obsession with the walking dead.
St. Paul de Vence
3 p.m., Plaza Stage
So you’ve made it two and a half days into Bumbershoot without willfully hearing a mandolin. That ends here with Seattle’s own St. Paul de Vence, an ensemble born of leader Benjamin Doerr’s songs about his WWII-veteran grandfather. Waltzes will keep the kiddies swinging, but the band’s balladry will mostly just wash over you, a calm beauty.
Redd Cross
3:30 p.m., stage TK
See “One-Hit Wondering,” page TK.
Kinky
4:30 p.m., TuneIn Stage
While grunge was beginning to fall out of fashion in the States, the Avanzada Regia movement was just getting started, moving the center of Mexico’s pop-music universe eastward from Mexico City toward Monterrey. Electro-rock group Kinky was one of the groups that emerged, making them a kind of kindred spirit to Seattle’s decentralizing musical moment. Something to think about while you dance your ass off.
Hot Comedy With the Spicy News
4:45 p.m., Comedy at Vera
In a premise that rivals yesterday’s puppet-and-sex combo, Hot Comedy With the Spicy News pairs comedians with hot peppers and celebrity gossip. It’s worth a pop-in at the very least.
Baroness
5:15 p.m., stage TK
See “Past the Crash,” page TK.
Mark Pickerel and His Praying Hands
6 p.m., Plaza Stage
A gentleman if there ever was one, Mark Pickerel deserves your presence. Once a drummer for the Screaming Trees, the man with the pompadour has since become an alt-country crooner with a few stories to tell. This will be a perfect way to cap a relatively calm afternoon before the fest’s final high-energy night begins.
Sol
6:15 p.m., TuneIn Stage
A University of Washington alum and Seattle hip-hop native, Sol Moravia-Rosenberg went on sabbatical just as he was gaining momentum, traveling the world for a year and collecting ideas and answers that will make their way into his fittingly titled September full-length Eyes Open. This show is his homecoming, so expect a heightened performance.
Superchunk
7 p.m., Fountain Lawn Stage
This is really a can’t-miss if you are at all interested in indie-rock royalty. This band of Chapel Hill, N.C.-stalwarts has always had tremendous spunk, but its skill at delivering high-energy, hook-laden songs with punch has only deepened with each of its 24 passing years.
Justin Townes Earle
8 p.m., Starbucks Stage
The son of alt-country king Steve Earle and the namesake of Townes Van Zandt, Earle is a showman with performance in his blood and a natural edge that makes even his most old-timey tunes sound like they’re on the bleeding edge of the musical zeitgeist.
Deerhunter
9 p.m., Fountain Lawn Stage
Deerhunter’s lead singer and main creative force Bradford Cox played a solo show at Neumos last week, and, by way of a preview of his band’s Bumbershoot set, told the crowd “It’s going to be like a puppy fucking a puppy fucking a puppy.” I don’t know what that means, but morbid curiosity beckons me.
BASSNECTAR
9:45 p.m., Mainstage
You might not have liked Cookie Monsta the other night, but there’s no chance that BASSNECTAR’s big drops will not move you deep in your bowels. If you’ve spent your weekend storing up glowsticks (and why wouldn’t you have?), this is your chance to throw ’em.
The Joy Formidable
10 p.m., TuneIn Stage
There is also a Zombie Walking happening at this time, but you’ll be able to see something similar when you join the hordes of tired fans heading for their cars. Stick around for this British pop group, who will send you off with dramatic pop flair.
