Bumbershoot, Day One

Okay, to get the most obvious and most irrelevant thing out of the way first, it rained today, for the first time in four years of coming to Seattle for Bumbershoot,  Not that it mattered, it was a light rain, a drizzle really, and I spent most of the rainy hours indoors at the Pavillion Stage, where most of the acts I wanted to see were playing, anyway,  In fact, if it had been a sunny and beautiful day, I still would have spent most of my time indoors to see those same bands I saw today in the rain anyway. So nothing was lost due to the rain, and I got to wear my raincoat all day.

It's late now and I don't have the time or energy to post a whole lot about who I saw today, other than to post a few pictures and the briefest of one-liner recaps.

FLY MOON ROYALTY

A Seattle hip-hop-influenced r&b band playing the outdoor Fisher Green Stage at the very beginning of the day.  I didn't stay around for much of them, as I wanted to get indoors for Modern Kin.

MODERN KIN

Drew Grow, formerly of Drew Grow & The Pastor's Wives, who opened for The Head & The Heart at The Georgia Theater a few years ago, is back with a band that looks like most of The Pastor's Wives and put on a hard-rocking, satisfying opening set for the day.

DUDE YORK

Snarling Seattle punks Dude York impressed us two years ago playing a small tent at Bumbershoot, and since then the lead singer grew a mustache but lost none of his bite. 

BILL NYE THE SCIENCE GUY

The comedy acts are a big part of many people's Bumbershoot Festivals, and may be the only part for some folks, as far as I know, but since this is my last Bumbershoot and I've never attended a comedy show here, I braved the lines and caught Bill Nye The Science Guy with comics Eugene Mirman (who opened for Andrew Bird a few years ago at The Tabernacle) and Paul F. Thompkins for a panel discussion with a couple of astrophysics professors.  Laughs abounded.

TOMO NAKAYAMA

Tomo Nakayama, the grand voice behind Grand Hallway, playing his music under his own name. Dreamy, lush, folk-pop masterpieces on a dreary Seattle afternoon.  Would have been perfect with a pot of herbal tea.

ISKA DHAAF

First of two discoveries today, Iska Dhaaf (Somali for "let it go") are a drum-and-guitar duo who play fascinating, complex, psychedelic songs.  It would be great to hear more from them in the future.

POLICA

Minneapolis' Channy Leneagh, two drummers and a bassist show Seattle what electronic rock music could sound like if the musicians were as intelligent, sexy, and talented as Polica are.  It had been over two years and too long since we last saw Polica when they performed at The Drunken Unicorn in Atlanta.

THE BOTH

Singer-songwriters Aimee Mann and Ted Leo have joined forces as The Both.  There was a good give-and-take between them, but I didn't stay long as I wanted to check out the buzz about Yuna.

YUNA

The second discovery of the day.  Yuna is a Malaysian singer with impeccable English (not that it should matter) who sings with a clear and wonderful voice.  It's not rock and certainly not indie rock, and not really my genre, but I was totally captivated and blown away by her vocal skills and presence, and just when you thought you'd heard all of her neo-soul love songs, she picks up a ukulele and plays a  pop song so cheerful it makes Kishi Bashi sound doleful by comparison. With any luck at all (both for her and for us), she could be a major star.

WU-TANG CLAN

The pride of Staten Island took the stage 25 minutes late (early by hip-hop standards), and kicked the Mainstage's butt with their old school rap.  Confession time:  I left before their set was over, as did a large portion of the crowd.