20 Acts to See at Bonnaroo 2013
Headed to Tennessee but still not sure who you want to see? Fear not: We’ve boiled the brain-busting Bonnaroo schedule down to 20 essential sets.
Paul McCartney
-
It's easy to be skeptical about the notion of seeing Paul McCartney live. For one thing, he's the Beatle most prone to cheese (even if he's more experimental than he's typically given credit for), he has a history of being excruciatingly on-the-nose, and on top of all that, he wrote "Rocky Raccoon." Here's the thing, though: Paul McCartney is fantastic live. His shows generally run about three hours with no... breaks, he expertly weaves in lesser-known tracks to keep things interesting and he keeps hokey banter to a minimum. Oh, also, he has so many hits. How many hits? So many hits that he played "Your Mother Should Know" and "Lovely Rita" for the first time last month. So many hits that he could skip playing "Let it Be" and "Sgt. Pepper" and you'd still be like, "He played a lot of hits!" His band is astonishingly tight, they don't overplay, the delivery is tasteful and toothy and even charmingly ragged in spots. Oh, and also: he's Paul McCartney. — J. Edward Keyes
more »
Bjork
-
Twenty-seven years into her career, Bjork is running the risk of becoming a pop music Alexander the Great, weeping for there are no more worlds to conquer. She has reconfigured her sound in nearly every conceivable way, moving from adventurous electro on the still-classic Post through skewed orch-pop (Vespertine), voice-only compositions (Medulla) and globe-gobbling world music (Volta). She is one of a very few musicians — there are maybe three of them... worldwide — whose rare failures are even interesting, because they at least display evidence of ambition and novel ideas. That ambition extends to her staging. A run of shows at the Hall of Science in Queens, New York featured specially-constructed instruments and a loose theme (including voiceover narration) about the destructive power of nature. How much of that she'll carry into her festival performances remains to be seen, but if history is any indication, an equal won’t be found all weekend. — JEK
more »
Wilco
-
Wilco are a perennial music-fest favorite: sunny sing-alongs, lengthy Nels Cline guitar solos, and witty banter from frontman Jeff Tweedy. There hasn't been any word of new music on the Chicago group's horizon (Tweedy's been busy producing sets from the likes of Low and Mavis Staples), but that just means fans can expect a wide-ranging mix of crowd faves and deep cuts alike. — Laura Leebove
R. Kelly
-
When R. Kelly toured in 2007, he first appeared in silhouette, wearing a top hat, standing at the top of a giant staircase, underneath a neon sign that read "Mr. Showbiz." When he toured in 2010, his first appearance was in a five-minute black-and-white, note-perfect Casablanca-style short film. When he toured in 2012, he had two lackeys bring out an oversized white throne halfway through the show just so he could... sit and relax for a number. Simply put: R. Kelly is a showman, and the live setting is where he gets to indulge the frustrated musical theatre director within. Songs become set pieces (In '07, he performed "Feelin' On Yo Booty" as an aria, tongue firmly in cheek), the banter is tautly-scripted and generally hilarious, and Kells visibly relishes every indulgent flourish. To say nothing of the fact that he remains one of our greatest living male vocalists, that he sings live every time, and that even thirty seconds of hearing him reinforces the notion that he is the heir to greats like Sam Cooke and Marvin Gaye — even if those two never used an extended jungle metaphor to sing about doin' it. — JEK
more »
Weird Al Yankovic
-
Here's a thing that you might not know about legendary song parodist and cultural icon Weird Al: He puts on a spectacular live show. Like, "It's Star Time" spectacular, with breathlessly executed transitions and peak-to-peak setlists and jokes and polka medleys all lined up one after the other. Weird Al is an entertainer, goddamnit, and if you've ever owned a single tape or Weird Al CD in your life, (and what portion... of the music-listening populace hasn't forked over cash for at least one Weird Al tape or CD?), standing in front of this man's live extravaganza is an easy way to feel good about the decisions you've made in life, for at least 45 minutes. — Jayson Greene
more »
Solange
-
Solange Knowles released her first album in 2011, but it was last year that she truly broke out as more than just Bey's little sister. Her EP True is all dancefloor hits, from the funky, giggly start of "Losing You," to the nostalgic heartbreaker "Some Things Never Seem to Fucking Work," to the Daydream-era-Mariah Carey-channeling "Don't Let Me Down." — LL
Tom Petty
-
Tom Petty occupies a curious place in the corridors of classic rock. He doesn't have the Weight of Legacy of the Stones or Dylan, nor the charisma or sense of purpose of Springsteen. He doesn't slot easily into any one format — he was initially marketed as a New Wave artist — even though his songs are staples of FM radio. And there's always been something smart-alecky about his demeanor and delivery... — he's the cut-up in the canon. All of this makes him surprisingly tricky to characterize; there's a clear cause/effect between his rootsier work and, say, Being There-era Wilco, but there's even more in the oft-cited similarity between "American Girl" and "Last Nite" by the Strokes. Which ends up making Tom Petty more like a rock 'n' roll Zelig — he's nearly everywhere you look, even if you don't notice until later, and he's logged more certifiable classics with a shrug and a smirk than some of his peers have done with gallons of sweat and overwork. You get the sense he'll still be here 60 years from now, looking approximately the same, just as consistent and just as rewarding. — JEK
more »
Kendrick Lamar
-
Kendrick Lamar is a tiny stub of a man — standing onstage, he doesn't seem to come much past 5'4". But his quiet charisma widens out around him like a crop circle, and with his triumphant 2012 masterpiece good kid, m.A.A.d city still resonating in the air, he will likely arrive trailing clouds of rap-savior glory. Liquid, languorous songs like "Bitch Don't Kill My Vibe" and "A.D.H.D." transform into shout-alongs when he's... onstage, and come prepared to rap along to every tongue-twisting verse: He usually gets heavy with the crowd participation. — JG
more »
Glen Hansard
-
Glen Hansard might come off as a total sad-sack on Rhythm and Repose, his brooding-but-gorgeous 2012 solo effort, but don't be fooled: The Irish singer/songwriter best known for his work in Once and The Frames is actually an incredibly charming and exciting performer. He's likely to perform with his band The Frames, and you never know who else he might bring on stage. — LL
A$AP Rocky
-
The cocky grinning, gold-tooth French-braid Harlem 24-year-old A$AP Rocky might not have the poetic, old-soul flow of Rakim, for whom his parents named him, but he has something else entirely: a blinding flash, charm, and a perfectly calibrated sound that pours Houston syrup and high-fashion glitz onto NY rap's sturdy concrete bedrock. Live, he's usually surrounded by other A$APs, who help amp up the energy, and he is guaranteed to be wearing... something that makes him resemble a cross between a Fruit Roll-Up, a fashion model, and a Power Ranger. — JG
more »
Wu-Tang Clan
-
While everyone was busy crowing about Blur and Phoenix and the Stone Roses, the Wu-Tang Clan slipped in through the side virtually unannounced and walked away with Coachella 2013 in their back pocket. By all accounts their show in Indio Valley was one of the weekend's best — if not the best — all eight surviving members taking the stage, backed by a full orchestra and performing letter-perfect versions of their classics.... The group always had a sense of vision, even if it was sometimes overruled by their more anarchic impulses. But enough time has passed — a full two decades since game-changing debut Enter the Wu-Tang — that they've managed to make live perfectionism feel almost punk — instructional and justifiably haughty at the same time. These days, it's more surprising when all of the Clan members don't show up. — JEK
more »
Royal Thunder
Killer Mike
-
Killer Mike hasn't made a career habit of taking prisoners: Whether you're a Forbes list millionaire ("a whore's list," as far as he's concerned), a rapper like himself who is an "advertisement for agony and pain," or, god help you, Ronald Reagan ("I'll leave you with four words: I'm glad Reagan dead"), Mike has choice words for you. And the emphasis is on "choice": his bellowing, burly voice and big gut might... give the impression of someone heavy-footed and lumbering, but Mike can rap as nimbly as he does forcefully. Live, he will leave you feeling like the slab of meat in Rocky's freezer: tenderized, worked over. But in a good way. Also, if the gods are kind, his new confidante and best friend El-P will show up. — JG
more »
Tame Impala
Kacey Musgraves
-
Rising star Kacey Musgraves writes songs for folks who don't fit into the stereotypical right-leaning country-listening mold. In her biggest hit "Merry Go 'Round," she says it's OK to eschew small-town tradition by not being married with kids by 21, while "Follow Your Arrow" implores folks to "make lots of noise/ kiss lots of boys/ or kiss lots of girls, if that's something you're into." — LL
Mac DeMarco
-
Mac DeMarco's grubby, Pigpen-Eagles version of yacht-pop might not prepare you for the full-blown, indie-rock-Andy-Kaufman hilarity of his live set; Mac is one of few humans on this planet who can make smirking assholery seem downright endearing and infectious. It helps that his bandmates are in on the fun, that they crack each other up, and that they play their often-shoddy instruments like gangbusters: in previous sets, I've seen them cover both... Dave Brubeck's "Take Five" and a Rammstein/Rob Zombie mash-up of "Du Hast Mich" and "Dragula." — JG
more »
Lucius
-
Lucius have only got an EP under their belts for now, but the group of folks dying to hear more from the Brooklyn outfit is growing quickly. They've got girl-group flare, strong harmonies, and a tight, polished band, fronted by vocalists Jess Wolfe and Holly Laessig. And with the ladies' matching outfits, poufy updo's and soulful sass, their live shows are mesmerizing. — LL
Death Grips
-
It seemed for a moment like Death Grips was going to self-immolate almost as suddenly as they'd appeared. They cancelled a slew of live dates in the rush of adulation that followed their debut, they were dropped from their label after giving away its follow-up — which, incidentally, had a picture of a dick on the cover — for free, and force-of-nature drummer Zach Hill performed the group's SXSW set via Skype... (and apparently played his drum tracks on a laptop at this year's Sasquatch festival.) The thing is, though: They're still here, and MC Ride is still one of the most gripping and charismatic frontmen in hip-hop, delivering his verses with the ferocity of early hardcore. Every Death Grips show feels like a last gasp — all the more reason to see them while you still have the chance. — JEK
more »
Daniel Romano
-
Singer/songwriter Daniel Romano hails from Canada but sounds like he's from America's Deep South as he writes old-school country ballads sung in a deep, Man-in-Black drawl. On his latest record, this year's aptly titled Come Cry With Me, there's a dirge about unrequited love, reflections on being a rejected middle child, and a rambling saga about getting a ride with a guy who calls himself Chicken Bill. — LL
White Lung
-
White Lung vocalist Mish Way is a human tornado, a blinding corkscrew of motion and sound ripping up the center of her songs like the Tasmanian Devil turned loose in the middle of a Safeway. It's the musical equivalent of being grabbed by the shoulders and throttled repeatedly. Which is a great thing. White Lung's second full-length Sorry inflicts more damage than a runaway rotary blade, and their live show is just... as devastating. It's a blast of fire and fury, an endless barrage of megaton cannonballs aimed directly at your throat. — JEK
more »
