Festival Scorecard: Noise Pop 2011
Or, a Cautionary Tale About the 7p Score for Festivals
Noise Pop
Website:http://2011.noisepop.com/
Dates: February 22-27, 2011
Location: San Francisco, California
Top Bills: Yo La Tengo, Ben Gibbard, Dan Deacon, The Concretes
7p Score: 43%
"43%?! What a crappy festival!" Not so fast...
Festival Scorecard: Sasquatch! 2011
Sasquatch! Music Festival
Website: http://www.sasquatchfestival.com/
Dates: May 27-30, 2011
Location: George, Washington
Top Bills: Foo Fighters, Death Cab for Cutie, Modest Mouse, Wilco, The Flaming Lips
7p Score: 60%
Over the past four or five years I've found that Sasquatch! is very in tune with my musical tastes. So much so that when the lineup is released every year I immediately start searching for plane fares and rental cars. I could probably draw a pretty good map of Washington between Wenatchee and Spokane from memory. But every year I come to the same conclusion. Getting to Sasquatch! is hard.
Festival Scorecard: Bonnaroo 2011
Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival
Website: http://bonnaroo.com/
Dates: June 9-12, 2011
Location: Manchester, Tennessee
Top Bills: Eminem, Arcade Fire, Widespread Panic, The Black Keys
7p Score: 55%
Swap Kanye West for Eminem and toss in the requisite jam band or two and you've got Coachella East.
Festival Scorecard: Coachella 2011
Coachella Valley Music and Arts Festival
Website: http://www.coachella.com/
Dates: April 15-17, 2011
Location: Indio, California
Top Bills: Kings of Leon, Arcade Fire, Kanye West, The Strokes
7p Score: 52%
Coachella is in an enviable position. It's one of the most attended festivals in America (for better or worse) and can draw huge acts. Since it's the first major one-site festival in the calendar year, it is naturally the first to announce its lineup. So not only does every act on the bill feel like a "scoop", they're able to tempt you with the promise of music in the oh-so-toasty desert while you're shoveling your car out from under three feet of snow.