Modest Mouse

Seattle’s musical grab-bag of a festival known as Bumbershoot is coming up September 5-7, and I’ll be headed back this year to check out the activities. Unbeknownst to most of the festival-goers, Bumbershoot is an arts festival as opposed to a strictly music festival, and has a wide variety of options outside of the live music.  I had a pretty fun time at Bumbershoot 2008, but I was on a bit of a must-see-everything rampage throughout the festival.  While I have a handful of musical acts I really don’t want to miss, I’m going to try and take the time to catch some of the comedy, film, and literary slots as well.  Here’s a preview of what I’m hoping to check out:

Saturday 9/5:

The first day I’ll have an early start as I head over to check out Dyno Jamz at 12:30.  Winners of the Experience Music Project Sound Off competition, these 8 guys form a fantastic blend of funk, jazz, and hip-hop from here in Seattle. I’ve had the pleasure of catching these guys a number of times around town and have been pleasantly surprised every time by their live sets.  Get an early start to your day and check them out.

The rest of Saturday will be subject to wandering until the Old 97′s at 7:45, and Elvis Perkins in Dearland at 8:30.  I last saw Elvis Perkins at South By Southwest in 2007 and was floored by the Bob Dylan-vibe I got from him, so that is a must-see set for me.  Saturday night ends with a choice between Sheryl Crow and De La Soul.  I’d love to tell you all I’m hip enough to love De La Soul, but I’d be lying if I didn’t tell you it was a toss-up between the two for me.  I mean, what if Lance is at Sheryl’s set?

Sunday 9/6:

Aside from an afternoon set by the Yeah Yeah Yeahs, my first scheduled stop on Sunday will be to Michael Shrieve’s Spellbinder at 5:30.  Shrieve is the former drummer for Santana’s band, and had a recent Seattle Times article about his experiences at Woodstock that’s worth a read.  Michael Franti and Spearhead hit the stage at 7:15, though we may split early in order to catch Patton Oswalt’s comedy set at 8:00. MSTRKRFT at 8:30 and perhaps The Helio Sequence at 9:30 will likely end the night for me.

Monday 9/7:

The Minus 5 start off the last day of Bumbershoot at 1:30, however my absolute must-see of the day is going to be hearing the writers of LOST at 3:30.  I’m a LOST fanatic, so any chance to get even the slightest preview of the final season is at the top of my list. According to the information on Bumbershoot’s site, the program will include producer/writers Carlton Cuse, Eddy Kitsis and Adam Horowitz and will feature dialogue amongst the writers and an audience Q&A, so if anyone has any killer questions to ask the masterminds behind the best show on television, leave a comment below and hopefully I’ll get a chance to ask.

After hopefully getting my noggin messed with by the guys from LOST, Akron/Family hits the stage at 6:00, Truckasaurus goes on at 7:45, and one of my favorites, Keller Williams, is scheduled at 8:30.  Though I don’t have another Keller Williams interview scheduled, you should all check out his new album ODD when it comes out, it’s pretty solid.  A final set from Modest Mouse at 9:30 will cap off a hopefully-sunny weekend, and maybe after all of that I’ll be able to get up on Tuesday for work…

Photos from Bumbershoot 2008 by Kane Jamison (flickr)