Boston Calling 2017

also you guys know that it wasn't a traffic cone, it was like a modern-art Bunker Hill Monument, right

At the end of the day Mumford played slightly less than they were scheduled for and Tool played slightly more than they were scheduled for (though I wasn't sure if they started exactly on time). Either way they played past their set time and started their final song like a minute or two before they were supposedly done.

All in all an amazing fest. I felt like all 3 headliners really delivered here (and loved Chance/Mumford both taking a sprint out to behind the soundboard on the mini-stage for folks in the back of the crowd to get a moment of glory). On top of that most of the sets I saw during the weekend were good to great and the weather overall was solid (a little too rainy Friday but not killer and a little too sunny Saturday but Sunday was a perfect mix).


This may change but on my 6 a.m. review I'm going with Top 5 (in order):

1.) Tool
2.) Chance the Rapper
3.) Mumford & Sons
4.) Brandi Carlile
5.) Mac Demarco

Honorable Mentions: Run the Jewels was awesome as usual and the banter between songs was extra funny. Also really liked The XX and Bon Iver sets (but both had some crowd-talking/setting issues). Hannibal in the comedy tent was hilarious as well as Eugene Mirman and Jordan Rock

I totally agree with the musicianship. Those mfers don't even look at each other or interact. They are spaced way far appart. It's unclear if they know they are in the same band. But they are hella tight and given the complexity it's amazing they are so flawless. Total pros. The bass and drums are ridic. Honestly I have never seen a band where the lead singers seems so inconsequential.

I just don't enjoy the music/anti vibe. But they are talented. Let there be no doubt

Attended for Friday & Saturday, and overall, I liked this venue more than the previous one. I hope they keep the same place for the future editions, and use more space. Mud was never an issue for me, since I wanted to catch a lot of sets so I was not at the very front of the crowd for many sets (except Sigur Ros). About the lines; toilet lines were long, but there were other porta potties near the blue stage that seemed relatively empty, so that shouldn't be an issue. Food lines were a little crazy I must admit, I got my food before 5 pm on Friday, and I didn't wait, but on Saturday I missed the entire Tegan & Sara set just to get some food from Arancini Bros. But also, Saturday seemed a little overcrowded for me, so that's might be why that's the case.

Now about the music. I could see a lot of sets on Friday, so I'm happy about it, but on Saturday I couldn't see anyone before Oh Wonder as me and my crew ended up hanging out at the Mikkeller tent. I must admit I enjoyed Mumford & Sons more than I thought I would, and I was a little underwhelmed with Sylvan Esso to be honest. I also wanted to check Chance, but I was so tired after Sigur Ros and all the rain, I left the venue early.

Here is my top three:

1. The xx
2. Bon Iver
3. Sigur Ros

MJK was dressed as a SWAT officer, right?

So my wrapup thoughts

Initially the lineup seemed inspired that was before it was apparent that chance and the xx was this year's festival whores and before tool had governors Ball and there are mini East Coast tour. Still any festival with Sigur Ros bon iver a tool mumpsons chance top line along with some unique stuff like Brandi Carlisle and some hometown stuff like the hotelier needs to be taken seriously Nice work

I thought the layout was completely jacked. The red stage green stage thing would've worked if the red stage was fairly small acts and maybe the fourth stage. As constructive its semi insane

The Blue stage was Great. 3-4 of those and they would really have something. I thought the sound bleed was pretty annoying and I was on the rail for the blue stage most of the time I was there

Shaky knees Really spoiled me with their half hour in between acts on all stages. Because of the crowds and my insane need to have good spots I chose to rail most of the headliners starting at 4:30 or five. That our break followed by the hour 15 break was quite annoying. The only good thing was being at the green staged it allowed me to see the XX from a far. I have to be honest I don't get it I have no idea how they were at headliner or a sub headliner I got to see you run the jewels from afar and I get it but I'm not particularly a fan. I got to see major Lazer from a far and I really don't get it. But I do like the booty squad

I thought the lineup was worth the ticket price but the set up definitely was not. Security was incredibly lax at the gate and a bunch of incredible dicks inside. I don't smoke and don't even really like it but I do not consider it to be a unimaginable offense against humanity

The Friday Saturday Sunday scheduling thing made a lot of sense to me however moving the Sigur Ros time to overlap bon iver was stupidity of the highest order

Since I don't have any other place to put it I really don't get the hate for mumpsons there are very talented and put on a good show and I think their songs are pretty good

I have this as a 7.5 out of 10 I liked shaky knees a lot better but just because it's indie/rock through and through. I think this would work a lot better with one additional stage and a few more artists each day. There was a few too many times where I was choosing between the lesser of two evils and not what I really wanted to see

I won't go on about the negative things I've already said earlier, but I will say Friday might of been one of the best days of music for me. Whitney - Car Seat Headrest - Mac DeMarco - Bon Iver - Chance was incredible. Danny Brown was also bonkers on Saturday. Kevin Morby and Mumford were both enjoyable. It's fun to see how crazy the crowd was for old Mumford songs, and when they played anything from the new album nobody cared. Cage and Mitski were both great on Sunday. However, the pre-teens in the crowd for both Mitski and Bon Iver almost ruined those shows for me. I was only in Boston for my sisters' graduation, but even if I did live nearby I wouldn't be going back unless they decreased the capacity or increased the space they have and added two more stages. Hangout has 6 stages and seemed to have the same capacity, but Boston Calling only had 3 and you could tell, especially once it hit 6 pm. Lines for food were at least 30-40 minutes long. Scheduling made no sense, and there were times where I looked around and I thought it was on almost Frye Festival level in terms of poor planning.

My Top 10:
Whitney
Bon Iver
Mac DeMarco
Chance the Rapper
Danny Brown
Cage the Elephant
Mumford & Sons
Car Seat Headrest
Mitski
Kevin Morby

Btw, a real positive about the festival is the location. I've done a few city festivals now and this was by far the easiest to get in and out of. Also super close to so many places to grab drinks, food and coffee. The T wasn't far either and we stayed in alewife, so getting back every night was simple. Hard contrast to the shit show that is randalls island and zilker at the end of the night.

Hopefully this isn't overkill, but I wanted to do a little write up, and expand on my top 10. Thinking about reviving my blog so wanted to do this for BC and Gov Ball next weekend to see what people thought.

1) Sigur Ros - Sigur Ros closed out the blue stage Friday night opposite Chance the Rapper in what can only be called a truly magical experience. Even with the frigid spring rain trying to destroy the mood of the crowd waiting for Jonsi and the gang to take the stage it was a night to remember. Early set fan favorites such as "Saeglopur" and "Ny Batteri", took the crowd by the horns, and allowed for Sigur to take us all on a journey down a rabbit hole that would make Alice's look plain.

2)Wolf Parade - "We just finished our new album." When these words left Guitarist Dan Beckoner's mouth the crowd whipped into a frenzy. Last year Wolf Parade returned from an indefinite hiatus that started in 2011, and new music from the Canadian indie rock icons has been waited for since. They satiated our hunger a little with their self titled EP last year, but now that we know a full length album is coming, it can't come soon enough. The band's set teased us with two phenomenal two songs, the second of which stuck out especially (the working title supposedly is Loverboy). In addition the band played crowd favorites such as "I'll Believe in Anything" and "Kiss the Behive" to put the exclamation point on a truly spectacular set.

3)Strand of Oaks - The Philadelphia based rock quartet can do no wrong. Led by frontman and mastermind Timothy Showalter the group's early afternoon set on Saturday was a standout moment in a day that was otherwise pretty lackluster. The positivity Showalter exudes is contagious, and as a fan of music you cannot help but get down to the group's lucious guitar riffs, and dynamic solos. These boys are on the verge of blowing up, so catch 'em at a small venue while you can. Stand out songs include the always stellar "JM" which was dedicated to Chris Cornell, and the set opener, the band's current single, "Radio Kids".

4) Sylvan Esso - This was my first time seeing the explosive electronic duo from Durham, NC featuring Amelia Meath and Nick Sanborn. The group took the red stage mid afternoon, and instantly had the chilled crowd warm again with their infectious dance beats, and hooks that just make you want to scream them back with as much energy as possible, and of course there was the dancing. The best part of any Sylvan Esso show has to be Miss Meath's dancing, the girl gets down with the best of them, and turns an already high energy show into a spectacle.

5)Mondo Cozmo - Another group on the verge of blowing up is Mondo Cozmo, who opened the red stage on Sunday. Spearheaded by former Philadelphian Josh Ostrander the group plays very straight forward, but perfectly executed rock n roll, for me they are very reminiscent of U2. The groups lead single "Shine" is a feel good summer anthem that could very easily be a song of the summer contestant if the chorus was not so drug oriented. On this day though the stand out of the set had to be their stellar cover of The Verve's "Bittersweet Symphony" which quickly provoked a lot of energy out of what can be a tired Sunday morning crowd.

6)Frightened Rabbit - The Scottish quintet Frightened Rabbit started their mid day blue stage set, by letting us know what a bunch of "boring cunts" they had to play out at a festival in Napa. Upon hearing this Boston was determined to not let the band down applauding for as long as two minutes between songs. The group's setlist was constructed excellently staring off early with fan favorites such as "Holy" and "Modern Leper" and wrapping things up with "The Woodpile". The band sprinkled in a bunch of great songs of their 2016 release "Painting of a Panic Attack", and shone a new light on them by rocking them up a little more from the rather somber synth driven album versions.

7)Deerhoof - In my opinion Deerhoof might be the most misunderstood band in Indie music. The art rock group I believe don't take themselves too seriously, and that's the genius of their act. They are up their to make music, and have fun. I was disappointed that their trademark cover of "Pour Some Sugar On Me" didn't appear, but that didn't take away from the fact that their set was so good it made the freaking sun come out.

8)Brandi Carlile - I went to this set strictly to sing along to "The Story". That being said I was quickly blown away by Miss Carlile's vocal prowess. Her set from start to finish showed why she has been doing this with the degree of success she's had for 15 years. Her songs all pack a punch and are quite memorable. The clear set stand out to me was when half the band left the stage and her and her guitarist and bassist performed a gorgeous song in three part harmony, not sure of the title, but I will definitely be looking it up.

9)Mac Demarco - Mac knows how to put on a show, this is common knowledge. On this day the audience was treated to prom dances a strange, but glorious Vanessa Carlton cover, and Mac telling security off, all of these, and so much more made this set one I won't soon forget. "Chamber of Reflection" I thought was especially delightful on this day.

10)Mitski - Going into Mitski I thought I hated her. How wrong I was. Mitski's set was filled with great millennial angst that I want to see more of. Her vocal versatility also has me very intrigued, and her stand out single "Your Best American Girl" was all I wanted and more live. Definitely checking her out in Philly in a few months.

Still on the bus back to NYC, so I'll just do a top 10 for now.

Chance
Brandi Carlile
Mitski
Bon Iver (end of the set was my top moment of the get though)
Sylvan Esso
Kevin Morby
RTJ
Mumford
Flatbush Zombies
Hiss Golden Messenger


Unfortunately I had to leave Tool after a few songs because no one else was feeling it. But I liked what I heard, and the visuals were awesome.

I thought about that and went with irony

Sigur Ros







Mumford
Tool
Danny Brown
Bon Iver
Francis
Mondo Cozmo
Hiss Golden Messenger
Strand of Oaks
Cousin Stizz

I'm having a really hard time not being biased against bands I've already seen in these rankings. Bon Iver was great but it was never going to top the Hammerstein show in December

edit: Sigur Ros was far and beyond the best show i saw this weekend

Lots of talking and off-timed singing hurt my Bon Iver show. I wish I made more of an effort to get in earlier and get closer because the spots I was finding in the middle were distracting at best. Great set but it didn't hit me as much as others because of my environment.

Enjoyed Flatbush Zombies and Cage the Elephant more than I thought I would. Mostly because of me now knowing them too much but wanting to check out anyway.

Tool was stellar. I loved how the stage show built up more and more throughout the show. In the beginning there was little video and lights and stuff like that and as each song progressed they introduced more and more that made it amazing. Can't wait to see them this Sunday at Governors Ball (hopefully no rain).

Best sets of the weekend, by time: Sigur Ros, Mumfords, Weezer, Tool.

HM: Car Seat, Danny Brown, The XX, Pup, Converge, RTJ, Cage

Like the new venue, the turf was a nice perk and is way better than the brick at CHP. Yea they can do better with lines and a few other things, but I had a good weekend. Got to see a bunch of good bands and a bunch of Inforooers and close to home.