Shaky Knees 2024 - still shaking May 3-5

So I had a pretty eventful weekend. Stayed at my friend's place by Little 5 Points and had my car stolen! Not towed, not broken into, just gone. However, I'm incredibly lucky to have the friends that I have. Because of them, this is probably my favorite Shaky Knees out of the eight I've been to.

1. Dinosaur Jr. Alright this show was insanely special. This was one of the only shows I was looking forward to on Sunday. I'm thinking the weather forecast looks nice, I'm gonna have a pretty relaxed day. A few minutes before the show I see some scary looking clouds. But weather radar says it should pass right over us. Maybe we'll get some raindrops which would be very welcome. Well, then it starts raining a few minutes before Dinosaur Jr. gets on. But everyone in the crowd was like yeah this is cool. Then it starts raining A LOT. Heavy raindrops and I'm freezing cold in just shorts and a T-shirt. I see the pit open up in front of me but I'm still anxious about my phone taking water damage and I didn't want to break my glasses in the pit. I already lost my car, I was afraid of what else this weekend would take from me. But then I'm so cold I get in the pit purely for warmth. At this point there's no way I'm leaving so I might as well embrace it. So I'm dancing and moshing in this tsunami but being fairly careful. That is until I hear Dinosaur Jr.'s beautiful, messy, psychedelic, grungy rendition of Just Like Heaven. He hadn't started singing yet but I knew what it was and I was in the pit going "YES! YES! YES! YES!". At this point, I knew it was my moment. Now or never. Looked around the crowd for the nearest tall people and had them crowd-surf me. This was practically the best moment of my life. Crowd surfing in the pouring rain to a song that's such a core part of my life and singing every word. Feeling completely weightless and looking down at a crowd smiling and looking back up at me. A moment that only comes second to running into Dad Dog during Korn's performance of Blind at Bonnaroo. I get back into the crowd and a few songs later they perform Start Choppin (the song that got me into Dinosaur Jr). At this point, I've completely let go. You only get so many of these moments in life. Then during the last minute of the song, it stops raining. I almost cried right then and there. It was just too perfect it didn't feel real. A normal show without the rain would have been cool. But the rain made this a spiritual journey.

2. Microwave This was my first show after knowing that my car got stolen and it was absolutely what I needed. Being with my best friends in the pit screaming "If I can get this hanger through the window of my car!!!! I'd never leave my house for anything!!!" was absolutely what I needed. Microwave crowds always deliver too 

3. Interpol My first Interpol show and they played Roland! uncle silly philly got me into Interpol in the last year and introduced that song to me as their "mosh pit" song. But also a song that doesn't make it into a lot of their setlists. We didn't crowd kill the Noah Kahan campers but we had our own little space to get hype together. I can't wait to see Interpol close out a tent at Bonnaroo!

4. Arcade Fire These guys are just pros at performing what can I say? Even on the second stage, they made it feel like a headlining set on the main stage.

5. Sunny Day Real Estate This is one of those shows that was a special treat for me. I managed to get center rail for this show and hearing Diary in full is something I'll probably never experience again. Coming out swinging with Seven was one of the most exciting moments of the festival for me. I also love seeing elder emos pushing 50 on stage and in the crowd. But I also love seeing people younger than me equally as enthusiastic. The diversity in age groups made me really happy (that's something I can also say for Dinosaur Jr). I can't wait to be an elder emo still making it out to shows.

6. Pond This was another show that was a special treat for me. I got third row and managed to touch the singer's sweaty hands a couple times. Because I had seen them before I knew he liked to crowd surf. So at one point when he came down to the rail I yelled "crowd surf I know you want to!". He looks me dead in the eyes and grabs my arm. But either security didn't let him do it or the crowd behind me didn't fill in enough to help. I gave it my best attempt though.

7. Weezer This set was a lot of fun but also a little disappointing. Sound wasn't great for us and just didn't feel like a headliner show. Also leaving 15 minutes on the table when El Scorcho is just waiting to be performed is messed up. However that Hole cover was a highlight of my weekend. That's my go-to "karaoke" song and that was such a "me moment". If they followed it with Pink Triangle instead of Falling For You that would have sent me through the roof. But the spirit was there.

8. Queens of the Stone Age Weezer is only ahead because I knew more songs and had more fun. QOTSA was a better show if I were to rank this more objectively. But these guys put on a headliner-worthy show on the side stage just like Arcade Fire. I wonder if there was a logistical reason why those two bands had to play that stage instead of pre-headlining on the main. Maybe because their production needs to be set up early in the day therefore they have to close out whichever stage they play? Who knows.  

Winona Fighter, Maserati, Wine Lips, Psychedelic Porn Crumpets, Billy Idol, and Matt & Kim were all good too but I don't know how I'd rank one over the other. Anyways that's my Shaky Knees book report.