BONNAROO MUSIC FESTIVAL: DAY 1 ///
MANCHESTER, TN ///
JUNE 12, 2008 ///
WORDS & PHOTOS: ABBEY BRADEN ///

The Bonnaroo Music and Arts Festival is many things. First off, it's in the middle of nowhere on a 700 acre farm in Tennessee. When in operation, the gathering grows to be the 3rd largest city in the state. Needless to say the event- what many consider to be the finest music festival in the US- is a finely oiled piece of machinery. It's kind of mind blowing when you stop to think about it... Every single solitary item is trucked into the site, and although the humming of generators permeates the air around the clock, the fest has been 'green' since its inception in 2002.

So on the one hand, it's a feat of engineering on a large scale. Oh the other hand, things run so smoothly that you don't even think about the details, so you take Bonnaroo (Cajun slang for 'a really good time') at face value- a stoner's delight version of the awesomest pop up book ever. Unlike the other cushy metropolitan festival we frequent every summer, instead of 'Budweiser' or 'AOL Music' main stages, a 'Roo concertgoer is privy to the 'Which' and 'What' stages. These are supplemented by 'This,' 'That,' and 'The Other' stages. So you're pretty much bitchsmacked with a demographic 'Who's on first' situation right off the bat. Imagine that, seen against the backdrop of Uncle Ernie's Holiday Camp. We give up. Laisser le bon temps rouler!

How did I end up here? Well, 'Sup got invited by the good people that run the fest (many many thanks to Ken, Steve, Jim, Chris, Tito and Nicole at BH), and like, as a reflex cuz we *heart* festivals, booked a plane ticket in zero seconds flat. What was there to think about? Bonnaroo 2008 held the promise of a killer lineup, an arcade, a film screening tent, and an air conditioned FUSE barn complete with lasso instruction and pie eating contests. I mean, I can do rustic during the day if there is a bed and lots of pillows at night

*CRICKETS*

Ummmm, yeah, turns out those sorts of accommodations weren't really available. Bonnaroo is best experienced as a camping situation (hotels, which are far offsite, are booked a year in advance), except I hadn't pitched a tent in my life.... yeah. So this is where Matt and Craig from the Ice Cream Man crew offa the west coast came to the rescue. Thanks to their list of supplies, eternal patience with my questions (WTF is a camping pad, and why do people bring surgical masks, please define Superjam, and where do babies come from), tent pitching skills and overall having my back and then some, I'm still standing. It was absolutely worth it. Holla.

Day 1 Thursday:

The festivities were kicked off in proper jammy fashion by MGMT. The last time we saw these boys a clusterfuck of industry types were scrambling to get into their sold out Stubb's show in Austin, so the vibe was a bit frantic as a result. It was interesting to see them embrace the chilled out mood in this setting. Please note the rainbow kid appropriate attire. Hackeysack!

We happily skipped out on Battles to slip into Kemado sweethearts The Sword's set. Hallelujah, in the name of shaggy hair, unironic bell bottom sportin' and O-faces:

What 2008 festival would be complete without a 'Let's All Be Friends Through Our Ivy World Beat' gig by Vampire Weekend? Apparently none. So we chucked the haterade over our slightly sunburnt shoulder and went. As a result, we were privy to their tightest gig yet, with just the right amount of humbled stage banter and a strong rapport with the audience.

and here's another Ezra Koenig mug for good measure:

The lineup at the comedy tent came calling though, so we skipped across the western edge of the site to a straight up proper circus tent. The line was several hundred people long, and many were clutching red slips of paper that they had picked up earlier to guarantee entry to the performance. Uh-oh. Time to see if the trusty artist laminate/ photopass combo worked. We had to do it on the sly, because cock blocking well meaning general admission people out of a laugh-fest is not cool, especially since people were desperate enough to make fake red slips to try and get in. Anyway we got the 'nod' and made our way through the flaps (everyone eventually did get inside). Once there, the setting was pretty stunning. Tiers of wooden benches encircled an air conditioned auditorium. The stage- with a farmlife mural backdrop for the baby grand piano naturally- was complete with a photopit, so my friends waved goodbye and found seats on the floor. Rather than remain in the line of fire though, I plopped down on a bale of hay stage right with my cameras, and proceeded to laugh like I had never laughed before thanks to Reggie Watts. Literally. Janeane Garafalo, sitting behind me, was losing it during his set. No one- regardless of race, gender, or musical preference- was safe.

Zach Galifiniakis championed round 2, and I realized what a great state of comedy we are in now. Before I could wax too poetic on the gifts of Human Giant and College Humor though, an urgent text message summoned us to the Troo Music Lounge.

Now I was still struggling with the whole layout of the fest, but for some reason I went straight to the Troo Music Lounge tent, and squeezing through an exuberant audience (that included members of Battles) I was pretty much swept away by Extra Golden for an infinite number of reasons. As impressed as I was with Vampire Weekend earlier that night, EG dissolved those thoughts upon audio contact because they are the REAL DEAL. As real as Tropical-Psychedelic-Funk out of Nairobi can get. Putamayo, Paul Simon, and the opening credits of any Globe Trekker take note: stop fronting and just give these guys a billion dollars now. Props to Thrill Jockey for signing 'em, and check out their myspace ASAP because they are swinging through the US and Germany all through the summer. Deciding to end the night on the upnote, we recouped at the end of the set and set back to camp. Then I realized I really didn't realize what my tent looked like in the dark... but that's what friends are for. Teamwork.