Follow Me at Bonnaroo!

As you probably know, Bonnaroo is rapidly approaching! Each year I've watched the festival get a little more crowded and a little less enjoyable, but I'm determined to press on because of the handful of bands I MUST see live. If you haven't gotten a chance to check out the full schedule: Bonnaroo 2010 Schedule. The headliners are: DMB, Kings of Leon, Stevie Wonder, Jay-Z and Weezer. Bonnaroo has a tendency to be a little weaker on their headliner picks (excluding Radiohead a few years back, of course) so Dave Matthews will be the last show on Sunday. As such, my group is going to hit the RV early, but I am really looking forward to seeing Weezer. Initially I worried that Weezer would rock mostly their new records because I really only liked a couple of the tunes on the Red Album, "The Greatest Man that Ever Lived" in particular, but the festival scene should correct the problem. That is, the tendency to play the classic hits, interspersed with a handful of new songs. I am BEYOND excited to get a chance to see Stevie Wonder. Epic.

Okay. So the big debate: Kings of Leon; to see them, or to skip out. I hate to be that girl who qualifies liking Kings by pulling the "Well, I like OLD Kings of Leon," but it's kind of the truth. I think about the new record, "Only by the Night" like I think of The Doors' "The Soft Parade." Come on- "Touch Me" ... "Sex on Fire" ... huge for the radio-listeners, but on the whole a complete disappointment and a total reversion to sex to sell records. Whatever. It happens to the best. But The Doors brought it back home to the self-title and "Waiting for the Sun" just a year after "The Soft Parade," so extending the comparison, I have hope for Kings of Leon. You've got to sell out eventually if you want to afford to get back to the studio and keep rocking. With any luck, in the next few years we'll hear new tunes from the Kings more in the vein of "Youth and Young Manhood" and "Aha Shake Heartbreak." That being said, I'll catch the show at Bonnaroo if there's some down time, but I'm not camping out for it.

Where you'll find me at Bonnaroo:

THURSDAY, JUNE 10:
4:15pm- Fanfarlo (The Other Tent)
7:00pm- Local Natives (That Tent)
9:00pm- The Dodos (This Tent)
10:15pm- Blitzen Trapper (The Other Tent)

FRIDAY JUNE 11: Marathon Day
1:45pm- The Gaslight Anthem (Which Stage)
4:00pm- Dr. Dog (The Other Tent)
5:45pm- The National (Which Stage)
7:30pm- Les Claypool (The Other Tent)
9:30pm- Kings of Leon (What Stage)
12:00am- The Flaming Lips performing "Dark Side of the Moon" (Which Stage)
2:00am- LCD Soundsystem (This Tent)

SATURDAY JUNE 12:
3:30pm- Jimmy Cliff (What Stage)
4:45pm- The Avett Brothers (Which Stage)
6:00pm- The Dead Weather (What Stage)
7:00pm- Weezer (Which Stage)
8:30pm- Stevie Wonder (What Stage)
12:00am- Thievery Corporation (That Tent)
3:00am- The Disco Biscuits (That Tent)

SUNDAY JUNE 13:
12:00pm- Ingrid Michaelson (The Other Tent)
4:30pm- They Might Be Giants (The Other Tent)
7:15pm- Phoenix (Which Stage)

There are some intentional gaps in the schedule for last-minute decisions and checking out some new bands, but that's mostly the game plan. The hardest decision I had to make for scheduling was between The Flaming Lips and The Black Keys, who are both performing at midnight on Friday. I know, I know- it shouldn't really be THAT hard of a decision because The Flaming Lips show will be a once in a lifetime experience, but I REALLY love The Black Keys and I've never gotten a chance to see them live. I will be making strides to do so in the next year to make up for missing them at Bonnaroo. But it kills me. Really.

So stay tuned the next couple of weeks for some talk of must-see shows, previews, tips for first-timers and thrilling updates! Take it easy and keep on rocking.

(image from: http://blogs.phoenixnewtimes.com/uponsun/Bonnaroo2010.jpg)