music festival | Geekscape

My Experience At 2012 Outside Lands Music And Arts Festival

by pandazackAugust 18, 2012

For four years now, I make the yearly pilgrimage to Golden Gate park for the Outside Lands Music and Arts Festival. Obviously, Coachella is much closer to where I live in San Diego, but I have to say that Outside Lands is always much more enjoyable. Yes it is a music festival, but it also is an arts and food festival and here are some reasons why it’s just so awesome:

THE MUSIC

Every year I feel like I am getting too old for Coachella. Mind you, I had fun this past year (read the article here). But every year I go to Coachella, I feel there is an increasingly large quantity of rave bands that I’ve never heard of or even care about. When I go to Outside Lands, I know I am in for one of the most eclectic lineups imaginable. In past years I have seen Modest Mouse, Pearl Jam, Tom Jones, Mastadon, MGMT, Tenacious D, MIA, Band of Horses, Bright Eyes, Phoenix, Phish, and the list goes on and on. This years lineup was probably one of my favorites. This year, some of the headliners were Beck, Regina Spector, Jack White, Neil Young, Foo Fighters, Franz Ferdinand, FUN, Justice, Skrillex (bleh), Sigur Ros, Metallica, and STEVIE FUCKING WONDER. The last one specifically blew me away within minutes. As soon as the Stevie Wonder show started, he was seen walking out (totally solo) playing “How Sweet It Is” on a fucking keytar. He hadn’t even sat down yet but my mind was already blown. What came after that was an hour and some change of pure musical bliss with just one beautiful hit after another. Besides Stevie Wonder, there were some great smaller bands I was really happy to see. My Coachella favorite Wallpaper played Friday afternoon which was a lot of fun. Some other notables were Tanlines, Geographer, Trampled by Turtles, Fitz and the Tantrums, Washed Out, Zola Jesus and the super ridiculous South African Rap/Rave duo Die Antwoord.

Sigur Ros hasn’t been on tour together in four years and I have to say that it was a surreal experience to see them blasting their weird Icelandic what have ya. Neil Young put on a spectacular show, shredding on guitar and crooning in his magical way like there’s no tomorrow. This is quite impressive for a guy in his mid-60s. Also, listen to Washed Out if you haven’t heard of them. They have a acid-rock ethereal sound that is just pure awesome. My only problem with the fest is the scheduling. There were so many instances when I had to make a decision between multiple bands at any given time but that is something that happens to me at other festivals. As long as I can see some rad sets and nom on delicious grub then I am good with that.

THE FOOD

For those who don’t know me, I love food. Music might be a huge draw for me but I have to say I’m always most excited trying the best San Francisco has to offer in terms of local tasty-ness. Last year, Outside Lands introduced the food truck forest. It’s exactly what it sounds like…a beautiful forest littered with food trucks. This year however, the popularity of food trucks had increased past the forest to a point that the things were next to all of the stages now. Besides the food trucks, the main stage has a cornucopia of delicious treats to choose from. I dined on such decadent things as fried chicken sandwiches with jalapenos and apple-nut slaw, fried mac n cheese slices, and my favorite…pork belly Vietnamese Banh Mi sandwiches. Other festivals (Coachella included) only seem to have burritos, chicken fingers and over-priced pizza. Mind you the food isn’t the cheapest but I have to say that it is really worth it. If you are like me, a good adult beverage is a must when chowing down on decadent eats.

A view of some of the lights from the Food Truck Forest

THE BEVERAGES

Beer Gardens suck. Every time I go to a festival with a beer garden, I shudder at the fact that I know I’m about to enter that shamefully awkward alcoholic internment camp for an overpriced Heineken Light. Even worse, it means I can’t be at a stage listening to music if I plan on drinking. That isn’t the case at OL. This fest does have the absurdly priced Heinekens but it’s better because you can walk around with your alcoholic beverage and enjoy music at your leisure. And if Heineken isn’t your thing, OL has two giant tents dedicated to both Beer and Wine called Beerlands and Winelands respectively. Now at these magical places you can purchase a book of Monoploy looking money to purchase beers or wine from places all up and down California.

I never felt like there was an intense wait for drinks either which is really helpful unlike the god awful lines I’ve seen in beer gardens of the past.

THE PEOPLE

I hate crowds. With every fiber of my being, I can’t stand large quantities of humans in a spot at once. They always have but whether it’s Comic Con or another music festival you have to accept that crowds are just going to happen. Every year OL has become ever more popular but this year I think was the easiest/mellow experience I’ve had dealing with large music fest crowds. It also helped that I had such a phenomenal crew with me.

Tyson and I waiting for people under the windmills.

A few months ago, I suffered from a breakup with my girlfriend which for obvious reasons was a low point in my recent days. Apart from just changing my status quo, I had planned on sharing a vacation rental with her and some other friends. Shortly after the breakup, I withdrew myself from the group for fear of it being weird. With my plans of where to stay in San Francisco in flux, I had a guardian angel in the form of my roommate Jon. One weekend Jon invited some of his friends from his hometown of Huntington Beach to stay with us in San Diego.

With my roommate Jon while seeing Trampled by Turtles.

Over the weekend, I really bonded with this group and they told me how none of them had ever been to Outside Lands and were planning on going for the first time this year. They invited me along and I was grateful not just because of the situation I mentioned earlier but because I really love being a part of a group that is experiencing such a culture explosion like a music festival.

here is the 2012 OL crew. My new family.

This group rolls about 9 deep and the main focus is just nothing but good times and even though most of them hadn’t even been to San Francisco they all showed great adaptability and had nothing but great times. We all had very similar music tastes but if there was an instance where someone wanted to see something else, there would usually be little splinter groups who would break away to go elsewhere. We never lost someone for a large period of time and made our meet up spot the giant Outside Lands windmills. No one ever felt pressured to miss something they wanted to see and there was never drama which was pretty awesome.

Me with my best friend Mallory. We’ve been at the last four Outside Lands together.

Now if you are curious if I ever ran into my ex-girlfriend while up there…I did and guess what. It totally wasn’t awkward and maybe it had something to do with time but I have a feeling that it has something to do with just the environment of Outside Lands. Ok, there we go, I got that out of my system so thanks for listening to that aspect …anyways… You won’t find any crazy angry people (well outside of a few weirdos I met in the Metallica mosh pit) at this festival. And that’s something I’m grateful for. As the years go on, I feel that this is one festival I can continue to go to and enjoy myself. I even witnessed a game of Twister played by total strangers while I was waiting for Jack White.

So, yeah, you have now successfully read my rant about my favorite music festival. Now I urge you to go out and seek this fest for yourself. I have attached a bunch of information for those who have never been or plan on going in the future. Feel free to contact me through facebook or my Instagram username of zackohdos. I would love to hear feedback if you’ve been to the fest or if you have festivals you are into.

A Trip to the Desert – A Diary of My Coachella 2012 Experience

by pandazackApril 18, 2012

I like to consider my body and mind a temple of pop culture. And in this temple, we worship three things: comics, movies, and music. For years I’ve gone to film festivals and comic conventions to gorge myself silly on those things that I love so it only makes sense that I make the pilgrimage once again to the desert for the Mecca of West Coast music festivals: Coachella. This year marked my third outing to the glorious festival and today I am here to share some of my experience as well as some do’s and don’ts if you plan on going to the fest for Week Two.

At this point you should know whether or not you plan on camping. This year I camped for the second time at the fest and I have to say it was a pretty rewarding experience. I was part of a group on Facebook called Chellavista.

This group mostly hails from San Diego but we also got some people to camp with us from Los Angeles. There were 20 cars in total and it was one of the biggest productions I had the honor of being involved in. I didn’t know a lot of these people but they taught me many things. If you plan on camping, make sure you have the following:

A tent: duh

Canopy: Who wants to wake up at 7 with the sun?

Plenty of blankets and a decent sleeping bag.

A portable stove top

Food to cook with: Your body will love you if you give it a nice hot meal when you wake up. I dined on chorizo and egg burritos or sausage in the mornings and it was pretty much heaven.

A well packed toiletries bag: Just because you are going to a place with a crap ton of hippies doesn’t mean you have to be one. I made sure my bag had deodorant, shower wipes, hand sanitizer, q-tips, aspirin, foot powder for all of the insane walking and of course a decent cologne.

The Chellavista group met at a Wal Mart close to the polo fields on Thursday morning. That way we could not only group up but also get a fresh stock of supplies. We bought a ton of fruit, nuts, meat and liquids. When you camp you can have a case of beer per person and when beer is 7-8 bucks a pop inside, it’s good to get a 30 case of Tecate on the cheap. The heat can also really get to a person so I recommend you fill your body with tons of fruit for some good natural energy. Some of this seems like common sense but when you enter into that festival…common sense can leave you sometimes.

Also, be mindful of the weather. Week 1 was really cold and we also had a bit of rain. I’ve heard its supposed to be in the hundreds for Week 2 so make sure you pack accordingly. I thought it was only going to be cold for one day and I took that for granted and ended up freezing up until it got hot on Sunday.

You can’t bring outside food in and the festival grub can be rather pricy so it is smart to eat ahead of time whether at your camp or the way in. As delicious as spicy pie pizza or the garlic fries are, they add up quickly and it’s best to save your money me thinks. Stay cool out there and make sure you bring an empty water bottle. I bought one of those Britta water bottles with a built in filter. The last time I went to the festival in 2009, they had a water refill station that was a glorified drinking fountain. The water it produced had large dirt deposits in it and was pretty gross. This year they have some decent refill stations next to a few of the bathrooms. The water they have for you to fill up on isn’t the best so I always felt better with the filtered bottle.

For the first night, I erected a make shift cave out of the back of my truck. I put a tarp over the bed and fastened it with ratchet straps and filled the truck bed with pillows, blankets and bedding. However it didn’t matter how much I put in there, the ridged lining of the back made it pretty damn uncomfortable, partnered with a nearby friend’s intense snoring and it made for a very rough first night.

A shot of our camping area, I drive the white honda truck on the right. — A shot of our camping area, I drive the white Honda truck on the right.

Sleep can be fleeting if you are in the campground. Whether it’s snoring friends like I mentioned above or annoying people 10 cars down playing dubstep at 3 in the morning it can be pretty tough to sleep. I recommend earplugs and not being afraid to call it an early night. Your friends might want you to stay up and hang out until the wee hours of the morning but trust me, you’ll be thankful you are able to have enough energy to do all the walking and waiting that happens the next day.

Since the lineup was released for the fest, I spent so much time listening and plotting who I wanted to see. Murphy’s Law comes into effect here. Its good to stack your schedule but be prepared to abandon bands if you want to see certain things. There was a time I wish I had a rechargeable phone battery on hand so I didn’t have to stand at a recharge station for my phone while Neon Indian was rocking out. Speaking of which, have a good charge on your phone and keep a charger on you in case you do need to charge it. I hate that our society depends so much on these devices now but if it means you might loose your people or a ride, charge the damn thing good and keep off of 3G since it’s pretty tough to get a signal most times anyways. Also, if you have a smartphone you should download the Coachella app. It has all the bands and events going on during the fest and is a fun thing to have. When my phone was dead however I found myself using the handy Coachella schedule booklet that you can get in the fest. Not only does it have the lineup for every day it also has a map and other useful info that is worth knowing.

If you can get to the Playstation Experience Early, have them charge your phone. — If you can get to the Playstation Experience early, have them charge your phone.

Musical acts I was really excited that I got to see were:

Wallpaper (A friend told me about this guy and all I have to say is he is a must see on Friday and he’s the first act. If you want fun dance-y music you owe it to yourself to check out someone you probably haven’t heard of. Check out a song here)

Listen to the song Stupidfacedd by Wallpaper right now! — Listen to the song #stupidfacedd by Wallpaper right now!

Flying Lotus: Saw him during Comic Con in SD last year but his show was brilliant at the Gobi tent this year. I can’t stand pretentious DJs who seem to cool for school when they are spinning. This guy is far from that sort of DJ since every time I have seen him he has the biggest smile on his face and seems like he really enjoys what he does. That mixed with his infectious homemade beats makes for a really enjoyable show.

Childish Gambino: I love “Mystery Team”, Community, and anything else Donald Glover does and he proves that actors can have a music career. He was funny, had a great backup band and also rocked out hard with a broken foot! Check it out.

Childish Gambino rocking out during "Freaks and Geeks" — "Heartbeat" and "Freaks and Geeks" are both awesome Gambino songs.

Jeff Magnum: Neutral Milk Hotel is one of my all time favorite bands growing up. When I heard that the front man of said band was going to be returning after a very long hiatus, I know I had to be present for it. I have to say he gave a great intimate show on the outdoor stage.

Oberhofer: They look like a bunch of wiry teens but man do they rock. Check out a song of theirs here

Modeselektor: These crazy Germans know how to bring a house down. They also have a jam with Thom Yorke that is really infectious.

Musical acts I’m sad I missed:

Explosions in the Sky: I’ve never seen a whole set from these guys.

Neon Indian: Some fun trippy dance music that was happening right when my phone decided to die.

Otherlives: One of those buzz bands that got away.

The Black Keys: I’d rather not get too into detail here lets just say I was bummed.

But if you want to see what my schedule looked like, here it is: Zack’s Coachella Sched. Of course it was great to see the big acts like Radiohead, Snoop and Dre, as well as Bon Iver. However, I really enjoy checking out obscure groups also and I feel like that can sometimes be more rewarding.

Another great aspect of Coachella is all the great art installations around. Years before, I witnessed large Tesla Coils, LED walls and all sorts of craziness. This year the highlight were LED remote controlled sharks that prowled the grounds at night. Look out for those things. The DO LAB is fun to check out for a bit but I only spent 30 minutes there period. If you like strange vaudevillian circus acts, it might be just the place for you.

I really enjoyed the Playstation experience tent. It’s right before you get to the Sahara and not only do they charge your phone but they will hand you a PS Vita and let you walk around and play with it. Mind you they will have your phone so best not loose it or think you can steal it.

The Tupac hologram was awesome to see from a sci fi fans perspective. However, I couldn’t help but feel like it was blasphemous in some way. Like Tupac is now omni-present and can play in every state of America at the same time if the music gods wished it.

I got to meet up with the one and only Brian Gilmore during the fest and I have to say it was a pleasure getting to see him experience the joys of Coachella for his first time. He and I talked about how Coachella is like Comic Con for music fans and I agree to an extent. Coachella is a treasure trove of stuff to behold like Con can be however I think Coachella appeals to many more because it can be a much more rewarding experience in terms of meeting people and having your eyes opened to many new and exciting bands that you might not have heard of otherwise.

For those who are staying at a hotel, just know I have no pity for you. You have a shower, bathroom, a quiet place to sleep and potentially air conditioning. All things that are scarce on the camp grounds of infinity. Camping can be a much more rewarding experience if you do it right. I hope this has been helpful for you and if you have any questions, message me on facebook and I will be more than happy to talk with ya about anything.