Wakarusa's biggest night: A recap of day three's music
June 6th, 2010 at 10:22 pm
Widespread Panic. All photos by KEVIN KINDER, NWA Media
Saturday was expected to be the big day.
The big artists. The day of big attendance. The day of the heaviest excesses.
And?
It was one big party.
The Wakarusa Festival continued into Saturday with artists such as Widespread Panic, Zappa Plays Zappa and The Black Keys and a population of festival goers that certainly reached its highest point of the entire event, which continues through today (Sunday) at Mulberry Mountain near Ozark.
It was a full day of music, dust, heat, partying and more. If you can imagine it, it can happen at a music festival.
High temperatures did not temper the enthusiasm of the crowd, which turned out in force to see the mainstage artists such as Widespread Panic, who drew a crowd of perhaps 10,000 fans that formed a sea of dancers.
There were plenty of other memorable sets, too.
We started the day with Truth & Salvage Co., a six-piece Americana outfit based in Los Angeles. The group swung between nostalgic looks at country music to a lopping zydeco. Lyrically, the group was a little weak, but a crowd of perhaps 100 in the noontime hour swayed along them for the durations of their set.
They were followed on the mainstage by Tea Leaf Green, a Wakarusa festival staple and a jam band that writes a mean pop song. I didn’t catch much of the band’s show, but I walked away impressed (again) at their musicianship.
Blues Traveler
Sticking with the mainstage, Blues Traveler followed with a bluesy, soulful, virtuoso performance. Although recognizable for their hits in the mid-90s, the band that took the stage on Saturday afternoon was one adept at solos, especially those of lead vocalist John Popper, who also played harmonica and did it well. The group did play their biggest hits, including “But Anyway,” Runaround” and “Hook” and a surprisingly delightful cover of Radiohead’s “Creep.” They are truly a formidable band.
Next up on the mainstage was Ohio-based duo The Black Keys, who are touring in support of a new album, “Brothers.”
Dan Auerbach of The Black Keys
Their set marked the beginning of the large mainstage crowds, as many 5,000 thousand gathered to watch their 90-minute set. They started with older tracks such as “Stack Shot Billy” and “Girl Is On My Mind” before adding two touring members – a bassist and a keyboard player – and diving into a block of songs from “Brothers”: “Everlasting Light,” “Tighten Up,” “Next Girl,” “Howlin’ For You,” and “10 Cent Pistol,” all played in short order.
They beefed the songs up with short solos, and guitarist and vocalist Dan Auerbach must be acknowledged for his guitar play. He’s not a noodler like some of those on the list (we’ll get to that in a minutes) but he played menacingly at times and played some absolutely filthy guitar riffs, including the barnstormer that runs through “I Got Mine,” the song they closed the set with.
It got greasier with the psychedelic rock of Zappa Plays Zappa. The eight-piece band is led by Dweezil Zappa, who plays the music of his late father, Frank Zappa. I’m not terribly familiar with the Frank Zappa catalog, but Zappa Plays Zappa certainly captured some of the weirdness of the Zappa sound. The group played cuts like “Daddy Daddy Daddy” and “Keep It Greasy,” with Dweezil Zappa often instructing the crowd about the album the songs came from.
A stage over, at the Revival Tent, Slightly Stoopid drew an overflow crowd to watch their blend of rock, reggae and other genres. I didn’t stay long, but the crowd, a young rambunctious group, was already grooving when I left.
It was perhaps the biggest name on the entire bill – Widespread Panic – that closed out the mainstage entertainment. The group from Georgia has been playing for two decades and has a roster of songs that can fill much much more than the three-hour block of time they were given.
The group switches focal points between members, letting players such as Jimmy Herring on guitar and Dave Schools on bass have their way with their instruments.
It’s impossible to guess because of the dark and immense amount of ground in the festival area, perhaps 10,000 people gathered to watch. But, others were headed elsewhere, too.
JJ Grey played a late night set. So did Split Lip Rayfield and dozens more.
It was a big day indeed.