No, it's actually the worst Bumbershoot ever. Usually there's at least some great old-timer who doesn't tour much, or a handful of weird local acts that you'd never get to see all at once. But not this year. Forget about the lame mainstream acts, there's lots of boring local garage rock and boring local indie pop. Except for the EMP metal sets on Sunday afternoon, there's not a damn thing I want to see. First time EVER that's happened. I guess that's Seattle these days--as conservative music-wise as it's ever been. Boring boring boring.

effin-A #1. The Stranger's music dept is pretty lame, and I credit that all to the Music Editor. What was his last post? Hawking free tickets? Get an intern for that shite, and at least pretend you're doing actual work. Bogus Bogus. Frick, I'll see what what i can do about renting out a ferry for a Stranger sponsored anti-Bumbershoot trip over to the blackberyyfestival.org - hmmmm, what should I do with work day? I'll get a haircut. Wait, I'll ask the public first. hey, is it payday yet? You guys really suck.

Am I hired?

this year's lineup doesn't have anything compelling me to show up. there's tokyo police club and...well, that's pretty much it. every other band i'd want to see is one i'd rather catch in a smaller venue. i'll miss out on the funnel cake, but i'll survive.

Roky Erickson should be awesome.

dont miss the avett brothers. seriously.

it wouldn't be seattle if people didn't have the annual tradition of complaining about the bumbershoot lineup and ticket prices as if the current year was bringing about a crashing end to a fabled golden era. Yet every year, I wind up with too many things to see on a given day.

If nothing else, it is always fun to see smaller local bands playing at the EMP with hilarious lightshows.

Well, considering 15 years ago the whole festival used to be *FREE*, and in 95 you could see the Ramones, George Clinton, and Mudhoney for about 5-7 bucks as opposed to nowadays where you have to pay like, what, 100 bucks for 2 days?

Yeah, the "Is Bumbershoot turning evil?" question has been on everbody's lips for the last few years. Know why?

Because the answer is a loud "Yes".

I see your general point, Eric, but it should be noted that the Gin Blossoms are FREAKIN' AWESOME.

2007 - Smoosh, some Circus thing on the lawn, Christopher Frizzelle

@#7: Bumbershoot hasn't been free for 27 years. [seattle.metblogs]

perennial? more like perineal.

you got funk with the Spin Doctors? You gotta go thru me.

but i draw the line @ Gin Blossoms. I viciously hurled lemons @ them @ end fest years ago and they never recovered from it.

Fergie's no Sheryl Crow.

Great post, Eric! Well-considered and if BS wasn't so sad it'd have been funny to boot.

I have to second comments from godsactionfigure about the '95 line-up. The Ramones absolutely kicked butt and I feel privileged to have witnessed it. Shame we'll never see 'em again.

What about X??? They're old, but they still rock....

I must say that i saw house of pain at bshoot. I went for something else, and i was like "house of pain? when am i going to have a chance to see them again?" and you know what? they killed it, it was one of the craziest ahows i have ever seen. Someone threw a forty from the stage and it hit me, and i still had tons o fun. That being said, its way too expensive now just to go and see said random acts. so i aint going.

since when is Garbage a dud?! one of the best live acts i've ever seen, and the crowd loved it in 2005. boo-urns to you, sir!

Prices go up. Bad things happen when they don't. Look at the Dick's in Spokane. They haven't changed their hamburger prices in 40 some-odd years. Guess what? The burgers suck now. I'm not sure if that made sense, but it does to me at this second.

too many people - too many long lines - over priced food - and crappy poster

very pricey for the crap shoot of getting in

going camping

was a reg. for years - no more

evil? - well not yet - downhill, for sure

Roky Erickson should be awesome.

This huge 13th Floor Elevators fan thought Roky and his band were merely functional at Coachella. They were not even close to being awesome.

Meh to Bshoot. Decibel, however, is going to rule.

When you have spent some time in a an assylum with rapists and murderers and been given electro shock therapy, perhaps being "merely functional" is actually pretty fucking awesome.

Dave, do yourself a favor and go twiddle some nobs.

I'll go Sunday to see Kings of Leon because they ROCK and my brother wants to too. But hell, I could see them much cheaper some other time, and whatever on every single other thing that day. Next day for sure w/ Mike McGonigal at the 33 1/3 reading, Roky (because ya have to) and Steve Earle who is the fucking shizznatch. Otherwise, eh. Thrown back for diversion on the unevenly reliable community spirit of the soft pillow into which I return now and then. When you're poor cheap is better.

I should add, though, SO many great memories - yes, the Ramones in 95 and Patti Smith's surprise show that afternoon, a real early Ben Lee I think that year or the next, Mother Love Bone in 89, Jonathan Richman and the Mekons around 96? Tiny Tim that year too. Screaming Trees and the Sonic Youth instrumental set (I was so high) and Beck in 97, playing to a crowd so packed it would have become a riot anywhere else, Magnetic Fields in 99 at the Opera House, and the alltime capper I think, the Stooges in '05. Thank you so much Bumbershoot, a festival can stay alive no longer than the city hosting it certainly, and the egg timer is done on that business.

I hope Mr. Segal was just seeing Roky warm up for a thrilling Bumbershoot performance.

Please, please, please.

#10: My bad, I got my timetable wrong. I must've just snuck in as a rebellious teen, and forgot about it. I used to do that shit all the time.

But it does feel that they're getting greedy at the door.

Is it just me, or does it feel like more and more acts seem so disposable these days?

About the only positive thing I can pint out about Bumbershoot, is how much they've embraced the hip-hop scene before clubs were fully into it.

I will love Garbage any year. But that is beside the point.

I have a question and it is this:

If I am absolutely, positively, 350% against giving one single cent to that vile creature known as Fergie -- and I want to see another act in the line up -- how do I reconcile those two things? Is Fergie given a flat fee for performing and so my ticket purchase or lack thereof makes no difference? Or does a portion of my money go to that ridiculous, no-talent waste of skin? If you don't know, I would like, please, to have Public Intern find out for me.

kthxbai

1997 the year of sheryl crow was also the year of sonic youth, modeski martin and wood (when they rocked) and BECK (at the stadium). the show that changed my life.

Yes, it's remarkable Roky can even plug in his guitar now after what he went through. HOWEVER, dude's voice hasn't weathered the years well and his band is merely competent. Don't expect a transcendent 12-minute version of "Slip Inside This House," is all I'm sayin'.

I'm with Grant on Steve Earle. Dude is sure to bring it. Gogol Bordello and Menomena should be fun, too. And then there's Wu-Tang Clan (!). For me, they're the most newsworthy act. And I'm sure Dave's right about Roky, but if you're a fan, why not show some love? Incidentally, I've been reading Paul Drummond's "Eye Mind," and he makes it clear Roky flipped his lid before the Rusk State Hospital got to him. He was in and out of institutes all during the "Bull of the Woods" sessions. Book comes out in November, while "You're Gonna Miss Me" opens at the Northwest Film Forum this Friday. Go, Roky!

Thanks for adding MxPx to the list of embarrassing and awful bands that have graced Bumbershoot. But don't forget that No Doubt also played Bumbershoot in 95 (I think that's when it was) when Bumbershoot used to also host Warped Tour. I threw a lot of lemons at them. It was fun.

Heyy, Garbage WAS amazing. I still like to brag that I got to the front row of that one. And you know who opened for them? The New York Dolls, yeahh that's right! The New York Dolls - add that to your list. And the Donnas were right before them. Good times.

I think getting all that big-name pop acts that we are all so afraid of is good for the little kiddies. Because you know, Bumbershoot is ALL ages and it can't all be hipsterdom.

I don't understand how Seattle, with all of its pride for local and indie music, has bumbershoot featuring mostly nonlocal bands. The ones that are local have been relegated to the EMP stages, which nobody will visit except for existing fans and friends of those bands. In the past, at least some locals took stages in the middle of the festival, and often before and after the headliners. How is this a festival about celebrating and exploring music when anything worth exploring is pushed to the side?

Hell, Endfest seems to be more commercial, but they actually have a longer, more impressive list of bands that have exploded due to the festival. The funny thing is how many now-gigantic and famous bands have played bumbershoot when nobody heard of them, and, funnily enough, bumbershoot didn't help them at all, or help people find their music. Then, months or years later, that band explodes and a whole 5 Seattle people say "hey I saw them at bumbershoot. They were set up on the grass by the shitters and then they left early because nobody was listening." That tells me that the people planning bumbershoot can't spot talent or pair bands together for a good exposition.

Also I love it how the Seattle papers list all the small local bands as if it's a great, varied festival. Yet I noticed an ad in an Oregon paper that only listed the tourist bands. Yeah, that's good business sense, but it's still pretty shitty.

Funny how bumbershoot started as a grassroots alternative to big, hairy, money-grubbing festivals. Now it seems prime for some other nonprofit group to plan the next grassroots alternative to bumbershoot's big, hairy, money-grubbing festival.