I don’t actually need a reason to visit Chicago. Having visited five times in the past few years, it’s become one of my favorite cities in the country. There’s an endless amount of places to see, food to eat, things to do; however, one oversight in my visits has been checking out the wealth of music. While the city’s music halls and clubs are still on my “To Visit” list, I did get the opportunity to attend this year’s iteration of Pitchfork Festival, an opportunity which I lunged at with open arms. I’d wanted to attend the three day festival for a few years now, so I could not wait for the chance to write about the experience and take photos of the performers.
Day One
Nourished By Time
The early hours of the first day were filled with artists that I’d never heard of before, so I wanted to make a point to get there before things kicked off, especially since those early afternoon artists don’t always pull the same size crowds, with people gradually trickling in as the day goes on. What this does mean, though, is that the people who do make it out for these sets are usually the die-hards, the true believers, which can be a special feeling for the performers.
The weekend opened with a set from Baltimore native Nourished By Time, whose synthy R&B offered a very laid back and low key prelude to the festival as a whole. The early sets Friday didn’t offer much on the visual side of things; it was a hot weekend, so the afternoon artists were a bit subdued by the sun, opting to conserve their energy. Following this on the Red Stage was South Carolina’s Contour, who brings art school type flair to his rap, especially by beginning his set by reading from Transbluesency, a collection of poems by Amiri Baraka. Similar to Nourished By Time, the energy of this set was somewhat subdued, but not in a way that it detracted from the quality of performance.
Back on the Green Stage, current Chicago resident but Western Mass born Sen Morimoto took stage, armed with his trusty saxophone (there were actually a few prominent saxophonists on this lineup, which was good news for me as sax is one of my top three favorite instruments). Morimoto’s stage presence was marked by the pure sense of joy that the musician carried himself with. You could tell how much it meant to him to be performing on a big stage in his hometown. As a huge proponent of Boston festivals booking area acts, I have to tip my hat to Pitchfork Fest for repping Chicago artists.
Sen Morimoto
After that, I headed over to the Blue Stage, which was across the park, though not a far walk. As the festival’s smallest stage, it also offered the coziest vibe, with a few shady trees offering respite from the summer sun. This was definitely my favorite stage of the weekend, especially from a photography perspective; the way the sunlight angled itself through the tree coverage offered a brilliant texture to the afternoon haze. Mavi kept the vibes moving on this stage. Given that it was still Friday afternoon, the crowd was still entering the festival grounds at a slow click. Some of these performers definitely deserved a few more roses, but it was nice to be able to stand so close; intimate performance is something that isn’t often possible at festivals.
Back at the Red Stage, it was time for Grace Ives, who I was unfamiliar with but instantly won over by. The pulse of her dance-oriented instrumentals pairs incredibly well with her voice, which is marked by a soft swagger. What really pulls you in during her performance, however, is her immense stage presence. She’s one to watch over the next few years.
perfume genius
Being a dance head, I had to return to Blue Stage for a bit of Axel Boman, who put a fun spin on the usual DJ set by adding a live saxophonist as accompaniment. At this point during the day is when some conflicts came into play. After about 15 minutes of Boman, I scurried over to see Youth Lagoon. I hadn’t really kept up with this group since the very first album The Year of Hibernation over a decade ago, so I was eager to hear what they were up to. While it was a good vibe for a high summer day, I ended up going back to catch the last 15 minutes of Axel Boman once I got the photos I needed. This move was also an effort to anticipate Jlin’s performance. The Chicago native and footwork trendsetter delivered what was probably the most banging of the weekend’s electronic sets. I was hoping she would be doing one of the festival’s after parties, but no luck.
I caught the tail-end of Nation of Language from across the field (sounded great) while I posted up for Perfume Genius, one of my most-anticipated performances of the weekend. Armed with bright red elbow length gloves that made for a striking visual, his set was a testament to his ability to perform. It was the first time I’ve been able to see him. During the set, a butterfly landed on a girl standing next to me and just kind of chilled for a few minutes. This was very relaxing. I wasn’t able to catch much of Ric Wilson’s set, but one of the few songs I did hear was written by the rapper that very day while he was stuck in traffic on the way to the festival. Great turnaround time.
Alvvays
Next up was Alvvays, another band I’ve never had the pleasure of seeing live. There’s band whose studio records you enjoy but don’t seem to love as obsessively as some of your peers. This was Alvvays for me (and Saturday headliners Big Thief, too). On this particular summer evening, the conditions were perfect for me to become an Alvvays superfan: a gently setting sun, the band’s dreamy sounds lifting spirits all throughout the festival grounds. I get it now. It was so good that I almost forgot to get back over to the Blue Stage for Leikeli47, who I had only heard of, not heard. The rapper – who performs exclusively with a ski mask obscuring her face – is some hard-hitting, high-energy hip-hop. I was about it.
Finally, it was time for The Smile, the side project of Thom Yorke and Jonny Greenwood of Radiohead, with drums by Sons of Kemet’s Tom Skinner. Despite being a massive Radiohead fan for a good half of my total elapsed life up to now, I had yet to delve into The Smile’s album A Light For Attracting Attention. I was excited that this performance was going to be my first exposure. Overall, they felt a lot like Radiohead’s In Rainbows era: post-funk bass lines, winding guitar lines, some of Yorke’s most playful lyricism. They capped off a strong, if subtle, first day of music.
Check out our photos from Day One of Pitchfork Festival below.
Day Two
Black Belt Eagle Scout
On day two, my brother accompanied me to the festival in what was going to be his first music festival experience. This is not really important for the review, but it had me in good spirits heading into Saturday. Once we got there, we took a little time to get situated while the first few bands played. The first set I really had the opportunity to experience (and photograph) was Black Belt Eagle Scout, who kicked off a rock-heavy day. After that, I made sure to get over to the Red Stage for MJ Lenderman. Admittedly, I hadn’t heard much of his music, though I have some personal friends who adore him. I can confidently say that he’s someone I’d jump at the opportunity to see again, especially in a smaller club. I swung back over to the Blue Stage for Vagabon, who is gearing up to release a new album and has already made one of my favorite songs ever (“Water Me Down” off 2019’s self-titled release).
No festival comes without issues and hiccups, and Pitchfork’s Saturday was no exception (by no means was this the fault of the festival). About two songs into Vagabon’s set – probably the artist I was most excited to see this day – they had to cut short due to a severe thunderstorm warning, inevitably being forced to evacuate the festival grounds temporarily. After everyone jetted off to a nearby bar or (in our case) to chill in a car in a parking garage – we got the word that they were readmitting people to get things going again. Julia Jacklin was doing her thing on the Blue Stage when we got back, but given the time, I knew I had to get a good spot before King Krule set up on the Green Stage.
King Krule
Archy Marshall – aka King Krule – hasn’t really changed up the formula four albums into his career. Touring on the back of his latest release Space Heavy, his performances belie the lethargy of his studio releases. On record, this is a man who sounds weary. And perhaps he is, but there is a sly coyness to his performances; something cathartic, even if that catharsis isn’t always strictly joyful.
About 15 minutes after King Krule started, R&B songstress Yaya Bey was due to start on the Blue Stage. This was probably the most frustrating portion of the schedule for me personally, as these were two of my most-anticipated sets going into the weekend. I was glad they were tiered for slightly different times, but this was definitely a conflict I had to negotiate. I ran over to hear Yaya Bey’s jazzy, soulful tunes (adorned in a shiny pink dress, perhaps leaning into the fact that Barbie was releasing in theaters that weekend). After about 20 minutes, I zipped back over to hear the last few songs of King Krule’s set.
Weyes Blood
Next up was Weyes Blood, another artist who I was very excited to see. For her set, the skies opened up briefly, shedding a little rain on the crowd (and the photo pit). Fortunately, it wasn’t enough to force her to stop mid-set; actually, the rain lent a lot to the mystical, celebratory nature of her performance style.
Remember what I said earlier about Alvvays’ set and how it elevated my fan status from “casual” to “big?” Headliners Big Thief elicited the very same reaction from me. It’s hard to accurately put into words what I felt about them before, because every time I’ve tried, it’s been wildly misinterpreted by a huge, reactionary Big Thief fan who can’t fathom that I thought they were good but not special. I’ll listen to any new album they drop, but probably would not have sought out a concert of theirs.
Big Thief
Congrats, nerds, I’ve been converted. Let it be a testament to the power of live music – in this case, getting to hear Adrianne Lenker’s delicate-yet-fierce, pained-yet-jouyous vocals echoing across a throng of fans standing out in a field on a cool summer’s night. That’s Big Thief weather. The chorus for new single “Vampire Empire” soared into the night air. I briefly forgot about the day’s small weather-related hiccups; the vibe was too strong.
Check out our photos from Day Two of Pitchfork Festival below.
Day Three
Palm
The third day of the festival was going to have to be pretty awful if it was going to make the overall weekend a bad time (spoiler: it was not bad in the slightest). I got the day started by seeing Chicago-based DJ Ariel Zetina, who capped off her set by bringing out an all-trans dance team. I also made a point to head over to the Blue Stage to see Palm, whose set the day before was canceled due to the inclement weather. It was definitely a must to reschedule the beloved Philly math rock group since they’re currently on their farewell tour and this was their last Chicago show. They will be missed dearly.
The rest of the day seemed to fly by, a testament to fun-loaded vibe of day three. Rachika Nayar’s three-piece group lent some ambient stylings to Union Park, in case you needed a bit of Sunday meditation. Following that, Lucrecia Dalt brought a little Latin flair which is good, since Latin music – as vague an umbrella term as that is – is probably the current blindspot of the Pitchfork lineup (there’s way too much “Latin” music to not be able to afford rounding out the list of performers with a couple more names).
JPEGMAFIA
Florist added some acoustic indie folk vibes to the day, but I didn’t stay long because I wanted to set up for Jockstrap’s set on the Red Stage. While I’m not sure I’m the biggest fan of the music itself, Jockstrap are undeniably fun. Given that the group is pretty fresh, there’s plenty of room for them to grow. I opted not to go to Soul Glo on the Blue Stage to get in a good position for JPEGMAFIA, another of my most-anticipated artists going into the weekend. Peggy did not disappoint, rifling through both his own solo material as well as selections from Scaring the Hoes, his recent collaborative album with Danny Brown. He delivered what was probably the highest-energy performance of the weekend, jumping around on top of the speakers and even diving into the pit to interact with the crowd.
Kelela
Next came an unfortunate scheduling issue: Killer Mike and Illuminati Hotties were slated to start at the exact same time. I opted for Illuminati Hotties because I’d only seen them once before, while I’d seen Killer Mike several times as part of Run the Jewels. The Hotties were great, and I managed to catch the second half of Killer Mike, albeit from across a field. With that said, the overall sound quality was really good even if you were halfway across the park from the stage. Following that was reggae artist Koffee, whose tight band was accompanied by a skilled dance quartet. The reggae and dancehall vibe was an excellent way to wind down the afternoon, which had gotten particularly hot. We were ready for sunset. Hurray For the Riff Raff back on the Blue Stage was next. After that, I had to get over to the Red Stage to see Kelela, which was a hands-down must for me ahead of this weekend. For an artist who went almost six years without releasing an album, the hype around Kelela and her recent LP Raven was huge. She has amazing stage presence, but I couldn’t help feel that her forward-thinking, electronic-tinged R&B would have been better suited for an indoor venue. She rocked it nonetheless.
I opted not to see Tuareg bluesmen Mdou Moctar in order to get a decent spot in the crowd for Bon Iver (most photographers were not granted pit access for Justin Vernon & Co., but the group has released some of my favorite music, so you know I was gonna get pics). I probably should have seen them, though. Live and learn. When Bon Iver took the stage, I think most people were ready for that climactic finish, the sheer emotional catharsis that the group would offer. When Justin Vernon started adding autotune and other vocal effects to Bon Iver’s music – especially with 22 A Million‘s folktronica elements – it added an amazing new layer to the band’s music. With that said, it’s odd hearing those effects on Bon Iver songs that were released before such effects became more prevalent in the music. “Skinny Love” just doesn’t feel as rich through all that processing. However, Bon Iver’s set was still a great way to cap off the weekend, especially during “715 CR∑∑KS” when Vernon sang “Turn arond now, you’re my A-Team;” anyone who turned around at that moment would have seen the beautiful crescent moon hanging gently above the park.
Bon Iver
No modern festival is complete without the bonus accoutrement that supplements the music: food options, apparel, pop-up shops, etc. Pitchfork definitely had an abundance of these available. There was a huge tent on grounds which harbored a few local vintage clothing shops, local record stores (many stocked with copies of albums by the weekend’s performers), and graphic artists stationed just outside. Most of the food was sensational, but the duck fat fries from Beat Kitchen were especially delicious (I kept walking around saying, “These are what McDonald’s fries wish they could be!”). As a photographer, my hands-down favorite vendor stand was for Bellows Film Lab, a local photo development studio. I think I stopped by every day to pick up a roll or two of film. They were also selling disposable cameras, which is such a cool amenity to offer at a music festival where groups of friends are gathered to enjoy a beautiful weekend of good music.
Check out our photos from Day Three of Pitchfork Festival below.
