Forecastle Festival: Five Moments

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ALL PHOTOS BY JASON GONULSEN

Five moments.

That's misleading, of course. Forecastle is filled with them, and the fans are the life blood that power the show that always must go on. This is a music festival that doesn't feel VIP-ish. I've never felt more comfortable eating a corn dog and tater tots with a camera hanging from my neck. Inclusive beats exclusive in Louisville. Come as you are.

And here we go.

Ryan Adams

Okay, many moments to talk about here. To my eyes, Ryan Adams hasn't looked this happy in a long time, and it's for good reason: his band, The Shining, is rad as hell. They can jam on a song like "Peaceful Valley," and take it easy with "Oh My Sweet Carolina." Which brings me to my favorite moment. When it came time to sing, "I miss Kentucky...," Adams didn't even need to bother -- the audience did it for him. Those sweet winds do still blow across the South.

Brandi Carlile

I've written about Brandi many times, simply because her live show is one of the best I've ever seen. She did not disappoint at Forecastle. She opened with one of her best songs, "Again Today," which gave me chills when she sang, "The path of least resistance is catching up with me again today." Carlile looked up, smiled, and it was obvious there was no other place she would rather be. And that's all you can ask of a performer.

Alabama Shakes

Right before their set, the mayor of Louisville, Greg Fischer, took the stage to address the address the crowd to honor Muhammad Ali, who passed on June 3rd. Soon after, Brittany Howard appeared, arms in the air, a sign of victory. Well done, Forecastle. Well done, Alabama Shakes.

The Avett Brothers

As relevant and energized as ever, The Avett Brothers came out firing with kazoos, as they sometimes do. But their real talent was realized during "Ain't No Man," a song from their latest album, True Sadness. It felt like we were in a barn, dousing ourselves with cheap beer, digging in our pockets for a few quarters to throw in a tip jar.

Gary Clark Jr.

My favorite guitarist, besides Neil Young, is Gary Clark Jr., and what a joy it was seeing him open with "Bright Lights." The heat was some kind of torture for everyone standing; Gary's raw and dirty guitar solos were not. They did not seek perfection. They sought new roads. They made me smile, reminded me why it's great to be alive. I can still feel the power, the healing. Peace.

[PHOTOS] The Avett Brothers + Brandi Carlile at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis

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ALL PHOTOS BY TIM BOTTCHEN

The Avett Brothers and Brandi Carlile performed last Friday at Chaifetz Arena in St. Louis. Please enjoy these photos by Tim Bottchen.

  

BRANDI CARLILE

Listen | The Avett Brothers - Ain't No Man

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Happy Friday! Here's a new single from The Avett Brothers. You can pre-order their upcoming album, True Sadness, now! It's out June 24th.

Forecastle Festival Announces 2016 Lineup Featuring Ryan Adams, The Avett Brothers, Alabama Shakes, Death Cab For Cutie, and More

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Photo by Jason Gonulsen

Forecastle Festival, one of our favorite festivals on the planet, is back in 2016 with a spectacular and deep lineup featuring The Avett Brothers, Alabama Shakes, Ryan Adams, and Death Cab For Cutie.

The festival will be held in Louisville at Waterfront Park on July 17 through July 19. Level 1 and VIP tickets are now available here.

The Forecastle 2016 lineup includes:

The Avett Brothers
Alabama Shakes
Ryan Adams
Death Cab For Cutie
Walk The Moon
Ben Harper & The Innocent Criminals
Grouplove
Brandi Carlile
Gary Clark Jr.
Big Gigantic
Glass Animals
Dr. Dog
Blackberry Smoke
Sylvan Esso
Moon Taxi
Danny Brown
Phosphorescent
Shakey Graves
Washed Out
Andrew McMahon in the Wilderness
Femi Kuti & Positive Force
White Denim
Bully
Speedy Ortiz
Caveman
All Them Witches
Liz Vice
Anderson East
The Suffers
Wild Child
Nothing
Steve Gunn
Alex G
Saintseneca
Los Colognes
Jazz Cartier
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Are We Human, or Are We Dancer? | An Essay on LouFest 6

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Brandon Flowers at LouFest | Photo by Jason Gonulsen

And so long to devotion
You taught me everything I know
Wave goodbye
Wish me well
You got to let me go

When I was in high school, I thought I would play soccer for a living. In fact, I was quite sure of it, for maybe something like eight months -- I had that needed confidence where the only thing traveling through my brain was, "ain't no one stopping me." Swagger, man. You gotta have it.

The only problem was that I really never liked playing soccer. Outside of the World Cup, I can't even watch it today. Politics, among other things, ruined the game for me, and whenever I see it on a television, or hear people talking about it, a hundred little thoughts immediately rush through my brain -- the good times, the bad times, the maddening, frustrating times. All those road trips, all those miles on the car, all those times my dad stopped for coffee at something like 6 AM on I-55 and burned his mouth because it was too hot. To simply play a game I didn't love.

There is a difference between liking something and loving something, and I don't do what I don't love anymore. Perhaps I learned the hard way, and perhaps it's best to learn the hard way in life -- maybe that's how you know you have an irresistible calling toward something.

I think about what I love when I'm at a music festival.

I think about all the little things that had to go right to not just get me beyond the festival gates, but also the 50,000 who attended LouFest this past weekend, and when I really think about it, well, I'm amazed there aren't a thousand or so disasters that impede anything beautiful from happening. A music festival is another chance to re-invent, to shed a layer of skin, to live again.

The biggest criticism over this year's LouFest was the lineup, but instead of me pleading my case of why your favorite band shouldn't be the only thing that matters, I'd like to share a few moments from this past weekend that really moved me. Let's start with Brandon Flowers.

You know Brandon Flowers because he's the lead singer of The Killers, and I suppose that was another complaint -- that LouFest booked the singer and not the band. But it was clear from Flowers' first song -- the booming "Human," which is, of course a Killers song -- that nothing was being mailed in. Flowers was dressed in a black suit, looking like he had stepped out of the freshest spa, and was working the crowd by basically just being Brandon Flowers.

But then he sang the lyric that no one is supposed to understand: "Are we human, or are we dancer?"

In 2008, he told MTV, “It’s taken from a quote by [author Hunter S.] Thompson. … ’We’re raising a generation of dancers,’ and I took it and ran. I guess it bothers people that it’s not grammatically correct, but I think I’m allowed to do whatever I want."

And good for Flowers. There's really no reason for an artist to explain his or her lyrics, but in that LouFest moment, I understood "Are we human, or are we dancer?" To go your own way, defy the odds, throw your hands up, close your eyes, and live the life you choose. It's vital, it's endearing, and it's beautiful like sneaking out the bedroom window. Sometimes it really is just saying "fuck it, I'm going," and then actually doing it.

Which leads me to Strand of Oaks, who is led by the best songwriter you still might not know: Timothy Showalter. On his right forearm rests a tattoo: "SURVIVE." And his songs are about dragging your way through the shit like Andy Dufresne in The Shawshank Redemption. 

Strand of Oaks released HEAL in 2014, and Showalter opened with two of its best songs, the title track and "Goshen '97." I'd like to talk about the latter.

For all the people who have lived alone, experienced numerous false starts, and have basically been shit on time and again, this song might be for you. "I was lonely but I was having fun," Showalter sings." And then, "I don't want to start all over again," which is basically the message of the song: please, please don't fail on me -- not here, not now. The LouFest performance was exhilarating because of one reason, and that was the primal scream Showalter howled at the end of the song. I took a photo of it here, but even that doesn't do it justice. I mean, the man shrieked in a way that Mother Nature does not during the most violent thunderstorm. It was my favorite set of the weekend.

Lastly, there was the closing band of LouFest, The Avett Brothers, who brought out their kazoos for the first song, which led into "Live and Die," which led into "Talk on Indolence,"which led into...well, you know what I'm saying: the first four songs felt like one big song.

But it was the fifth song, "Head Full of Doubt/Road Full of Promise," that got my immediate attention as I was walking out of the photo pit. There were people of every age range dancing in the cool night air while Seth Avett sang the key line: "Decide what to be, and go be it."

And then I thought to myself again, "Are we human, or are we dancer?"

Choose in life, or someone else will for you.

Win Tickets to LouFest At Forest Park in St. Louis on September 12 & 13

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LOUFEST 2014 | PHOTO BY JASON GONULSEN

LouFest, a two-day music festival held at Forest Park in St. Louis, will celebrate its 6th year on September 12 & 13. Hozier, who found stardom with the hit "Take Me To Church," will headline Saturday; The Avett Brothers, who sold-out the Peabody Opera House for three consecutive nights in 2014, will headline Sunday. General admission (two-day and single day) and VIP tickets (two-day) are on sale now.

We're excited to offer, as a giveaway, one pair of General Admission wristbands for this year's LouFest; you can view the full lineup here.

The instructions to enter the giveaway are below. But before we get to that, let's have a listen to one of our favorite songs from The Avett Brothers.



Here's how to enter to win a pair of tickets to the show at The Pageant.

TAG A FRIEND as a comment on our Facebook page under this status. Or tag a friend as a comment on the LouFest image on our Instagram.

The contest will run through Friday, August 21 at 5PM, and we'll randomly pick and contact the winner shortly after (if you enter through FB, we'll announce your name on our FB page). Good luck!

Lollapalooza Day Three in Photos: Glen Hansard, Kings of Leon, Cage The Elephant, The Avett Brothers, NONONO, London Grammar, Delta Rae

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Glen Hansard soaking up the rain | All photos by Jason Gonulsen

Day Three of Lollapalooza brought rain, mud, and wonderful sets by Glen Hansard, Cage the Elephant, NONONO, London Grammar, The Avett Brothers, Kings of Leon, and more! Please enjoy these photos by Jason Gonulsen.

GLEN HANSARD

NONONO

SMALLPOOLS

FANS

THE AVETT BROTHERS

DELTA RAE

LONDON GRAMMAR

KINGS OF LEON

CAGE THE ELEPHANT