Primavera Sound 2005

1.

Reciting the line-up on loop was my mantra for mid-way flat tire blues.
Said goodbye to my bike on the beach- and high-tailed it on foot to the Forum.

Just in time for jesu.
Past members of Techno Animal and Napalm Death-
They still enjoy the same sounds without getting stuck in a template of what worked for them.
Nice.

Up next- ran over to beam with pride.
It was a bit strange to see The Arcade Fire on such a giant stage.
but hell- The thousands of screaming, singing, dancing kids kept the outdoor venue just as claustrophobic as if it were the Horseshoe (Toronto).
They killed it! Very excited about this band- "Sleeping is giving in... So lift those heavy eyelids."

Missed Tim Hecker's set- cause my back was letting me know that I shouldn't have passed out sitting up the other night.
(stupid vodka shots).

2.

More disappointing than my flat tire- was failing to assume I had to camp out a night prior to catch Antony and the Johnsons.
Scuffed the ground like a 12 year old, along with about 500 others... Hype is a bitch.
Next time.


Broken Social Scene blew my mind out the back of my head, as usual.
Danced, made a scene- hacky-sacked my brain a bit... tried to axel foley her back in- but Iggy and the Stooges
were next to stage. Ouch. Jumping on strangers always makes me feel alive again. Necessary as the energy that Iggy somehow channels puts me to absolute shame.

--

"This is Transmission, by Joy Division"

Whoa.

Yes- Outside. Beautiful Spring night in Barca- New Order takes the stage.
Despite the floppy reviews of their new album by the Spanish audience affecting some of the tone- They played an incredible set of both new and old material.
Sweet. Pockets of freak-out among the crowd (For some reason Spaniards don't really go nuts at concerts). I had a blast with my cheesy new new-wave niche.

A shade lighter than the mini-mosh I scrambled around in for Psychic TV.
Yes. Psychic TV- Awesome.
Genesis P-Orridge was in top form. Jaws were on the ground- arms in the air.

Had to spread myself a bit thin for Mercury Rev, the Human League and Piano Magic- but them's the beats when dealing with festival schedules.

3.

Spent the day with Geoff "RV-Tour" Blanco at a brilliant conference for AES.
A lot of it was over both our heads- but the next few days look to be pretty damn interesting.

The AES conference is also being held at Forum- which made my evening with Tortoise, The Cheese (keep an ear out for these guys) Echo and the Bunnymen, SONIC YOUTH- and GANG OF FOUR (hell yes) a hop/skip/jump away.

All in all Primavera has been great- AES this afternoon- Then closing party with Broken Social Scene.
Come Tuesday- I might have to chill out and finally get to Napoleon Dynamite.