WPGU Festival Feature: Pitchfork

This year’s festival for the online media publication, which is home of the overly analyzed album review, Pitchfork Media, promises to be the best one to date. In previous years, this festival has seen bands that no other festival has seen before, and many bands that have been discovered by the company itself as the so called “taste maker” for modern indie rock and alternative music. This year’s festival is taking place again in the origin of the company, the windy city of Chicago (aren’t they getting all of the festivals lately?). Union Park has been home to the festival that brings a different culture of music to the city and one that differs slightly from its juggernaut counterpart, Lollapalooza.
Details about the fest: Who’s Going? Hipsters! People who wear flannel even though it’s 90 degrees out. People who cry when they listen to Neutral Milk Hotel. People who make you feel guilty for not doing enough recreational reading. This year is promising a bigger festival, and some pretty big acts have already announced they’re going to play. Modest Mouse (prepare to hear soliloquies on how they “used to be cool”), indie electro act LCD Soundsystem, led by James Murphy, Raekwon, Lighting Bolt, St. Vincent, and what the internet is most excited about, the newly reunited Pavement.
The lineup for the festival in the past has been announced in parts, and the newest lineup additions included Broken Social Scene, who will be releasing their first album in the last five years (there’s a lot of people in this band, so coordinating these recording sessions must’ve been quite the accomplishment in itself), as well as Animal Collective’s Panda Bear.
Pros: Value! The people who put on the Pitchfork festival always strive to put on an affordable festival. The tickets are priced to sell, but even the food and the parking are reasonable. You’ll be hard pressed to find a weekend that’s this fun for this cheap.
Cons: Unless you’re checking Pitchfork every day, you probably haven’t heard a lot of this music. That’s not necessarily a con though, because you’ll be exposed to something new. For every “African Sing Screaming Harpsichord Hardcore Fusion” band, you’ll find a No Age or a Hot Chip before they started to play the big fests.

2010 Pitchfork Music Festival schedule:

a = Aluminum Stage, b = Balance Stage, c = Connector Stage

Friday July 16 (gates at 3 p.m.):
3:30 Sharon Van Etten (a)
4:00 The Tallest Man on Earth (c)
4:35 El-P (a)
5:30 Liars (c)
6:25 Robyn (a)
7:20 Broken Social Scene (c)
8:30 Modest Mouse (a)
Saturday July 17 (gates at 12 p.m.):
1:00 Free Energy (a)
1:00 Netherfriends (b)
1:45 Real Estate (c)
1:55 Sonny & the Sunsets (b)
2:30 Delorean (a)
2:50 Kurt Vile (b)
3:20 Titus Andronicus (c)
3:45 Dâm-Funk (b)
4:15 Raekwon (a)
4:45 Smith Westerns (b)
5:15 The Jon Spencer Blues Explosion (c)
5:45 WHY? (b)
6:15 Wolf Parade (a)
6:45 Bear in Heaven (b)
7:25 Panda Bear (c)
7:40 Freddie Gibbs (b)
8:30 LCD Soundsystem (a)
Sunday July 18 (gates at 12 p.m.):
1:00 Allá (a)
1:00 Cave (b)
1:45 Cass McCombs (c)
1:55 Best Coast (b)
2:30 Girls (a)
2:50 Washed Out (b)
3:20 Beach House (c)
3:45 Local Natives (b)
4:15 Lightning Bolt (a)
4:45 Surfer Blood (b)
5:15 St. Vincent (c)
5:45 Here We Go Magic (b)
6:15 Major Lazer (a)
6:45 Neon Indian (b)
7:25 Big Boi (c)
7:40 Sleigh Bells (b)
8:30 Pavement (a)

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