Osheaga 2009
By: Jason Giammaria
Posted: August 11, 2009 – Montreal, Canada
Looking to rebound from a so-so 2008 campaign, the fourth edition of the Osheaga Music & Arts Festival was back with arguably its most-anticipated lineup to date. After the disaster that was last year's Sunday/Monday experiment, Osheaga was back to its normal weekend dates. And with an unavoidable theme of high energy, up-tempo music, the organizers had clearly learnt from the previous year's mistakes.
Attracting some of the biggest bands in the world, such as headliners Coldplay and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, Osheaga's schedule seemed to grow with intensity as the days went on, solidifying its place as one of the major festivals on the music scene. Not to mention the weather, which was surprisingly appropriate for each day.
With so many big names and well-established bands playing this year's fest, there was no shortage of highlights and very few low points. But looking back, I think it's safe to say that the leading ladies and the DJs stole the show.
Here are a few bands that stood out:
DAY ONE
Jesca Hoop: Soft-spoken Californian Jesca Hoop eased Osheaga's early concert-goers into what was looking to be a fantastic weekend. Alone on stage with her acoustic guitar, Hoop's upbeat folk rock was the perfect way for the few hundred fans in front of her stage to get the blood flowing. Hoop brought her quirky lyrics to life by giving short anecdotes before each song, which killed a good portion of her set but made it a little more intimate at the same time.
La Roux: I was very excited to see La Roux play live. Partly because their music is so damn catchy and partly because lead singer Elly Jackson is as flamboyant and colourful as they come. With songs that you can't help tap a foot or bob a head to, La Roux's live show could be packaged as a how-to video for all the other electro-pop bands out there. It was a party atmosphere from beginning to end despite a surprising lack of enthusiasm from Jackson.
Parlovr: I knew absolutely nothing about Montreal's Parlovr before catching their midday set at the Tree Stage. For those of you in the same boat as I was, do yourself a favor and get to know them. With the energy and presence that should have gotten them onto one of the bigger stages, Parlovr quickly became my early front-runner for surprise hit of the festival. Their live show has a strange mix of happiness and anger that left me wanting to dance and break something at the same time. The catchy pop rock combined with the raw, vocal-cord-straining singing by frontman Louis Jackson were a welcome change from the increasingly repetitive synth-rock style. It was a pleasant showing from a hometown group.
Elbow: The Kasabian-esque Mercury Prize-winners from Greater Manchester took to the Mountain Stage late Saturday afternoon and brought to life their candid and often thought-provoking music. A band that has been steadily growing their commercial success over the last few years, Elbow put together a nearly flawless set. Lead singer Guy Garvey did a good job of getting the crowd to participate in the concert even if they didn't know the words to most songs, while the rest of the English group found a way to walk the fine line between stealing the show themselves and staying in the background.
Lykke Li: Where do I even begin? After apologizing to the crowd for starting her set five minutes late, Lykke Li wasted no time in setting the tone for her show. After the first song, "Dance Dance Dance", the girls in the crowd were dancing up a storm and the guys were absolutely fixated on the Swedish songstress. At least, I know I was. Li's sexuality and energy combined with her musical talents created by far the day's best set. Li and her bandmates had a stage presence that left everyone stuck on every little thing that was happening in front of them. Playing mostly songs from her breakthrough album, Youth Novels, Li also threw in a preview of a song off her upcoming record and even did a cover of Lil Wayne's "A Milli". And surprisingly, the girl can actually rap. Those that chose to watch Lykke Li over some of the other performances rested easy, knowing we made the right decision by going to arguably the best act of the entire weekend.
Girl Talk: It was evident while waiting for Girl Talk to close out the night that everyone there had a different belief system than the crowd watching the headliners over at the main River Stage. Chants of "Coldplay sucks! Coldplay sucks!" rang loud and clear. Girl Talk was where the party was at. Playing mostly new mashups that included some Michael Jackson and even some cross-stage rival Coldplay, Gregg Gillis went non-stop for his full hour and fifteen minutes. Interacting with the crowd in a way only a mashup king could, Gillis sent typed messages from his computer onto a huge screen as he played. "Louder!", "kiss someone" and "throw something now" are just a few examples. And what would a Girl Talk show be without toilet paper guns, ten gigantic yellow balls being thrown around the crowd and confetti canons. I bet ya Coldplay didn't have all that.
Day One was a very good day.
DAY TWO
Miike Snow: With the mud already well established, thanks to an early rainfall, Miike Snow kicked off Day Two at the MEG Stage. Dressed in matching black bomber jackets, the group had an up-and-down set, due in large part to the technical difficulties they had throughout the entire 45 minutes. Though some of the equipment was clearly not theirs, lead singer Andrew Wyatt did the best he could with what he had. With techs having to come out on stage while Wyatt and the other members were in mid-song, Miike Snow left a lot of people wondering what could have been.
The Ting Tings: Energetic, catchy and a shitload of fun—all words that describe the Manchester duo's set. They played their songs harder and faster than on their album, We Started Nothing, which was already a blast to begin with. Both are gifted musicians and seeing them live really brought those talents to the forefront. At one point Jules De Martino was playing the drums and guitar at the same time...ya, you figure it out. Singer Katie White was as energetic as they come, hardly standing still long enough to catch her breath. Highlights included "Shut Up and Let Me Go" and their closing number "That's Not My Name".
Vampire Weekend: Vampire Weekend sure have come a long way in a short period of time, and they let everyone know about. "Who came to our last show at Club Lambi?" asked frontman Ezra Koenig. What was one of the larger crowds of the day cheered their positive response. "That's strange cause it seemed like hardly anybody was there," said Koenig as he broke into another song. With a new album due out later this year, the New York City foursome gave fans a preview of things to come and belted out the songs that exploded them onto the scene. Their playful, energetic tunes were met with dancing and joyful singalongs as the rain finally seemed to be done for at least a little while. What had become a last-minute addition to the festival lineup quickly became one of my highlights of the 2009 edition.
Rufus Wainwright: What in my opinion seemed like the most out-of-place act at this year's festival proved to be just that. Alone with his piano on stage, Rufus Wainwright played in front of his hometown fans. And given his genre of music, he actually did do a very good job. But something just didn't make sense given who had already played and who was still to come. Wainwright did his best to keep the crowd entertained by bringing out his mother, folk singer Kate McGarrigle, for a duet. He moved from the piano to the acoustic guitar and back again, and even sang a few songs in French, but he never really seemed to have the full attention of the crowd who had seemingly lost the energy that had been built up from the previous acts. It's too bad, because it really was a well-played set; the organizers just put him in a tough spot.
Tiga: If there's one time I have ever really enjoyed rain, it was during Tiga's set. Just as he stepped onstage the downpour began, creating a gigantic sprinkler system for people to dance and jump in. When the mud got thicker, the crowd danced more. When the rain slowed down, well, the crowd danced more. Mud and grass were flying everywhere. A huge circle formed towards the front of the stage where a dance-off broke out and it was clear that no one cared who won. It was a relentless attack of electro dance that fit in perfectly with a day that showcased a wide variety of musical genres.
Yeah Yeah Yeahs: The final act of Osheaga 2009 was also arguably the most anticipated. Karen O and Yeah Yeah Yeahs, bumped to headliners after the cancellation of The Beastie Boys, came out to prove they were in the time slot they should have always been in. Walking out to "Heads Will Roll" wearing some sort of glowing Mexican wrestling mask and with a giant eyeball as the backdrop, Karen O hopped and spun around on stage in the way only she can. Her smile, projected on the two jumbo screens, seemed to never leave her face and she looked like there was nowhere else she would have rather been. Mixing new songs off their most recent album, It's Blitz!, with older ones, Yeah Yeah Yeahs weaved their way through a flawless set. One of the highlights was the crowd singing along to "Maps", which the band played as an even more toned-down version than the original. Easily filling the hour-and-a-half set, Karen O rarely broke her overly excited character and never once lost the attention of the largest crowd of the day.
Topping this headliner in 2010 will be one hell of a job.
Video: "Cape Cod Kwassa Kwassa" by Vampire Weekend
