Saturday September 10th
Bobby Birdman – Branx
It’s about surfing. If you had a penchant for freaky electro-pop, Branx was the place to be on saturday night for MusicFest. It was a family affair too, with Bobby Birdman, Jeffrey Jerusalem and YACHT performing. Jerusalem drums for Birdman, Birdman plays bass and Jerusalem drums in YACHT. Got that? Good. Birdman began the night with his visual and vocal driven electro madness. As various found footage clips played in the background, Birdman commanded the mic like some sort of hip hop legend, spewing lines of a dialogue mixed between tracks as Jerusalem freelanced on the drums. The two artists perform so well together that Birdman even played a remix of his own track done by Jerusalem. And although the setup was simple, Birdman behind a small box of gadgets and effects, he managed to create a massive soundscape that was both enjoyable and complex.
Jeffrey Jerusalem – Branx
“Next up is Jeffrey Jerusalem, the hardest working man in Portland music” proclaimed Birdman as he left the stage, giving way to his friend, and yes, one of the hardest working men in the scene. Jerusalem’s solo performance was sandwiched in the middle of his three and a half hour marathon, but he was as energetic as ever. With not much more than a keyboard and some cowbells, Jerusalem bounced around stage as his frantic mix of trip-hop and tribal percussion played on cue. At times almost exhausting to listen to, it’s hard to imagine how he finds the energy for everything he does, but Jerusalem seems to go all out with each endeavor, and Saturday at Branx was another example of that.
YACHT – Branx
Along with a little help from their friends, YACHT absolutely slayed Branx on Saturday night. I had the chance to see YACHT earlier this year in their hometown of Portland, long before their newest record Shangri-La was released and at a venue nearly three times the size, so this experience was unique in the sense that the place was absolutely packed and fandom was at an all time high. As lead singer Claire Evans ran on stage and grabbed the mic, leaning into the crowd for the introduction to “Paradise Engineering,” the crowd burst into a mix of screams and cheers. If there’s one thing that’s true about a YACHT performance, it’s that Evans is a true show woman, engaging the audience in dance, song, and even question and answer session. Along with the other main member, Jona Bechtolt, who ran into the crowd various times to share the vocals, there were few MusicFest events that were as fun and blissful as YACHT’s production. And while there were plenty of local acts to see all weekend, it’s bands like YACHT that have grown from such a once different live format into this awesome, full-scale exposition that makes it all worth seeing.
Ty Segall – Mississippi Studios
I’m not exactly sure what the etiquette on moshing is when there are rugs on the floor, but whatever the ruling, Ty Segall had Mississippi Studios thrashing late Saturday night. It had been barely a month since Segall last played Portland, and along with the fact that Mississippi Studios isn’t located near many of the other MusicFest venues, there was a huge showing for this rising Bay Area garage punk revivalist. Touring his new album Goodbye Bread, which he played a ton of material off of, Segall was calm but confident on stage all night. But it was some of his older material that the fans went wild to. As soon as those first riffs from “Girlfriend” and “Finger” were played, the middle of the floor turned into a mix of spilt drinks and smiling battery. Segall’s definitely come a long way from his original hype, changing is tone just slightly on each album, to the point where his shows are a mix of Lennon-esque songwriter and straight up 80’s punk rocker. In a city known for its garage and noise scene, this outsider fit right in, and owned the night on Saturday.
