We Should Be Together Babe, But We're Not

I can’t remember how that idea got rolling, but I would guess that it was simply the lineup that beckoned.

This Ain’t No Picnic was an indie kid festival show being held out in an undeveloped part of Orange County. I started hearing about some bands that would be interesting to see, but probably not worth the drive in from San Francisco. But then there was Grandaddy, and on top of Grandaddy there was Modest Mouse. Good enough, certainly.

You throw in the magic words Built To Spill, and I’m drooling on myself. Even a little now, all these years later… But wait, take that mighty cake of a lineup and add a healthy dollop of Yo La Tengo ice cream, and I’m messing up my pants and bloody loving it. It’s like porn, indie band porn.

So yeah, it had to happen. C&G came down and we planned a weekend on Bif’s parent’s boat in Long Beach. The four of us drove into the dry grasslands of south Orange County, listening to Modest Mouse’s brand spanking new The Moon And Antarctica, and twitching with excitement.

We were sort of moseying around and checking out the first smaller bands of the lineup when I saw the unassuming form of Built To Spill’s Doug Martsch walking around. He walked past, smiling, and I sort of nodded. Not long after, he walked past again carrying boxes. I said to myself that if I saw him again I would say something to him, but when he came by again a third time I chickened out.

I don’t get star struck easily, but this guy had moved me in ways that seldom happen at shows, and thus seemed empowered with a magic that I didn’t feel strong enough to mingle with. A bit later, we saw him sitting alone under a tent, selling his own T-Shirts. The four of us sort of stood agog for a minute before he smiled and waved us in. We bought shirts and took a quick minute to thank him for his music.

The promoters had done a brilliant thing in having two stages set up so that while one band was playing, the next could set up and start immediately. Grandaddy took the stage and waited for a couple minutes as the prior band ate into their time slot. After awhile, front man Jason Lytle began motioning to the soundboard to cut the band off. When that didn’t happen, Grandaddy just started playing over them. They could have been a little cranky, having learned some years later that they had woken up that morning covered with ants after sleeping in a nearby ditch.

I had seen Modest Mouse before, and while I loved their albums I was not a fan of them live. I was basing that on one show, but here they had me from note one; they seemed energized and happy to be there. Bif holds onto this memory of lead singer Isaac Brock singing in front of a cottonwood that positively sparkled in the hot wind as one of her favorites. But for me, there is the memory of watching Doug Martsch leaning against an amp he had just set up on his stage and watching Modest Mouse play their hearts out. It’s that image of musician as everyday music fan that makes me smile somethin’ fierce.

Built To Spill began just as the last notes of Modest Mouse faded into the cottonwoods and charged through a great set that included a knock out version of Macy Gray’s “I Try.” Tears, laughter and plenty of released gusts of breath that felt like you had been reverently holding it. And just when you thought you had been left alone, along comes Yo La Tengo to sucker punch you into the stratosphere.

I was not ready for the sly silliness, the dance moves, I was not ready for the rocking that Yo La Tengo brought. I knew that as part of a festival show that their set would be short, but I could have stood in that sun and watched them play for hours.

The four of us circled up as the band left the stage. Beck was coming up soon to finish off the day, but the four of us were of the same mind that this was simply not going to get any damn better. It was unanimous that we return to the boat, indulge in cold cocktails and take some high flying jumps off the deck and into the water. And of course there would be some more giddy yelps remembering the portions of the amazing day we had had. On our way out, we passed a flood of people only now coming to see Beck and shook our heads at trying to figure out how you explain what had been missed in the power triumvirate that just finished up, the quirky deliciousness of Grandaddy earlier.

One of the top five best shows I’ve been to, hands down.


Song Stuck In My Head Right Now: “A Perfect Day Elise” by PJ Harvey.