It was a hot and shaky weekend for Atlanta’s alternative/indie rock fans as the Shaky Knees Music Festival returned to Atlanta, Georgia on May 8th – May 10th for its third year.
This year, the festival moved to the former Atlanta Midtown music Festival location comprised of Central Park and the nearby Atlanta Civic Center located not too far from downtown Atlanta. This location offered more room than last year supporting two main stages in the Central Park part of the venue, two smaller stages in Atlanta Civic Center parking lot and then a small covered stage centrally located to the other stages. That stage setup supported 101 acts over the three days of the festival nearly doubling last year’s count.
The venue also featured a large amount of shade which was well utilized with temperatures approaching the 90s each day. Festival goers will drink a lot of water with that kind of heat and at this Festival water was included with admission. All you needed was a container and two water stations provided all the filtered water one could drink. Most of time there were no lines at the water stations and when they were lines the lines they moved very quickly. The shaky knees management team should be commended for providing the water, which helped keep the venue cleaner and was one less line and expense for attendees. The festival was also very well run with acts coming going right on time with no problems. Cleanup crews kept the venue clean as possible while the festival was going on. Festival staff and volunteers were friendly and helpful making for good Festival experience.
Two groupings of food trucks provided a wide variety of food options for attendees. Food lines became extremely long during the late afternoon and early evening. Saturday, a small craft village was present offering some music themed crafts. One booth featured poster art representing many of the acts that were appearing at the festival. Jewelry and colorful fashion accessories were also available. A long line formed outside the Terminus Tees both as they were offering a chance to spin and win a free “Support Local Music” t-shirt.
The festival started Friday at lunch time. One of the early bands, Black Pistol Fire provided some early energy for the growing crowds. During their final song of a spirited performance their guitarist and lead vocalist climbed into the crowd and was promptly hoisted up for a little crowd surfing while still playing his guitar. Other earlier performers like the band Mitski seemed to be impacted by the heat. Band members did not look like they were having fun on that hot stage. A late afternoon delight was the Kaiser Chiefs performance on the Boulevard stage. An energetic and great sounding set pleased the crowd that gathered for this veteran alternative rock band.
In the early evening Atlanta based alt metal band Mastadon took the Peachtree stage providing festivalgoers with metal in there DNA great satisfaction. Mastadon seem to thrive in the heat and gave a heavy handed and spirited performance. Immediately following Mastadon 80s alternative veterans the Pixies took the Piedmont stage drawing a large and crowd with many loyal fans. The performance was well received although not flawless stopping in the middle of one song after one of the band members made a mistake. They decided to move onto the next song and all was good again.
The crowning jewel for the first day of the shaky knees music Festival was The Strokes. What was perhaps the largest crowd of the festival was there to enjoy a fantastic performance by this confident and talented band. They kept the crowd moving through most of the set.
Saturday the music got off the slow start with the early acts being impacted by the heat. The band Speedy Ortiz barely moved for most of their set and certainly did not look like they were having a good time. The lack of enthusiasm transferred into their performance. The band Flogging Molly didn’t seem to mind the heat of the late afternoon. The band was in a playful mood enjoying what they do which is play a blend of traditional Celtic music and punk rock. They really got the fans moving and a big dance party broke out at the back of the crowd despite the hot weather.
Two bands that dwell in the punk genre were up in the early evening. The younger band Interpol took to the stage first delivering the crisp and fan pleasing set. Up next was Social Distortion, a band that has been around since the beginning of punk. With a rousing performance they were able to conjure up a mosh pit or two along with some crowd surfer. Former Oasis guitarist Noel Gallagher with his band Noel Gallagher’s High Flying Birds were up next. While their set was well played, the crowd reaction was subdued probably due to a lack of familiarity with music and the band. The headliner for Saturday night was the Avett Brothers, featuring melding of folk, country, bluegrass and rock. They drew a large crowd and delivered a great performance that was also visually captivating with a backdrop of white cloth strips that picked up the very creative lighting.
Sunday’s was Mother’s Day and crowds were small early on slowly growing as the afternoon progressed. With small crowds present and another hot day early acts like Steve Gunn seemed not to be enjoying their craft. The Preservation Hall Jazz Band had better go of it and small crowd that had gathered enjoyed it. One of the early acts on the main stage that was impacted by the heat was The Both. They had an overheated keyboard and a couple of stops mid song due to errors. Best Coast was next up on a main stage and while they were more focused you got the feeling they were not having fun. Later on Dr. Dog gave a good performance. The band Spitualized also gave a good performance to a small but appreciative crowd. One of the lesser known acts at the festival was Xavier Rudd and the United Nations. A different band using different instruments and an international array of musicians gave a joyful and uplifting performance.
The evening saw bigger acts like Ryan Adams give well received and spirited performances. The band Ride gave an impressive performance pleasing the bands very loyal fans. The headline act for Sunday was Tame Impala with their modern interpretation of 60’s psychedelic rock. They drew the largest crowd on Sunday and their fans were not disappointed both visually of sonically.
The 2015 Shaky Knees Music Festival came to a close right on time Sunday night. This well run and sonically satisfying festival will live on in memories of those who attended and performed. The festival will certainly continue to grow and prosper given the great talent and festival experience delivered thus far.