Best and Worst Musical Moments - Bonnaroo 2013

Bonnaroo 2013 has come and gone and all we have left are the memories.  Here is a look back at 5 of the best and worst musical moments at this year's festival.

Paul McCartney - Bonnaroo 2013

The Best Moments

The Best Set - Rock N' Soul Dance Party Superjam

 

Jim James (My Morning Jacket), John Oates (Hall & Oates), Larry Graham (Sly & The Family Stone), and Brittany Howard (Alabama Shakes), could this set get any better? The answer was clearly yes, as R. Kelly joined the jam performing the Sam Cooke classic, “Change Is Gonna Come” , followed by the blues song “Bring It On Home”. As Kelz left the stage, another legend entered and Billy Idol brought his growl to the T. Rex hit “Get It On (Bang A Gong)”. The set ended with a performance of Sly and the Family Stone's “I Want To Take You Higher”, propelling the crowd to their highest possible point, before finally saying goodnight.

The Best Sing-a-Longs - Sir Paul McCartney

Paul McCartney has hits for days and with a set that pushes three hours, Bonnaroo fans were able to hear and sing-a-long with a lot of them.  "Let It Be", "Blackbird", "Live and Let Die", "Helter Skelter", each were played to perfection as Paul encouraged eager fans to sing-a-long.    Perhaps the very best song for crowd participation was "Hey Jude".  Picture 90,000 people singing "Na Na Na, Na Na Na Na.  I get goose bumps just thinking about it.

Best Duo - David Byrne & St. Vincent

David Byrne and St. Vincent (Annie Clark), backed by a choreographed horn section, played songs off their album “Love This Giant” as well as hits from their respective careers. Both Byrne and Clark, looked like they were having a great time on stage and their energy was infectious.  David Byrne is a genius and Annie Clark is an innovator, with their powers combined they are an unstoppable musical force.

Best Song - Bjork "Hyperballad"

"Hyperballad" started soft and sweet but soon grew into an angry dance party led by Bjork and her entourage.  In a 2012 interview Bjork explained that the song is about hiding your aggressive side from the person with whom you are in a relationship.  "You wake up early in the morning and you sneak outside and you do something horrible and destructive, break whatever you can find, watch a horrible film, read a bit of William Burroughs, something really gross and come home and be like, 'Hi honey, how are you?".  Thankfully, Bjork was willing to share her aggressive side with her fans at Bonnaroo, making "Hyperballad" the best single song performance of the fest.

Best Introduction To A Set - R. Kelly

R. Kelly wowed fans by beginning his set on a crane lifted well over the question mark that tops the Which stage.  The crowd went wild as he started singing, “Now I'm not tryin' to be rude/but hey pretty girl I'm feelin' you”, provoking a huge sing-a-long of the first verse and chorus of "Ignition (Remix)". This is the stuff that legends are made of and fans will definitely be talking about R. Kelly's set for years to come.


And now for the worst...

The Worst Moments

Worst Introduction To A Set - R. Kelly

R. Kelly got the crowd going with his sky high performance of “Ignition (Remix)”, however the song abruptly stopped after the second chorus and the crowd stood confused as Kelz was slowly lowered down in his crane. There was no background music, or video footage on the screens, just R. Kelly hunched down in a slow moving crane. After an awkward 5 minutes of silence the set resumed and a baffled crowd got right back into enjoying the remainder of "Ignition (Remix)".

Worst News - Mumford & Sons

When festival goers heard that Mumford & Sons had to cancel their Saturday night headlining spot it was devastating. Of course everyone puts the health of bassist Ted Dwane, who under went brain surgery, first and wishes him a speedy recovery, but it was still a bit of a blow. To hear the Bonnaroo crowd, 90,000 strong, singing along with “Little Lion Man” would have been an unforgettable moment. Hopefully, Dwane fully recovers and Mumford & Sons can triumphantly return in 2014. Side note, great job to Bonnaroo for getting Jack Johnson as a  last minute substitute for the headlining spot. Johnson paid tribute to Mumford & Sons by playing their hit, “The Cave”.

 Worst Duo - Macklemore & Ryan Lewis

  

Why are Macklemore and Ryan Lewis playing the main stage at Bonnaroo? Seriously, can someone answer this for me.  They will certainly go down in the one hit wonder history books with their hit “Thrift Shop”, but they do not have the material to fill out a full set. There is only one word to describe their performance and it's “stupid”.  Song after song included the most basic of riffs with lyrics that were mostly comprised of name dropping.  Surprisingly, they did bring out a huge crowd for an early Sunday afternoon set.  The only explanation is that Mike Judge is a profit and "Idiocracy" is well on it's way to becoming a reality.

Worst Late Night Set - Bustle In Your Headgerow

Okay, so most Bonnaroovian's love Led Zeppelin and since it looks like Zep will not be reuniting anytime soon, why not put a cover band in the lineup at 2 in the morning so fans can sing-a-long with some of their favorite songs? Because this particular cover band was completely instrumental. Not only that, but they were completely average as far as cover bands go. Their set sounded soft and empty on the most epic of Zeppelin songs.  If your going to have a cover band at Bonnaroo, they should be the best damn cover band in the business.  Someone in the band must be related to Bonnaroo founder, Ashley Capps.

Worst Headlining Set - Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers

I actually like Tom Petty. He's a great singer-songwriter and has a massive catalog of hits, but his headlining performance at Bonnaroo was just bland. It's hard to engage with a crowd of 90,000 festival goers, but it seemed like Petty wasn't event trying. He would say cliched things like “Smells like some good weed out there” as he started up another mid tempo jam. Tom Petty & the Heartbreakers aren't bad, they just aren't headliners. They would be better suited for a sunset time slot on the Which Stage.  As headliners, they brought a vibe that was closer to a local carnival rather than one of the world's biggest music festivals.