P4K – Friday’s High Notes

by Andrew Goldberg
2017-07-15

Although we’ll be providing a more thorough review post-festival, tune in at the end of every day for our P4k High Notes feature to get a rundown of what we’re loving at the festival!

Hear! Hear! (Our favorite sets of the day)

In possibly the biggest draw Union Park has seen in awhile, James Murphy and the rest of the LCD Soundsystem family graced the stage just as the sun set across the way. Playing out the night with the hits (for lack of a better word, sorry James), the crowd was filled with a palpable excitement that didn’t subside until they were collectively sure there was no encore. The wave of emotion and groove catalyzed by moments such as the drop in “Dance Yrself Clean” and wonderfully drawn out “Get Innocuous” moved spectators of all ages. The giant disco ball and light show just added to the frantic rave going down during “New York, I Love You But You’re Bringing Me Down”. – Andrew

I knew going into the day that Danny Brown was going to get everyone into the festival state of mind but I wasn’t quite prepared for the gusto with which he would do so. Yesterday’s Pitchfork crowd was especially subdued, even during Vince Staples’ set on the same stage a couple of hours before, but Brown was able to coax more energy out of them than was seen until headliners LCD hit the stage. Tongue out and devil horns flashing, it was impossible not to get caught up in Brown’s live performance which was as much a visual spectacle as an audible one. I’m not sure anyone else will be able to bring that energy again. – Kara

Dropping the Mic (The Day’s let downs)

When you have the track record that Dave Longstreth does on his work with Dirty Projectors, there is a certain expectation that holds for live shows. Knowing the music Longstreth and co. make is so dynamic and explosive, I was a bit miffed with the live renditions off their S/T release. The album itself is dense and uniquely layered, so hearing stems play live with little texture added didn’t go over too well. That being said, I appreciated the bright horn arrangements and minimalist approach to the material from Swing Lo Magellan tracks. – Andrew

It’s always kind of sad when you hear the live version of a recorded track you love and it just drops the ball. I was left with that feeling hearing Frankie Cosmos’ ‘If I Had a Dog.’ Perhaps it was the location’s acoustics or a strange live mix but one of my favorite tracks off of Next Thing lost its warmth and felt far too sparse even for a Frankie Cosmos track. The rest of the set had the same quality, which I was not expecting from Kline and her band. – Kara

Ear Candy (what a treat! our unexpected loves)

I know Danny Brown is amazing–no one needs to remind me of that. Even then, I was pleasantly surprised with the sheer energy and happiness that could possibly come from one man up on a stage. With his trademark cackle and The Wall shirt, Brown engaged his crowd on a highly personal level as every head moving with the glitched out tracks being laid down. Though the set was thorough, it also moved way too fast–a sure indication I was having way more fun than I realized. -Andrew

I had only previously heard Dawn Richard on the Dirty Projectors track ‘Cool Your Heart’ (cowritten by Sunday’s headliner Solange) before yesterday. While she was fabulous on the featured song on the recording and in person during David Longstreth & Co’s set, she absolutely killed her own performance on the Blue Stage. While the Blue Stage is more secluded and much smaller than the other two, Dawn brought high production value and even higher energy. She and her backup dancers were incredibly fun to shoot and the music was complex but danceable. I’ll definitely be adding a few of her tracks to a FemmeFreak playlist. -Kara

Airing of the Grievances

I’m good! – Andrew

I absolutely love most things about Vince Staples – his lyricism, flow, the challenge he asserts to everyone to take him at face value or dare to delve in deeper – but sadly his live singing voice is not included in that list. While the rest of his set was absolutely seamless, the mix for ‘Lemme Know’ featured Staples rap-singing the harmony of the chorus above the track of Jhene Aiko who brings the breathy melody. It was jarring and took me out of the moment, leaving me wishing he had chosen another track during his all too short set. A smaller issue to some, it was one that stuck with me throughout the rest of the day, perhaps because of the perfection I expect of him. – Kara

Foodie Fights (the best of food/drink for Friday)

Since the West Loop neighborhood is basically synonymous with exceptional food, I had my eyes on getting over to Green Street Smoked Meats, just East of the park grounds. Now, even by the name, any meat lover would be sold on this place, but the resulting meal was something I was not prepared for. In an almost cafeteria-style setting, Kara and I devoured about 2 lbs of food late after we finished our first day of coverage. There is really no better way to cap than with BBQ. – Andrew

While we didn’t grab anything to eat during the festival itself, Andrew took me to Do-Rite Donuts before we started the day and I’m still thinking about the spicy chicken sandwich I got there. The combination of sandwich and chocolate donut was the perfect mix of savory and sweet to get me through a long day of shooting. -Kara