For day two at Outside Lands I experimented with bike parking, forgoing the bike valet service for my own lock and a chain link fence near the polo field entrance. Many hours later, it was confirmed: best idea ever.
I arrived at the festival just before the end of Zola Jesus‘ set to find the Lands End stage even larger than I remembered. A U-shaped ramp jutted out from the main stage, ready for two hours of Metallica later that night. From what I saw, Zola Jesus started the day with a bang. Their closing number had the drummer pounding out a Phil Collins-esque beat while singer Nika Roza Danilova sung in low sultry tones. The song ended with her repeatedly smashing the crash cymbal, double-handed, ringing the day to clanging attention.
Zola Jesus at Outside Lands 2012; Photo: Wendy Goodfriend.As more and more people filed onto the Polo Field picnic blankets were lifted in favor of standing. A group of floppy-haired young men filed onstage. Australia’s Tame Impala were up. I can’t imagine the average age of Tame Impala band members is over 30, but here they were, channeling psychedelic groove rock from an era well before their time. Each song triggered a game of “sounds like” in my memory banks: Blondie’s “Call Me,” anything by XTC, the Kinks, even Of Montreal. This unplaceable familiarity possibly detracted from their otherwise engaging show — listening became a personal challenge to place influences and similar sounds, rather than a pure appreciation of the spacey rock at hand.
Tame Impala at Outside Lands 2012; Photo: Wendy Goodfriend.
Tame Impala at Outside Lands 2012; Photo: Wendy Goodfriend.Following this, I journeyed over to the Sutro stage to hear the relatively new group Alabama Shakes play what they term ‘roots rock.’ To my ears, there was nothing to differentiate these songs from soul tunes of the ’60s. Which isn’t to say they weren’t great performers. Lead singer Brittany Howard delivers her lyrics with soft hums, harsh growls, and everything in between, creating plenty of opportunities for dynamic builds. Alabama Shakes produced the first truly danceable music I heard all day — and the crowd responded appropriately.
Alabama Shakes at Outside Lands 2012; Photo: Wendy Goodfriend.Though I originally planned to next see Explosions in the Sky, on my way to the Twin Peaks stage the crush of people between me and my destination dissuaded me. Saturday was way more crowded than Friday. I also had a hankering to hear something completely different than the guitar-heavy first half of my afternoon. Staking out a spot for Big Boi turned out to be a great idea.