Top 5 reasons why Bumbershoot rocks in the rain
Bumbershoot 2014. (KCPQ photo)
SEATTLE – When news of crummy weather forecasted for Labor Day Weekend came out earlier this week, you got down. What, you screamed. It’s supposed to rain? How can I sport my hot shorts, tube top and no shoes look to Bumbershoot if it's 60s and raining?
But as quick as Starbucks pours espresso shots, you came to your senses. Living in the Pacific Northwest has prepared you for three things: Knowing ferry rates anytime of the year, growing accustomed to hearing talk of an expansive monorail and heading to outdoor music when the weather is less than ideal.
Well, maybe living in the Northwest has prepared you for more, but you’ve at least got these down.
Here are five reasons why Saturday’s rain at Seattle’s premiere music festival couldn’t keep you down.
5 Reasons why Bumbershoot rocks in the rain
5.The retirees parked in front of the Starbucks Stage saw 10 times as much rain at Woodstock – You call this rain? It’s hardly even a mist. When we saw Jimi at Woodstock in ‘69….
No, seriously. Bumbershoot does a great job of appealing to all crowds, retirees and over 60-somethings included. As the weed wafts in the air above the Starbucks Stage to the funky sounds of Gregory Porter or Donnie & Joe Emerson, you get the feelings these gray-hairs have seen grayer clouds above.
4. It’s sweat, not rain, at the Pavilion Stage – On the other end of them spectrum, you have the crowds fist-pumping to Electronic Dance Music at the Pavilion Stage. If these girls and boys are a tick over 16 years old, color me surprised. Who cares about heavy rain when you have heavy base, colorful glow sticks and your favorite tank top on? Not Charlie listening to the EDM. Wait - shut up. The base is about to drop.
3. The beachy love songs of Mac DeMarco – Though Candaian, Matt DeMarco’s tunes are fresh out of '50s surf culture. Crunchy guitar, rangy vocals and a beer in the hand, DeMarco was the surprise find of Saturday. Described as Slacker Rock, songs like “I’m a man” and “Salad Days” take you from the moist grass and to a warm beach.
2. Can’t rain on Wu-Tang – Have you ever been starstruck? Maybe you ran into Steven Tyler at an airport lounge, or saw Tom Hanks eating pizza in L.A. Butterflies rise in your stomach and for a brief moment, you fantasize about the few words you’ll say to the star to help cement you two as lifelong friends.
That's how I felt staring at Wu-Tang Clan from the crowded Mainstage GA area. The RZA, GZA. Gohstface Killa. From skateboard videos when I was 12, to crowded college party C.R.E.A.M speaker sessions when I was 20, these guys have been in my life. Their milling around on stage – punctuated by harsh, on-point rhymes – made my night.
1. We’re Northwestrians, Duh – Whether you chose to wear hiking boots and a poncho, or stick with the hot shorts and a tube top, the rain bothered you not. It’s perhaps the most tired stereotype around that those from the Pacific Northwest can handle the rain. But some stereotypes ring truer than a Seahawks victory. Sure, it rained at Bumbershoot. But it wasn’t the first time and it won’t be the last.
Rock on.
For Bumbershoot’s Sunday and Monday Lineup and where to buy tickets, click here.